Ovulation After Miscarriage: When Can I Conceive Again?
Ovulation after miscarriage can be a pretty tricky thing to figure out, especially with all the drastic changes that occur when the tragedy happens. Couples who try to conceive after a lost pregnancy often find themselves wondering just when they can start trying again. Here are a few tips on how to find out whether or not you’re ready to conceive after a miscarriage:
Hormones and Timing
Depending on a woman’s cycle, ovulation can begin as soon as 2-4 weeks after the miscarriage. During a pregnancy, the human body produces a hormone called Human Chorionic Gonadotropin, or hCG, which hinders the production of the pituitary gland hormones that govern ovulation. After the pregnancy tissue is expelled from the body, hCG levels begin to drop. The effect of hCG on the pituitary gland typically wear off after two weeks, and depending on the woman’s cycle, ovulation may begin a few days after that.
Given a regular cycle and an uncomplicated miscarriage, women can generally expect to ovulate within 2-4 weeks if their reproductive system is otherwise healthy. However, as cycles are typically a case-to-case basis, there may be some variation to this and it might take longer than four weeks. Keep this in consideration when tracking your ovulation.
Signs of Ovulation
After giving the hCG time to wear off, you can check to see if you’re ovulating in the usual ways. An increase in basal body temperature is often a good sign of ovulation. Another way to check is to monitor cervical mucus – it tends to get stringier and clearer the closer you get to ovulation.
One more option is to use ovulation predictor kits. If you opt for the kits, keep in mind that your cycle can still be a ways from getting back to normal. Some women, for example, might find themselves ovulating 7 weeks after the miscarriage, instead of the usual 2-4. The costs of trying the kits again and again can add up; if money is an object, you’re most likely better off monitoring your basal temperature and cervical mucus, at least until you are sensing your cycle is back to its regular rhythm.
When to Try To Conceive After You Miscarry
A lot of women who suffer miscarriages worry that they may be less fertile afterwards. Fortunately, this isn’t true. Although complications may arise from unnatural miscarriages (violent force, drug abuse, etc.), normal miscarriages have little to no effect on a woman’s fertility.
The best first step to take is to consult a physician after the miscarriage. That way, any abnormalities or shifts in your cycle caused by the miscarriage can be detected and properly diagnosed. The need to get diagnosed increases significantly if you have undergone several miscarriages.
Once you’re given a clean bill of health, you can then take the necessary steps to try conceiving again. First and foremost is dealing with the emotional hurt of losing your pregnancy. Some women may undergo a deep depression early on, and this may affect their chances of conceiving. Always keep in mind, the miscarriage was not your fault.
The trick is not to rush back into trying again. Allow yourself some time to fully recover – physically and emotionally – from the miscarriage, and you’ll very likely have better luck the next time around.
For tips about things that can help prepare the body for a successful conception after miscarriage, you are welcome to opt in to our email mini-course.
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Foods To Reverse Infertility
“The doctor of the future will give no medicines, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the causes of disease.”
-Thomas Edison
Can eating make you pregnant? Well, the joking aside, the fact is, studies from various medical traditions and cultures have proven that proper diet can make you super-fertile!
When planning a fertility diet, I look to research from both Eastern and Western practices. And as those of us who follow the latest research in fertility have long been aware of, studies from the West that link improved conception success related to diet are often very closely in line with dietary recommendations of Eastern medicine. Furthermore, Western studies are finally confirming what the wisdom of traditional Chinese healers and other alternative health practitioners have acknowledged for many, many years – the foods we eat have a profound impact on our ability to get pregnant.
And it’s about time. For example, a wide scale study at Harvard University, spanning over many years and involving thousands of female nurses, found that changing diet alone to whole foods and complex carbohydrates, without any further medical intervention, reversed infertility resulting in natural pregnancy rates increasing 6 fold!
The Eastern philosophy of healing through diet involves understanding and appreciation for each food’s energetic, nutritional and taste qualities. And here are three fine examples of foods that are prescribed by Eastern practitioners for overcoming infertility. Not only are they especially potent for their nutritional and active energy components that target fertility enhancement, but they are delicious, too!
Enjoy!
Shiitake Mushrooms
Research has shown that shiitake mushrooms are up to forty times more powerful than wheat germ in the antioxidant L-ergothionein. As a matter of fact, they have a higher quantity of this antioxidant than is found in any other food. Why is this so beneficial?
A number of studies have revealed seminal oxidative stress can have a very damaging effect, leading to male infertility. Eating shiitake mushrooms, with their amazing levels of antioxidants, is extremely useful towards neutralizing oxidation and increasing sperm quantity and quality.
Shiitake mushrooms are not only advantageous for male fertility. They are an effective medicine for females trying to conceive, as well. Shiitake mushrooms are high in selenium content. Selenium is another antioxidant that goes a very long way in protecting the body from chemical fragments known as free radicals. In this capacity, selenium is a defender against chromosome damage, which is widely known to be a primary cause for miscarriages and birth defects.
Shiitake mushrooms are often used as a substitute for meat because their flavor and firm texture lends itself well in that direction. A favorite preparation is to sauté them with other vegetables and a little garlic and then serve over brown rice.
Pineapple
Did you know that indulging in a sweet juicy fruit from the tropics could help your embryo implant in your uterus?
Pineapple has a high content of bromelain, a proteolytic enzyme, that is beneficial for reducing inflammation and breaking up certain proteins that can negatively impact implantation of your embryo. The flesh of the pineapple, rather than the core, is the best part to eat in terms of the concentration of bromelain that is most conducive to pregnancy. It is recommended to include pineapple in your diet starting on the day of ovulation onwards.
Do not eat too much pineapple in the beginning of your cycle before you ovulate. This can cause your cervical mucus to become too acidic which isn’t the environment that you want to create to welcome your partner’s lovely sperm.
Molasses
The high content of calcium, iodine and iron in molasses are wonderful nutrients that are much needed to sustain a pregnancy, and lack of which may lead to miscarriage.
Molasses is also rich in a B-complex known as PABA. There was a study done which resulted in a 75% success rate of conception for women who supplemented their diet for 3-7 months with PABA. Out of the 16 women trying to conceive in that study, 12 of them conceived within those few short months!
The energetic and nutritional content of molasses also makes it an excellent remedy for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and other hormonal irregularities. The best variety to use is the black strap because it is extra rich in nutrients. I enjoy mixing a little with whole milk for a sweet fertility treat.
There are many other foods that are super powerful for reversing infertility and getting pregnant quickly. When you are trying to conceive, you really need to understand which foods will help you along the most. For example, there is one beverage that is especially effective and has been recommended by Naturopaths to drink every day when you are trying to get pregnant.
You can find out all the details you need to learn about the best fertility diet, as well as a complete program of natural, holistic, and Eastern treatments to overcome infertility and quickly achieve successful pregnancy in The Full Embrace™ Pregnancy Success Program.
It’s the best infertility treatment book of its kind ever developed. Get it instantly, right here.
How To Reverse Your Biological Clock
Is it possible for a woman to reverse her biological clock, and “renew” her eggs? Promising new research suggests that it is very possible. For many years it has been accepted as common knowledge among the medical community that a woman is born with all the eggs she will have in her lifetime. We have been told that while starting out with over 300,000 eggs at birth, the number of eggs decline rapidly until menopause, which signals the end of our reproductive years.
And this long held notion has offered slim hope to women in their late 30’s or 40’s who have been told they are “running out of eggs” and worse yet, the eggs they have left are rapidly decreasing in quality.
But a new study co-led by Dr. Jonathan Tilly, associate professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology at Massachusetts General Hospital, published recently in the journal Nature suggests that this long held belief could be all wrong. In their study involving mice, they discovered that ovaries are constantly replenishing their supply of tiny eggs. Constantly! So, what does a study on mice have to do with you? Does this hold any indication that a woman’s ovarian reserve is also continually renewing itself? Well, according to Dr. Tilly, in his own words, “At this point I think it is unimaginable that this does not happen in humans.”
It may be that our old-fashioned views of ovarian reserve will be retired along with the horse and buggy. If a woman’s ovaries have the capacity to be naturally replenished from within, then many of our beliefs about the unalterable effects of age on egg quality need to be tossed. And it is the freedom from the beliefs about what we can’t do that can help us realize our full potential to reproduce naturally and easily – even into our forties. In the words of Deepak Chopra…
“The possibility of stepping into a higher plane is quite real for everyone. It requires no force or effort or sacrifice. It involves little more than changing our ideas about what is normal.”
The Supporting Evidence Keeps Pouring In
New studies continually arrive that support the view – in agreement with Eastern wisdom – that the reproductive system has a vast capability to be renewed, holistically, from within. Here are just a few examples:
- A study published at the Reproductive Medicine and Fertility Center in Colorado Springs in the journal Fertility and Sterility involving 147 patients revealed that when treatments of Traditional Chinese Medicine were applied “in patients with poor prognoses (elevated Peak FSH, longer history of infertility, poor sperm morphology) [they] can achieve similar pregnancy rates to normal prognosis patients.”
- Case studies at the Zhai Fertility Treatment clinic of London have demonstrated that applying Traditional Chinese Medicine can affect the reproductive system such that abnormally high levels of FSH drop to normal levels. Patients who were scheduled for IVF treatments changed their plans after taking part in the Eastern practices – practices that allowed them to conceive naturally.
- R.G. Godsen and C.E. Finch, in Definition & Character of Reproductive Aging & Senescence, state, “Dietary and endocrine manipulations can also slow the pace of ovarian aging.”
- There is a study published in Biology of Reproduction, by J. F. Nelson, R. G. Gosden and L. S. Felicio in coordination with McGill University in Quebec and the Department of Physiology at the University Medical School in Edinburgh which reveals that feeding a special diet to rodents significantly reduced ovarian follicle disappearance.
- A study at Harvard Medical School found that women who attended a mind/body fertility retreat doubled their conception rate, compared to a control group.
- Another Harvard study found that women drastically increased their conception rates by changing to a diet optimal for fertility.
- Quoting Oriental Medicine expert, Dr. Randine Lewis, “Two specific areas are affected by the aging of a woman’s reproductive systems; the kidney and the spleen. Treat these… and you can often turn back the clock and restore higher levels of fertility.”
Maybe you are thinking, well, maybe some women can improve their fertility – but not me. Its in my genes – I can’t change those. Hold on. The next bit of information is for you. Studies have revealed a five year difference in the onset of menopause in identical twins. Five years. And they found this five year difference in 20% of the twins they tested. Scientists have further determined that environmental factors – diet, activity, etc. – have a significant impact on ovarian age.
The impact of this information cannot be underestimated. What we choose to eat, what we drink, the healing treatments in which we engage, our activities, our rest, even the air we breathe all play a significant role in our reproductive age. For all of us. We have choice. There is still time…
Opportunity: The 90 Day Window of Egg Development
It takes about 90 days for a follicle (which holds your egg) to be awakened from its resting state in your ovary and go through the process of growth and development that ultimately results in an ovulated egg. And during that time the follicle relates with nutrients, oxygen, hormones, blood – an entire mini-lifetime of interaction with the rest of your body.
And this is the time of greatest opportunity. During this 90 day time period, you have a window where you can take incredible control over nurturing the quality of your eggs, and turning back the hands of time…
How to Reverse the Biological Clock?
You can learn specific techniques of Eastern and Alternative Medicine, nutrition and activity to optimize fertility and turn back the hands of time. These techniques couldn’t possibly fit in this single article. But they are all available, with step-by-step guidance that is clear and easy to understand.
In the comfort of your own home, you can learn the completely natural methods to reverse infertility, reverse the biological clock, and get pregnant fast. All of this can be found in the most effective system for overcoming both female and male infertility ever developed. It is called The Full Embrace™ Pregnancy Success Program, and you can get it instantly, right here.
After IUI: Pregnancy Test FAQ
One of the many things that women wonder about when they’re trying for an IUI pregnancy is how and when to use a home pregnancy test. Chances are likely that since you aren’t going “all the way” with IVF, you don’t have to go back to your doctor’s office unless you get a positive pregnancy test at home, but taking this test can seem a little scary. If you have questions about taking the pregnancy test at home after IUI, we have answers. Read on for answers to some of the most common questions about taking a pregnancy test after IUI.
When should I take the pregnancy test at home? Or How long should I wait before taking the pregnancy test?
There’s a reason that infertility forums call it the “two week wait.” In general, doctors recommend that you wait about fourteen days after IUI to take a test. The reason for this is that pregnancy tests that you can use at home are created to test for a certain level of hCG, the hormone that your body produces when you’re pregnant. Most of the time, it takes about two weeks for the levels of hCG in your body to get up to the level that will test positive.
This doesn’t mean that no woman would have high enough levels of hCG to test at day ten or eleven, but it seems to be best to wait the whole two weeks. This way, you aren’t unnecessarily disappointing yourself after just ten days when your test comes back negative. If you do decide to test early, just keep in mind that you’re much more likely to get a false negative!
What does a faint pink (or blue or whatever) line mean?
If you’re using a non-digital pregnancy test, a faint positive signal means positive. Basically, the test will react strongly to a large amount of hCG in the urine and faintly to a smaller amount. If you have enough hCG to make the test become positive, though – unless you were injected with hCG before IUI, in which case you need to read the next question – then you are definitely pregnant.
Can I get a false positive?
If you’re going through natural IUI or using just Clomid or a similar medication, then false positives are very, very rare. Chances are most likely that if you test positive, you are actually pregnant. However, if you were given an hCG injection before you underwent IUI, then you can get a false positive if your body hasn’t completely cleared the injected hormone.
Can I get a false negative?
This is way more common than the false positive, and you can definitely get a false negative. Testing too early is most likely to have this result, but you can also have a false negative if you wait a whole fourteen days before testing. Sometimes, women just don’t have high enough levels of hCG after fourteen days to make the test positive. If you get a negative test after fourteen days, it’s a good idea to wait two or three more days and then to test again just to be sure that you got the right answer the first time.
Can Clomid affect a pregnancy test?
At-home pregnancy tests are meant to test just one hormone – hCG. Since Clomid affects not hCG but estrogen levels, it shouldn’t affect your pregnancy test in any way, no matter when you test.
What do I do with a positive test?
Well, the first thing to do is to celebrate, but do it cautiously. Most pregnancies that miscarry do so in the first few weeks of pregnancy. A positive test just means that you’re pregnant, not that you’re any more or less likely than the next person to carry to full term. It can be a good idea to talk with your partner first, and then to spend some time figuring out who you want to tell about your pregnancy before you start spilling the beans to everyone you meet.
Also, as soon as you get a positive test, you need to make an appointment with your obstetrician. Your doctor will be able to give you nutrition advice, help you start on pre-natal vitamins, and take any other important steps towards having a healthy pregnancy. Also, a doctor will be able to help you figure out your due date, schedule sonograms, and do any other tests that you need when you’re pregnant.
What do I do with a negative result?
Again, if you test a negative within the first two weeks, it’s important to take another test within a few days. If you get to negative tests in a row, though, you should go on as if you aren’t pregnant, whether that means taking a break from trying for a while or scheduling your next IUI appointment.
Keep in mind that even two negatives in a row can still turn into a pregnancy in rare cases. If you still want to try to get pregnant, it’s important to keep up a healthy lifestyle, to eat well, and to avoid things like alcohol and smoking. If after a couple more weeks your period still hasn’t come, you might want to schedule a doctor’s appointment for a more accurate blood test.
What are some symptoms that I might be pregnant?
Pregnancy symptoms can start within a couple of weeks for some women, but other women could be totally unaware that they are pregnant until they begin to show five months down the road. However, if you notice some of the following symptoms, you might want to take a pregnancy test – or another one, if you’ve already taken one with a negative result:
- Swollen, tender breasts
- Darkening areolas around the nipples
- Nausea and vomiting
- Backaches and headaches
- Fatigue and tiredness
- Bloating
- Light cramping and bleeding
As you can see, some of these symptoms are common PMS symptoms as well. If you have them without starting your period, though, then you could most definitely be pregnant.
For lots more tips about pregnancy, you are welcome to sign up for our email mini-course.
IUI: Symptoms of Early Pregnancy
If you’ve just gone through intrauterine insemination (IUI) and are waiting to find out whether or not it worked, you’re probably excited, scared, and nervous all at the same time. This is totally normal, and it’s also totally normal for you to spend time wondering whether or not every little thing could be a symptom of early pregnancy. While it’s impossible to say exactly how a pregnancy will manifest itself if you are, indeed, pregnant, knowing some of the IUI symptoms of early pregnancy and some of the things that you need to watch for when you’ve undergone IUI can help you calm down and enjoy the ride.
Remember that not every woman has the same pregnancy symptoms. It’s a little like PMS. You probably have some girlfriends or sisters whose PMS symptoms are similar to your own, but you probably know people whose symptoms are totally different from yours. Add that to the fact that your own symptoms probably vary from month to month, and things get a little unpredictable.
The same thing can happen with pregnancy. Even if you know what your mother’s, sister’s, or girlfriend’s early pregnancy symptoms were like, that doesn’t mean yours will match up. Plus, if this isn’t your first pregnancy, your symptoms this time around might be totally different than they were any other time. So, again, it helps to have a comprehensive list of symptoms so that you know what to look out for, but the biggest thing you need to do is just to know your own body so that you’ll be capable of seeing any actual changes that do occur.
Some Common Early Signs of Pregnancy with Intrauterine Insemination
Unfortunately for women who undergo IUI, some of the most common early pregnancy symptoms are actually similar to symptoms of impending menstruation. If you’re starting to feel like you’re going to start your period, don’t totally freak out. It might just be that you’re pregnant! Here are a few symptoms that might mimic your PMS symptoms or, at least, PMS symptoms of other women you know:
Light Bleeding: While it’s never good to bleed heavily during a pregnancy, some light bleeding soon after the time of IUI might signal that your egg has implanted. If you bleed lightly for a day or two, don’t worry about it too much, but wait and see what happens next.
Light Cramping: Again, this can be a symptom of implantation, but it is also something that many women experience from the IUI procedure itself. If your cramps become heavier than you’re used to with even your periods, you might want to call your fertility clinic, but otherwise, just wait it out.
Breast Tenderness: Your breasts may be one of the first areas to react to your new pregnancy hormones, and often the first pregnancy symptom women notice is tender, swollen breasts.
Fatigue and Tiredness: Again, this is one that many women experience during PMS, and it’s also a common early pregnancy symptom. You have to remember than any time your hormones make major fluctuations, as they do just before menstruation as well as when you are first pregnant, tiredness can just happen. If you’re starting to feel exhausted right after IUI, take it easy for a few days, and, again, just wait and see what happens.
Backaches and Headaches: Aches and pains are common to women who are pregnant, and lower backaches that are very common late in pregnancy might even set in during the first couple of weeks. Headaches, too, are common because of hormonal changes and fatigue.
Not all early symptoms of pregnancy are similar to PMS symptoms. Some women have totally off-the-wall symptoms when they get pregnant, and others have a few of these other normal symptoms that are seen in many women:
Morning Sickness: Morning sickness is really a misnomer, since lots of women experience nausea and vomiting throughout the day or whenever they eat. This can start almost as soon as you get pregnant. It’s normal for women in their first trimester or so to be unable to hold down meals at certain times of the day, but if you can’t keep anything down at all, it’s time to see a doctor.
Frequent Urination: This is a classic pregnancy symptom that many women experience even before they have a five-pound baby sitting on their bladders. If you have to go to the restroom way more than is normal for you, it could mean that you’re pregnant.
Delay in Menstruation: This is probably the signal that women look for the most. At the end of your two week wait, if you haven’t started on time, it’s time to pull out that pregnancy test. Don’t, though, get too disappointed if the first one comes back negative, but wait two or three days before taking another test. Sometimes there simply isn’t enough HcG in your system for you to test positive on the first or second day of a missed period.
Darker Areolas: This is another odd symptom that many women aren’t aware of. When you’re first pregnant, hormonal changes can cause the area around your nipples to darken. Pay attention, though, because sometimes they were already that color because of a previous pregnancy.
Food Cravings: When we think of pregnant women, we often think of food cravings. If you start craving weird things at odd times of the day and night, that might signal pregnancy. It could, though, also mean that you aren’t eating very nutritiously, in which case it’s important that you start getting a more balanced diet, especially if you’re still trying to get pregnant.
A Note about IUI Pregnancies
IUI pregnancies will have pretty much the same symptoms as their natural, IVF, or drug-induced counterparts. One thing, though, to keep in mind is that sometimes the hormones that you take before IUI can induce a positive pregnancy test even if you aren’t pregnant. This is why it’s important to listen to your doctor about how long you should wait to take a pregnancy test.
For more information about IUI and tips for increasing your chances of success, please sign up for our email mini-course.
