Try using these "Clearblue Fertility Monitor Test Sticks" about a week after your next cycle. It will pinpoint when you are at your most fertile, and then you could try.

I would also look into getting an iui done.

DH and I are about to embark on this journey. I don't really know what to expect. I want to hopeful and optimistic, but there's a part of me that fears never being able to conceive.

The constant presence of my 2 skids will undoubtedly make that a more difficult truth to swallow if it goes that way.

My oldest sister had trouble conceiving for YEARS. Her and her husband traveled the world seeking medical advice and procedures that weren't available in the states. After 14 years of that, she finally got pregnant. I don't have that kind of time or money ..

Best of luck to you .. I don't have much advice to offer, but I hope it all works out

Yes - this was me too. And yes, being a thankless stepmother (not even a card from my DH on Mother's Day) made it SO much worse.

We tried to conceive on our own for a year (I know, not as long as many couples). I thought we were both healthy and would happen in no time. All my friends seemed to be getting pregnant right away. After a year, we saw a reproductive endocrinologist. Husband was normal count...Problem was me. In my first round of tests, found out I had a blocked fallopian tube on the side of my dominant ovary..awesome. This significantly cut my chances and was the reason I wasn't getting preg. Started on clomid that cycle to hyper stimulate follicles and had one really good one on the good side. Had to give myself a shot of HCG to allow me to ovulate and I got pregnant that cycle. Unbelievable. I'm due in 7 weeks

My mistake was trying and trying on our own thinking this cycle would be the one I got pregnant. I wasted a year of trying. I should have went to an RE right away, to at least perform testing. But I see you have testing done already.

About Clomid, are you seeing a fertility specialist/reproductive endocrinologist? The first time I went, they were practically pushing clomid on me, so I'm really surprised your dr. wont write a script? If you haven't been to one yet and are just seeing your gyn, go see one or ask your doctor for recommendation. If you are currently seeing an RE, FIND A NEW ONE! They should be on top of your cycles like clockwork - they were for me.

Did you have an HSG test yet? That's where my problem was found.

As far as ovulation, I would look into these: I used them throughout my TTC journey and recommend to know that you are indeed ovulating. They're pretty cheap too.
http://www.amazon.com/Wondfo-Step-Ovulation-Strips-50-Count/dp/B004IJHDN...

I wish you the best and hope that it happens for you soon. If you have any questions or need additional advice, please let me know!

I have PCOS. TTC for the last 2 years. Yes looking at my SD angers me so much, especially when I see the narcissistic BM able to have children left and right without any problems. I swear if I have to hear that "I am not a mother" and that I do not understand what being a mother is like com out of her mouth one more time...

This whole process has been one of the hardest things I have ever had to deal with. I have and still cry myself to sleep from disappointment.

Maybe also try acupuncture to balance your body out after the BC. In my school, there's an entire class dedicated to treating infertility with acupuncture and one of the biggest things that the practitioners see is infertility after years of birth control. Several students in our class actually bursted into tears in the middle of the lecture because many of them were going through that and didn't know BC could mess up fertility so bad.

Anyway, acupuncture is often now prescribed along with western fertility treatments to boost the chances. I've actually known several women who became pregnant after starting acupuncture alone. One woman had over 10 miscarriages and a stillborn, and after she started acupuncture once she got pregnant, was able to carry her daughter to full term. Who knows, can't hurt.

I battled infertility for 4 years before having my 2 boys. The longer it took, the less tolerance I had for SD. DH refused to finance IVF, and between the two of us, I was told I had a less than 3% chance of conceiving. I have irregular cycles and the dr said a "touch of PCOS". DH has a very low sperm count. We went to the Czech Republic to have IVF at a fraction of what it cost here. Feel free to PM me if you'd like info on that. The most expensive procedure here (ICSI) costs $20,000 while I had it done there for $5000.

I'm surprised your doctor hasn't ordered all the typical tests. I had an endometrial biopsy and an HSG before the doctor would consider Clomid. He didn't want to give me Clomid at all because of DH's low sperm count, but he gave me some after a particularly bad experience I had with one of the specialists. I ended up conceiving naturally between rounds of IVF, and then became pregnant the second time immediately after having my first. We want a third, and it's beginning to look like I may need to try IVF again for that to happen.

We are ttc as well. Fdh got a reversal done in December. He did is testing and it was successful, there are live swimmers. Because I have a bio they assume everything is ok with me. I know it hasn't been long and it takes time but every month I still end up disappointed wondering if it ever is going to happen.
Sd 16 is currently giving us the silent treatment bc daddy loves goincrazy more then her :sick:
She has let everyone know that she will always be the baby no matter what and hopes I don't get pregnant. It hurts but it's expected. Just makes me resentful even more towards her. I try to not think about it or compare but it gives me knots in my stomach when I think about how fdh didn't even think sd16 was his..how they didn't want any more kids in their toxic relationship and it was an oops on both their parts. So he got a vasectomy.

Here we are wanting one together, and hoping for the best but trying to accept it may not. There's about a 50% chance we were told.

Good luck, maybe try another fertility specialist? Un the mean time schedule all of your testing.

I have a tilted uterus & was on the shot for years when DH & I wanted to start trying I got off the shot for a year. My cycle was never normal either. I was 34 & my bio clock was ticking! The Dr. put me on some meds that made me start my period again. I also had a trans vaginal ultrasound to see if there was still life in my overies. It came back fine but still no pregnancy. Finally it happend but my HCG levels were not rising so I had a miscarriage. That did not discourage me! We just kept trying & I was pregnant 3 months later with a big healthy girl who I delivered a week after my due date. See if they will check your overies. Then just be patient & have fun trying!!

I'm not sure why they won't prescribe Clomid for you either - but I definitely agree that you need to talk to the RE and ask SPECIFICALLY why he's resistant to the idea. For what it's worth, I had secondary infertility and went to an RE, and got all those tests done (bloodwork, ultrasounds, the dye test for your fallopian tubes, some sort of "egg count" check for "reserves" - god knows what all else) - and I was never just on Clomid - we went straight to IUI, did 3 rounds of that and then did IVF twice before I got pregnant finally. (Well, pregnant and kept it anyway.)

Remember that Clomid is a DRUG - it's not just to "regulate your period" or help you get preggers, it actually has some pretty nasty implications if not used and monitored properly. Check out this link for info on Clomid and its risks and side effects: http://www.drugs.com/pro/clomid.html

I'm not saying it can't be a useful tool in trying to get pregnant, but you do have to use the RIGHT tool or it can be dangerous. That's why it's prescription after all - because you need a doc to make sure it's the right tool. Sounds like in your case it *might* not be. Do the tests, go to another RE if this one isn't talking to you, but do the tests.

Oh, and you said you tried ovulation kits, but are you tracking your basal body temp? Seriously, look into that! That will help you determine if you're ovulating or not too. There are a bunch of web sites (and apps now) designed to help you track and chart your temps and other fertility signs, and many of them have forums for questions and support too. I LOVED the one I was on, I'm still in touch with a lot of those women now, almost 6 years later.

Hi Christine,

Firstly sorry for your bout of "unexplained infertility", if you look at the stats it seems like it is becoming more of a problem...I truly believe that BC can negatively affect our hormonal balance, (I have a 5 yr old DD, I had the mirena taken out last January 2013, after 4 years and have not used any form of contraception and am still not pregnant...haven't ovulated).

I also was diagnosed with PCOS at 17, im 28 now but am considered a thin cyster, I just deal with acne. Pre- the birth of my daughter, I was sick of taking provera at the beginning of every month to bring on a period, so I was looking into herbal remedies and came across chaste tree berry(I must warn you that it worked for me helped me ovulate, but it also screwed up my cycles where I was having a period every 2 weeks)...what the chaste tree does is help regulate your hormones, ie..help build progesterone in your body(you may be suffering from a progesterone deficiency and in effect have a higher estrogen in your body than normal, MDs don't recognize estrogen dominance, but I have done my research into this and believe I am suffering from it, I have chronic breast pain). Without progesterone, you wont ovulate.

You mentioned you had the DEPO shot, from my understanding, that is a similar drug to mirena, where it takes away your bodies ability to produce progesterone naturally. I have researched depo/mirena and have found that it has taken year(s) to become fertile again after the shot, so perhaps it is more of a waiting game for you, than anything else..the good news is that you can get pregnant, you just may be waiting longer than most.

As others have suggested definitely follow up with the HSG test, progesterone test(blood), have your LH/FSH levels checked, your TSH/Prolactin levels checked, aldosterone levels(it is common for testosterone to be elevated in females with pcos..mine typically is).
Best of luck...I totally get how you feel, when everyone else has a baby but you!

I am sure in time, you'll get to be a mom, keep us posted with your progress!

Hey all

This is my first post. I'm in a slightly dif situation, I am married to a woman and through sperm donation we are trying to have a baby. I am finding this process very stressful, my partner is supporting me with this but it isn't a priority for her because she already has two children. I find being a step parent very challenging as I feel I am expected to love them children in the way my wife does however I don't and now because I want my own child this is often used in an argument. The whole process of trying to get pregnant is very hard because we can't do it au naturale! I hope that by getting pregnant with my own child it might help me understand how my wife feels about her children. I often feel very left out and on the outside of the family unit. One child in particular is challenging n very clingy to her mother. To an extreme degree, hoping someone is gonna tell me there is light at the end of the tunnel in terms of how I feel about step children and having a child of my own. I have had lots of tests done and had the all clear.

I had/have PCO too....failed fertility treatment (miscarried)...two years later conceived naturally! She is 6 now....

OH and myself are trying for an "ours"...not sure if the problem will repeat itself.....I was told originally that because I didnt have PCOS, I just had the cysts, that after a baby it normally resets itself.....Ive had hormone blood tests every year ever since, and they have all been normal.

Its hard going through this, just try to relax, and dont let it take over you. Its hard I know, I tried for 6 years for my only child.....the only thing I thank my Ex for!