ttc on prometrium - please help

[babycrazy!]

i need some advise! a little history on me: we've been ttc for 9 months now without any luck. my doctor did blood work and an ultrasound. she said the ultrasound looked normal and in fact during one she could tell that i had just OV. my bloodwork showed that my progesterone was alittle low. (which i had previously diagnosed myself with LPD before going to the doctor b/c i had been charting and always seemed to start AF around day 22-23). Anyway, i started prometrium 2 cycles ago. i was told by the nurse to start taking it after OV and continue until i started my next period. repeat as nessecary. cycle one was 29 days long! i thought "great, my cycle is straighted out!". not so much. cycle 2: on day 21 and 22 i started lightly spotting old blood. then this morning day 23 it was slightly red. so does this mean my cycle is messed up again? what now? do i stop taking the prometrium until next cycle? i did a little reading this morning and some women are saying that they only take the drug for 5 -10 days and then wait for AF to come and that they wait a few days after OV to start the drug. My doc. did not tell me to do it this way. am i taking the medicine incorrectly? sorry for such a long post. PLEASE HELP! i'm at my whits end with this process.

[karmab]

you can take it as soon as you know for sure that you o'd. many (most) wait until 3 dpo, so that they can document a sustained thermal shift, and know for sure. if you take prometrium before you o- you wont o. i dont know anyone who takes it for 5-10 days when ttc. maybe for other reasons. i would not recommend that at all. what most of us do is start it after o, usually 3dpo, and take it till 14 dpo or until af starts if we dont make it 14 days. if you go 14 days, take a test. if it's positive, keep taking your prometrium and call your doc. if it's negative, stop taking it, and you will get your af in 1-4 days. if your lp is still short on the prometrium, you may just need to up the dose. a lot of docs will start us at 200 mg, but many women need 400 or 600, some maybe even 800. you can have a mid-luteal blood draw for serum progesterone next cycle, around 7 dpo to check your level. you will want to see it maybe around 15 or higher i think.

[karmab]

oh, and about this cycle, if it were me, i would keep taking it but call my doc for instructions. i guess it depends on if it's just a little spotting, or if it's actual flow. if it's flow, this cycle is gonna be over, but if it's spotting, you might continue on and it might stop.

[sweetest77]

One of the other reasons people take Prometrium is to induce AF (when it doesn't come on it's own). Those may be the ones you are reading about who take it for 5-10 days then wait for AF.

I agree that you may need a higher dose. Also, how are you taking the pills (orally or vaginally). I started with 200mg orally which lengthened my lp but I still had LP spotting. Pushing the dose up to 200mg 2x/day vaginally is what it took to get a normal LP (14 days and no spotting).

When I was taking the lower dose, my spotting would start around 9dpo and be brown for a few days then red and finally I would start a normal AF at 13/14dpo, so I agree with Karma that if you are just spotting, you should keep taking the Prog. until 14dpo. Oh and I usually start the progesterone on day 3 after I have confirmed O with a sustained temp shift...

[xtara2003x]

I agree with the pp's.

I am going to be Oing soon..and I plan to start taking 200mg of prometrium 1 x per day (I do not have LP issues - possibly just lining issues) starting at 3DPO and going until 14 or 15DPO or until AF shows. If I do get a BFP I will continue to take it..if not, I will stop and do it all over again the next month.

Good luck!!!

If you have questions about your particular situation, just give your doc a call and the nurse can get back to you with the instructions!

[nintendork]

I agree with pp. When I took it I waited until after O and then continued taking it for 16 days. Now that I am pregnant I am still taking it. For me, getting AF while taking the drug meant it wasn't working as it is supposed to be keeping you from getting it. In fact, I didn't have AF unless I stopped taking it. I would call your doctor and tell him that you are still getting your period early, maybe he will up your dose.