Anyone with PCOS and children?

[beckycmarie]

Just wanted to start a thread to see if anyone out there has PCOS and has had children, and have some advice for someone struggling with infertility.

Hubs and I have been married 5 years and have had no children despite trying NFP, Metformin, and Clomid. Of course IVF and other fertility treatments not in line with Church teaching are out of the question. We are starting to look into adoption at this point.

If you were able to get pregnant with PCOS, what did you do? Change of diet? Exercise? Certain medications? Surgery? I would love to hear from you.

 

[gam3rchic]

I would be interested in what others have to say as well. DH and I have been married for 2 1/2 years and no luck yet. Of course, I didn’t start NFP till a few months ago. I’m now seeing a RE for this and have started on metformin and am trying to start clomid as well. I’m hoping that clomid does the trick, but after 2 1/2 years of not getting pregnant when you are totally open to the option is frustrating in and of itself.

I wish I could’ve started this stuff earlier, but life has been crazy, but I guess everything in God’s time.

 

[3GirlsRUs]

I have PCOS and I have 3 children with a 4th on the way.

Here are the things I have found were treatable by me and my doctor through diet and medication:

Luteal Phase Defect (low progesterone at bad time if trying to conceive). I take progesterone supplementation even when not TTC to increast my Phase III time. When pregnant I need to supplement with progesterone to avoid miscarriage.

Low-Carb diet…I have insulin resistance due to PCOS…but not bad enough to need medication (usually metformin)…so I don’t eat a lot of bread, pasta, sugars.

The problem with PCOS is that the effects on fertility vary so much from woman to woman.

I’m so sorry you have dealt with infertility. I hope you will be blessed with children soon. If you are proactive, it’s possible.

Oh one more thing…my ex-roommate from college has PCOS. She has Triplets and Twins. The Triplets (2 girls and a boy) are going into 2nd grade and the Twins (2 boys) are going into Kindergarten.

So, there is hope! I will say a Hail Mary for you.

 

[kevinsgirl]

I’m looking forward to the responses too. DH and I have been married for a little over a year. We’ve had two very early miscarriages, but for some reason I don’t seem to be able to have a successful pregnancy past 5 weeks.

We’re still undergoing another set of tests since the last miscarriage, so it will be interesting to see if any other things turn up.

As of now, all we’re doing is taking prometrium for low progesterone and clomid to get a better ovulation.

 

[beckycmarie]

Thanks for the (name removed by moderator)ut.

3Girls, how did you find out about the Luteal Phase defect - is that done with a blood test, or can you tell by looking at NFP charts?

 

[3GirlsRUs]

Thanks for the (name removed by moderator)ut.

3Girls, how did you find out about the Luteal Phase defect - is that done with a blood test, or can you tell by looking at NFP charts?

My doctor suspected based on my charts.

He confirmed with blood tests.

With my next cycle, I had to have blood drawn on Peak +3, P+5, P+7, P+9, P+11 and P+13…he was able to see from the succession, that my progesterone levels dropped incredibly by P+7, which caused me to have 7-8 day luteal phases (he says a woman should ideally have 13 days…and anything less than 10 was dangerous to newly conceived life)

 

[dkoinzan]

I have PCOS. I would recommend seeking a doctor trained by Dr. Hilgers at the Pope Paul VI Institute. I have three healthy children I have buried two preborn children and I am praying and pregnant with our sixth. I know surgery helped because I had a blocked tube. I also don’t eat any processed sugar. I don’t use caffeine either. It really helped me to drop all gluten, dairy, and lagooms. I also took most red meat out of my diet. It was harsh for a while but it really helped.

 

[StratusRose]

I have PCOS and a beautiful son!

I regulated my cycles by losing weight and eating right. Just by losing 10% of my body weight helped immensely. Before I had my son I had predictable and close to normal cycles. Now they’re just crazy! (To be expected.) I also took Metformin which I am back on now.

Good luck to you.

 

[Teakafrog]

Metformin has made the biggest difference. My son was conceived on clomid, but it never worked for us after that, despite multiple cycles at different dosages on different cycle days.
One other thing to get checked, especially if early miscarriages is a problem, is for clotting disorders. I found through an infertility workup at a RE (reproductive endocrinologist) that I have one, and had to take blood thinners throughout my last pregnancy to prevent clots from forming in the placenta. So a thorough workup from an RE to find any co-existing problems besides the PCOS is definitely the way to go if you haven’t had one.
Of course the easiest way we got a baby was to adopt one! I have one adopted and 2 bio kids so far (10 years apart, not by choice ), and praying for more, either way!

 

[TC2]

I have PCOS, and all that goes with it. High blood pressure, borderline diabetes, hypothyroid. I’m also currently 21w 4d pregnant.

Like most other PCOS sufferers, I had irregular menstrual periods w/o bc, and didn’t ovlulate at all. In order to correct this, it took a mix of upping the Metformin and upping the Synthroid (for my thyroid) then using clomid.

The first month, I had follicles, but never released them at the necessary time (we used u/s to check). The next month we did the same, med wise, but upped the clomid and added the ‘trigger
shot’ of Follistim. It worked. Out of 16 follicles, I released 2 eggs, and got pregnant the first IUI. (I know this is against Catholic teaching, I’m just telling my story)

How is your thyroid? Are you seeing a Reproductive Endocrinologist, or just an OB? Has your DH been checked (semen analysis)?

PCOS patients can get pregnant, and carry to term, but it is quite a journey, both before and after the positive preg test. I’m seeing my OB, an endocrinologist for my diabetes, a cardiologist for my blood pressure, and a Perinatology group (high risk doctors).

Hang in there, keep searching and fighting. It can happen!

 

[Fuerza]

I have PCOS, and all that goes with it. High blood pressure, borderline diabetes, hypothyroid. I’m also currently 21w 4d pregnant.

Like most other PCOS sufferers, I had irregular menstrual periods w/o bc, and didn’t ovlulate at all. In order to correct this, it took a mix of upping the Metformin and upping the Synthroid (for my thyroid) then using clomid.

The first month, I had follicles, but never released them at the necessary time (we used u/s to check). The next month we did the same, med wise, but upped the clomid and added the ‘trigger
shot’ of Follistim. It worked. Out of 16 follicles, I released 2 eggs, and got pregnant the first IUI. (I know this is against Catholic teaching, I’m just telling my story)
How is your thyroid? Are you seeing a Reproductive Endocrinologist, or just an OB? Has your DH been checked (semen analysis)?

PCOS patients can get pregnant, and carry to term, but it is quite a journey, both before and after the positive preg test. I’m seeing my OB, an endocrinologist for my diabetes, a cardiologist for my blood pressure, and a Perinatology group (high risk doctors).

Hang in there, keep searching and fighting. It can happen!

I know that I’m going to get slammed for this, but IUI is still up for discussion and has not been formally condemned assuming that the semen is obtained morally. This may change if Rome issues a formal announcement, but until then it’s fair game. These two articles from the USCCB website support this stance:

This article states that IUI and GIFT are neither approved nor disapproved at this point in time.

usccb.org/prolife/issues/nfp/treatment.htm

This article, written by the President of the National Catholic Bioethics Center, specifically states that GIFT can be used until such a time as the Church condemns it. Since IUI is in the same category as far as “approved” status (and the semen is morally collected in the same way) as GIFT, it is logical to assume that the statement also applies to IUI. It also makes clear that if the Church ever does condemn it, then Catholics must reject it as treatment. The article does make clear that GIFT is among the more morally controversial of the moral options, but that it is nonetheless acceptable under certain circumstances. Scroll to the bottom under “Moral Interventions to Overcome Infertility”.

usccb.org/prolife/programs/rlp/98rlphaa.shtml

 

[Seekngrace]

I have PCOS, a 2 year daughter and a second child on the way in 6 months.

My treatments for the second child were more intense then the first. I had to undergo, I hope I get this right , PCG testing? (The one where they inject your uterus with dye to ensure there are no blockages.) I also took progrestrone supplements, metformin, and clomid along with a shot to make me ovulate at the oportune time.

My daughter took only one full round of treatements withought the testing and this pregnancy took 5 treatments.

Stress and a balanced diet plays a huge role, along with patience and prayer.

On a side note, altough the doctor said it’s irrelevant I did take a B12 supplement right away with my daughter and right before our final rounds of treatment with this pregnancy.

God Bless!

 

[beckycmarie]

Thanks for everyone’s (name removed by moderator)ut.

Hubs and I are beginning the adoption process. I’m not completely giving up on treatments forever, but am taking a break for now. The last round of clomid at 150mg was really rough on my body, and I can only do one more at 200mg before we try something else.

Really it sounds like what I need to do is lose some weight and lay off the sugar and junk carbs, and things may straighten out naturally. The thing is I’ll be 32 next month, and it would take me at least a year to get down to a healthy weight. The bio clock is ticking away. . .

Perhaps my infertility is protecting me and a baby from a dangerous and difficult pregnancy. I don’t know if I could handle it to go through all this drama to conceive only to miscarry.

So for now we’re looking to adopt, and trust that if it’s God’s will for us to have a biological child, it’ll happen.

 

[sdeco]

Yes, I have PCOS, and I have one child and another on the way. I think I’m a very unusual case because both of them were surprise pregnancies. My only PCOS symptom is very long cycles. So I’m sorry to say I don’t have much advice. I just wanted to say I’m very sorry you’re struggling with infertility, but to let you know that it is definitely possible to get pregnant with PCOS. You’ll be in my prayers.

Have you tried an NFP-only Dr? They are usually better at treating infertility. What dose of metformin were you on and for how long? I also take metformin to make my cycles shorter. I’ve been on it for 2 years and my cycles are still only down to about 40-45 days. I’ll probably try a higher dose after I have this baby. It can take awhile to regulate cycles. Also, try the soul cysters message board: soulcysters.net/. They might be able to help you more with trying to conceive. Good luck!

 

[beckycmarie]

Have you tried an NFP-only Dr? They are usually better at treating infertility. What dose of metformin were you on and for how long? I also take metformin to make my cycles shorter. I’ve been on it for 2 years and my cycles are still only down to about 40-45 days. I’ll probably try a higher dose after I have this baby. It can take awhile to regulate cycles. Also, try the soul cysters message board: soulcysters.net/. They might be able to help you more with trying to conceive. Good luck!

Yep, I’m seeing an NFP only (Catholic) doctor. I’m taking 1500 mg of metformin (500mg 3x per day). I did the charting thing for a while and was charting mostly for the “basic infertile pattern” every day.

Even when things looked promising in the charts, we couldn’t conceive. I’ve just grown tired of the disappointment month after month.

 

[Cadbury]

I have PCOS and now have 3 beautiful kids. Keep in mind this is what I have done and I’m not advising anyone else necessarily to try it. When I was diagnosed I went on Met 1500 mg (500 mg pill taken 3 times a day) I did change my diet somewhat as Met really forces you to cut carbs or the intestinal consquences are quite severe. But that was all and after 4 months we were pregnant.(Keep in mind though we had been trying for over a year before being diagnosed) Of course I was 24 and I really think being so young helped a lot. My second was a bit of surprise. I didn’t have to do a thing. I just stopped nursing and bam pregnant! Then when we tried for number 3 I just couldn’t seem to get a regular cycle going even with the Met. That is when I discovered cinnamon. 1000mg 3x a day with every meal. Amazingly that and some exercise and I lost weight! 15lbs just melted off it was great. Got my regular cycles and got pg. Unfortunately that one ended in miscarrage at 6 weeks. That was really hard because after having 2 healthy babies I just never envisioned that could happen to me. But we stuck it out and tried again still on Met and cinnamon and we got pregnant again. We just delivered our newest baby girl 6 weeks ago.

 

[ghaybyers1]

I have PCOS and now have 3 beautiful kids. Keep in mind this is what I have done and I’m not advising anyone else necessarily to try it. When I was diagnosed I went on Met 1500 mg (500 mg pill taken 3 times a day) I did change my diet somewhat as Met really forces you to cut carbs or the intestinal consquences are quite severe. But that was all and after 4 months we were pregnant.(Keep in mind though we had been trying for over a year before being diagnosed) Of course I was 24 and I really think being so young helped a lot. My second was a bit of surprise. I didn’t have to do a thing. I just stopped nursing and bam pregnant! Then when we tried for number 3 I just couldn’t seem to get a regular cycle going even with the Met. That is when I discovered cinnamon. 1000mg 3x a day with every meal. Amazingly that and some exercise and I lost weight! 15lbs just melted off it was great. Got my regular cycles and got pg. Unfortunately that one ended in miscarrage at 6 weeks. That was really hard because after having 2 healthy babies I just never envisioned that could happen to me. But we stuck it out and tried again still on Met and cinnamon and we got pregnant again. We just delivered our newest baby girl 6 weeks ago.

cinnamon like the spice? did you just take a weight to figure out the amounts or does it come in pill form? Because I know whenever I put too much cinnamon on my toast it’s hard to swallow, I can’t imagine shoving 1000mg in my mouth at a time!!!