IUI and Clomid advice needed

[Corrinne37]

Hi ladies,

I hope your well?, Ive not posted for a cple of months as took a some time out from ttc and everything.
Now I am considering IUI, we cant afford IVF, and as I already have a son will have to pay, but fast approaching 39 now I dont have much time to hang about.

I have tried 2 months of Clomid 50g, but I just found that it totally dried up my cervical mucus, and as I do ovulate and have regular periods (plus it made me feel an moody and emotional (esp when bfn!)) dont know whether to take the other 4 months or not?
Is it best to take all rounds in consecutive months or is it ok to have a break for month or two and try again?

I know IUI is less expensive than IVF , does anyone know much about it?
Approx cost and what happens?

My OH cant always ejaculate esp with all the ttc stress of the last two yrs - so thinking this may work for us?

Any advice will be great

xxx

 

[bewdleygirl]

Hi hun,

I don't know much about IUI I'm afraid but just wanted to say that I conceived on 50mg clomid and I noticed it dried up my cervical mucus so I used 'conceive plus' .....it's like preseed but I found it easier to insert. It did the trick for me but unfortunately I had a mmc at 8 weeks. I'm going back on clomid next cycle after I have an op to sort an existing condition, so I'll be using conceive plus again for sure!

I'm 36 so I know how pressurised it gets with TTC and feeling like time isn't on your side. It might be worth 1 or 2 last goes on clomid maybe and have a plan in place to try IUI if no luck.

Good luck hun, hope this helps x

 

[Corrinne37]

thanks bewdley girl,

ive been trying since i was 36! and yes felt pressured then , so even more so now!

sorry to hear about your mc, yes i have some concieve plus, so yes maybe you are right, ill just carry on and give it a go and then see.

good luck to you! xxx

 

[bewdleygirl]

That's great that you've got some conceive plus...might be worth a go!

Thanks hun, sorry to hear of your mc's too.

I've joined the clomid thread....the girls are lovely and I thought it would be nice to share experiences.

Keep me posted on how you get on, good luck hun xx

 

[LouiseB]

Hiya Corrinne

Apparently clomid is more effective the longer you use it, so with each cycle of use your chance of getting a BFP increases.

I would use sperm friendly lube as suggested

Is your OH the father of your other child? Did you take long to conceive?

When you say that your OH has difficulty ejaculating, do you mean just during sex? He'd need to be able to provide a sample for IUI. If you think he is better at providing a sample solo, have you thought about insemination rather than sex - it might increase the amount of sperm heading for your eggs if you still use the lube for dryness. He could do it more often too.

If you are ovulating, why have they put you on clomid? What are they hoping it will do for you that will make it more likely that you'll get pregnant? xx

 

[Corrinne37]

Hi Louise,

How are you?

I dont know why they put me on Clomid???? They said you can try it but not sure if it will help at all? I think they just didnt know what else to do with me!! All I really wanted was some clarification of why I have had the mc's, just wanted to make sure nothing was wrong, that I could get rectified without it happening again.

I will use the Clomid each month now then I suppose, I left 2 months inbetween the last two cycles! Not really sure if I wanted to take etc.

Yes, OH is the father of my son, he was conceived the first month of trying. I also conceived in the first month of trying with baby number 2. But that sadly ended in MC. Then after the MC it took 10 mths - again that ended in MC.
Another 9 months have passed, although we havent tried every month. The upset of the 2nd MC really affected our relationship and our sex life.
Which still is not back on track. I cant relax and I feel like Ive lost all my libido! OH feels the same and sorry if tmi but we get tired and sore and yes the job doesnt get finished!!!
But yes he can finish himself offjust fine!!
So what do you mean by insemination?? Just putting up there myself? Would that work?? Thats why I was thinking IUI may work for us.

Wishing you the best of luck for your next cycle. xxx

 

[LouiseB]

I'm fine thanks Just waiting for the next IVF to start in Aug, trying and failing to be patient

Ah I was just wondering about the clomid out of curiosity, no harm in trying it when ovulating, except multiple pregnancy maybe

I'm sorry about the miscarriages, I can understand it creating negative associations with ttc and sex for you both

For the insemination, you'd just send your OH off to sort himself out into a small container and in the meantime go for a wee and cover your cervix with the lube.

Then get yourself a decent sized syringe and suck up a bit of air and then suck up the semen. Get comfortable with your bum up so the syringe is pointing as downwards as possible to make sure the semen is at the opening of the syringe. Then insert it as far as possible and press the plunger and remove the syringe checking that the majority of the semen is gone and then just lie there for however long - maybe do it just before bed. You don't have to keep your bum raised

If your hubby has good sperm like it sounds like, you could do it every other day or even more often.

It should work just as well, if not better than, normal sex as long as you keep the sperm at body temperature before use. Lots of lesbians get pregnant this way.

Not romantic, but sometimes romance is a luxury that not everyone can enjoy

IUI is a sensible alternative but i'd do the insemination while on the clomid if you are struggling with sex xx

 

[Corrinne37]

Ah thanks Lou.

I will get on the syringe hunt!!

I have a little one that I used to get medicine in my son whenhe refused it - will that work?

xx

 

[LouiseB]

I don't see why not

You don't want it too small so that can't be inserted very far. Men can produce over 5ml of semen too.

You don't want it too large either or you might lose a lot of the semen in the syringe.

 

[itisbabytime]

I got an oral syringe from amazon for internal lubrication only a couple of quid and works a treat!

 

[itisbabytime]

Apparently clomid is more effective the longer you use it, so with each cycle of use your chance of getting a BFP increases.
x

Oooh is this true? I thought it would be the other wa y round.

 

[LouiseB]

Yes, apparently true That's what I read anyway and it seemed logical to me - the longer your cycle is forced into a heathy routine, the more automatic and consistent it will become.

I suppose you would be more likely to get a BFP over several months rather than just one or two though

 

[LD1978]

The only downside with clomid for too long is that it thins the lining which is why they usually do 6 months at a time and then a break x

 

[LouiseB]

How does it do that? Too much estrogen?

 

[LD1978]

Clomid influences four hormones that affect ovulation: GnRH, FSH, LH, and estradiol. By tricking the body into acting as though estrogen levels are low, it stimulates the production of GnRH (gonadotropin releasing hormone) within the hypothalamus. This, in turn, stimulates the pituitary gland to increase production of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). The result is ovulation, with the hope of a fertilized egg and pregnancy.* Clomid has been the first choice for infertility treatments since it was clinically introduced in 1967.

Since Clomid is an antiestrogen, using it can cause a blockage in the stimulation of estrogen on the endometrium (lining of the uterus). Clomid has two parts or isomers. Upon cessation of taking the drug, one of the isomers leaves the body within a week while the other one remains, acting as an anti-estrogen, for up to six weeks. When Clomid is used for more than three months in a row, the anti-estrogen isomer build-up causes thinning of the uterine lining. In this way, Clomid acts as a type of contraceptive, regardless of ovarian response. In order to eliminate all of the antiestrogen isomer from the system, it is important to discontinue use of Clomid for at least six weeks.

 

[LD1978]

Copied and pasted - my consultant said its a bit like taking two steps forward but one back x

 

[LouiseB]

Thanks for the info

What percentage of people does that happen to though? I mean Vicky got her BFP off the back of 8 consecutive clomid cycles.

 

[Corrinne37]

Yes thanks for the info LD interesting stuff, but now im confused again!! Maybe Ill do 2 cycles in a row and then have a break, def dont want my lining any thinner as it is on thin sidre already and periods are regular!!

On another note. First insemination operation completed last night!! Ah sooo much easier!! Just squirt and off to sleep zzzzzzz xx

 

[itisbabytime]

hmmmm, could this be why since starting clomid my periods are much lighter and a day shorter? Oh no!

 

[Corrinne37]

Hi Its babytime,
How long have you been on Clomid now?
Maybe a little break?
I dont know its soooo confusing to know what to do? xx