Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Cycle 4 - CD12 - Femara

I have been taking 2 of the 2.5mg tablets of femara starting from CD3. I have the same side effects as clomid (hot flashes, insomnia and migraines) but it only lasts for half a day. Femara also causes yeast infections. The cost of Femara is much higher than clomid. It is not as expensive as injectables but it cost me 165$ for 14 tablets (2.5mg each) whereas the clomid cost me 30$ for 21 tablets (50mg each).

Today in my ultrasound there was one dominant 11mm follicle on the right ovary and 2 smaller 9mm follicles. On the left there was just one 9mm follicle. If you look at my previous cycle my follicles reached the 11mm size only on CD18. So I guess femara is a little better than clomid for me, but I am still not happy with the idea of taking femara for a long time and having a delayed ovulation. My lining was at 6.1mm and the nurse assured me that it was fine. The nurse wanted to consult with the doc before deciding on how many more days I continue the femara. Most likely she said that it would be either 2 or 3 more days. I would be ovulating mid to end of next week (around CD19-21). I think this is better than last cycle where I ovulated on CD30.

Work is very very busy and so I have not read most of your blogs in the past couple of days. Will try to finish reading by the weekend. In another news I am planning on joining a quilting class that starts this Friday. This is just to keep me busy and distracted from the IF world. I have never used a sewing machine before so after lots of consultation with my friends I bought a Janome 8077 sewing machine from Hancock fabrics over the weekend. Currently I am practising to sew in straight lines. Will keep you guys updated regarding my sewing expeditions too.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

That's great that the Femara is moving your eggies along a bit faster, although as you point out, it doesn't seem to be the magic wonder drug.

You are super brave- I can't sew at all and would be terrified to even attempt something like a quilt. It sounds like it will be so much fun!

I Believe in Miracles said...

It's great to hear the differences between Femara and Clomid. I was wondering why people would take one and not the other.

Good job on learning how to sew straight lines!! I would love to make some clothes, but haven't got the courage yet. I made quilts and had to work pretty hard at making a straight line. One trick someone taught me was to put a pad of post-it notes by your needle at the exact distance you want your margins to be. It was super helpful when I made a quilt.

Hoping the follicles grow and you ovulate at your expected days. That 11-9 day difference will be awesome!

Anonymous said...

My name is Helen Page and i would like to show you my personal experience with Clomid.

I am 30 years old. I have taken for 3 months. My progesterone level after my first dose of Clomid was 65 so I knew that I had ovulated. Couldn't try the second cycle on it because my husband went out-of-town while I was O'ing, go figure. Hoping it worked this month!!

I have experienced some of these side effects-
Mood swings, increased appetite, hot flashes, increased pain during ovulation, abdominal pain, mild but infrequent headaches. Also, I used to be on a consistent 28 day cycle, but I think Clomid might have lengthened it as I'm now on a 31-32 day cycle.

I hope this information will be useful to others,
Helen Page