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As I've experienced 2 mths of particularly long cycles (and short luteal phase last cycle) I'm concerned that this ttc business is going to be much more difficult than anticipated. I'm interested in hearing about other ladies experiencing similar issues. has anyone else out there experienced the same as me coming off the BCP? How long did it take you to conceive?
Hi Jaxi,
I can't help but I'd also be interested in what others say ... I've just come of BCP with this cycle and I've got no idea what to expect in the length of my cycles since I've come off them. We've not seriously TTC atm, but if it happens we're okay with that.
Hi guys, I am new to the forum and just come off the BCP this month as well as we want to start TTC next month/cycle. :) Will keep you posted on how my cycle(s) go over the next couple of months. I have heard that taking pregnancy supplements can help regulate your cycle, but not sure how reliable that is?!
If you're coming off the combined pill, it is recommended that you leave at least three months before TTC to get the hormones out the way and to regulate your cycles.
Coming off the OCP I had the following cycles:
5wk, 6wk, 6wk, 6wk, 6wk, 8wk, ?maybe 5wk but pg so I don't know.
It takes your body a while to sort itself out, particularly if you've been on the Pill a while. As you can see, longer cycles weren't a problem for me conceiving; as soon as we decided to "see what happens" I fell pg. We weren't going to actively try for another 7-8 months.
Thanks Ladies. I'm taking Elevit and have also started taking B6 in the hope of regulating my cycle. We'll keep trying and see how we go. I appreciate your feedback.
I've just stopped taking the pill as well - I'm taking Nature's Own multi-vitamins, hopefully my cycle wont take too long to sort itself out, I've been on the pill for about 5 years....
Is there actually risks with not waiting 3 months or is it just that it's better to fall PG when you have a regular cycle established? I am already taking vitamins and am healthy so not sure why I am supposed to wait? I've been ready to have a baby for years now but been waiting for the right time to start and now we have agreed it's all good, I can't bear to wait another 3 months to start TTC! I think it would drive me mental LOL! :rolleyes:
I came off BCP and my first cycle was 6w, then next cycle I am assuming was also 6w but I fell pregnant first try 4w after my 1st AF after coming off the BCP.
The hormones/side-effects from the Pill stay in your system for up to three months after you stop taking the Pill. It can interfere with the gender pathways and foetal development. It probably won't but it's safer not to chance it.
There's nothing wrong with getting pg right away, but it's safer to get your body back to "normal" before subjecting it to pregnancy. Pregnancy is lovely but it is a real strain on your body. Another reason - which is pretty much the same as the first one - is that the Pill stops you from making your own hormones and relying on artificial ones, pregnancy makes you make LOADS more hormones than normal, so you want to make sure you can at least make your normal hormones again post-Pill before your baby up-regulates the system.
Hope that made sense.
I stopped taking the BCP on 7th May, got AF on 10th May. Had been charting my temps since then and cycle was dragging on forever without any sign of Ovulation. Finally on day 53 I ovulated, and still hadnt gotten AF by 18 dpo, so tested on 19/7 and got a positive! Still feels unreal, and pleasently suprised that has happened so quickly as i was dreading that we would have troubles.
I had discussed getting pregnant with my GP for several months before trying so had a range of tests done earlier and she recommended having a natural (not from when you first stop taking the pill) period first, as it will make dating easier once pregnant, but wont really matter as they have other ways to find out how far along you are.
you can check out my chart below if you like.
20b4a5 Ovulation Charts
I had a 27 day cycle last month, so glad it was not too long for the first full cycle off the BCP. I had stopped taking the BCP before that cycle started.
Emz96 - what did you do to track ovulation? I am tracking my temperature and CM, and going to use OPKs over the weekend, as I hope to ovulate early next week if this cycle is similar.
I've since heard that it's fine to only wait one cycle if you already started taking pregnancy supplements and and are already quite healthy, so we decided not to wait three months to start TTC. :) fingers crossed for this month!
i fell pregnant last year after being off the pill for only a month. I ended up having a molar pregnancy which has been linked to the pill, but honestly, i wouldnt let that put you off. Molar pregnancies are so rare, and not much is known about the cause so its not definate that getting pregnant so quickly is what caused my molar.
I had to wait 6 months before trying to conceive again so i took the pill for three months and then came off it three months ago cos i want it completely out of my system before we start trying again. And my cycle is all over the shop. First month was 28 days and i was so excited about having a normal cycle! But then the next month it was 37 days! and this month again 37 days (probably, should get AF tomorrow me thinks). Im really hoping its not going to cause any problems ttc. im starting charting with this new cycle cos next cycle its on!
Hi Jaxi,
Me too! I have had the longest two cycles waiting to TTC - 41 days and the current cycle is at day 43 with no sign of AF yet (I thought the second cycle would be shorter I was mistaken). This is after approx 14 years of BCP my GP told me two have two natural cycles before TTC and to start taking Elevit (I nearly finished the full box of 100 without even BDing for real - and it has been long and frustrating. I'm just excited about TTC and want to get on with it!
Hope your cycles start to shorten Jaxi!
Thanks kitten. I've also just about finished my box of elevit! :wall:
My gyno had also given me the advice that as soon as you stop taking the pill the hormones are pretty much out of your system the next day (particularly with the low dosage pills these days). He told me to give it a month after coming off the BCP before trying in order to have a regular period and therefore date conception with a little more ease if utd. He did also say that plenty of women end up conceiving first month off the pill and there is no harm in this...just makes dating conception a little more difficult so harder to give a due date estimate. Turtlejane I'm like you...have been counting down the days to be able to ttc since the day I was born LOL so this was music to my ears as I'd heard elsehwere to give it about 3mths before ttc.
He didn't tell me though that if you have been on the BCP for a number of years it may take some time to get a regular cycle with a regular luteal phase and that seems to be my problem at the moment so I've started taking B6 in the hope of getting somewhere. We'll see....best of luck to all of you :)
I was instructed by my Dr that I should allow 3 months after coming off the pill before TTC. I did that. I noticed my first month was only 24 days and only light. The next 2 cycles were about 28 days and 26 days. On the fourth month to my shock we conceived! I haven't looked back since! Truth is everyone is different (I know you hear that a lot), but its true and when you look at the actual timing you only have a window of about 12 hours, so the best thing you can do is chart and do the OPK's. I fell the first time I used the OPK. As soon as I saw that it was positive we were at it like bunnies. I guess it worked for us! Good luck girls.