Waiting fertility appointment

[Ruby26]

Hi all. I came off the contraceptive pill a year ago to try for a baby. My first cycle was 32 days then increased to 50 days with my last one being 92 days ago. My gp referred me to a gynaecologist and ultrasound showed polycystic ovaries. I had some blood tests to confirm it (don't know the results) and have been referred to fertility. My partner is going for semen analysis but my referral letter came through with an appointment in December!! It seems a long time to wait, is this normal? Also any advice what I can do in the meantime? I have a BMI of 22.6, exercise 5 days a week and taking seven seas trying for a baby tablets and vitamin d, I'm stuck what else to do! This wait is going to drive me mad!! Xx

[Hidden]

Hi

I'm in similar boat. Althou I've known I've had pcos since I was 14. I got my coil out nearly a year ago. My periods have been 40-53 and now even longer apart. I had a gyno referral that took months. Eventually went last month. They are really busy so Dec as much as it seems long to you sounds about right. Once it in the system i think it's better I've been given pills to try and have a follow up appt in November. The gyno recommended a supplement to me called inofolic nhs can't prescribe vitamins but said if they cud they would prescribe this. Its not cheap but you start taking this whilst you wait for Decemberxxx

[Ruby26 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you I will look into inofolic xx

[ChloBo84]

Hi Ruby.

So sorry you're finding it hard to conceive and with your diagnosis of polycystic ovaries. I was diagnosed with pcos nearly 4 years ago. I had to wait for another year and a half before they could refer me to my fertility clinic.

So sorry it's taking a while to get your appointment. Unfortunately, they do have quite long waiting times to get the first appointment with the consultant (it's amazing just how busy they are). I don't think I saw mine till about 3 months after my initial meeting with my fertility nurse.

As for things you're doing, you seem to be doing everything perfectly! Your bmi is really good, you're taking the correct vitamins, your eating and exercising right.

Just try and hang in there. December will hopefully come quicker than you expect xx

[merrohawk83]

Hi there,

I was diagnosed with PCOS 15 years ago, and my periods were once every 2-3 YEARS! I lost weight and followed a low GI diet (very important for PCOS women) and became pregnant with my first child (who was sadly stillborn) in 2014. I saw a specialist to help aid ovulation who recommended I take metformin 500mg x3 daily,l. This commenced in April this year. I am now 9 weeks pregnant again. Metformin is a wonder drug! Speak to your GP about it - they may be able to prescribe it for you. It is difficult on the stomach for the first few weeks but stick with it - it gets better. And it works!!!

Good luck

Xx

[Ruby26 in reply to merrohawk83]

I have read about metformin so hopefully they will prescribe me the same. Congratulations on your pregnancy! Xx

[Hols969]

Get your partner on the Boots Vit C and zinc tablets as a precaution as 1/3 of fertility issues are now men, my hubbies improved by over a 100% in a year (his was v dodgy).

Just a reminder that a period doesn't mean you ovulate and you can ovulate without one too - I had regular ish periods but rarely ovulated. Look at the fertilityfriends website as it advises how to take our temperature and what signs to look for that shows you are ovulating, also don't have sex more than every other day otherwise the sperm is too immature to swim to the egg. If you can chart your cycle/temperature up to December with Fertilityfriends and take the info with you that may help at your appointment especially if you are not ovulating very often, which is pretty common for pcos ladies.

It is extremely rare not to conceive just due to pcos so try not to worry too much as there is so much help if you do need extra assistance.

In my opinion your next thing should be to have your tubes checked to see if they are all ok (there is a drug called clomid that can help you conceive but there is a time limit on how long you can use it for so if your tubes are blocked then it is a waste of that time).

[Ruby26 in reply to Hols969]

Thanks for the advice! Partner is having sperm analysis next week so will see what it reveals! Xx

[Ruby26]

Thank you ladies for all your support! Really appreciate that you took the time to come back to me. Makes me feel like I'm not alone.

Quick update... I couldn't make the date the hospital send me so I called them to reschedule and guess what... they had a slot in September so my appointment is in 5 weeks!! I'm so glad I phoned and i won't have to wait as long as I thought! X

[Rach82 in reply to Ruby26]

Sounds like the same situation as me; have been ttc for over a year, saw the fertility nurse a few days ago and have been given inofolic to try. It has less side effects than metformin but costs £80 for three months. We have a second appointment in December, and am waiting for an appointment for a 'steam clean' of my tubes (erk...) Hopefully not as scary as it sounds. Best of luck to you xx

[Ruby26 in reply to Rach82]

That's really interesting as I was expecting them to give me metformin. I've looked at inofolic before, can you get it on prescription. I hope it work for you, is be interested to see how you get on and see if my first appointment has the same advice xx

[Rach82 in reply to Ruby26]

Inofolic is basically a food supplement of inositol and folic acid - so it's not nhs funded. I was offered metformin on prescription but didn't want to risk the side effects as I am in a new job. Hope this helps xx

[LisaEB in reply to Ruby26]

I took metformin and it made me really ill, instant vomiting and diarrhoea, sorry tmi, its not a wonder drug for all. It may work for you but it may not as well.