If you have a question, please post it here:)

[atomic sagebrush]

Zyrtec and Benadryl are safe to take while TTC. I tend to prefer Zyrtec only because it's less likely to make you drowsy. Your body still produces some CM even while on antihistamine. For some people, diet and other supps in addition to the antihistamine DID make them too dry, and they dropped the antihistamine after a month or two. But antihistamine alone, rarely dries people up enough to prevent pregnancy.

Most people have been getting pregnant easily while taking antihistamine.

RepHresh does nothing to dry up CM whatsoever. It lowers the pH of your vaginal tract and husband's semen only and makes it harder for sperm to swim into your cervix and beyond. RepHresh can certainly lower your odds of pregnancy, but not because it dries up CM.

[wantagirly23]

How long before doing dtd should I take the zyrtec? As soon as I get the positive opk?

[fourunderfour]

If DH and I are trying to sway PINK and are usually more of an "abstain" type couple (could easily let 2 weeks get away from us) - would it be best to try the opposite with FR? Or does that not matter at all?

[atomic sagebrush]

It's up to you - if you usually get lots of EWCM before O, start it 5 days before O or the first day you notice EWCM, whichever comes first. Don't use it O day or after your attempt.

If your EWCM dries up due to diet or SP, you may want to use it ONLY the day of your attempt.

You can also treat it as a "rescue" method and only use it if you need it - like on the day of your attempt, if you suddenly see lots of EWCM you can use an antihistamine then.

Zyrtec needs to be taken at least 6 hours before attempt (it takes some time to work but lasts for a long time) while Benadryl can be taken 1-2 hours before attempt (works faster but does not last as long.)

[atomic sagebrush]

If DH and I are trying to sway PINK and are usually more of an "abstain" type couple (could easily let 2 weeks get away from us) - would it be best to try the opposite with FR? Or does that not matter at all?

If abstain is easy for you, I'd do abstain - provided he is under 35.

[fourunderfour]

thanks atomic.
i wonder if you have any experience with REs??
I know i had mentioned that we used clomid in the past (to achieve 2 pregnancies - 1 m/c), but that b/c I couldn't achieve another pg after the m/c the docs said it has "run it's course" - then put me on follistim and IUI - which resulted in my twin boys.
do you think they'd put me back on clomid if i requested it specifically? do you think they'd think i was "nuts" for saying something about trying to sway pink or could i just say I'd really like to NOT have twins this time (because it is true...)
to note: it has been 4 years since I've taken clomid (i was not on metformin while doing so...but will be this time)...
i remember reading that FR is best with clomid (so no abstaining for us)...and that vitex and SP are good beforehand?
(i have an appointment at the end of this month for a consultation w an RE and would love to have a 'plan for myself' before i go along with theirs...).

also, i was wondering - do you think that a sway plan would help me - considering my restrictions of PCOS and needing fertility treatments?

[atomic sagebrush]

I have secondhand experience only - friends/clients who were cycling or on fertility meds. That having been said, it is a pretty extensive secondhand experience.

I think RE's are great and genuinely want to help, but sometimes I think the old adage "Give a boy a hammer and everything he encounters begins to look like a nail" often holds true. They are often in a hurry to escalate to more advanced treatments, in no small part because they really do care and want you to get pregnant as quickly as possible.

Question - did you OVULATE on the Clomid and just not get pregnant, or did you not even ovulate?? If you didn't ovulate on Clomid or if you've been on it longer than 12 months, it has run it's course and you def. need to move to the next level of fertility drugs. If you did ovulate on Clomid and didn't take it that long, and you are under 35 and your FSH levels are ok, I'd float the idea and see what they say, but don't set your heart on the idea. If they say no way, no how, that's fine! You then have the option of doing JUST injectibles or even ask about Femara (Femara is a drug that works similarly to Clomid but may be better for people who've had bad results on Clomid - it's not FDA approved for fertility and would have to be used off-label.) Neither Follistim nor Femara sway pink, but at least they don't sway blue as much as an IUI would. The Metformin will also be working for you.

I wouldn't mention that you want Clomid to sway pink, I think that would go over like a lead balloon!! I would stick to wanting to reduce your odds of twinning and also that you want to try it while on Met to see if that helps.

FR or even skipping frequency patterns all together are best with Clomid. You want to get pg as quickly as you can.

We've had good results with people taking vitex/SP for a month prior to starting the Clomid - so you'd take it month 1 af-af, then stop it CD 1 and switch to Clomid. You can also do this with your follistem/Femara if you were prescribed those instead.

A sway plan is always an option if it makes you feel more relaxed about swaying. I've made plans for people on Clomid in the past.

[fourunderfour]

Here is my history with Clomid. ((in 2006 (can't remember the exact months))
Regular OB prescribed 1 round 50 mg. Ovulated, no pregnancy.
next month 50 mg...no ovulation.
started progesterone to bring on a period, then was bumped to clomid 100mg.
Got pregnant and delivered DS1 in 2007.
In 2008 decided to try for another.
Took progesterone to bring on a period. Clomid 100mg. Pregnant 1st try.
lost baby at 10 weeks gestation.
Waited over 2 months, took progesterone, then clomid 100. No ovulation
progesterone again, bumped to clomid 150mg. No ovulation....
OB sent me to RE. ((so...overall about 6 cycles on clomid, but not consecutive))
RE brought on period with progesterone, gave me directions for follistim pen.
Trigger for ovulation, IUI... BFN

Decided in Nov 2008 to start adoption process.
DS2 came home from Ethiopia March 2010.

MOVED from IL to MD (different REs)
After consultation and testing (HSG, blood work for me and DH, everything checked out fine).
Put on progesterone, started follistim with monitoring (on very low dose)
Had 2 mature follicles and "2 on it's back."
Trigger shot on 7/29.
IUI on 7/31 - my 27th birthday!
BFP...twins - DS 3 & 4

So...yes I have ovulated on clomd, but then I also have not. It's been 4 years since I did a round of clomid.
I believe when I did my initial consultation with the RE here, she saw that the last thing I had done was follistim and IUI so decided to go with that (though trying to convince me that IVF was the better route).

So that's my history.
Can I follow up with some questions?
Though i HAVE gotten my period 3 times in the past 4 months (verrrrrry rare for me), I have no way of knowing when AF will show up or how long it'll be until another will show up. With taking SP and vitex...is it safe to take it for an extended period of time (with an irregular cycle)?
I remember asking one (or more) of my docs about Femara but was told they don't prescribe it b/c it's not FDA approved...but I will ask again at my appt on the 29th.

I'll be 29 in July and DH is 29. He never has or will drink/smoke and his sperm are "champion swimmers" and he's on board with most of this stuff for me - though not a big fan of exercising.......

Oh, and with the exercising - I may have posted a message in that thread, but "while i have you" could I ask if there are alternate forms of pink swaying exercise besides running? We live in the back country with no sidewalks for my older sons to ride their bikes along side me. I have a triple stroller (front to back) that is a BEAST - over 50 lbs, with 3 riders 22-29 lbs a piece...but it is not a jogger (not that I think I could push that load while running anyway)...but would this work to take out for an hour and get the recommended exercise while walking briskly? or will that just be swaying more blue.
Ever hear of good exercise DVDs to purchase? (We no longer have comcast.)

If I do end up with the RE telling me that I need follistim, what would be the important sway factors to look at? You said they don't sway pink - so would I need to take the antihistamine, rephresh? and what about DTD?
Ever hear of Bravelle? Does it sway pink?
I suppose the one good thing about the trigger is you know exactly when you'll ovulate - but if "timing" is debunked, what sort of pink do i have to lean on?

have you done sway plans for anyone with PCOS and on injectables?

I have secondhand experience only - friends/clients who were cycling or on fertility meds. That having been said, it is a pretty extensive secondhand experience.

I think RE's are great and genuinely want to help, but sometimes I think the old adage "Give a boy a hammer and everything he encounters begins to look like a nail" often holds true. They are often in a hurry to escalate to more advanced treatments, in no small part because they really do care and want you to get pregnant as quickly as possible.

Question - did you OVULATE on the Clomid and just not get pregnant, or did you not even ovulate?? If you didn't ovulate on Clomid or if you've been on it longer than 12 months, it has run it's course and you def. need to move to the next level of fertility drugs. If you did ovulate on Clomid and didn't take it that long, and you are under 35 and your FSH levels are ok, I'd float the idea and see what they say, but don't set your heart on the idea. If they say no way, no how, that's fine! You then have the option of doing JUST injectibles or even ask about Femara (Femara is a drug that works similarly to Clomid but may be better for people who've had bad results on Clomid - it's not FDA approved for fertility and would have to be used off-label.) Neither Follistim nor Femara sway pink, but at least they don't sway blue as much as an IUI would. The Metformin will also be working for you.

I wouldn't mention that you want Clomid to sway pink, I think that would go over like a lead balloon!! I would stick to wanting to reduce your odds of twinning and also that you want to try it while on Met to see if that helps.

FR or even skipping frequency patterns all together are best with Clomid. You want to get pg as quickly as you can.

We've had good results with people taking vitex/SP for a month prior to starting the Clomid - so you'd take it month 1 af-af, then stop it CD 1 and switch to Clomid. You can also do this with your follistem/Femara if you were prescribed those instead.

A sway plan is always an option if it makes you feel more relaxed about swaying. I've made plans for people on Clomid in the past.

[atomic sagebrush]

1)yeah, if you're not Oing regularly on Clomid, then it's best to do injectibles instead. It's just that a lot of people's RE's push them into IUI without really trying Clomid and I had to ask to make sure what your situation was.

2) I think it's AWESOME you adopted a little guy from Ethiopia! God bless you! ♥

3)Normally with an irregular cycle, I just have people take Vitex and SP for 14 days and then stop. That way you don't end up staying on it for too long. Plus, it seems to work best that way and we've had some ladies even with very kooky cycles who went onto V and SP and things normalized (hope this is true for you too!)

4)Yes, some doctors won't give you Femara. It IS FDA approved, just not for fertility. It's a really good drug and I hope they approve it in the future.

5)any of the dancey cardio exercise tapes (Zumba and Walk away the pounds are two I've used) are GREAT! The only thing you need to look out for is kickboxing or other videos where you go through the motions of fighting - I don't know but I believe it could be true that the motions of fighting could trigger your body to raise T levels. Walking is fine too as long as you do it with some intensity (and I used to have a twin stroller and DANG it was intense pushing that thing!!) and try for the 6-7 days a week, 60 min while losing weight on a low protein diet.

6)I would have you do diet and antihistamine with the Follistim, plus have your husband reduce those champion swimmers with licorice root and abstain. I would just have you BD once, a day before you expected to O. (at least for the first month or two IF you felt good about it.) You still have great odds of pink because it's the journey of the sperm to the egg that seems to sway, and with the injectibles, you can still control that environment. With IUI, you can't.

7)Bravelle is pretty close to the same as Follistim, with a slightly different amount of FSH/LH. So one drug might be better for you depending on your numbers and your doctor will decide which is best based on your pretesting. I don't think either Bravelle or Follistim really sway either direction and haven't been able to find any data on that.

8)I have done plans for people with PCOS but not injectibles.

[Feeling Blue]

hi all

does gender swaying (particularly pink) increase your chances of twins if there is a history of them in the family???