No period after coming off pill 6 mths

Hi all,
I went off the pill at the end of June 06 and haven't had a period since then.
Was on the pill for 9 years and had irregular cycles prior to this.

My GP has run some tests (hormones etc) but so far nothing unusual.
I'm currently trying to get in to see a gyno but in the mean time had a few questions I thought someone here could answer.

Is there some kind of injection you can get to 'jump start' ovulation? I'm presuming that I'm not ovulating as my period hasn't returned.

Not wanting to conceive until the 2nd half of this year but I want to know what my options are - don't want to just wait and see.. Can't plan how to conceive if I'm not getting a period!!!

Thanks

Hi Mrs P,
It took me just over two months to get a period after coming off the pill (I was on it for 10 years). My doctor told me this was normal and that it could take 6 months or more before getting a period. I was really stressing about not getting my period, and kept thinking I might be pregnant. I got a blood test done to make sure I wasn't. THe night I found out it was a negative test, my DH and I went out and I had some wine and just relaxed and got my period the next day!!
He did say there were options, such as Clomid, which I don't know much about, but I think there are lots of people around who have used it. Best to talk to your doc about all the options!
Good luck! :-)

I came off the pill in Feb '05' (due to mad moods) after 8yrs. I had normal periods for 5 mths then they went wacko being late and all over the place then in nov 05 they stopped and didnt start again until Feb then i had normal periods to the date of the month for 3 mths (28th feb, march and april) then went all over the place again i had 31 day cycles one month then 42 the next month... I was told this is normal after being on the pill for sooooo long (i will never go on it again) We fell pg after activily ttc for 7 mths i ended up temping to find out when i was oing and fell the first month of doing it...

I know Clomid helps you to o (i think) but im sure there are some more girls in here with more info on it...

All the best though..

You can take a drug called primulut ~ it is taken for 5-7 days. It was sometimes the only way my fert specialist could get a start date for a cycle
Bec

Hi and welcome, Mrs P!

I had cycles really out of whack - a week longer than usual - when I came off the Pill. We were going to let me settle down before I got pg, but I never got my normal cycles back in about 8-9 months. I was 32-55 days between cycles (usually about 6 weeks)!

There are drugs to take to start your period or to start ovulation (provera or clomid, respectivly), but that's artificial. It may get your body working again or it may not. However, 6 months is a very long time and I'd be looking at jump-starting things and seeing what happened next time! Go speak to your GP about this option, also what hormone blood tests did you have? You should have had a 9am test that included all the "girly" hormones (LH, FSH, Progesterone, Oestrogen, or a combination of these), testosterone and prolactin. Any one of these out of whack could cause a problem.

Best of luck to you getting back to "normal".

Hi MP, when I came off the pill after about 10yrs I didn't get my period for 12 months. I didn't come off the pill to TTC, so it wasn't a huge issue for me, but I was diagnosed as having polycycstic ovaries after having an ultrasound.

When TTC it took about 14 months (5 of those with no period) without any 'assistance' to conceive. We have been TTC #2 for about 14 months now and if we haven't conceived by 18 months (Or possibly before) I will make an app to see my GP and go from there. I think my GP mentioned Clomid last time.

I mostly just wanted to let you know a positive story about TTC after coming off the pill and don't forget you can still get pg before your period shows up for the 'first time' after coming off the pill. IUKWIM?

Hi and thanks for the welcome!

I spoke to my doctor (I've only seen her twice, changed GP recently as previously went to uni medical centre and wasn't happy with the attitude of the GPs there) thismorning and all my hormone tests came back normal. Ryn - all the ones you mentioned were tested.
So next week I'm booking in for a pelvic ultrasound - really hoping that it isn't PCOS...

Doctor seems quite good, she said normally they don't investigate until 12 mths with an under-30 woman TTC - but since I'm not getting a period, I can't exactly TTC anyway! I'd like to fall pregnant in about 6 mths time, so that's why I'm looking into this now.

I do have a pretty stressful life - currently almost 3 years into a PhD in microbiology and recently moved into a brand new house - but I wouldn't think this would be the reason.

Ella's Mum - thanks for sharing your story, it does give me hope that even if I've got PCOS I can still conceive.


Phew it's so scary to be thinking about all this - I mean 6 months ago I had no idea this would be the situation when I went off the pill... It's hard too as I have a lot of friends and colleagues either preg or with young kids - and I can't help thinking "What if I can't have kids?". I know it's too soon to get worried, but the mind does wander!
Will keep you all updated after the ultrasound....

Just remember that it is great news so far that all your blood tests have come back Normal.

I felt the same way when I was TTC #1. It's that 'What if?' I still feel that way a lot now. Even though I have my beautiful DD, I often think what if I never get to experience pregnancy, birth and baby again?

Also, you can have polycystic ovaries and not have the syndrome. If you do have one or the other, just remeber a lot of women with these things, go on to have several (Or more) children naturally. I'm sure I read somewhere that a lot of people don't even realise they have pco's/pcos and have children. Anyway, you may not even have pco's. Sorry if I am rambling!!

Wishing you luck!

Hi MrsP,
That was my story! I came off the pill a few months before we wanted to ttc and had no period for well ever. After 6 months i went to a gyno/FS and after running bloods and u/s she diagnosed me with PCOS. I'm not 100% convinced about that diagnosis because I don't have any of the usual associated symptoms. But anyway, i was prescribed clomid. the first cycle of 50mg did nothing, but the second cycle (100mg) i concieved my gorgeous DS.
Now we are TTC#2 and are on cycle 4 of 100mg and no luck yet.
So, clomid seems to work well for me. Even though we haven't concieved, i have O'd each cycle.
Good luck!

I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for replying to Mrs P as I have a similar story... Your shared stories have also given me hope! I came off the BCP in August and have not yet had a period. Am going to a gyno on Wed to see what he can do and what light he can shed on this matter!! I wasn't going to try and conceive straight away, but now am! You feel so hopeless when you don't know what's wrong with you and you have that little voice in the back of your head saying 'maybe I won't be blessed with children' I know that is a silly way to think but sometimes you can't help it! Anyway thanks to all of you I am too felling more positive and am sure MRs P and I will get support from each other through this! :)

Hi
Just thought I would add that I came off the pill Aug 05 (after 15yrs) and did not have a period until Feb06. I was diagnosed with Polycystic ovaries but not PCOS, my bloods came back normal. I had very irregular periods from 28-80days until Aug 06 when I got my BFP.

So just wanted to say that the pill can mess around with your cycle big time but it does not mean you are not going to be able to conceive. Also PCO (and PCOS) is not the end of the world - there are loads of us who conceive, just may take a little while longer.

Just relax and enjoy DTD now whilst you can!!
Good luck, T.

Thanks to all for sharing :) It makes me feel better to hear of others with a similar situation who have conceived.
I guess I never really considered that going off BCP would have this effect - I only went off in June 06 to let my cycles return and start tracking etc so that when we wanted to TTC I'd be ready!
I guess I'm lucky I went off BCP when I did!!
Hopefully the ultrasound will be soon - still waiting to find out appointment.

Also I think I'll have to start this whole temping thing and find out if I'm still Oing or not... Thank goodness for this site or I'd have no idea!!
Smuggle - we definitely share the same story! Fingers crossed for you and I'm sure we'll be chatting here a lot!!

Mrs P IIm in exactley the same situation as you - I've just come across this post and am so relieved to hear some positive stories and to find out this problem is not so uncommon. I got my BT results back yesterday and they came back normal, so I'm having a pelvic ultrasound on monday. I also went off BCP to get myself ready for TTC and never imagined I'd have these problems - and it is certainly making DH and I question when we are going to start TTC i.e. if it turns out we are going to have problems then we'll probably start TTC now - it's such a big decision though.

Looking forward to hearing how it all goes for you :)

Hi Mrs P and all others,
I too have gone off BDP after 14 years, got my first withdrawal bleed, then AF 30 days later, and have "o"d on day 16 this cycle, so I will be expecting AF on day 31 (or BCP heh heh). It (fingers crossed) looks as if everything has gone back to normal.

I am not saying this to brag, rather that there is so much evidense that shows the pill to be an excellent form of contraception, without any harm to your fertility. The main reason people get problems coming off it is because the pill masked those problems in the first place. Eg, my SIL gets her AF on the pill, but not when she is off the pill, because she is too skinny. So when she gets off the pill, she wont have a period, and will have to either put on weight or see a fertility specialist.

I think the best thing to do is exactly what you have done, and Ryn had suggested the same to me pre-TTC, that is go off the pill about 6 months before TTC so you can determine what your cycles are going to be like, and get any issues sorted out.

I just wanted to give a positive story of the BCP for those others that have read this thread, and wishing those who do discover problems the best of luck when TTC.

:)