# Confused



## Georgie123 (Oct 8, 2010)

I am in desperate need of help!!!!. I have ever been very girlie, and find it really hard to understand all this abbreviated talk. It just really confuses me, makes me feel inadaquate and thick. can somebody please take the time to explain what all these things mean. eg: FSH, IUI, IVI PCOS ect ect.
I have just hard to stop my first round of clomid as i have OHSS (this one I actually KNow).
Another question, is there a set time every month that you ovuate, i was told the 14th day of my cycle. I really feel like a duck out of water, but really want a baby.


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## Juls78 (May 2, 2009)

Hiya- don't worry about not knowing stuff, we all felt like that at the beginning. One thing about infertility is you will soon become an (somewhat) expert. If you go to the introductions and starting out page there is a topic there bout what every member needs to know (abbreviations and stufff). Also if you post in there that you are new and need advice a board mod will come along and welcome you with links to find out more.

Good luck with your journey!
julsxx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi there

I don't think it's a case of "being girlie" when it comes to the abbreviations etc used....sadly it's just because we're all members of this website that we've learnt the abbreviations due to fertility issues....it'll come to you, don't worry









If you have a look on the Introductions board there is a pinned post at the top entitled "Everything a new member needs to know ~ Frequently Asked Questions" and that gives you lots of information about abbreviations used and how to navigate this website....

http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=190482.0

But just as a quick overview...

FSH...follicle stimulating hormone
LH - lutenising hormone
PCOS - polycystic ovarian syndrome
IUI - intra uterine insemination
IVF - In vitro fertilisation 
ICSI - Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (similar to IVF but the fertilisation is different)
FET - Frozen Embryo Transfer (using frozen embryos from a previous fresh IVF/ICSI)
BFP - Big Fat Positive (positive pregnancy test)
BFN - Big Fat Negative (negative pg test)
OPK - ovulation predictor kit
OHSS - ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome
CD - cycle day
DPO - days past/post ovulation
2ww - 2 week wait (from ovulation/egg collection or insemination until test day or period due date)
EC - egg collection (part of IVF/ICSI)
ET - embryo transfer (part of IVF/ICSI/FET)
AF - aunt flow (your period)
TTC - trying to conceive

As for when would you ovulate, it's a complete myth that you always ovulate on cd14. Some women will ovulate earlier or later. It's also a myth that luteal phase (from ovulation to period) is always 14 days...it can be anywhere between 10 - 17/18 days and still be classed as normal.

How long are your cycles ? Are they regular or irregular ? What hormone blood tests, other than FSH have you had done ? Have you had FSH tested more than once ? Have you had any progesterone blood tests to confirm ovulation ? These progesterone tests are usually done on cd21 but this assumes you ovulate on cd14. Progesterone peaks at 7dpo so ideally this is when it should be tested so if you ovulated earlier or later than cd14 then get tested accordingly eg ovulate cd16 then get progesterone tested on cd23 etc.

I think we can all relate to your comment "I really want a baby".....my boyfriend and me have been ttc for over 7 years (started when I was 34 and he was 28 !)....6mths of clomid to boost, 7 IVF/FETs and 5 early mc's later and we still don't have a baby.....it's not an easy journey that's for sure.

If you're ttc naturally (albeit with some help from clomid) then you may also want to try monitoring your cycles to see patterns such as charting your basal temps, cervical mucus and position etc....here's some info...

http://www.webwomb.com/checking_cervical_fluid.htm

http://www.webwomb.com/cervical_mucus_page.htm

http://www.webwomb.com/cervical_position_frame_page.htm

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Cervix_checkup_(no_description).svg

http://www.fertilityplus.org/faq/bbt/bbtfaq.html

Also a good book when you're ttc naturally..."Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Weschler and the website... www.tcoyf.com

Maybe you'd like to post an introductory message on the main Introductions board giving a little bit of background about yourself and meet other new members. How old are you, how long have you been ttc, what are your reasons for needing fertility treatment such as clomid ?

Hope that helps...

Good luck








Natasha

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