# First clomid cycle, totally confused.



## nickyturns (May 8, 2007)

Hi fellow clomid takers. Help needed.
Ive had a look around other peoples posts and feel a bit confused and very naive. 
Im Nicky. TTC for nearly 4 years. May 06 had a lap and dye and was told tubes were blocked and wouldnt conceive naturally. Surgery needed. June06 BFP. Sept 06 MC.   Jan 07 had surgery to unbloke fallopian tubes which was a success. Told to go away and ttc for a year if no luck can go on to ivf waiting list. I have been having accupuncture and lots of   but so far no joy. I joined FF, what a wonderful site, and suddenly found that I didnt have to just sit around and wait I had other options.  So, took the plunge last week and spoke to my GP over the phone and asked if I could go onto clomid. After a short conversation he agreed and wrote me up a prescription to collect. 
I am on 50mg and have to take them day 2to6 of my cycle. Try it for three months and then he would review the situation. I assumed that this was all I needed to know but, after reading a few posts I am now unsure. I understand about the side effects, god help my husband, but I dont understand about follicle monitoring and what's cd21 bloods? None of this was mentioned to me. Do I need to have them as well?
Today at 5am!! The monthly arrived with a really sore back and huge stomach ache!! However, on the bright side I get to start my clomid tomorrow,so any advice, helpful hints or answers to my questions would be very gratefully received.
Thanks to anyone who read all this and sending lots of     to everyone on their journeys.
Nicky.
xxxxxxx


----------



## MrsRedcap (Jan 6, 2006)

Hiya Nicky,

Sorry about your miscarriage hun  

I've just started my first cycle of Clomid 50mg.

I'm being monitored while I'm on it having a scan on Day 12 and then Day 21 blood test which will tell us if ovulation has occured or not. 

Really for your first cycle of Clomid you should be monitored (My consultant insists on monitoring on first cycle). I've had a sterilisation reversal so high risk of ectopic and had a HSG to check if my tube was open. I notice that you've also had tubal surgery so really I would go and see your GP and ask if you can go for a follicle scan on Day 10-12.

I asked my GP if I could have Clomid and he said no way I'm not giving it to you, I'll send you back to the fertility clinic.

Clomid can be quite potent and dangerous (mum is a pharmacist) and she agrees that GP's should not be allowed to give it out. When I said to my mum about going to the GP to get it she said to me "If he's any decent GP he won't give it you, I'd rather you went back to the fertility clinic for it"

Vicki x


----------



## nickyturns (May 8, 2007)

Thanks for replying and the advice Vicki.
My fertility specialist isnt all that helpful which is why I went to my GP instead. My GP is usually very good and always willing to listen. Unfortunately my surgery doesn't just make appointments. They take your name and number and your GP phones you back to find out what the problem is and either sorts it out over the phone or books you an appointment. I will be making another phone call to him with my new findings and see what I can get done. When I was pregnant before I had to Hve an early scan to check there was no ectopic so that is in the back of my mind also.
It amazes me why we are not given all the facts in the first place!! My hubby picked up my prescription for me and he's been asked more questions when he has got a tube of canesten cream! He wasnt asked anything when he got my pills. 
Nicky.
xx


----------



## dakota (Feb 6, 2007)

Hi Nicky,

I wasnt monitered at all when i took clomid. Every hospital and clinic is different. You could make an appointment with your Gp and discuss it further? it could put your mind at rest.

I didnt do anything different while on clomid as it was my first cycle and was a little unsure what to expect. I was eating healthily and excersising as i was trying to lose weight.

I never expected a miracle to happen  

You could do a BBT chart which would help you pin point ovulation. day21 bloods are only helpful assuming you ovulate on day14. I had a few side affects but the one that i knew ment it was definately doing something is that for 3 days i had really tender ovaries and cervix. I'd never had this before.

Good luck hun     Clomid could be just the boost you need

Nikki xx


----------



## kellixxx (May 30, 2007)

hi nicky. good luck with your treatment. i have never been monerted whilst on clomid. i was told to   on days 12/20 so starting from day 12 i test for ov with ov test strips. 
when the test shows   ov normaly happens 24/36 hours after.
good luck. lots of       thorghts.xx


----------



## Rosie P (Nov 10, 2005)

Hi Nicky. I too wasn't monitored on Clomid. I was initially given Clomid for 6 months as I have PCOS and didn't ov naturally. My consultant told me to use OPKs to give me an indication of the optimum time to have   - although these are unreliable for some women with PCOS they were very reliable for me. I also charted my BBT and other ov symptoms to give me a clearer overall picture. CD21 blood tests would have been no good for me as I ov'd anywhere from CD14 to CD25, and this was only clear once I'd compared my ov symptoms with my rise in BBT. I found this worked better for me as numerous trips to the hospital or docs really stressed me out - this way I felt a bit more in control. 

The main consistency of advice is to have BMS from around CD10 until when you think ov has happened. I found I also had pretty clear ov pains (in fact 4 days of very bad pains the cycle I got my BFP) and although these can last quite a few days around ov and BMS can hurt during this time, try your best to get jiggy until quite a few days after these pains. 

Good luck.  

Rosie. xxx


----------



## nickyturns (May 8, 2007)

Dear Nikki, Kelli and Rosie,
Thank you all for your advice. I went to my local fertility friends group today and spoke with Elaine. Elaine also said that not everyone is monitored on clomid. I have decided to see how I go with this cycle without being monitored. My Gp is very good and I know I can ring him with any problems.
So far its day two and all is ok. I guess Im being a bit naive as it is only day two!! I do have ovulation strips which I will be using to make sure I dont miss any vital days.
Vicki.
How are you getting on with your clomid cycle?
Look forward to hearing from you and will keep you all updated.
Nicky.


----------



## poppystar (May 24, 2007)

Hello All

Well i have no idea what is going on so any advice gratefully received.

Had first cycle of Clomid 50mg - day 12 two follicles 10mm each one on each ovary.  OPK picked up LH surge on day 21.  So i delayed my blood test and had Prog done on day 28.  Prog had a reading of 70 - apparently that is very good.  Does that mean i ovulated only late

Just come back from cycle 2 scan day 14 - four follicles - all around 10mm - had taken 100mg clomid day 2 to 6.  They wont give me another scan this cycle.  I have no idea whether these follicles are growing.  

Am i ovulating or note?  Does high Prog indicate that you ovulated?  Can you get high Prog and not ovulate?  Is it possible that the follicles dont get any bigger than 10mm but you still get a Prog.  Does clomid increase the number of follicles (which is happening to me) but not necessarily speed up when they mature?

Very confused!!!! 


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


----------



## aspiring (Jun 27, 2007)

Hi poppystar. I'm a newbie to this (first cycle of clomid) but it looks like I've been given a lot more information than you!
Firstly, a prog level of 70 definitely indicates that you ovulated - my doc told me anything over 16 indicated ovulation (she said 'it doesn't matter if it's seventeen or seventy-seven, it's all good')
Secondly, I don't understand why your second cycle of clomid was double your first, ie 100mg instead of 50mg when you clearly had two developing eggs on the first cycle. Clomid stimulates the ovaries to produce eggs, so if you've already got two eggs developing then you really don't want to increase the dose as then you are at high risk of multiple pregnancies.

I went for a scan on cd12 and saw two eggs growing, one 16mm and one 17mm which the doc said indicated they would be released in the next couple of days (apparently average size on release is 18mm) so we are to get 'busy' every other day for the next 10 days. I don't think clomid increases the speed at which follicles mature but it definitely encourages the ovaries to produce more of them!

Hope this helps a bit.


----------



## poppystar (May 24, 2007)

many thanks.  this is my thinking exactly.  they have just said for next cycle they are increasing me to 150mg.  to be honest i have lost all confidence.  I am just ending up with more and more follicles but the rate of growth isnt speeding up.  Given this drug makes me a bit crazy not keen on a 150mg at all.  Consultant wont even speak to me its all through the nurse who is very nice but has only been doing the job a few weeks. 

lots of baby dust to you.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


----------



## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi Poppy

When comparing hormone levels you need to check the measurement used because different labs/clinics use varying measurements...and if you compare your hormone levels with someone elses who has different measurements, it will take everything out of context.

I assume if you had a progesterone level of 70 that this was 70 nmol/l.  Most clinics will look for a level of 30 nmol/l (some say over 40 nmol/l) to indicate ovulation happened, so 70 nmol/l is a good level.

I can only assume that aspiring's GP was talking about 16 ng/ml (and not 16 nmol/l).  10 ng/ml is approx 30 nmol/l so 16 ng/ml would be approx 48 nmol/l.  

16 nmol/l would not indicate ovulation as too low...or if ovulation did happen it may mean that was tested on wrong day (progesterone peaks at 7dpo which is when it should ideally be tested) or it may mean the egg was too immature and not good for fertilisation...unfortunately GPs are just that, "general practitioners" and unfortunately don't all provide correct information when it comes to fertility issues.

With regards to follicle size, they like them to be a minimum of 18mm before rupturing and releasing an egg to ensure the egg is mature and good for fertilisation...too small (follie under 18mm) or too mature (follie over about 26mm) could mean the egg is not good for fertilisation.

I do wonder why your consultant seems to be increasing your clomid dose despite you ovulating fine on it...I would be cautious about increasing it again as there is the risk of not only multiple pregnancies but over stimulation (OHSS).

When I was on clomid (to boost as I ovulate naturally), I produced 2 or 3 dominant follicles each cycle and had really high progesterone levels which indicated I released 2 or 3 eggs.  We were advised that if I'd had over 3 dominant follies then not to ttc that month.  Sadly clomid didn't work for us but I do have several things effecting my fertility, ovulation actually not being one of them !

Good luck
Natasha


----------



## aspiring (Jun 27, 2007)

Minxy said:


> I can only assume that aspiring's GP was talking about 16 ng/ml (and not 16 nmol/l). 10 ng/ml is approx 30 nmol/l so 16 ng/ml would be approx 48 nmol/l.
> unfortunately GPs are just that, "general practitioners" and unfortunately don't all provide correct information when it comes to fertility issues.


  it was the doc/nurse at the fertility clinic that told me this, not my GP. I hope she got it right then!!


----------



## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

aspiring said:


> Minxy said:
> 
> 
> > I can only assume that aspiring's GP was talking about 16 ng/ml (and not 16 nmol/l). 10 ng/ml is approx 30 nmol/l so 16 ng/ml would be approx 48 nmol/l.
> ...


As per previous email, you need to check the measurements used. If yours was 16 ng/ml then that would indicate you ovulated but if it was 16 nmol/l then this wouldn't show good ovulation. It should be at least 30/40 nmol/l to indicate ovulation with a good healthy egg released.

Progesterone levels peak at 7 days past ovulation so if you had your test on cd21 then this assumes you ovulated on cd14...these are just averages and not everyone has 28 day cycles with ovulation on cd14.

Ideally you should have progesterone checked at 7dpo and if you ovulate earlier or later in your cycle than cd14 then get tested accordingly eg ovulate cd12, test cd19...ovulate cd18, test cd25 etc etc.

A low progesterone level could mean that tested on wrong day or it could mean that the follicle wasn't a good size and the egg inside was too immature, which can mean poor fertilisation. Progesterone prepares womb for possible implantation and sustains early pregnancy until placenta takes over fully, so progesterone needs to be a good level to support the developing embryo and early pregnancy. If yours was a level of 16 _nmol/l_ then this would be seen as a very low level of progesterone but if your level was actually 16 _ng/ml _ would be approx 48 nmol/l which is a good level.

This is why it's important to ensure you know the measurements otherwise there's no point comparing results as taken out of context.

Here's some more info...

http://www.fertilityplus.org/faq/hormonelevels.html#female

Obviously I'm not medically qualified but I've had numerous progesterone blood tests over the years and been told what's good levels and why (mine have all been between 48 - 105 nmol/l)

Good luck
Natasha

/links


----------



## aspiring (Jun 27, 2007)

thanks minxy, will use that link when I have the prog test (which will be 8dpo according to my chart)


----------



## linlou17 (Jul 3, 2007)

sorry to hear about your bad luck hun xx

i took clomid 50mg for 3 months and had blood tests three in one week on days 21,25 and 28 which revealed i was ovulating and have since stopped the clomid as doctor said i do not need now. sideeffects have passed (thank the lord!!) however still no look conceiving. i did not have any scans done during this time but any queries i would get in touch with either GP or fertility clinic but you,re probably at best place here I've learnt so much and today my first day these girls are amazing not just for advise but support as well.

all the best  x


----------

