Metformin

[Anonymous]

Has anyone used metformin alone when TTC, and with what results? If you used it, how long before you conceived, and how long did you continue to take it during pregnancy?

For background, I'm 28, normal BMI, history of 2 miscarriages (anembryonic discovered at 8.5 weeks followed by D&C, then spontaneous miscarriage at 5 weeks), with questionable PCOS (bloodwork is pending, but appear to have polycystic ovaries on most recent ultrasound, oligomenorrhea with cycles 34-42 days but I do ovulate most cycles, and borderline elevated HgA1c of 5.7, despite normal BMI, exercising often, and eating healthfully).

Since I do ovulate on my own, my RE doesn't seem to think clomid alone is worth a shot (unless I want to do a fully controlled cycle with trigger shot, etc., which I'm not very keen on trying just yet), but given my phenotype of PCOS, I've been thinking a lot about trying metformin.

[Anonymous]

I just have my own story about metformin and how I think it helped me get pregnant. I also have PCOS (at the time, symptoms were the cystic ovaries and a period every other month- no other issues) and my husband had very low morphology. We did a few IUIs and then stopped TTC and moved to adoption, as the RE said that we would need IVF/ICSI to conceive. I don't remember if I was on metformin at the time, but after we stopped TTC, I know I was taking the met b/c I wanted to regulate my cycle just to be healthy. Three months after we adopted, I got pregnant, and while I have no idea what happened with the sperm issue, I do believe that the met regulated my cycle enough to where I became more fertile. The pregnancy was a surprise and I think I continued to take the met through the 1st trimester.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Met was all it took for me. I wasn't even really trying yet...had just gone off the pill, and the metformin is all it took to get me knocked up in one month. Have PCOS and was taking it for that.

[Anonymous]

OP here- Thank you for the positive stories; it really helps to hear that others had success with metformin - now I've just got to make sure my RE is on board.

[Anonymous]

Just be aware that metformin can be a really tough drug to take. TMI - it would wake me up in the middle of the night with terrible stomach cramps and diarrhea. I took it for a few months (have PCOS and was not ovulating on my own) and it did nothing for me. Clomid was what worked for me.

[Anonymous]

Metformin completely changed my life, and I'm sure it saved my fertility.

I rarely ovulated or had cycles--maybe one or two a year. I would spot frequently, and have fertile CM constantly, but never ovulate. The Metformin helped with all of that, though my cycles are still far apart--the best I can do is 45-50 days.

I use the slow-release version, and I've never had ill side effects.

Definitely start here. Many of my female relatives with PCOS had success just with Metformin.

[Anonymous]

OP here- got my tentative results showing (still) a borderline-elevated HgA1c, so I'm starting metformin today. Hoping this brings my husband and me a pregnancy with a better outcome.

[Anonymous]

Curious- were your metformin pregnancies girls or boys?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Curious- were your metformin pregnancies girls or boys?

Half and half

[Anonymous]

I was never diagnosed as having PCOS officially, but both my OBGY and RE thought I was borderline because I was (still am) obese, have acne problem (not terrible, but it is there) and some hair (thank god for waxing!). My cycles were/are somewhat regular (28-34 days but always there).

MY OB prescribed Metformin for me AND clomid. They didn't work and I stop taking Metformin after the first month. It was just horrible.

Four years later I finally consulted a RE and he put me back on Metformin (1500 mg extend release, NO coating). It was bad, but tolerable. I was also in clomid but apparently my husband also had a problem, so we resorted to IUI and it worked.

The metformin helped me loose 24 pounds before I got pregnant and my RE and OB agreed to keep me on it during my pregnancy to avoid diabetes during pregnancy. It really helped - I "only" gained 20 pounds during pregnancy and lost it all plus some within 2 weeks after delivering a healthy baby

UNFORTUNATELY they didn't want to keep prescribing met for me and I gained the weigh back... Anyway, my child is now 2 and I have decided to start trying again for a second So I have asked my OB to prescribe it for me and I have been taking it since May. I already lost some weight, my skin looks better and I feel better too (mood wise). The first month was horrible because I forgot to mention to my OB it should be 3 pills of 500mg each, extend release AND uncoated. It was dreadful, but all got better after I changed.

I will keep trying until January or so on our own and if we don't have any luck, I will go the IUI route again.

Oh, and this time I will make sure my OB or PC let me keep taking metformin until I reach menopause!