Herbal Remedies & Supplements for TTC

[katleen]

My husband and I have been trying to conceive for over a year now. I am now seeing a fertility specialist who prescribed me (1) Letrozole (to take on days 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7), Premarin (0.625 mg) (to take starting on day 8) and Duphaston (to take starting on day 3 after ovulation). In addition to these I also take Materna (prenatal vitamines ) and red raspberry leaf tablets (both every day whole cycle)

My question is: is it safe and recommendable to also take herbal supplements, such as Evening Primrose Oil tablets (period till ovulation) and Flax Seed Oil tablets (after ovulating) in addition to the hormonal supplements my specialist prescribed?

[liddy105]

Hi everyone,

This is my first post so I hope I do it right My husband and I started TTC no. 2 last month and through charting I discovered I have a 10 day luteal phase (it used to be 11 but has dropped).

I've started taking 25mg B6, 1000mg EPO and 620mg Vitex. I'm also taking the Blackmores prenatal vitamins. I was planning on only taking the EPO & Vitex up until ovulation and then stop. Does anyone know whether this combination is safe and/or effective? I've taken Vitex previously and found it worked well when I was taking it full time but after reading different reports on it's safety after ovulation I'm not sure whether taking it for only the first half of my cycle will be helpful or actually unhelpful?

I've read so much conflicting information about Vitex and B6 that I've totally confused myself. I really don't want to end up with a stuffed or anovulatory cycle.

[CharlieBrownGirl]

Hi Liddy,
You're not alone in your confusion re: Vitex and EPO.
Last cycle I took both Vitex and EPO up until O'ing and stopped. It resulted in a longer LP, 14/14 = 28 day cycle.
I consulted with my Chinese Herbalist who said that taking Vitex through the entire cycle is not an issue, only STOP when pg.

HTH, tho its always recommended consulting with a professional when taking various medications.

All the best
CBG

[liddy105]

Thanks CBG I stopped taking the Vitex as apparently it's only recommended after ovulation as it affects the oestrogen in the first half of the cycle. I never knew that!

[OriginalP]

Hi Liddy,

My naturopath who works out of Darling Street Health prescribed me vitex in liquid form to help me with an irregular luteal phase after surgery for an ectopic pregnancy. I found it was very effective in getting me back to a nice 14 day phase.

Justin, the naturopath who responds on this thread, does not recommend vitex if you think you are pregnant. However, when I achieved my first pregnancy, my naturopath prescribed vitex in liquid form to help me keep the pregnancy. I took it faithfully until week 12. My son is now two years old. I questioned my naturopath about the research I had seen that said vitex is not safe during pregnancy. She told me she had prescribed it to hundreds of women to avert miscarriage, and not one baby had been lost to date.

My advice regarding using vitex is to do so under the guidance of a practitioner that is extremely experienced in the use of herbal remedies for fertility support. In Sydney I would recommend The Jocelyn Centre or Darling Street Health. Don't go it alone on this one. Vitex has a dramatic and immediate effect on hormone production, but let a professional advise you on what to do.

Cheers,
OP.

Hi everyone,

This is my first post so I hope I do it right My husband and I started TTC no. 2 last month and through charting I discovered I have a 10 day luteal phase (it used to be 11 but has dropped).

I've started taking 25mg B6, 1000mg EPO and 620mg Vitex. I'm also taking the Blackmores prenatal vitamins. I was planning on only taking the EPO & Vitex up until ovulation and then stop. Does anyone know whether this combination is safe and/or effective? I've taken Vitex previously and found it worked well when I was taking it full time but after reading different reports on it's safety after ovulation I'm not sure whether taking it for only the first half of my cycle will be helpful or actually unhelpful?

I've read so much conflicting information about Vitex and B6 that I've totally confused myself. I really don't want to end up with a stuffed or anovulatory cycle.