Just a Little Direction

I am 39 and went through a very similar few years and it has been tough!

I am presently seeing Dr. Le at Advance Reproductive Cae Center and I like him. You get very personalized attention by the doctor himself. His number is ###-###-####.

Don't be scared by the cost, he starts out with the basics which are not as bad as I thought they would be.

LEt me know if you have any questions.

Hi There,

I have been down that road. Here's what I learned the hard way: If you are having regular periods, but don't understand the Fertility Awareness Method (this is NOT the rythym method or merely temping), consider getting Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Tony Weschler. I have heard of women who tried for two years unsuccessfully (like you) only to get that book, start FAM and get pregnant in two months. I could not use the method for a long time because I have polycycstic ovaries and therefore did not have a regular menstrual cycle. That book is arguably the best manual on FAM charting. I recommend it first because infertility treatment, while it may seem like a sure thing and a quick fix, can be emotionally and financially draining and generally speaking, it comes with additional risks that natural methods do not such as significant drug side effects, multiple gestations and miscarriage.

Having said all that, I have done it both ways. After unsuccessful tries with specialists in Houston and again in NRH (Dr. Johns), we finally got pregnant with triplets on a low dose of clomid w/IUI last year at the Center for Assisted Reproduction in Bedford. CAR is one of the best clinics in Texas. They have top notch doctors and equipment including a surgical center on sight at the Bedford location. As careful as they were to monitor my ovaries and control my dosage, I still got pregnant with three at once. (I actually got pregnant with boy/girl twins and the boy split to form identicals.) I should also tell you that I did acupuncture during that time with Dr. Liu in Dallas to increase my chances of conception. There are medical studies published now that support acupuncture as a potent way to boost your chances of getting pregnant during infertility treatment. Dr. Liu is wonderful! She was an OB in China, and now practices acupuncture exclusively over here with a specialization in infertility. Here's her website: http://www.acupuncture4women.com/page_home.asp . She as an office in Dallas near the Galleria and one in Frisco.

I carried the triplets to just over 22 weeks, went into preterm labor and lost all three last summer. I have since met MANY other women with the same tragic experience. Women of course can carry multiples successfully, it's just a risk I would wish to avoid in the future.

We started infertility again in the fall and after two or three unsuccessful rounds, took a break over the holidays.

Then, right after Christmas, I started periods on my own out of the blue. I already had the book I mentioned earlier & knew about Fertility Friend (free, online charting software), so I started charting. On my second cycle, I KID YOU NOT, I got pregnant after all these years! FAM rocks! (sorry for sounding like my 12 year old...) Because of that book I knew exactly when I was ovulating. The predictor kits I tried were wrong. The FAM method REALLY works. If you are ovulating, it will work. I also had resumed seeing Dr. Liu around that time.

Anyway, sorry for the long story. I am now 20 weeks pregnant with a singleton baby girl (whew!) & very happy about it. I will definietly try FAM before anything else for future children, but am also willing to do infertility again if my ovulation/periods don't resume after this pregnancy.

Hope that helps! May you get the baby you hope for very soon!

B. D

Talk with your OB/GYN first. S/he should be aware that you've been trying and that you've mis-carried and know your general health history. If your OB/GYN can't give you direction you're probably best off finding a new one. Then go the route of the specialist after getting information from your OB/GYN. We went to the Center for Assisted Reproduction in Bedford (live in Keller/N. Ft Worth). Our insurance covered everything pretty well but it did still cost some. Usually a copay each time and occasionally more depending on how they covered each procedure. Things ended up working for us with Clomid and IUI after the 2nd try. Our insurance would have covered IVF up to 3 attempts if we'd had to go that route. You will probably want to research your insurance as well in order to get a general idea of cost. They should be pretty helpful in getting you the information you'd need as well.

I always thought that, since I was having a period every month, I was ovulating. I was wrong. As soon as my regular ob/gyn prescribed chlomid (to "encourage" my ovaries to release an egg), I got pregnant. So don't despair ... your troubles could be very easy to fix. Good luck!!

if you are not ovulating ..you should have them check to see if your tubes are open...that would be my next step :)...good luck

I've had several friends who have had difficulty conceiving. Their answers have been simple like - make sure you are "trying" at least 3-4 times every week - but most have required other things. One of my friends, just recently, she and her husband had been trying for 2+ years and she was going the holistic/natural medicine route. She was not a super regular person (as far as cycles go) and they discovered her body produced too much estrogen and so she was trying diet and specific excercise and weird things like not eating or drinking out of plastic. But it was when she started a specific supplement - she said it was expensive, but I think it is more like 100's instead of 1000's of dollars - that she knew of several others that had success with and within 2 months she was pregnant. And she was VERY smitten with the bug, and we are so happy for her. If you are interested in this method, I could get specifics for you. Good luck!!

I've sooo been there. I went to the Doodys at the Center for Assisted Reproduction in Bedford to run the tests to see if there were reasons for miscarriages or reproductive difficulty. They have a finely tuned machine to diagnose and I still say they are the best for that aspect. They did indeed find a potential problem that was treatable for the miscarriages.

I then took that information to Stephen Farmer for treatment and yes, delivery of my baby boy! Dr. Farmer gave personal service. In any case, having the information is the first step in my mind. Good luck!!!! J. D.

I would see a regular ob/gyn 1st, there are several in our area that can also treat minor infertility issues. I would try that out 1st in case it is something simple to treat. I am using Dr Zwernamann by Harris Ft Worth (his wife's a pedi at Southlake Family Med and also wonderful). He was referred to me by a reproductive endocronolgist. I've had 3 c-sections (2 kids of my own and twins as a surrogate) which left me with uterine scarring. He was very open from the getgo in helping us see what our options are and in sending me straight to the specialist (Dr Kaufman also near Harris) when we are ready to actively start on baby #3.
Insurance is more likely to cover things through a regular ob/gyn, no matter what out of pocket cost is going to depends on what insurance you have. If oyu have a good one but they offer a better plan (that covers more infertility treatments) I would change to it before getting started. That is our issue..we have BCBS but can't change plans until January and can get one that covers most of it. Also there are flex spending accts many companies offer now. This really came in handy with m last child. It slowlyy comes out of your paycheck and you can use it like a credit card towards medical bills.

Wish you the best of luck!!

I would check out www.fretilityfriend.com It helped me in my journey to conception. I did the charting and temping for a year before trying to conceive. When we decided to try I got pregnant the first try. I credit that success to the information and advice on that site. Good luck!!! Keep us posted on your journey.
B.

you might look into natural family planning that will help you know what is going on with your cycle. If you are not ovulating then I would try homeopathic remedies that will help give your body a little help to do what it is supposed to do. I gave a friend of mine a remedy about 12 years ago to help her out and in just a few months she was pregnant (Her child is now 12 years). Sometimes if you just don't think about it so much and focus on something else you will just relax enough and things will begin to happen.

I used Anil Pinto in Grapevine. AWESOME!!
All we needed was a little clomid to make me ovulate. He is so caring and doesn't push you to do all kinds of stuff. He gives you the info and let's you decide and do what you are comfortable with. I loved the man!!!! Terrific.
Our insurance wouldn't cover it but I have endometriosis so they used that in the billing issues and we never paid a dime. It was a God thing, and we got our second baby.
I'd go back to him in a heart beat.

My advice to you to DON'T WAIT!!! Find a fertility specialist and don't worry about the cost. I waited until we can afford it and now we have to adopt because I waited too long and can't conceive or carry now.

I used Dr. Robert Kaufman out of Ft. Worth.

Do you have a primary OB/GYN? I would go through them to find an appropriate specialist. We tried for 2 1/2 years and finally did IVF and got our precious baby girl. The drs we used were Dr. D. Alan Johns, who is off of south Rufe Snow and Dr. Robert Kaufmann, who remotes at the same practice but his primary is at Harris Methodist--although he may have moved with the rest of Texas HEalth Care to Baylor Women's. They are both fabulous drs and I loved their nurses. Dr. Kaufmann especially, he and his wife had infertility problems and got pregnant with their children through IVF, so he is extremely empathetic and caring.

Hope this helps!

After an ectopic (tubal) pregnancy, and surgery to take it out, I couldn't get pregnant for about 12 months. They put me on Clomid for 3 months, and it didn't work. So, at the hospital they did an ink test in radiology to look at my tubes, to find out that the one I had surgery on had grown scar tissue and closed, so I was only ovulating every-other month. That test, I had been told, can also be helpful b/c it cleans out your tubes, and it worked! I was pregnant the next month! Don't despair.
My OB is also a fertility specialist, his name is Dr. David B. McAlpine and he's located in Baylor Southwest in Fort Worth. Give him a call. He got me through a lot! Good luck!