I am frustrated but at least I finally feel like I am doing something to help me get to my goal of having a bun in my oven.
I had blood work done (for the fourth time) on November 5th and finally met with my doctor again on the 30th – that was the earliest she could see me.
All of my hormones and other levels are great, except for my estrogen. For some reason, this continues to be on the lower side. LH, FSH, Prolactin, thyroid, and all of the other things they checked are perfectly where they need to be, except my estrogen.
And because it is not spiking the way it should, I am not ovulating. This is so frustrating. I kinda need the whole ovulation thing to happen in order to get this show on the road.
I read that taking maca powder can help balance hormones so I take that. I take CoQ10 because apparently, that can help with egg quality. I take a pre-natal, vit D, and Omega-3 too. My weight was a little low so I have even gained over 15 lbs and STILL my estrogen is low.
My doctor did not have an answer as to why this is the case but I finally feel like we are doing something because I am now on Femara (Letrozole) for 5 days. This is actually a medication for breast cancer treatment but it has secondary uses as a fertility drug. From my understanding, it suppresses estrogen which is supposed to signal your brain to increase production of FSH which leads to the growth and release of an egg (ovulation). I know I said that my estrogen is low, so this might sound strange, but my estrogen is not THAT low, and apparently this drug can help kickstart things.
I am taking 5mg/day for five days. I should then ovulate six to eight or so days later. I need to have blood work done every week for the next four weeks and I meet with my doctor again the first week of January.
I will also be peeing on ovulation test strips after I finish the Femara for a couple of weeks to see if I get the LH surge that indicates ovulation. If I do, I will make note of that date and then when I meet with my doctor in Jan, we will review my blood results to see if it matches up. If yes, then I can use the OPK to know when I am ovulating and can then actually try insemination!
I am really, really hoping the Femara works. It is so frustrating not knowing why my body is not cooperating as it should. I hope it just needs this little nudge to help it along.
All I do is think about being pregnant, imagining what it will be like, and I finally feel like I am doing something that will help get me there.
Oh, and I found a podcast called the Egg Whisperer and in the last week I have listened to almost every episode Dr. Aimee has. If you have any sort of fertility issues I recommend checking her out. Lots of interesting things to learn, like the importance of getting your TUSHY checked!
Fingers crossed for ovulation in less than two weeks!