Saw palmetto and vitex... Is it too late for our attempt?

[harleyquinn]

Well if this site was about WWHQD (what would harleyquinn do) I would take it all month long in prep for a future attempt.

I really honestly have no idea what Atomic would say but under WWHQD logic...its not a bad idea to take it continuously for a month beforehand.

[The Anchor]

The bigger issue is taking it while you're pregnant. Anything that can affect your hormones should be avoided during pregnancy (obviously, unless doc prescribes it). So if you aren't TTC then you can take it for the month. It has delayed O in some women, so I would stop taking it if you haven't O'd by your regularly scheduled time

[strawberryapple]

Thank you harleyquinn and The Anchor for both of your replies and help, we have definitely decided to wait till next month so we will be extra careful for the rest of this month and carry on taking both the vitex and saw palmetto till ov next month... then make our attempt!

Harleyquinn, whats the best way to contact Atomic if I have any questions or thoughts I needed help with?

[The Anchor]

Just post in the gender swaying forums, she'll get to it. I don't recommend PM'ing her, she just posted that she's in over her head. She'll get to your q's, promise.

[strawberryapple]

Hi Emily, yes we are doing exactly the same sways, it's really comforting to see someone else having the same plan! The only difference is the peppermint tea and saw palmetto. It would be great to stay in touch to see how you are getting on. I am now so pleased we are also waiting till next month, then what ever happens we can relax and enjoy our pregnancies knowing we did everything we could hope your sway goes really well, fingers crossed!

[strawberryapple]

Thanks The Anchor

[Emily]

Hi Emily, yes we are doing exactly the same sways, it's really comforting to see someone else having the same plan! The only difference is the peppermint tea and saw palmetto. It would be great to stay in touch to see how you are getting on. I am now so pleased we are also waiting till next month, then what ever happens we can relax and enjoy our pregnancies knowing we did everything we could hope your sway goes really well, fingers crossed!

I have sent you a friend request so that we can keep in touch

[atomic sagebrush]

Ok I have talked with the OP a bit via PM and wanted to catch everyone up on what my POV was. PLEASE always keep in mind that we have no hard scientific evidence to back up any of this, I'm just going off what makes sense TO ME after having observed the results of people taking the herbs in various patterns the last couple of years..

the V and the SP, taken continuously, are acting almost as a BCP for some people. As in, it's preventing ovulation from occuring, not just delaying it, when taken non-stop. This ~could~ yield an egg that is 2 months old or more (example, you ovulate in January, get AF the first of Feb, then start V and SP for 6 straight weeks and do not O again until the end of March or even longer. There is also the stress factor to consider - I think it's very very stressful to not know when you are going to ovulate and the herbs are SO unpredictable to begin with, and taking them 6 weeks straight only adds fuel to the fire.

As a result, my gut instinct is that it is best in terms of safety and ease of use, not to take the herbs 6 weeks straight. It very well may be a better sway to do so, however. So if you think you'll still O while taking the herbs (many people do) OR are going to be taking Clomid which will possibly help you to O more quickly with a better quality egg, then the 6 weeks may be a good idea for you. If you are older or have had repeat losses, you may not want to take the risk.

As I always say, my crystal ball is in the shop and so I can't predict how any herbs will affect any one individual. Lots of people have taken them nonstop and ovulated while doing so, and lots of others have had perfectly healthy pregnancies even with eggs that are a couple of months old. At the end of it all it has to come down to what feels right TO YOU.

[atomic sagebrush]

Another possible option would be to start the herbs AFTER ovulation in the month before you are set to try. So wait for Feb's ovulation, then immediately after, start the herbs and take till CD 14 or pos OPK of the following month, whichever comes first..

I personally feel that has much more risk for screwing up your cycle than either of the other options, but it is a possibility.

[atomic sagebrush]

Just post in the gender swaying forums, she'll get to it. I don't recommend PM'ing her, she just posted that she's in over her head. She'll get to your q's, promise.

Yes, I really really really prefer that people (aside from custom sway plan members) don't PM me for questions that are not like, TOTAL emergencies. I'm sorry, I don't mean to chastise anyone and this is not anything personal or directed towards any one person, but this question was not urgent, people gave very thorough and well-thought out responses, and yet I did end up answering it via PM. Then I STILL have to answer on the forum as well for all the other people who may read the thread.

It's getting to the point now where I may even have to stop PM's all together like Tamara did. It's not fair to me, my kids, my husband, and all the other people who wait patiently for me to answer. I have a tendency to answer PM's even when I prob. shouldn't and it is also hard for me to keep track of what I've answered and what I haven't if people are both posting and sending PMs.

If you guys do ever feel like I missed a post (which happens) then either give it a bump or send me a PM with the LINK to the thread in it so I can answer in the forum itself.