Irregular periods

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1

Hi all,

I’m looking for, hopefully, some reassurance and hope someone can relate to my story.

I had an ectopic in June when my Fallopian tube was removed. The doctor told me we could start trying again as soon as I felt well enough, so we started as soon as I had a normal period in July and so far we’ve not been successful. As each month passes, the arrival of my period is draining me emotionally (as much as I try not to stress about it) and I know I should probably just have more patience but I feel like all the dreams and plans we made before are slipping further and further away.

I’m also a bit perplexed as my cycles before ectopic were like clockwork, fairly short at 25 days, but I always ovulated on day 10/11 with my period arriving exactly two weeks later. Since my ectopic, my cycle has been 25 days, then 26 days, then 29 days having ovulated 3 days later than normal, and now I’ve had positive ovulation tests since Sunday, although I wasn’t due to ovulate till Friday, so 5 days early. On top of that I now have a nasty UTI and am on antibiotics. Arghh!

So I guess I’m asking whether anyone has successfully conceived post ectopic with irregular periods and how long did it take, and secondly if anyone knows whether a UTI could cause a false positive on an ovulation test (there doesn’t seem to be any conclusive evidence on this online). I’m pretty sure I was ovulating as I’ve been getting pretty intense ovulation pains but then the pains could also be due to the UTI.

Thanks for your help and support

2

Dear c_lou,

I am so sorry to hear of your ectopic pregnancy and loss.

It is certainly common for periods to take a while to return to a more normal rhythm for you. My periods did not become regular at all after my ectopic pregnancy.

I very much understand that strong desire to conceive. I appreciate how frustrating it can be if it isn’t happening as quickly as we would like.

Generally our advice regarding ttc is waiting for two menstrual cycles. It is important to allow time for your body to recover and emotions to surface and be worked through. This is so that you have some comfort that your body is returning to its natural rhythm and you have a last menstrual period date from which to date a new pregnancy - key information in checking you are not suffering from an ectopic pregnancy in the future.

While generally it is possible to conceive after an ectopic pregnancy, the amount of time it takes varies from couple to couple. Factors include age, general health, reproductive health and how often you have sex, among other things. It may be comforting to know that 65% of women are successfully pregnant within 18 months of experiencing an ectopic pregnancy and some studies suggest this rises to around 85% after two years.

I wish I could give more precise information, but as I do not have access to your and your partner’s medical records, it is difficult for me to provide specific details. Generally, we and many healthcare professionals advise keeping a healthy balanced diet, maintaining a healthy weight and abstaining from alcohol and smoking.

Importantly, help is available if conceiving naturally has not yet been successful after some time trying - and the EPT advises that women under 35 should seek medical advice following 12 months trying to conceive and those over 35 should seek advice after 6 months.

In addition. having regular sex means having sex every 2/3 days throughout the month. Guidance from the UK’s National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence advises that having sex around the time when the woman ovulates causes stress and is not recommended. We here at the EPT suggest having intercourse 2/3 times between days 10-20 of their cycle when trying to conceive. We also have information on our website on trying to conceive.

Sadly I am not medically trained so cannot give you a specific answer on your ovulation test kits, but as far as I am aware a UTI should not alter an ovulation test.

Sending much love,

Karen x

If we have been able to help you, are you able to help us with a small donation or by volunteering?

Further information is available at www.ectopic.org.uk

Email us at ept@ectopic.org.uk.

Our helpline is 020 7733 2653 (available Monday to Friday 10am - 4pm).

Detailed medical information can be found on our website. Please remember online medical information is NO SUBSTITUTE for expert medical advice from your own health care team.

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Thanks for your reply Karen.

I know I’m putting too much pressure on myself. We fell pregnant so easily the first time and I completely took that for granted. My ectopic was conceived on our 2nd month of trying so I guess I’d hoped it would happen just as easy the 3rd time (even with only one tube). My little boy turns 3 in March and I never wanted a big age gap between siblings. But let’s see, hopefully the UTI nor antibiotics played a part this month and I’ll get my positive result in a couple of weeks. I’m 37 so it’s good to know I can seek medical advice if no luck by December.

Thanks again

Claire