Irregular periods - what to do?

[RosesToys]

We have been ttc for about 2 years. I had a mc in February 2004. Unfortunately I was going to do the basic infertility workup last October and my doc blew me off and told me to come back later. I can't really blame her, I was dealing with a major clinical depression at the time so I wasn't really in a position to deal with all of the testing.

Anyway, I have only had 4 periods in the last 15 months or so. I was having regular periods until last October, when my period ceased because of a med I am taking. The med upped my prolactin level, and my now-4-year-old dd is still nursing, so it is up in the range that you usually see when you are nursing a newborn. I have decreased the level of the meds down to where I would not think that it would be causing problems, from 2 mg a day to 0.25 mg a day, but I still am not having regular periods.

So I did not have a period at all from September of last year until August of this year. I've only had three periods this year - August 3, September 28, and October 31. I was figuring that since my Sept & Oct periods were only 4 1/2 weeks apart that I was back on track towards being regular. My periods were 34-36 days apart before my dd. They were only 28 days apart since I had her though, although my period did not come back until she was 23 months. (I have a super-nurser here. lol)

I just bought a Clear Blue Easy Fertility Monitor on eBay, so I was looking forward to getting my period and starting to use it. I was hoping that would help us ttc. Btw, it took 11 months to get pg with dd, so I have been told my another doc that we have "mild infertility issues."

anyway, I have heard folks mention taking Vitex (Did I get that right?) or doing other things to bring on their periods. I am hoping that you can give me more info about what I can do here. I am very frustrated by all of this. I am 38 and also have a heart condition that may cause major problems during pregnancy if I don't get pg soon.

I'm already seeing an acupunturist. I've only been seeing her for about 3 weeks now though, although I have seen her on & off in the past. I didn't realize until this week that my period is this late and I wasn't able to see her this week since she was sick.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions you can offer!

Sharon

[OTMomma]

Fertility problems suck.

Anyway, you asked about things to take to attempt to help your cycles. There are nursing moms here who take Vitex, it is supposed to help regulate your hormones to help you ovulate regularly. I tried it while nursing and found that it decreased my milk supply (by decreasing prolactin, I think). I also had spotting due to the Vitex, and I've heard other moms say that it can cause depression. Though some moms have great success with it.

I think one of the better things to try first is taking B6, at least 100 mg, and a B complex vitamin. There are many sources that suggest them, they are supposed to be good for depression and I'v never heard of side effects with B vitamins.

There are also moms here who take Red Raspberry leaf and nettles, no personal experience here, but you can do a search for them and see if those look good to you.

I'd also recommend seeing a doctor now for a blood test to check all your hormone levels.

Peace,
Laura

[sparkletruck]

it is very possible to conceive while not menstruating regularly. If you want to go the "alternative" route, I highly recommend you see an herbalist or accupuncturist rather than self-diagnosing. Vitex is a very strong herb on its own. It is used to lower prolactin, (has been shown to do so in studies), but are you sure this is what is going on? If so, maybe you want to think about stopping nursing rather than demanding more from your body than it is ready to give "on its own". I highly recommend, to anyone dealing with fertility issues, a website called INCIID (google inciid.org) On it there are forums to ask "experts" questions about your particular case, but it is also useful to just read what others have asked and see what the answers are.... If you want to go the western route, you can take hormones to induce AF, but again, you should be doing everything you can to support your body in this direction (like weaning - sorry, and maybe going off meds?) Sub-fertiltity is stressful - try not to worry. Try to focus on nurturing and nourishing your body, and get educated! good luck!

[Cherub-lori]

mine too ! i went from 28 day cycles to every 30 ,then 40 now i am on day 90! my doc just blows me off too.