# Single and a bit scared!Any advice on PCOS?



## loopylouz1975 (Sep 10, 2010)

Hi
Am new to this fertility friends thing and just wondered if anyone could offer some friendly advice!

Recently single as my ex and I couldn't agree on the kids thing and so the only solution was to part company and go it alone! Sad but having a baby is too important to me to give up on.
I also have PCOS - double whammy.

Am trying to work out how to know when your peak ovulation time is if you don't get periods! As I have about 1 every 4 years! Do the basal body thermometers work? Do the ovulation predictors work?

I'm also having trouble finding a sperm donor -am currently trying through Pride Angel but not getting very far -guys are interested initially and then never reply after the first email -what I am doing wrong?
Has anyone had success any other way?

Any advice would be much appreciated!
Thanks
Lou


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## ♥JJ1♥ (Feb 11, 2006)

Wishing you lots of luck also pop over to the single girls thread( some girls are single & gay) as they might be able to help too 
http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?board=403.0
Wishing you lots of luck


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## snagglepat (Sep 13, 2004)

On the PCOS front you are probably going to have to do something to get yourself having regular-ish cycles before you'll be fertile. I would have periods every 3-4 months but these were usually not fertile cycles. It's worth speaking to your GP and asking for a referral to your local NHS fertility unit. If you explain that you'll be inseminating with donor sperm so need to get to the point where you're at least having cycles to even begin to try then you should get that - you have a diagnosed fertility issue so shouldn't have to go privately, at least initially, though there may be quite a waiting list. 

There are a number of things you can get on the NHS once you see the specialist. The first will probably be metformin, a drug which can take several months to get into your system and for the not-so-nice side effects to ease off, but for many women with PCOS it does the trick. It worked for me, taking 2-3 months the first time and closer to 6 the second time before I was having cycles every 5-ish weeks. This, combined with monitoring my mucus enabled us to pinpoint closely enough when ovulation was occurring so we could arrange inseminations with our known donor and I'm due to give birth to our second child any day. If the metformin doesn't work there are further steps which you may well also be entitled to, such as taking clomid, another drug which stimulates the ovaries to release an egg (or several). You can then inseminate at home once you know you're actually fertile.

After this you're looking at more invasive procedures (such as IUI/IVF) which you probably wouldn't be entitled to on the NHS and would be more awkward, though certainly not impossible with a known donor. For us, although it took some time it was a relatively uncomplicated process to get the referrals and then take the meds so we could try at home. The donation aspect was managed entirely by us, proivately, but due to the PCOS we did need additional medical support so that we had any chance of success at it.

Good luck!

Gina. x


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