Just a warning that this post talks about chemical pregnancies and miscarriage.
My husband and I started trying for a baby in September 2018. 5 months later, my husband had a semen analysis which showed he had 0 sperm. To say we were shocked is an understatement but he had been taking synthetic testosterone for years due to low levels so we quickly made the connection.
Testosterone treatment can reduce FSH (Follicle Stimulating Hormone) which plays a role in sperm production in men. In our case, it stopped the production of sperm completely. My husband was prescribed HCG injections to stimulate sperm production and it worked. It was January when we got the news about the zero sperm production and by June there were sperm and a lot of them. And we got pregnant.
We were thrilled, so happy and surprised, almost caught off guard since the 6 previous months there wasn’t even a chance.
6 weeks into that pregnancy I started bleeding and after an ultrasound it was confirmed I was miscarrying.
It broke our hearts.
We started trying again right away.
Here’s how the next year went:
June: pregnant
July: miscarriage
October: chemical pregnancy
January: chemical pregnancy
April: chemical pregnancy
In May, I had reached my mental breaking point. I had undergone acupuncture, looked at every single thread on chemical pregnancies and I couldn’t figure it out.
Then, I started seeing a nutritionist and my Reproductive Endocrinologist ordered labs. Labs that revealed I had thyroid antibodies and a TSH level above 3.
The TSH level was not out of the norm but there have been studies that have shown that a TSH above 2.5 can have negative implications on pregnancy outcomes, resulting in poor implantation and chemical pregnancies.
So I was put on meds to help my thyroid and I began an AIP (Autoimmune protocol) diet to address the thyroid antibodies.
By the end of June my thyroid levels were under 2.5.
In July, I got pregnant with my daughter.
My thyroid levels caused my chemical pregnancies. I searched the internet high and low for an answer and never came across that one.
If someone is experiencing the same, I hope this can help.
