for all you chronic spotters out there....

[mexilady]

Wondering if any of you who spot before thier period ever got a bfp while spotting? I typically spot a few days before af. I am currently taking vitex and using tcm and acupuncture to increase my LP length, but every month when I see the spotting I know I am out. Any positive experiences out there with spotting and a bfp? 

[toothfairy2be]

I'd love to hear some positive experiences as well... I get spotting anywhere from 4-10 days (it really really sucks). I also have used Acupuncture and TCM- only had 1 month with no spotting- back in February. I am seeing a new practitioner now & have done the Clomid Challenge with progesterone and had no spotting with that, so I finally see a glimmer of hope. But, I too know I am out when the spotting starts- I hope to hear some positive stories out there! I'm not sure if you will get them here on TTC, but maybe people TTC number 2 or more will have experience in the past. Best of Luck!

[PoorUglyHappy]

I don't have any positive experiences to share. I do however feel lucky that my 2ww is never more than 7 or 8 days because of the spotting.  That one week is torture enough.  

[Jaimee]

Spotting doesn't necessarily mean you are out.  Depending on how long your LP is, you might still be able to sustain a pregnancy even if you regularly spot.  How long is your LP typically and how many days do you usually spot?  It is generally agreed that you need at least 10 non-spotting days to sustain a pregnancy. 

I regularly spotted prior to AF before conceiving my first, but my LP was generally 12 days long, so my non-spotting LP was about 9-10 days.  I did have one early loss (I assume due to low progesterone) and the next cycle I conceived my daughter.  I had spotting around the time of expected AF and again about a week later, but I sustained the pregnancy.  After my cycles returned, I had very short LP's with spotting (due to breastfeeding), but eventually they regulated, I had another early loss, and two cycles later conceived my second.  After my cycle returned from that pregnancy, I had only one ppAF with a 4 day LP and I conceived my third the following cycle.  So there is absolutely hope!

[mexilady]

Thanks for the responses ladies! I usually have a 10 day lp, and I usually  start spotting  on day 9-10dpo. I am currently on 8dpo and spotting started yesterday at 7dpo, very light brown/tan/pink, so this cycle is perhaps different. Usually when I see the spotting I know that af is on her way! My temps are still high, but the spotting does not give me much confidence. Ah the joys of ttc!

[KodyAnn]

I'm a spotter.

I spot right before I ovulate, and then again starting (up to) 7 days before AF.  My LP lately has been 10-12 days (I'm 12DPO now and have been spotting since 9DPO).  Before my first pregnancy, I had a ~16 day LP and spotted for up to a week before AF.  The month I got pregnant the first time,  I had no spotting and that was my first clue that I was pregnant.  My next two pregnancies I still had pre-AF spotting.  I bled through the first trimester of my second pregnancy and was on progesterone, and my third pregnancy ended in m/c but for unknown reasons.  My progesterone has been tested and is within normal ranges - right smack in the middle, actually. 

As I mentioned, I'm 12DPO now and my temps are still high - they are climbing again.  I suppose they could plummet tomorrow (my "test day"), but I'm still stopping for pregnancy tests tonight.  Wishful thinking, and all that.

[PoorUglyHappy]

I've had my progesterone levels checked and they are normal.  I usually start spotting 7 or 8 dpo. and then spot for 5 to 7 days before AF.   I also have a corresponding temp dip.   I've tried vitex, B6 and progesterone cream and they did nothing to change the spotting.  I did have a wonderful acupuncturist years ago that I went to for menstrual migraines.  She made the spotting and the migraines go away. Unfortunately, now she is 3000 miles away from where I live now.

[scowgirl]

I used to have spotting for several days prior to AF, but that more or less went away when I got on the right dose of natural thyroid hormone. My LP was still 10 days (sometimes 9), but the spotting stopped except for maybe 1 day before AF. Still, I spotted for about 4 days starting about a week and a half ago when I got my BFP. I got the BFP on 10 dpo and started spotting that same day. The spotting stopped last Thursday and I haven't seen it since. Hope it stays away!

Everything I've heard indicates that several days of pre-AF spotting (as opposed to a normal 0 to maybe 1 day of spotting) is usually a bad sign for being able to sustain a pregnancy, and a potential indicator of low progesterone or perhaps thyroid problems. That's why I was so concerned about my cycles when I learned this.

(I personally ignored the "typical" thyroid hormone ranges and did a bunch of research on what was average/"normal" in the population vs. what they will tell you is "good enough," and found a like-minded doctor who was willing to prescribe me a dose that keeps me in those normal ranges. The other thing they don't like to tell you is that if you are on thyroid hormone, your TSH is likely to drop way down in any case, and becomes pretty much meaningless. What matters is the actual levels of T4 and T3 in your blood.)

I will try to keep this all-about-me off-topic rant short, but in my experience, doctors are often so hell-bent on "not giving you an excuse to be fat" that if you are overweight and concerned about your thyroid, they will do almost anything to pooh-pooh the possibility that something might be wrong. If your TSH is anywhere close to the outdated "normal" range (and forget getting them to order T3 or T4 testing), they lecture you to go on a diet and refuse to discuss it any further. In my case, I didn't lose any weight anyway when I got regulated, but I feel tons better, my cycles normalized, and my temps increased into a more reasonable range. That's what tells me I am on the right dose or close to it.