Could Clomid mess my cycle?

Hello, I’ve been lurking on this site for over a year now and all the info here have been very helpful in many ways. Thank you!sorry for a long post in advance. Bit of a background, I’m 34 and I've got 2 boys: 6&4 years old. I’ve been trying to conceive for just under 2 years (hoping for a girl). I had miscarriage at 7 weeks last December. Both my boys were conceived on first month of trying. Ive been on le diet for about 18 months now but I’m not so strict with it in terms of counting protein, fat etc as I get too stressed about it. I’ve got no problem with ovulation ( I think) but out of desperation I purchased clomid online and have used it for 2 cycles now. First cycle I only took 25mg , second cycle 50mg, days 3-7. First cycle of clomid I got positive clear blue ovulation test on day 15, but then I started spotting on day 24 of my cycle and got period on cycle 28. Similar pattern this month, positive op test cycle day 14 and started spotting day 23 (I’m on day 25 today) . Prior to taking clomid my cycles were 30-32 days with positive ovulation test on around day 18 and no spotting before the period. I also have been getting strong ovulation pains for several days since on clomid. Did any of you girls have any similar experience? I’m starting to think that maybe clomid is no good for me as I feel like it messed with my cycle? Not sure wether to continue or stop taking it ? Please need some advice x

Yes Clomid can mess up the cycle. That's not unusual.

But I'm going to need some more info. What is your BMI? Can you tell me roughly how many calories, fat, and protein you're eating?

Sometimes when people don't track nutrients they end up cutting back too far without realizing it. Even if you could just add up a normal day it may give us a clue what's going on.

Can you tell me everything your'e doing for swaying that isn't related to diet? Like timing, douching, that kind of thing??

Thank you for your reply. My BMI is currently 19.3. When I started on a diet over a year ago my BMI was 23.5. I don’t want to lose any more weight as I’m very skinny already, so I try to stay steady with my weight. My average calories intake is about 1500, protein 40-50, fat 35-40. I postpone my breakfast till 11. I have coffee with skimmed milk and sweetener and low fat yogurt and then I try to fit 2 more meals with last being at 6pm as after that I go to work (I work evenings). I don’t eat red meat, only chicken every other day and salmon once a week/2weeks. I don’t do any supplements other than folic acid ( I was taking calcium, magnesium and cranberry tablets before but I dropped it the month I started taking clomid) . 3 months ago I added exercising for about 50-60 min 5 days a week on stationery bike, I’m quite active anyway. In terms of BD pattern we were doing 1 attempt in fertility window, most of the time being on positive opk or flashing smiley (clear blue). Last cycle we switched to e4d. After BD I get up after about 10-15 min. My husband doesn’t support my swaying. Not sure what to do in terms of clomid wether to continue or stop, should I up my calories intake as I “burn” on average 900 calories during my exercise?

Ok. No more weight loss, you're already below my cutoff (as you prob. know)

I want you to up cals somewhat and fat to 50-60 g. I want you having a serving of full fat dairy every day, 4-6 eggs a week. the dairy fat keeps your cycle regular and will help you get pregnant.

My suspicion is adding the exercise plus the Clomid is making your estrogen too low so you're having the spotting. We need more fat and cals in you to help things normalize.

Keep going with e4d both before and after ovulation. If you're ready to, I'd add another attempt at positive OPK since you're on the Clomid. Or you can give it one more month with e4d before making the switch.

Thank you Atomic, I will do as you said., I might stick to e4d this next cycle, but if I won’t get pregnant then I will do e4d plus 1 more attempt at pos opk next time. Just a random question : is sugar free chewing gum okay between meals or would that be classed as a snack?

Anything sugar free with very low/no cals is fine between meals.

I need more advice Atomic,
I’ve completed 3 rounds of clomid with no luck, currently on my period. Last cycle I did e4d +1 more attempt and then continued e4d. Im currently on cycle day 2 of heavy period (4 days of spotting before). I only have 1 more round of clomid left. I’m questioning wether it actually is helping me:
# Cycle 1 of taking clomid: I took only 25mg - shorten my cycle to 27 days ( normally 30-32 with no spotting) and 4 days of spotting prior my period, positive opk cd 15
# cycle 2 : I took 50mg cd3-7, I had 7 days of spotting and then period arrived- cycle length 29 days, positive opk cycle day 16
# cycle 3 of clomid- added more fat and eggs, 5 days of spotting followed by heavy period with some blood clots (sorry for tmi), cycle length 30 days, positive opk cd 17

I’m worried about spotting prior to period as I’ve never had it before starting clomid. I was rubbish with my diet past last week as I was visiting my family in Poland and my mum thinks that I’m too skinny so she was keep on feeding me, I’ve had lots of cakes 😒 as I couldn’t resist so I put on about 2 kg and haven’t done any exercise which I know is bad for my sway. I’m back on track now with skipping breakfast and diet.

I would like to hear your thoughts on wether I should continue with last cycle of clomid? I could potentially get latrozole ( femara? ) but not this cycle. Or should I just drop it and do more attempts (which I know is not girl friendly ) ? Sorry for a long post and thank you for your help x

I would keep Clomid, keep the 2kg, and try to get letrozole for future cycles. Definitely do the e4d plus one more attempt at positive OPK this time through.

Are you doing anything like douching, shallow release, or anything that could reduce chances of conception?

Thank you for your reply. I did shallow release before but I dropped it about 2 months ago, since then after bd I lay in bed with pillow under my bum for at least 20 min before getting up. I don’t do anything else. X

Oh good I'm glad the shallow release has gone. Let's be sure to spend part of that time on your tummy in case your uterus is a little tipped. This has helped a lot of people who just weren't getting pregnant for seemingly no reason.

We could also add in a female O if you weren't doing that.