# When do you take your Clomid tablets?



## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

And did the doctor give you a reason for taking them on those days? It's strange how different doctors prescribe Clomid for different days, but don't give reasons. I have FINALLY been given Clomid because I don't ovulate after being on DEPO 20 months ago.. then doctor won't refer me but has given me 5 50mg tablets and only wants me to take it for 1 month... if that doesn't work I have to wait a few months and get referred instead. But tbh he didn't see bothered in helping me with any information. There was no instructions in the packet and when I asked him when to take it he said days 3-7 or 5-9. I asked him which 1 was best and he said both are the same I can take it either. Doesn't sound very professional to me? He is the doctor who specialisies in fertility there so the others can't help me. Surely taking it at different times much make a difference? My hormones are normal there was just no rise each month to show ovulation. So the doctor reckons I am producing eggs, just not releasing them! xx


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## Nix76 (Aug 2, 2006)

Hi Wishingangel22,

My cons prescribed me 6 months of 100mg clomid to be taken on days 2 to 6 of my cycle. They were very precise about it too - saying that only to count a proper red bleed starting before 5pm as day 1.

I'm really no expert and am sure one of the other girls will give you better advice, but it does sound quite vague to me   

Do you have a sub-fertility clinic at your hospital ?  if so, maybe you could call and speak to a nurse/sister there ?  The sister at my hospital is amazing and I always talk to her rather than the cons as he is very difficult to talk to !

Good luck hun  

Nix


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## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

well i think the hospital near me is the one he would refer me to but he didnt tell me he just said i would get referred. tbh he has only given me the clomid because i bugged the hell out of him. he wanted me to wait until sept as then i will have been off the depo injection for 2 years. then clinic wont accept me until then. so he's given me 1 months worth to ''kick start ovulation'' but hasnt given me any decent info. he isnt going to do any monitoring on it but i mithered him for 21 day bloods and he has finally given in. i guess tbh he just doesnt want to be mithered with me. i ask alot of questions because i like to know everything about it all but he was useless! xx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi

Glad to hear that your GP has finally agreed to prescribed you clomid, albeit only for a month.

I know I've mentioned this to you a couple of times but having your progesterone tested a couple of days after ovulation will not provide any accurate information regards whether you ovulate...you need to have this tested 7 days past ovulation.  Its like when my GP requested my FSH and LH to be tested on cd21 (same time as progesterone)...my fertility consultant said it was absolutely pointless when tested on that day...the same would be for your progesterone being tested too soon after ovulation.  As you're now going to take clomid, I would ask for a progesterone blood test to check your levels...and try to get this done 7 days past ovulation...many have tested on cd21 but this assumes you ovulated on cd14...so if you ovulate earlier or later I would really try to get tested at the right time...otherwise you're not getting accurate information.

As for what day to start taking clomid...your GP is correct...there is no absolutely no difference in how it works, whether you take it on days 3-7 or 5-9.

Some women are prescribed it cd2-6 but if your consultant said to take it cd3-7 or cd5-9 then I would go with this...I'd take it on cd3-7 if he's given you the option of taking it on either.

CD1 is the first day of full flow bleeding so ignore any spotting or brown old blood...and if full flow bleeding starts after about 3pm then you count following day as cd1...eg...

Monday...spotting/brown "old" blood
Tuesday...full flow red bleeding after 3pm
Wednesday...cd1
Thursday...cd2
Friday...cd3


I would ask if you can have your FSH and LH tested between cd2-5 (to check your ovarian reserve and any possibility of PCOS) and ask for progesterone blood test 7dpo (not necessarily cd21).

Hope that helps
Good luck
Natasha


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## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

i think he did mention 2-6... but really he was just telling me when people usually take it. bit daft though to ask me to choose lol. i wanted to pick 2-6 but wasnt sure if because i have eggs and dont ovulate (thats if hes even right) then i just presumed it would make a difference. i did mention to him that normally blood is taken 7 days after ovulation and he reasured me that ''i know what i am doing, me and my wife had fertility treatment to have our little one'' and i guess thats why i thought he be a bit more helpful also. its me who has to phone up for the blood test and he is still says 3dpo but i will just go for the test later... he probably wouldnt even notice anyway!!!
af arrived yesterday at around 4pm very heavy and its been heavy today... ive started using a clearblue monitor so have had to count today as cd1 for that purpose. so shall i count it as cd1 today for the tablets too? and start taking the clomid tomorrow? ive read on here that alot of people take it before bed so they dont get side effects... but my worry is what if something bad happens like you have a bad reaction while your asleep? and what do i need to be aware of? ive read up on it because i was going to self medicate before i went back to harrass the doctor lol. but reading on a website is much different to people who have taken it themselves.
im kinda worried for if something goes wrong... my doctor is the kind who will fob you off and tell you, you are fine... when infact your not. sometimes i think if i went in with a broken arm or leg he would just give me pain killers and send me on my way lol xx


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## Nix76 (Aug 2, 2006)

Your GP sound very similar to mine.  His answer to me ttc for 5 years with no joy was "Are you having sex ?".....oh THAT's what we're doing wrong    

I would defo take Minxy's advice, as she has a huge amount of knowledge about this hun  

Good Luck !!

Nix


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

well considering your GP has apparently had fertility treatment he's not too clued up as to when to have standard blood tests done !!! 

I totally agree with you...if you have to phone up for the blood test yourself then just have it done 7dpo (3dpo is way to early !!)...and he'll never know 

I took clomid cd2-6 (I ovulate fine but took it to boost - release more eggs)...I do think quite a few women take it on these days, so if your GP has left it completely up to you then go for it !! Seems pretty irresponsible attitude of your GP though if he's leaving it up to you...he should be ensuring your wellbeing on these drugs and making sure you know as much about them as possible !

I'm glad you decided against self-medicating...it really isn't a wise decision...despite your GP having a rather lax attitude to prescribing you the clomid, at least he is aware of it and it will be in your medical notes...much better to have some professional guidance (even if your GPs not so good !!) rather than buying something like this over the internet and self-medicating which really is way too risky.

As for when to take them...if you've calculated cd1 as today then start the clomid tomorrow, cd2.

I would definitely recommend taking them in the evening...I took them just before bedtime so you sleep through most of the side effects...we all react differently to the drugs and even each month can vary...so just because one person may experience lots of side effects, another may get none.

Common side effects are mood swings (being  one minute and   the next)...my DP thought I'd been possessed !!  

Because I ovulate naturally and always get pretty bad ovulation pain & symptoms, these were exacerbated on clomid cos I released 2 or 3 eggs each cycle. I did have a few hot flushes and some vivid dreams...nothing to major !

Anyway, hope this clomid triggers ovulation for you...
Good luck
Natasha

oh yeah, one other thing...if you're charting your temps you _may_ find they're a bit erratic when on clomid because it can slightly raise your temp anyway...so I wouldn't completely go by just the fertility monitor, although it might help you a bit...I'd use it in conjunction with checking other things like your cm, and just other body symptoms in general....and just have lots of







from around cd10 onwards...
(you would usually ovulate around 5-9 days after taking the last clomid pill....but this is not always the case as we're all different...just gives you a rough idea though)


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## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

thanks hun its so nice having people who help out when no one in the real world will! i havent even told my mum.. she keeps telling me shes too young to become a grandma lol. 
one more question (sorry im so nosey). if hes correct that i have eggs waiting and i dont release them.. does that mean when i do ovulate all the eggs that have been waiting will all come out and ill have way to many? or do you only have 1 in each tube waiting each month? sorry to sound thick but ive never really had that bit explained to me when you dont ovulate. i havent ovulated for 20 months so im just a bit worried on what might happen when i do lol xx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Ask away hun....I'll always try to answer if I can !

Your GP probably just means that you've got eggs in your ovaries but the hormones required to trigger ovulation haven't been doing there job properly.  The eggs haven't been released from your ovaries so there wouldn't be any in your tubes.  Each month, a number of follicles (fluid filled cysts) start to develop in your ovary (usually only one ovary a month)...one of these grows bigger and becomes the dominant follicle and releases an egg.  FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) encourages the growth of the follicles...LH (luteinising hormone) triggers the mature follicle to rupture and release the egg....any other follicles that had developed but not matured would just die off and be reabsorbed back into your body.  Most women will only release one egg a month, from one ovary.  Some women may release more than one egg a month, either from same or different ovaries...but if more than one egg released it would be within one 24 hour period (so you couldn't release an egg on Monday and another on Thursday !)

If your hormones haven't been doing this then you wouldn't have released any eggs.
Once released, an egg only survives for about 12-24 hours.

So don't worry, there's no way that all those "stored up" eggs will be released at once...it doesn't work like that.  You will probably only release 1 egg... possibly 3....but really this is why your GP should be closely monitoring you because you are young and without a scan there is no way of knowing how many follicles (and potential eggs) you will have.  I had scans for 1st 3 months on clomid and was told that if I'd had more than 3 dominant follicles then they'd advise against ttc that month as risk of multiple pregnancies...as it was I never released over 3 eggs...

Here's some more info...

"A woman has her lifetime supply of eggs (about 7 million) in her ovaries before she is even born and each month loses some, so by the time she is born the number has dwindled down to approximately 1 million. This steady decline continues so that approximately 300,000 remain as a woman enters puberty and the supply of eggs is depleted by the time a woman enters menopause"

Hope that helps a bit...

Take care
Natasha


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## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

thanks hun i understand it all more now lol. im not so confussled anymore! finally! well i will keep you updated on how i get on. thanks hun xx


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## Rosie P (Nov 10, 2005)

Hi. Just wanted to wish you good luck with the Clomid. 

You will learn lots from the ladies on this site - I've had such an education since joining here - and Natasha has given you some great information and advice.  I hope this cycle works for you.

If you want to chat/ compare notes with other lovely Clomid ladies, here's a link to the chat thread: http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=92576.120

Rosie. xxx


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## Beathag (Jul 27, 2005)

I'm on 100mg Clomid on days 2~6. I take the first tablet @ 8am and the 2nd @ 8pm the same day........


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## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

hi girls well dont ask me why but ive taken my tablet this morning instead of waiting until the evening so if i get side effects i will experience them all lol. how long does it take for the side effects to start when you first start taking clomid? i took 50mg at 8am this morning and so far i dont feel any different (im guessing thats a good thing).
also do you notice if it works? i dont ovulate but i get positives on opks so that wont work... so how am i going to be able to tell if i ovulate? just go off my positives and then hope i get the timing for my blood test right? xx


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## Nix76 (Aug 2, 2006)

Are you having scans done hun ?  I had a scan done on CD12 and then they told me when to get down to BMS !


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## wishingangel22 (Mar 19, 2007)

no hun he didnt want to monitor me at all but i persuaded him to do a blood test 7dpo. he said he is happy to help if i have any problems but i feel asthough if anything went wrong it would be too late by then because of his im not that bothered attitude lol. drs annoy me so much at the moment. all the money they are paid and for what? to be arrogant and idiotic. not all drs of course... just mine lol xx


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## Nix76 (Aug 2, 2006)

And mine hun !!   

Can't offer you much advice I'm afraid, but sure someone will pop up soon that can!  Cos of the PCOS the opk's have never been much good for me. 

I really hope that this works for you though - I know how frustrating it is to feel like you are getting nowhere and that the docs aren't helping or listening to you   

Nix


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## Rosie P (Nov 10, 2005)

Hi girls. Just wanted to let you know that some consultants don't deem it necessary to monitor you. My consultant didn't monitor me at all on Clomid, but told me to use OPKs. I did this but also charted my other ov signs like BBT, CM etc. and I found this confirmed ov in conjunction with the OPKs. In my case the blood tests would have been useless as I ov'd anywhere from CD14 to CD25, so the timing would wouldn't have been right (apart from the cycle I ov'd on CD14).

Good luck and try not to stress about things - just have plenty of BMS from around CD10 onwards.  

Rosie. xxx


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