4 years Trying to Conceive

AF started on March 10th. I was very disappointed since that cycle was the 4 year mark of us trying to conceive. I have been depressed about it and starting to feel like we are never going to have kids.

I was also very worried because ever since my HSG my cycles have been more painful. This cycle was unusually light but lasted longer. The first 3 days were very painful.

In the past my cycle was always painful and heavy on the first full day of flow. I would usually then have a medium and light day followed by a few days of spotting. This time I had 5 days of light flow and 2 days of very light spotting. I can't really tell but I am hoping that it was the same amount of flow just spread over more days.

Last cycle I took vitex and royal jelly. I only took the royal jelly until I ovulated but I will be taking it the entire cycle this time. I will not be taking Vitex this cycle.

Review of Royal Jelly

This is the brand I was taking this cycle.  
 I have had a hard time finding information on what dose to take so I took 5 tsp per day which equals the 1000mg used in the endometriosis study.  That equals roughly 2 of the large spoons we eat with so I will take 1 in the morning and 1 in the evening. At first I tried taking it on an empty stomach which is what is recommended but it tastes pretty gross and was making me naueaus and upsetting my stomach. So I switched to adding it to my greek yogurt. I still upsets my stomach and gives me slight heartburn but much better than it was before. 
 


I also had my husband take it but the taste was making him gag so he switched to these from Walmart. I made the mistake of biting one open to taste it. The royal jelly itself is supposed to taste bitter so I wanted to make sure it was actually royal jelly. If you taste royal jelly by itself and it tastes sweet then that is not real royal jelly. That pill was literally the most disgusting thing I have ever tasted in my life. 

Neither one of us have noticed any difference in energy, which is what I was really hoping for. But ... I think my ovulation this cycle was stronger. I was sitting in the car waiting while my husband ran into the store real quick and all of a sudden I had a pulsating pain in my left ovary, it was very painful and lasted about 10 minutes. Normally I just have a dull ache leading up to ovulation, which I had on the days after that. That pain was 3 or 4 days before I actually ovulated and 2 days before a positive OPK, so that makes me think my ovary was more active this cycle. 

I ended up stopping the royal jelly once I ovulated and will restart it again if AF arrives. I have a little bit less than half of the jar left. If I use that up and decide I want to continue taking it I will switch to the pill form with royal jelly and propolis. I am hoping that form will not give me heartburn.

Royal Jelly, Pollen, & Propolis

Royal Jelly

Royal Jelly is a substance that is secreted by nurse worker bees. One larva that is to be the Queen Bee is fed only royal jelly its entire life. This exclusive feeding triggers the full development of her ovaries which is needed to lay the millions of eggs she will lay in her lifetime.

Royal Jelly is rich in amino acids, lipids, sugars, some vitamins, fatty acids and most importantly, proteins. It contains ample levels of iron and calcium. Royal Jelly also contains acetylcholine, which is needed to transmit nerve messages from cell to cell.

Royal Jelly may be beneficial for the following:

• To increase libido
• Support egg and sperm health
• Diminish and reduce the signs of aging
• To reduce inflammation caused by illness or injury
• To naturally boost the bodies immune system

Bee Pollen

Because bee pollen varies from source to source depending on time of year, location, ect. it is hard to pinpoint exact nutritional benefits as they may be different with each batch. Bee pollen does contain vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, proteins and amino acids. It is said that bee pollen contains antihistamine properties which may reduce allergies.

Bee pollen has been reported to have great results in boosting immunity, fertility for both men and women, reducing allergies and boosting overall nutrition, as well as having healing benefits for a variety of other health conditions.

Bee Propolis

Bee Propolis is a resinous mixture of tree sap, tree buds, tree leaves and other botanical sources that the bees make to seal small openings in their hives.

A study published in Fertility and Sterility (2003;80:S32) showed that 60% of women with endometriosis related infertility who took 500mg of bee propolis twice a day for 9 months became pregnant as opposed to 20% in the placebo group. Endometriosis pain, scar tissue and adhesion formation is thought to be triggered by inflammation response. Bee propolis has been shown to be extremely anti-inflammatory which may reduce endometriosis.

Preliminary studies suggest its highly anti-inflammatory properties may be greatly beneficial for fertility issues that may trigger inflammation response such as uterine fibroids, endometriosis, ovarian cysts, blocked fallopian tubes, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID), and reproductive trauma or surgeries.