How to Take Clomid

Clomid, also known as clomiphen citrate, is a FDA-approved medication that has been used to stimulate egg maturation and ovulation in women for over 40 years. If you are infertile and it is caused by not ovulating, Clomid may be a good choice for you. ^{[1] X Trusted Source Mayo Clinic Go to the source} Your doctor will explain how Clomid should be used and assess if it is the right medication for you.

Table of Contents

Preparation Before Using Clomid For Infertility

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Pregnancy test. Before taking Clomid, you must be sure you really need to take it. Since Clomid is available by prescription only, you need to consult with your obstetrician-gynecologist for a comprehensive check on your chances of conceiving. There are many causes of infertility, so it is important to identify the correct cause of infertility in order to apply the right treatment.

Chances are your doctor will ask your husband or partner to come with you for a fertility test. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Discuss treatment options with your doctor. If they determine your problem is not ovulating and prescribe clomid, you need to find out about the treatment plan they plan to put on you. The treatment plan involves using medication to induce ovulation, then introducing sperm into the uterus through natural intercourse or artificial insemination (IUI). ^{[3] X Research Source} Artificial insemination is a technique in which a doctor inserts sperm into the uterus to ensure that the sperm is in the correct position. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

They also schedule follow-up visits for blood tests or ultrasounds to continuously monitor your health and reproductive organs.

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Contact your doctor on the first day of your menstrual cycle. Before each treatment, you need to see your doctor on the first day of your period to make sure you are still in good health. Usually your doctor can advise you over the phone.

If you don’t get your period on your own, your doctor will prescribe progesterone to stimulate your period.
It is important that you contact your doctor early as they need an ultrasound to get background information about the cyst before starting a treatment cycle.
This procedure should be done for the duration of treatment because ovarian cysts may have developed after the last Clomid administration. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Using Clomid for Infertility Treatment

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Start taking medication. After checking that everything is fine, the doctor begins a treatment plan. Usually they ask you to start taking Clomid on the 3rd to 5th day of your period and to take it at the same time for 5 consecutive days. ^{[6] X Research Sources} They initially give you a low dose, say 50 mg a day, to reduce the chance of developing ovarian cysts, side effects and the chance of having a multiple pregnancy.

If you are unable to conceive, your doctor will increase your dose of Clomid so that you can start taking it during your next period. ^{[7] X Trusted Source Mayo Clinic Go to Source}
You must take the medicine exactly 5 days as required without missing a day. If you have trouble remembering to take your medication, write a sticky note somewhere visible, or set a reminder on your phone to take your medication at the same time each day.
If you miss a dose, take it as soon as you remember. However, if you remember it is almost time for your next dose, you should call your doctor for instructions. Do not take two doses in a row.

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Schedule treatment. During fertility treatment, you have a lot to do with taking Clomid. That’s why you need to schedule the days you need to take your pills, as well as all the other activities, tests, and periods that need to be tracked. Your doctor will tell you all the information to include in your treatment schedule. You should mark the days of your period, starting with day 1 as the first day of your period.

Then you mark the days you need to take Clomid, the days you need to have sex, the days you take the fertility pill, the days you have IVF, and all the days you have to have blood tests or ultrasounds as planned. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

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Schedule check-ups. Your doctor will need to closely monitor your condition during the treatment cycle. Specifically, they want to test your response to the drug Clomid, either by measuring your estrogen levels or by using an ultrasound to determine egg development.

Instead, your doctor may ask you to self-monitor your response to the medication using an ovulation predictor kit. You need to inform them of the results achieved.

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Learn about the effects of drugs in the body. After the first round of treatment, you may have questions about the effect the drug has on your body. Clomid causes hormonal changes, which in turn promote the development of egg-containing follicles in the ovaries. Normally one of the follicles containing the egg grows larger than the other and the egg in it ripens, which is when your body prepares to ovulate. ^{[9] X Research Source}

If your body is not responding to the medication, and your follicles are not developing properly, your doctor may stop the treatment cycle. They will increase the dose of Clomid in the next cycle.

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Monitor ovulation. About 12 days after starting your treatment cycle, you must check for signs of ovulation because this is the time to conceive. Each person ovulates at a different time, but usually on the 16th or 17th day of the cycle. However, to pinpoint this exact moment, a doctor must monitor ovulation in a number of ways.

They ask you to take your temperature at the same time every morning. If the body temperature rises by about 0.3 degrees Celsius, it is a sign that the egg is about to be released within the next two days.
Your doctor may also recommend that you use an ovulation predictor kit, which is available at drugstores. This device looks like a pregnancy test but is used to check for the presence of corpus luteum-stimulating hormone (LH). LH hormone peaks around 24-48 hours before ovulation, and you are most fertile during this time and two days after.
Instead of using an ovulation predictor, your doctor can use an ultrasound to check if an egg is ripe or ovulating.
They also measure progesterone levels after you have been taking Clomid for 14 to 18 days. An increased level of progesterone is a sign of ovulation and that it is time to conceive. ^{[10] X Research Source}

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Stimulating ovulation. If your body is unable to ovulate on its own (or instead waits for this to happen), your doctor may prescribe Ovidrel to stimulate ovulation. Pills containing the hormone hCG have a similar role to the hormone LH, which is when ovulation occurs.

After the injection, the predicted time of ovulation is about 24-48 hours.
If the treatment plan includes IVF, it will be scheduled around 36 hours after the Ovidrel injection. ^{[11] X Research Source}

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Have intercourse on the days your doctor recommends. After you start treatment with Clomid, you need to make the most of all your chances of conceiving. This means that you must have intercourse at any time your doctor tells you to, which is the days around your expected ovulation date.

If an ovulation-stimulating injection is available, your doctor will tell you which days you need to have intercourse to have the best chance of conceiving. ^{[12] X Research Source}

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Check treatment results. After completing treatment with Clomid, you must check your results because ovulation is when you have the best chance of fertilizing an egg with sperm. If fertilization is successful, the embryo begins implantation in the uterus several days later. ^{[13] X Research Source}

If you still haven’t had your period 15 days after the peak of LH hormone, then your doctor will ask you to come back for a pregnancy test.
Treatment with Clomid may be stopped after the test results show that you are pregnant.

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Keep on trying. You should not be disappointed if you cannot succeed in the first month, because next month you can continue the treatment with Clomid. If you can’t conceive, you’ll usually get your period again on day 14 or 17 after ovulation. ^{[14] X Research Sources} The first day of a new treatment cycle is the first day of the next menstrual period.

Your doctor may increase your dose of Clomid or suggest a different treatment.
In general, treatment with Clomid should not be longer than 6 cycles. ^{[15] X Research Sources} If you are still unable to conceive after 3 or 6 cycles, you should discuss another treatment option with your doctor.

Understanding Clomid

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How does the drug work? Clomid is classified as an ovulation-stimulating drug for women with fertility problems. The drug’s mechanism of action is to bind to estrogen receptors, blocking estrogen production and causing the body to mistake the amount of estrogen is not enough. The body responds by producing gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). This reproductive hormone stimulates the body to produce more follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), thereby boosting egg production and maturation.

The hormone FSH promotes the growth of the follicles, which are the storage places for eggs in the two ovaries. ^{[16] X Research Source}

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Know when to use Clomid. Doctors often prescribe Clomid for a number of different reasons, the most common being to treat infertility caused by anovulation, which means you’re unable to produce or release a mature egg. Signs that you have an ovulation problem are not having a period or having irregular periods.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is also a common condition that requires Clomid to treat. Symptoms of PCOS include irregular periods, excessive body and facial hair, and male pattern baldness. This condition can also give rise to cysts on the ovaries. Many different medications are commonly used to treat PCOS symptoms, but Clomid is the drug used first in the treatment of infertility caused by PCOS. ^{[17] X Trusted Source PubMed Central Go to source}
Do not use Clomid while you are pregnant. Your doctor will usually have to take a pregnancy test before prescribing Clomid for you.

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Take the correct dose. Information on the dose of Clomid will be prescribed by the doctor, but in most cases the initial oral dose is usually 50 mg per day, taken for 5 consecutive days and starting on the 5th day of the menstrual period. If an egg is still not released, they can increase the dose to 100 mg per day, taken for 5 days into the next menstrual period.

Treatment may change from cycle to cycle, especially when there is no improvement in ovulation.
Do not increase or decrease the dose on your own. You should always follow your doctor’s instructions in this regard. ^{[18] X Research Sources}

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Be aware of side effects. Clomid usually causes a few but mild side effects, such as flushing of the face, whole body warmth, stomach upset such as nausea and vomiting, chest pain, headache, dizziness, bleeding Abnormal vaginal bleeding and blurred vision.

In more severe cases, the drug can lead to ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), which occurs during or after the treatment cycle. Although quite serious, OHSS is rare. OHSS syndrome causes dangerous problems such as fluid accumulation in the abdomen and chest. Seek immediate medical attention if you experience severe pain or swelling, rapid weight gain, nausea or vomiting. ^{[19] X Research Source}
You must also contact your doctor right away if you have severe vision problems, large swelling in your abdomen, or shortness of breath. ^{[20] X Research Sources}^{[21] X Research Sources}

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Understand the risks. Although Clomid can help with ovulation, you must be careful with it. You must not take Clomid for more than 6 treatment cycles. If you’ve been on Clomid for 6 cycles and still haven’t gotten pregnant, your doctor may recommend other treatments, such as hormone injections or in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Ovarian cysts can develop from ovarian hyperstimulation, so your doctor must do an ultrasound to check for ovarian cysts before starting the next cycle of Clomid treatment.
Long-term use of clomiphen, the active ingredient in Clomid, may increase the risk of ovarian cancer, but recent studies do not support this view. ^{[22] X Research Source}

Advice

You should remember that there are many causes of inability to conceive, many of which cannot be resolved with Clomid.

Steps

Preparation Before Using Clomid For Infertility

Using Clomid for Infertility Treatment

Understanding Clomid

Advice

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