My DHEA Journey for Fertility: A Personal Experiment
Okay, so let me tell you about my experience with DHEA for fertility. It’s a bit of a rollercoaster, but hopefully, my notes can help someone else out there.
It all started when the wife and I were trying to conceive for, like, forever. We went through the whole shebang – doctor visits, tests, the works. And my wife’s doc suggested she look into DHEA. Said it might help with egg quality, especially since she was, uh, “seasoned,” if you catch my drift.
So, I hit the internet, started doing some digging. DHEA, or dehydroepiandrosterone, is a hormone that our bodies naturally produce. Apparently, it declines with age, and some studies suggest that supplementing with DHEA could improve ovarian function and IVF outcomes. Sounds promising, right?
But here’s where things got tricky. The dosage. Man, the dosage! Everywhere I looked, there were different opinions. Some articles said 25mg, others said 75mg, and some even went as high as 100mg! It was a total mess. I felt like I was trying to decipher ancient hieroglyphs.
We decided to be cautious. My wife started with 25mg of DHEA once a day. We figured we could always increase it later if needed, but we wanted to see how her body reacted first. We ordered some from a reputable brand online – gotta make sure you’re getting the real deal, you know?
After about a month, we didn’t really notice any major changes. Maybe a little bit more energy, but nothing dramatic. So, after consulting with the doc again, my wife bumped up the dosage to 50mg per day, split into two doses – one in the morning and one in the evening.
Now, this is where I started to get a little nervous. I was constantly reading about potential side effects of DHEA – acne, oily skin, facial hair growth (yikes!), mood changes. Luckily, my wife didn’t experience any of those things, but I was still on edge. I kept a close eye on her, like a hawk.
We stuck with the 50mg dosage for about three months. And guess what? It seemed to be working! Her bloodwork came back with improved hormone levels, and her doctor was pleased with the progress. It wasn’t a miracle cure, but it definitely seemed to be making a difference.
Then came the big day – the IVF cycle. My wife was on a whole bunch of other meds too, so it’s hard to say exactly how much of an impact the DHEA had, but… it worked! We got pregnant!
Now, I’m not saying that DHEA is a magic bullet for everyone struggling with fertility. But in our case, it seemed to play a role. It was a long and stressful process, but it was worth it in the end.
My advice? Do your research, talk to your doctor, start with a low dosage, and pay attention to your body. And remember, every body is different, so what worked for us might not work for you. Good luck!
