Getting pregnant after the pill

I am currently trying to get pregnant and I'm getting rather frustrated. I was on the pill for about a year (it's been off and on alternating about every year since I was 15) and stopped taking it in May. I am only 27 years old, and I really shouldn't be having this much trouble conceiving!

So we're going on our 4th month of trying, and I just wanted to know if this is normal. Should I not expect results for a while? Maybe this is the month?

The reason is that I've been psyching myself out for the past few months and I've been very disappointed.

I just kind of wanted to know about other people's experiences with getting pregnant after the pill.

I'm 29, on the pill, and have never tried to get pregnant, so please take my suggestions with all of this in mind.  However, I plan to go off the pill in the next year or two so I've been reading up, talking to my OB/GYN, and learning about natural family planning:

• My doctor told me to not be surprised if it takes 3-6 months to conceive after I go off the pill.  My friend conceived in about 6 weeks after stopping the pill by: having intercourse during her peak times and lying in bed with her feet elevated after intercourse.  Even her doc was surprised by how quick this was.
• Are you healthy?  Do you have PCOS?  Has your OB/GYN said you should have no problem quickly conceiving?
  
• Are you aware of when you are ovulating and when you're fertile times are?  Are you primarily having intercourse during your peak times for conception?  One of my friends and her husband used the OTC fertility checkers and that helped them conceive quickly.
  
• Is your husband older, overweight, a cancer survivor or have anything else that might be keeping him from having a normal sperm count?
  
• Are you overweight or obese?  This can impact your ability to get pregnant.
• Consider a Natural Family Planning  class which you can find out about by contacting the nearest Catholic church.  I work for a Catholic church and our NFP lady says she has lots of non-Catholics who come to her after miscarriages and problems to conceive. 
  

Hope this helps a bit.  Hang in there and good luck!!

Ugh!  Pregnochondria is the worst.  You feel like something is different.  Was that implantation cramping?  Surely, you must be pregnant!  Then, the period arrives and it's back to the drawing board.

I was never on the pill, but I did have trouble conceiving starting at 23 years old.  27 is actually the tipping point for the natural decline in fertility for most women.  I'm not trying to discourage you.  I just want to point out that you are certainly not too young to have trouble conceiving.

I totally agree with kthompson's suggestion of learning about your body (if you haven't already).  Know when you are ovulating.  Learn how to detect favorable cervical mucous.  Learn about temping and charting.  Look into getting some tools to help you - preseed, ovulation test strips, a basal body temperature thermometer.

Getting pregnant isn't easy for everyone.  It's best to be armed with information to help you make the most of each month's try.

I hope you do end up pregnant very soon.  Best wishes!

I was on the pill almost consistantly from 15-23, it took me a year to get my period back with some consitance and I got pregnant after two years.

I would not worry until you have been off over a year, try tracking your temps at http://www.fertilityfriend.com/.

Original Post by juliemae2:

Ugh!  Pregnochondria is the worst.  You feel like something is different.  Was that implantation cramping?  Surely, you must be pregnant!  Then, the period arrives and it's back to the drawing board.

 Tell me about it!! I've had 3 months of that so far and it's driving me crazy!! My breasts are tender, I must be pregnant! I'm feeling very lethargic, I must be pregnant! Grr...

The thing is... and I don't like talking much about this, but I have terminated 2 pregnancies before this (once because I was raped and the second time my husband and I had JUST gotten married and we weren't ready) and it seems like I'm fertile enough.

I have been paying a bit more attention to things like cervical mucous and stuff... but the rest of it is all Greek to me.

"Tell me about it!! I've had 3 months of that so far and it's driving me crazy!! My breasts are tender, I must be pregnant! I'm feeling very lethargic, I must be pregnant! Grr... The thing is... and I don't like talking much about this, but I have terminated 2 pregnancies before this (once because I was raped and the second time my husband and I had JUST gotten married and we weren't ready) and it seems like I'm fertile enough."

Have you talked with your OBGYN about your efforts?  They have pretty good pointers and can help clear confusion.  I would also recomend (if you haven't already) letting your doctor know you have had two abortions.  I am not a doctor, but I do know there can sometimes be physical side effects that can impact a women's fertility.  Best Wishes!

I haven't asked because I'm almost afraid to. I know hiding from a possible problem won't make it go away, but I just really don't want to hear that there is a problem.

I'll probably end up going if it doesn't happen this month.

I agree.  The terminated pregnancies could have caused problems.  But, if you're just starting to get regular again, try not to stress so much.  You might consider taking an NFP class or, at the very least, ordering some materials to educate yourself more.  If there's one things  Catholics are good at, it's getting people pregnant!   You are your husband might consider ordering materials from here: http://www.ccli.org/store ; as this is the best (Catholic) source for family planning materials.  The only downside of NFP is you might get bombarded with people who are totally against contraceptives, abortions, etc.  Ordering books and materials will help you educate yourself without having to surround yourself with religious zealots (not all are like this but I want to prep you) who may judge you if/when you choose to share that you were on the pill and especially if you mention abortions. 

Also, if/when you talk to the doctor, make sure you can tell him or her what types of abortions you had.  Knowing the type will help him/her know what to look for in terms of potential issues.

Best wishes!

Thanks for all of your suggestions and support! I really appreciate it

This is by far the best, most supportive online community I've ever been a part of.

So let's just keep our fingers crossed for the next couple of weeks, because if it's going to happen this month, I'm right about where I should be!

Just relax and enjoy the process! 

I was on the pill on and off for about 10 years before I had my first child.  I went off 3 months before he was conceived.  I terminated a pregnancy before him.  Then I was off again on again for another 8 years, terminated another pregnancy and then got pregnant with my daughter who is now 4.  That also took about 3 months after I went off the pill.

My ob/gyn is not even aware of my 2 pregnancy terminations. 

I know it's hard....but be patient!

Just to reassure people - terminating pregnancies, unless there was subsequent infection or other serious complications, does NOT affect fertility until you get into the double digits. And even then, only with older, harsher techniques (i.e. scraping, not suction).

Silent Chlamydia infections from unprotected sex, however, that you never even knew you caught - that can cause infertility. But when people become infertile after a phase of having lots of unsafe sex (which could include a termination as well), they blame the termination because they never knew about the chlamydia. So the former gets a bad rap that it doesn't deserve.

Yep!  I'm having the same issues.  I was on the pill from ages 18-31.  Coming off was so hard - I had major hormone fluctuations and physically I felt terrible for the first 4 months. 

We've been trying to conceive for a year now with no luck.  I've been tracking my cycles, using ovulation sticks, etc.  I will say that I am super irregular so it's really hard to guage when I will be ovulating and honestly the sticks don't work well for me - sometimes I'll never get the indicator that I'm about to ovulate but then I'll have a period, so obviously I did at some point!

Have you gone through the fertility testing?  I had an ultrasound and bloodwork done and my husband had a semen analysis.  Everything was ok for the most part, but I may have some cists on my right ovary that could be making things more difficult.  If you haven't already gotten these tests done, I would recommend it.

Good luck.

Original Post by ehs1146:

We've been trying to conceive for a year now with no luck.  I've been tracking my cycles, using ovulation sticks, etc.  I will say that I am super irregular so it's really hard to guage when I will be ovulating and honestly the sticks don't work well for me - sometimes I'll never get the indicator that I'm about to ovulate but then I'll have a period, so obviously I did at some point!

 What time of day are you testing?  Some say it's better to test in the afternoon or evening.  Some suggest testing twice a day, since by testing once a day you can miss the surge.

Honestly, after a year of trying I would seek the help of a reproductive endocrinologist (fertility specialist).  You didn't necessarily ovulate just because you got a period.  Even if you detect an LH surge with the test strips, you didn't necessarily ovulate.  You can confirm ovulation by temping.  But, after a year, you might want to confirm that your tubes are open.  This means having an HSG procedure.

I went through many years of ttc and have spent months and months on message boards devoted to getting pregnant.  The standard is to seek an RE after 1 year of trying, unless you are over 35, in which case you should seek help after 6 months.

Good luck to you.

Thanks!  My doctor put me on Femara this month.  If it didn't work, the next step for us is going to a specialist.  I'm 32, so you're right it's time for us to get more aggressive.  I am baffled by all this, as everyone else in my family breeds like rabbits!  We'll get there - thanks for your support.

It took me 4 months to get pregnant after the pill.  I was 29.

I figured that 3 months after the pill would be good, and honestly I wanted to get pregnant in the early summer time so that I wouldn't be at my biggest during the hottest months, but I don't think that's going to happen.

Of course now, in the 4th month of trying, my husband is having issues (he just started anti-depressants) so there's another wrench thrown into things.

#1:  Abortion does NOT lead to fertility problems.  Pro-lifers seem to enjoy using that idea as a scare/guilt tactic, which I resent.  I wish people wouldn't even put that out there.

#2:  After taking out my IUD, it took one cycle to get pregnant.  I highly recommend the book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility."  It's highly instructive in terms of charting your ovulation, learning to know your body, etc.  Good luck!

 

I can understand your frustrations!  I am 28, DH is 31 and we have been TTC for 10 months.  Grrr...

"people" say it takes 3-4 months coming off BC to regulate...i have yet to regulate!  what everyone said seems pretty good advice.  Telling your dr. everything seems pretty important...they are there to help not judge you!

glad you are posting...it has helped me to talk about it...even to strangers!

beth

Original Post by machatica:

#1: Abortion does NOT lead to fertility problems. Pro-lifers seem to enjoy using that idea as a scare/guilt tactic, which I resent. I wish people wouldn't even put that out there.

 

It is my understanding that abortions that took place later than the first trimester can POSSIBLY lead to fertility problems.  I don't know about you, but my OB/GYN asks about all pregnancies and how they ended (miscarriage, abortion, etc.).  I presume they wouldn't ask unless it wasn't potentially necessary for them to know this info to best care for me.  I wasn't trying to guilt or scare the OP and, as I mentioned in my post, risks has to do with the type of abortion performed.

Hi,

Ob/gyns ask about pregnancy history because it is good information to know. The miscarriage/abortion history is relevant because repeated miscarriages entails a higher chance of miscarrying again, and what they are really "after" is whether you had repeated miscarriages (which would indicate a tendency towards chromosomal abnormality). Or, if an induced abortion had complications afterward (about 0.5% will have some complication or other), that's good to know too. Uncomplicated induced abortion in first or second trimester does not cause fertility problems, again, unless you have a whole lot of them (seriously, double digits) AND they are badly done. Among women in many former Soviet bloc countries, where abortion was the only reliable and accessible means of controlling fertility - pills/condoms etc. not consistently available on the market - it was relatively common to have had 6-10 abortions (or more) in one's lifetime, before, between, and after one's children. The existence of so many women pregnant for, say, the 12th time (with histories of 8 abortions and three kids) puts the lie to claims that induced abortion harms fertility. Again, doesn't matter if it's second-trimester (though 90% of abortions are in the first trimester anyway), the methods have been refined to ensure an excellent safety record.

Don't give up. I've been on the pill for 4 years then got pregnant on the 4th month, but sadly had a miscarriage at 10 weeks. It took us nearly two years to conceive again, but are now happy & proud parents of a 9 month old boy.

I was losing hope and getting frustrated that it took so long the second time. Anytime my period is delayed by 1-2 days I would do a test, only to be disappointed. It was getting harder to get in a romantic mood when you get disappointed every month and your ovulations falls on a weekday, when you;re both tired and stressed from work. My decision not to get scraped after the miscarriage may have something to do with it, or maybe not.

We consulted a fertility specialist because we were getting impatient (I'm now 41), and even considered IUI and IVF. But first he ordered both of us to go through some tests (sperm count for him, and HSG for me), and based on that he convinced us to combine Clomid and ovulation test kit first. It worked the first time! Even more amazing is I conceived during hay fever season when I was taking some medication and thought these would interfere with conception. Our baby may be premature by 6 weeks, but otherwise he's developing on schedule if not ahead according to his due date.

Good luck!