Trying for a 2016 baby

@Ninies I didnt like Fertilaid , made me gain so much weight over a 2 month period it was insane, and also made me bleed a little during ovulation the first month which scared me a bit even though that is sort of "normal" for some women.
Well because we were trying to see what other treatments we could do at an affordable rate when we started TTC I did take Clomid for 3 cycles as well as Fertilaid for 2 cycles last year (2014) but nothing.

Have been for 3 check ups recently (June) with Dr Potgieter at Wilgeheuwel to check if I was ovulating etc and everything was fine, I usually O on day 11 which is quite early compared to what i was calculating so something good did come from it.

As far as seeing a fertility specialist we decided to wait until we have been to the Urologist however I did make a provisional appointment with Bioart because there is usually a 2 month waiting list for an appointment. Have one for August this year, they are the cheapest and have very good reviews from what i have seen.

@Jay-bee thank you for that insight, now I know what to expect at the Urologist, this is new to me so it really helps

@Jay-bee - I dont think I am going to go for the progesterone test, as I am 100% sure I ovulated. TTC gets you so in touch with your body that after paying so much attention to all your symptoms, I could actually feel the ovulation. If that makes sense. I confirmed that with two CB tests (one digital and one easy) Did the easy before the digi, and thought I would test their tests...

FX that you get your BFP this cycle.

It is very quiet in here this month - TTC is really tiring.

@Liza - how are you hun?

@ Hails, sorry about the bad news but I have to agree with Ninies and it only takes one little spermie. You will find this forum helps through the tough times as everyone knows what you are feeling as we are all going through this long and sometimes hard path of ttc.

My GP sent both myself and my husband for tests. I don't ovulate and he has excellent sperm count, motility but some of his spermies are bad shaped. So he had to go to a Urologist.

The Urologist went over his SA results, then did a sonar on his pelvic area to see if he has a varicolele which is a varicose vein in his manly parts then he just physically checked that all is on order down there without any grows etc. The Urologist said that his hernia operation and medication would not affect his bad shaped spermies... not so sure about that. Anyways the doc says he is fine and the problem is with me if I am not ovulating.

You are 100% right that it is not a blaming game but I can understand how your husband feels as I sometimes feel that because of me we can't start a family. But hang in there

@ Ninies, this is my last cycle of Fertomid and then next month I will have a break with no pills then on the 5 August I have an appointment with the Gynae again. I am going to talk to him about the IUI as it is not that expensive and maybe that is our only hope.
Not sure if you said that you are not going for a Progesterone test but why don't you just to be 100% sure that you have ovulated on the unmediated cycle. I think its +- R112 for the test.

AFM, on CD17 and have two days with a spiked temp of 36.6 but today I am having left ovary cramps so weird as I didn't really have any cramps a few days ago. Will have to see when Ovufriend and FF gives me a ovulation date.

So tiring that if I don't get my BFP after this cycle next month we are taking a break.

@Hails - That is good news that you manged to get an earlier appointment. I would like to know what the urologist would test and check. When we went for the IUI the lady at the lab that did the washing etc, spoke to me and said that we could go see a urologist who would do tests to see if there is a blockage somewhere or if an op is needed etc. Like I said we decided to not go that route yet. Although we are already in our late 30's and time is against us.

We did the IUI procedure at the Wilgers Hospital in Pta East. My gynae is there. He did a scan on me the day before (I was on Fertomid) and he saw nice follies. I was about to ovulate so DH had to give his sperm the next day, which he did. I had to then go and get the sperm from the lab and take to the gynae for the IUI. But when I got to the lab, I got the news that there were very little sperm. The washing process would have costed R 1 000.00 but because the sperm was so low, they said we must not pay.
Nevertheless, my gynae still did the IUI (Cost to him for the IUI was also R 1000) that excludes the previous day's scan of R 380.00. The IUI was unsuccessful though.

Usually doctors will only do IUI if sperm count is above R 1m. Ours was less than 10 000. Apparantly a normal sperm count is in the region of 40m-300m! So you can see how far off we are.

Fertilaid (that you get from Dischem) seems to have very good reviews. But it is costly. About R700 per month. We started on Spermaid - which is about R 200 per month.
My brother (a proffesional bodybuilder) who obviously uses supplements and steriods, got told he had 3 paralysed sperms. Their baby is due in a week! They did not do any fertility treatment or anything. So it just shows again that it only takes 1.

I am calm about it now and shifted my focus. But it does get to me every now and then when AF arrives and the I get all moody. It is difficult not to play the blaming game, but because we already naturally conceived a child I still have hope.
The irony is that my DH never ever drinks coffee and never smoked (these are known to lower sperm count).

You could get a better count with his next SA. After my hubby gave his sperm he phoned me to say he does not know how good it would be as he struggled to do it there in small room which is right next to the teatre and it is busy in there. So I also wondered if that could have affected his results. Best to do the thing at home and just drop the sample at the lab I think.

Were you on any treatment before you did the SA, and are you seeing a Fertility Specialist?

@ninies and yes we have no little kiddies as yet which was tough for me as my mom had me at the age of 24 so I naturally assumed I would start my family around the same time. No one ever expects the uphill battle that sometimes arises when TTC.

@ninies Morning,

I managed to find a urologist that will see us on the 8th of July. DH was so stressed about the whole thing and seemed so relieved when I mentioned that I could get us an appointment earlier than the 14th.

I will definitely let you know what the doctor suggests we do. Also when you mentioned "We were doing IUI and when DH deposited his sperm to be washed" I wondered what was the cost for that just out of interest sake and where did you do the procedure ?

My focus had to shift from being very strict with myself to focusing on DH. What I find weird is that DH had a fever and flu leading up to his SA which only really went away after the SA was done, he said something just didnt feel right when he gave the sample, now I'm not saying that the doctors are wrong but I hope with all my heart that the next results are maybe a little better now that he is well. Even seeing a few little spermies would ease my mind a lot

Thank you so much for your response it is appreciated, I dont feel so alone now.

@Hails - I am sorry to hear about your devastating news. I gather that you dont have any children yet?
The same thing happened to us. TTC for over 18 months, me on Fertomid, seeing gynae regularly and nothing happened. We were doing IUI and when DH deposited his sperm to be washed, we also got the news that he has less than 10 000 spermies. That basically means he has none. We already have a boy (3 years).
I dont know if DH's sperm count was low when we conceived our boy, as we werent trying at all. But after the sudden passing of his father we have been struggling, so I think it is due to that.
He is taking spermaid as we decided not to go the urologist route.
I would however like to know what the urologist suggests you do, so please keep us posted.

PS - it is not a death sentence at all! As the man upstairs can do miracles. Hold on and stay positive and dont let it affect your relationship.