Community post

Hello :)

I can't respond to you from experience, only from research I have done on fertility and natural health.

You mention having had some cysts drained - were they are on your ovaries? If so then were you diagnosed with PCOS?

If you are not doing so already, I would recommend you start charting your BBT for a cycle or two to see if you are actually ovulating. It is possible that you are not actually releasing an egg each cycle. Personally I use FertilityFriend.com to chart my cycles and there is a lot of information there about charting. I also recommend the book 'Taking Charge of Your Fertility' by Toni Weschler as it not only covers charting your cycle in detail but also talks about things such as PCOS that can intefere with your cycle and how charting your cycle can help gather information about your health.

To answer your question, yes you can get pregnant with cysts but they can also make getting pregnant problematic.

To respond to your other question, yes cysts can return very quickly following having them drained. The problem with having them drained through surgery is that it doesn't address what is causing them in the first place.

If you want to message me with the diagnosis you received then I may be able to point you in the direction of some natural approaches to treating your condition. They can take longer to work and aren't a quick fix but they do support your long term health.

Thanks for replying, Yes, I had a few ovarian cysts that were drained back in November 2011 during a laproscopic surgery to see if anything was wrong. This was all that was found and my doctor said it wasn't and wouldn't keep me from getting pregnant but I do remember before having them drained that I seemed to have the two weeks worth of cramping then too. Once they were drained, I didn't seem to cramp for a couple months but then the cramps came back so that is why I am wondering if maybe I have more cysts again and that is what is causing these cramps. They ALWAYS start in exactly a day after I ovulate and they won't let up, I mean they are constant all day long, until my next period arrives, then I am cramp-free for 2 weeks, then the cycle starts all over again. I think I am ovulating because the tests give me a good positive and I can definitely feel it in my left ovary. Another thing I notice too is that I ALWAYS ovulate from my left ovary. My August cycle I used clomid for the first time ever (50 mg) and I have read that they can cause cysts to form too, so after reading a lot of negative things about clomid, I decided to not take it anymore ( I always ovulated on my own anyways), So, this cycle without the clomid, felt like I ovulated harder than ever and my left ovary still aches some and I am 3 dpo today. So, by all of that, and these horrible cramps, I wonder if it could possibly be a cyst. Mind you these cramps feel EXACTLY like menstrual cramps, no different at all, just no blood yet. I always start my period right on time and my luteal phase is perfect so I would love to know what causes woman to have cramping like this for 2 weeks. Another thing I would like to mention is that before the lap back in November, I had a chemical pregnancy and I remember cramping very very bad with that one too but they didn't kick in until about 4 days post ovulation. My last pregnancy which ended in June at 6 weeks, I also cramped a lot starting the very next day after ovulation, so by that, I know I can't rule a pregnancy out yet but it pretty much makes me think I am out each cycle. Thanks for any information you can give me. I really appreciate it.

It does sound like your cysts may be back again. I don't claim to know a great deal about PCOS as it isn't something I have had need to look into, however you may find the following articles and websites a good starting point for learning about it.

http://www.marilynglenville.com/general/polycystic.htm
This is an informative website which explains what PCOS is and presents some options. If you were to only look in one place for information this would be the one I would recommend most.

http://natural-fertility-info.com/pcos-fertility-diet
This website seems fairly solid and reliable as an information source but I can't speak to the quality of the supplements and products in their shop section.

If you do decide to take any nutritional supplements to help your condition, it is important to you make sure you are buying from a high quality supplement company. Nutritional supplements come in different forms and there can be a lot of variation in terms of the fillers they use and the absorbility of the nutrient. I recommend Patrick Holford's book 'Advanced Optimum Nutrition Bible' which is very well written and while it does go in depth at points, he has a wonderful writing style that makes learning about nutrition accessible and almost entertaining! :)

Any nutritional supplement program will always start with a solid multivitamin and mineral complex and build anything else on there. Herbs are a bit different - the important thing is that the herbal supplement actually contains what it claims to and has been processed properly.

In terms of whether or not you are ovulating, you clearly must be at least some of the time otherwise you couldn't have been pregnant at all. That said, it sounds like you are predicting ovulation based on OPKs and it is important to recognise all they tell you is when you get an LH surge. It is quite possible for them to tell you of an LH surge and for you not to ovulate even with your period arriving on time. The only way to be sure you ovulate each month (rather than some months) is by charting your BBT.

It really does sound like you need to speak to someone who can investigate your symptoms and give you some options in regards to potential treatments. Once you have fully addressed your condition then you will be in a better position to both conceive and carry to term :)

Best wishes :)

I came off the pill in June. We were careful for the first month until I had my first natural period then started not using contraception.

I noticed that about a week or so after AF had finished, I was cramping pretty much every day, nearly all day for about a week to 10 days and then it would just stop. This has happened for two cycles now.

I was on the pill for 12 years without a break. I dont know when I ovulate, as I dont temp or use opk. Could I have ovulated when the cramps stop? I dont know too much about cysts - is this something to look into? My periods have settled to 28 days and very regular.

The pill basically controls your hormone levels to regulate your cycle and prevent ovulation from happening. This can mess with your natural balance.

It is great that your period has come back so swiftly following discontinuing the pill and hopefully this is a positive sign that your body is in agreement that its time to make babies :)

It is possible that your cramps are related to cysts (or other conditions relating to hormone balance) and you may want to check out the websites I listed in my above post for further information. That said, it is probably best not to jump to any conclusions at this point and visit your doctor to check everything is okay if you are worried.

Despite AF arriving on schedule, there is no guarantee that you are ovulating successfully. I would recommend that you try charting your BBT even if just for one month. It is quite easy to do (I use www.fertilityfriend.com where there is lots of information too) and you can get a special BBT thermometre for a few pounds / dollars.

The great thing about charting your cycle is that you can see when you are ovulating, how long your luteal phase is (bit between ovulation and AF) and its also useful for keeping a record of things like cramps, mood swings, fatigue etc to flag up any patterns connected to your cycle.

If you don't want to BBT then you can always have some fun with POAS to look for signs that you are ovulating. I would start around day 8 for the first month as you say your cramps stop around day 10 which could be your ovulation day. The important point to note here is that the sticks will only tell you when you have an LH surge which is a sign your body is gearing up for ovulation - it is not evidence that you have successfully ovulated - only a BBT temperature rise can show that.

I hope the above helps, if you have any questions am happy to help (or try to!) :)

Thank you for your reply Springtimemum :)

I think I may look into getting a bbt in a few months time, we've only really been trying a couple of months - the first month of trying was just BD as normal (once, maybe twice a week lol) but then last month was every other day without fail until I had a feeling AF was on her way. I do kind of feel that I need to give it a bit of a chance without trying to stress too much about it and having to chart everything. I actually feel okay when AF arrives and although I've been regular, like you say, I may not be ovulating just yet. It could be still down to the pill or other reasons.

My sister keeps suggesting to me about getting my fertility tested but tbh, I think they will just tell me to keep trying, as I'm under 30 and been trying for less than a year. I keep telling her that but she keeps going on about it! (Grr lol)

I'm probably thinking too much into it - the first month after coming off the pill we were using protection and I cant think if I had any of the cramping. If I did but cant remember, I wouldnt have thought anything of it because I knew I couldnt be pregnant. But since going unprotected, there is always a chance and so I'm thinking 'ooh this feels new, wonder if it means something?!'