This post may contain affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
I always like Vince Camuto for affordable workwear, and this pleated blouse looks fabulous — easy to wear, elegant, and with machine wash/tumble dry instructions. It’s on sale in blue, orange and white, in regular and petite sizes, for $53 (was $89); it’s also in a sleeveless version (regular sizes only) for $47. Pictured: Vince Camuto Pleat Front Blouse (Regular & Petite)Sales of note for 9.10.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 30% off your purchase
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles
- Eloquii – $29 and up select styles; up to 50% off everything else
- J.Crew – Up to 50% off wear-to-work styles; extra 30% off sale styles
- J.Crew Factory – 40-60% off everything; extra 60% off clearance
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Extra 40% off sale styles
- Talbots – BOGO 50% everything, includes markdowns
- Zappos – 26,000+ women’s sale items! (check out these reader-favorite workwear brands on sale, and some of our favorite kids’ shoe brands on sale)
Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – Birthday sale, 40-50% off & extra 20% off select styles
- Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off all baby; up to 40% off all Halloween
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Extra 30% off sale styles
- Old Navy – 40% off everything
- Target – BOGO 25% off select haircare, up to 25% off floor care items; up to 30% off indoor furniture up to 20% off TVs
See some of our latest articles on CorporetteMoms:
Click here to see our top posts!
And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- The concept of “backup care” is so stupid…
- I need tips on managing employees in BigLaw who have to leave for daycare pickup…
- I’m thinking of leaning out to spend more time with my family – how can I find the perfect job for that?
- I’m now a SAHM and my husband needs to step up…
- How can I change my thinking to better recognize some of my husband’s contributions as important, like organizing the shed?
- What are your tips to having a good weekend with kids, especially with little kids? Do you have a set routine or plan?
gift ideas says
Looking for a gift idea! My very good and 7-months-pregnant friend is turning 30. I am also pregnant and we have been enjoying the ride together, so I thought something thematic would be nice (but mom-focused, not baby-focused). Price range is $40-50. Any ideas? TIA!
Spirograph says
Are you local to her? I second TK’s suggestion – I would take her out for brunch and pedicures. Make sure to pick a salon you know is well-ventilated; I had a really rough time in my normal, not-fancy place in later pregnancy. If she’s far away, maybe a gift basket with delicious food and indulgent bath products.
MDMom says
Spa day with prenatal massages?
ANP says
I’ve had 3 kids and I would have for sure wanted some sort of pampering gift at this (or any) stage in my pregnancies. Plus it’s the gift of time with you! I’d say a massage or pedicure plus brunch/lunch together if you can swing it.
TK says
Go for pedicures together! (You can enjoy each others’ since neither of you can see your own toes by third Tri)
AEK says
My in-laws will be watching our 13MO all day at our house when daycare is closed for the day. They frequently watch another set of grandkids who live near them, so I know they are completely capable of childcare. But they have no experience with our little guy and it’s a long day. So I’d like to leave them a helpful note / chart / info sheet of some kind so they can see what/when he eats, sleeps, etc. Is this too controlly / Type A or could it be helpful? What’s the best way I can do this? Or do I skip it and let them just do what they do? (If it matters we have a great relationship so no worries about that.)
anon says
They’ll be glad to have information about his schedule. If you don’t send it, they’ll undoubtedly ask! What I’ve done in a similar situation is usual naptimes, anything unusual about nap routine, usual meal times and any relevant info about whether baby is able to feed himself/needs to be fed purees, etc (which they may already know).
Maddie Ross says
When I’ve done this, I’ve just left a written note with a general schedule and a list of food options for each eating period (i.e., breakfast options/snack options/lunch options, or when younger the size of the bottle at each feed). At the top I’ve put our phone numbers, cell and office (even though I know they have them, but my fear is that people forget in an emergency), and our doctor’s number. I think it’s helpful for someone to have an idea of schedule (when to expect a nap, when they might be hungry for snack), but going too far into the chart-making is maybe a bit much if you trust them.
FVNC says
I fully own that I am super-Type A, but thankfully my mother is too. When my mother watched my daughter for the first few times (including overnight) I typed out a three page note. My mother, in turn, read, highlighted, and asked follow up questions and then annotated the note. Excessive? Probably, but it worked for us! On the other hand, my MIL does not read English so all instructions were orally communicated to her by my husband. I was not sure how much she’d listen/follow our instructions and felt a little nervous leaving our daughter in her care the first time, but lo and behold all was fine and baby was perfectly happy and content. All that to say, do whatever works and makes you comfortable without worrying that you’re being controlling/Type A.
Anonymous says
I would frame it as you are writing out baby’s usual routine – naps- when/where/how + food/fave toys to help them know what baby is used to but that you trust them to deal with the situation and don’t expect it to be followed to the letter. My parents watch my kids for time to time but my son will not nap anywhere but in my mom’s arms and both kids probably get more snack treats than usual – they are not the regular caregivers so I’m fine with it.
MomAnon4This says
This. How you frame it. “I know you’re wonderful grandparents and obviously did a great job with me/my partner, but it’s my first time as a parent, so this is helpful for me and it might be helpful for you. Here you go.”
anne-on says
I usually write out a note with times of snacks/naps/any naptime routine, and a list of emergency numbers. I also ‘translated’ words at that age – “baba = bottle, ‘”pu”=puffs, etc.
We’ve also had grandparents help out on emergency snow closures/sick days when I’d already had snacks/lunch/milk/water already in containers to go to daycare and in the fridge – both sets of grandparents commented on how much easier it was on them to just grab the containers with food already ready to go, and then just throw them in the dishwasher. So now I do try to have snacks/lunch already made to make life easier on them.
Pogo says
+1 on the translations! When I was watching my niece recently there were a few things I didn’t understand because I had no context. It’s easy enough to get “bottle” from “baba” when she’s sitting in a high chair pointing at a bottle, but “Toey!!” = “when you are changing me please tickle my toes” for example is virtually impossible to guess.
Philanthropy Girl says
We have a similar situation with my parents, who watch my nephews often but see my little one much less frequently. My LO is headed to their place this weekend. I’ll leave my mom a brief schedule, a few notes on what his hand signs and squeaks mean, and highlight a couple of his challenging behaviors so she’s prepared for them.
She probably won’t stick by them (she never can manage to hit his early bedtime) – but at least she’ll have an understanding of fussy behavior when it’s long past snack or meal time.
I try to just provide helpful tips on my kid, rather than charts or strict routines, in an effort to overcome my type-A controlling nature. No need to insult the free help!
Meg Murry says
Does your daycare already fill out a daily sheet with what he ate and naptimes, etc? I know ours did through at least 12 months, and we gave my mom and MIL a couple of those to use as general recommended guidelines.
twin mom returning to work says
I’m returning to work next week and leaving my 3 month old twins with a nanny I trust. Mostly I’m excited to go back to work because I like what I do and love my colleagues, and frankly am kind of over full day baby care!
I’m not terribly anxious about it, but anticipate that I’ll get more nervous over the next few days as it sinks in. Any advice on a smooth transition (logistically and emotionally)? I already found out there are pumping rooms and I have a supportive boss who is fine with me being a bit flexible with my schedule.
Thanks!
Toddler Twin Mom says
Congrats on surviving the three months! It’s not easy with two babies. The best advice I have is to be kind to yourself. Hardest thing I found was adjusting to not feeling like I was excelling at everything. It’s almost impossible to bat 100 at work, as a mom, as a wife and for yourself. Heck most days I just aim for 50%. Just try to keep your head above water on each front and it will all work out. You may miss your babies like crazy or you may just be grateful to be back doing what you love – and you may feel both of those things at the same time. That’s okay.
MDMom says
+1 (minus twins, just one here). This is a great articulation of what I have been and am still dealing with after 4.5 months back at work. The days will go by faster, and that is both good and bad.
Anonymous says
Logistically, re pumping and back to work stuff:
– pack everything you possibly can the night before
– yes, it’s worth having multiple sets of pump parts at work / home – painful and sometimes impossible to get through the day if you accidently leave anything at home
– lots of spare clothes at work
– block out time to pump on your calendar, and be frank with other people about why you can’t flex those times to attend meetings, etc.
Emotionally
– if you’re married / partnered, be aggressive about establishing fair patterns on distribution of labor if you’re both working. If you’ve been home and he/she hasn’t for the last three months, he/she may need to adjust to being an equal parent during all not-at-paid-work hours.
– pumping is hard. don’t feel bad if it doesn’t work out.
– take advantage of any inlaw or other assistance on the weekends to sleep / decompress. you are not a bad mom for doing this. exhausted moms aren’t as good a moms as they otherwise would be.
RDC says
+1 to being frank about why you’re not available. I just put a “do not disturb” sign on my door and discovered later that some colleagues didn’t understand why / were rather put off by it. When it came out (later, in conversation) that I was pumping they were totally supportive and understanding, so I kind of regretted not being more upfront.
ANP says
You’ve already gotten great advice from other commenters here. My top tips, which are echoes of what everyone else already said:
+ Be kind to yourself and understand that you will, on some level, end up easing back in.
+ YES to extra pump parts — whatever you can do to make your life easier is important, and not having to worry about washing stuff each night is key. I also kept one full set of parts and 2 bottles in a gallon Ziploc in my desk drawer at all times, just in case I forgot something/there was a malfunction (ripped membrane, etc.).
+ For sure block your calendar for pumping.
+ If you have a spouse/partner, discuss going into the week who is responsible for what and don’t be afraid to make sure they carry the lion’s share of the load in your first week (or five) back.
+ Plan outfits in advance — one less thing to worry about in the morning.
+ Can you make sure dinners are taken care of in that first week too? Either carry out, frozen stuff, premade meals, whatever. Doesn’t have to be fancy, but again it’s one less thing to worry about.
Navy lawyer says
Awesome!! +1,000 to whatever makes your life easier. I was at first reluctant to spend money on things like extra bottles or membranes, but in the end they saved me so much stress! Buy some bra inserts in case you leak – many people will ask you about your children which will cause you to let down. To stop leaking during let down, cross your arms to press on your n*p*ples and it will prevent leaking. But you still have to go pump immediately afterwords! Also have lots of snacks and water on hand because work+pumping=exhaustion. Finally, plan for a babysitter for a weekend day in about 6 weeks so you can catch up on sleep!
Preggo Anon says
Hi everyone,
I have a Jcrew rewards card that I am trying to find a way to spend. Since I am currently pregnant and the card expires in March, I am pretty limited in what I might find useful right now. Does anyone have any feedback on how their maternity martie or pixie pants fit? The pants look so tight online, I am wondering if they would be work appropriate (or if I would even be able to wedge myself into them!).
TIA!
Maddie Ross says
If it were me, I’d probably spend on stuff for post-baby rather than maternity clothes if you’re due so soon. I’ve not looked at J.Crew all that recently, but I used to really like their lounge-wear line (sweat pants, wrap sweaters, etc.). Oh, and I just got on now out of curiosity and they have several cute two-piece PJ sets. That would probably be my first choice. Useful post-baby and likely into the future (forgiving for weight fluctuations).
Maddie Ross says
And reading comprehension fail – I read that you were due in March, not that the card expired then. I still would probably go lounge wear, but if you have several months left to go, maternity clothes may be more worth it.
ANP says
My answer to this depends on how much further you have to go in your pregnancy and/or whether this is your last baby. I’m with Maddie Ross and would probably go with lounge wear or regular stuff that’s maternity friendly (long cardigans, for example, or shoes), but if this is your first baby/you plan to have more kids/you’re early in your pregnancy, that answer might change.
Preggo Anon says
I am due in June and planning to work right up until so work clothing would be helpful. I do plan to have more kids so I am hoping that some of this maternity clothing can be used at least one more time! Thanks :)
shortperson says
you can also buy ahead on crewcuts clearance
Anon says
I would probably buy some sort of cardigan/jacket/blazer. I am 40 weeks AND 3 DAYS (but who’s counting?) and am wearing a pre-pregnancy soft blazer today. I still wear all my cardigans too.
Carrie M says
I loved their maternity pixie pant and continued to wear them post-partum for quite awhile since the side panels are fairly well hidden. But I also like others’ ideas re blazers/cardis that would work during pregnancy and post-partum.
Onlyworkingmomintulsa says
I loved the maternity pixie pants. I wear one six down in pixies from my normal size and chose the same for the maternity version.
GGFM says
Haven’t tried the pixie pants, but to weigh in on what articles of clothing will be most useful post partum (pants v. blazers, tops), don’t knock the pants! Many of my friends were still wearing their maternity pants for months (and at least 2 people – both of whom lost the baby weight pretty quickly – still were wearing them a year out, since they found them more flattering).
Now that I’m about to return to work after maternity leave I wish I’d splurged on really great fitting pants and less on the dresses/tops, which took on the deflated basketball look deflated pretty soon after delivering!
To the anon looking for other nursing tops - says
Saw your post on yesterday’s thread, but since it was on the second page I imagine most people didn’t see it.
I was one who liked the cami that Kat posted yesterday, but from Target I also liked the Basics Felicity cami. It’s a little stretchier than the cotton one and my bosoms felt more separated/normal in them. I don’t like them as well four months out because the material has gotten pilly, but they were my favorite at the time. I love love loved the Bravado nursing tank, but they’re very expensive. They were the one that I actually felt comfortable wearing out and about because it gave really good support (I’m a 36I). But they were less comfortable for overnight wear.
To the anon looking for other nursing tops - says
Okay, that’s weird. When I first looked at the page yours was the only comment, but now I see you did get a few responses. My recommendations still stand. :)
Anonymous says
I am a huge fan of the Bravado tanks – they are all I wear around the house/going out casually. Panache nursing bras for when I’m not wearing tanks + leggings, and regular tank top/camisole (unsupported) at night. But I nursed sidelying in bed so I never felt the need for nighttime support. Put on my bravado tank first thing in the morning.
Anonymous says
Thank you!
kc esq says
Any recommendations for a cute foldable growth chart to use with my kids?
Anon says
I don’t have a rec, but I’d look on etsy.
ANP says
So — just felt the need to post here. I’m away from my kids for 4 days/3 nights for a work conference. I do miss my little people but YOU GUYS I GOT TO EAT DINNER ALONE LAST NIGHT! And sleep for 9 consecutive hours in a bed by myself!
I realized at some point yesterday that I haven’t been alone like this in, honestly, I don’t know how long. I am literally re-learning how to be by myself. Kind of crazy/weird/amazing.
TK says
Ha! After a tough weekend with a toddler who has suddenly forgotten every word but “no!,” I was thinking to myself that if I was given the gift of a 24 hour vacation I would spend the whole time eating fried chicken alone in a hotel room watching cable t.v. and sleeping. And be deliriously happy.
Edna Ma says
I’ve actually been day dreaming about getting sent on a day or two work trip lately (this is extremely unlikely to happen). It’s been over two years since I haven’t spent at least part of the night in the same bed as a kiddo. Soak it all up!
Meg Murry says
Yes, on my first work trip I was so amazed to be alone. Yes, I spent 18 straight hours on a factory floor while pumping in a sketchy locker room, and that sucked. But then I got to sleep in a bed by myself for 6 straight hours with no one touching me!
I love my kids, but it was nice to get away from them because I HAD to, since I wouldn’t have been able to choose to (but looking back, I’m telling past-me to take a weekend getaway)
Newbie in LA says
Need advice.
I’m considering a job as a Legal Administrator at a small, growing firm. This would be a significant step up for my resume/career.
I love the firm, the people, the duties…but I hate the location. I would have to commute over an hour a day (LA traffic).
If I didn’t have my 4-month old, I would take the job.
Is it better to work my butt off and be away from my daughter now (when she can’t remember me being gone), so that I can eventually transfer to a similar position closer to home when she’s older? Or, is being available to her critical? Should I hold out for another job where I could perhaps have a better work/life balance? (currently unemployed)
I have to work. It’s just the 11 or 12 hour day vs. the 10 hour day if I found something closer to home.
Any feedback is much appreciated!!
Lida says
At this age, in my experience, it doesn’t matter to the baby. It might matter to YOU. I have an hour commute and have really, really struggled with it this first year — leave home at 8, return just before 7. I see the baby about 40 minutes in the morning and 20-45 in the evening depending on whose turn it is to do bedtime, and for me that hasn’t been enough. YMMV. I don’t know if that’s something that will change over time or not — don’t know if it’ll get easier or harder as baby grows up into a kid.
Navy lawyer says
Second being available is not critical. As they get older and do more stuff, you’ll want to be there more when you see the sad little look on their faces when you leave. Are you open to co-sleeping? That’s how I get my cuddles in with baby.
Anonymous says
Plus one to this. The only thing I would add is that it may be difficult to find a job in LA that doesn’t have a terrible commute. :(
TK says
What’s your daycare and home situation? Is there a partner / spouse in the picture?
I don’t think there’s a ‘right’ answer here – if this is really a unique opportunity, and you want it, and you have a partner that can get to daycare to handle all of those sick-kid calls quickly and also take on a larger share of home duties, might be worth considering.
If you anticipate being primarily responsible for childcare / home stuff, its going to be very challenging to fit in the rest of your life around an 11-12 hour work / commute time. Not impossible, but exhausting.
I don’t think your 4-month old will have much of an opinion, s/he learns from you what normal is, so if this is what they grow up with, they will adjust.
ANP says
+1 here. Depends on spouse/partner, daycare situation, and what your current job is like. Agree that from what I know, that seems like a normal-ish commute for LA (could always be better, but it’s not, like, a THREE hour commute). If you have to be the primary childcare pickup/dropoff person, that’s not great. But your kid will get used to whatever “normal” is for your family.
Is there any chance of a work from home scenario once or twice per week? I would obviously recommend your kid be at daycare or otherwise out of sight, but it negates the need to commute on those days.
Anonymous says
It wouldn’t work for me. A 10 hour day would almost double the amount of time you got to spend with baby everyday – 8-8 vs. 8-6. If you decide to take it, I would think about cosleeping as another poster mentioned. Both you and baby might enjoy the sleepy time snuggles.
Anonymous says
Angeleno here. I do preschool drop off and my spouse does pick up so we can each shift our schedules so we are only commuting in one rush hour per day, which makes a huge difference (my morning commute is 45 minutes; my evening commute is 15). Would that be an option for you?
Before we moved here, I commuted 1.5 hours each way (with then-baby, because with such a long commute, daycare had to be by my office) and spouse commuted 2.5 hours each way. It was awful, especially with a baby, so I would think very hard about work-around.
SoCalAtty says
I’m in Los Angeles (my office is in DTLA). If you move here, you’ll have a group of r e t t e s to meet up with!
I live in Burbank, and I have a 5.5 month old. I drop him at daycare by home at 7am, and it takes me about 45-50 minutes to get in to work (13 miles!). My “office hours” here are 8-5 (I take stuff home if I need to) and when I leave when I’m supposed to, I’m home by 6. I leave the house at about 6:40, so it is almost a 12 hour day. That’s a looooong day, so I get it. I get my husband to do pick up from daycare so the baby isn’t there quite so long. Husband picks up about 4, but not always that early. Baby has adjusted fine, is really happy all the time (except when sick / teething) but I’ll be honest that it is really hard.
I wouldn’t make it without cosleeping. I’m still trying to BF him as much as possible, and I pump at work. Love the baby snuggles!
Newbie in LA says
Thank you all for your feedback!
I’m in Pasadena, and the commute is to Woodland Hills. No option for telecommuting (at least not at first). Thankfully they are open to 7am – 4pm shift. That *should* put me home by 5ish.
I’m thinking that taking her to daycare in the center where I would work solves two things:
1. I get to use the carpool lane.
2. I could visit her at lunch time.
Though, that’s a lot of time for her in the car.
I’m not eager to cosleep. I like my hubby time, and she’s doing well in her crib.
Finally, I am happy to know there are lots of ‘Rettes around.
Liz says
How much control will you have over your schedule? could you stagger your work hours so that you have a nice block of time with the baby in the morning or in the evening? I have an hour commute each way but leave home at 6am so I can be home at 5pm. My husband works close to home snd does the day care drop off and pick up. This arrangement gives me 3 hours of quality time with my family in the evening. It helps that I work in an office where it’s normal to arrive at 7am.
Agree that the long commute can be exhausting but its doable.
It also helps if you have the flexibility to work from home 1-2 days a month to take care of household stuff and avoid the commute.
farrley says
Any tips on dealing with chronic constipation? My 14-month-old son has been having a rough time since he started eating more solid foods. He’s not great about drinking water so we’re working on that, but we’ve also tried prune juice, flax seed oil, lots of fruit, and still no consistent relief. I’m wondering if we should be looking into a food allergy.
Anonymous says
Have you tried a probiotic? Either a powdered one that you can mix into food/milk or giving him something like sauerkraut every day (my kid likes the taste, but I know many may not). Has really seemed to help keep my kid’s gut in check. Definitely speak to your ped as well, though, as your gut feel is important, too (no pun intended).
Anonymous says
1 teaspoon of miralax once a day for 30 days. Then as-needed. It’s probably a mild dairy/lactose allergy/sensitivity. I AM NOT A DOCTOR please talk to your pediatrician.
HSAL says
Yes, definitely talk to your doctor. My niece took it when she was younger (2-4ish) and they’re attributing it to a facial tic she has now (11). The NY Times did a piece on whether it was safe for children, so you may want to check that out too.
Anonymous says
Is he eating a lot of pasta/bread or dairy? I find that when I eat a lot of carbs or cheese that I struggle with constipation. Something that helps me is chia seeds. I try to regularly eat chia seed pudding, which has a texture similar to tapioca, and can be put in a blender if he doesn’t like the texture. I’ve seen some baby pouches with “super chia” in them (whatever “super chia” is) so I assume that it’s safe for kids, but I’m not 100% sure so I would ask your ped.
RDC says
Fwiw, lots of black beans (chili, or quesadillas) seems to move things along (sometimes too effectively) for my son.
LSC says
We had this problem and once we added powdered probiotics and a tablespoon of wheat germ to my daughter’s daily diet, it cleared right up. Try this before you do anything more extreme! It’s been so easy for us.
Anon says
FWIW I think this is a fairly common problem. My son doesn’t drink enough water, so this happens to him occasionally, so we need to press the reset and start keeping a water bottle/cup around and encouraging him to drink. More fiber without more water can actually cause more problems rather than relieve them. If the poor little guy is really backed up, I would definitely take him to the doctor, who might want him to be on a laxative for a few weeks to work things out. I would NOT go for miralax without discussing with a doctor. I was thinking about trying that with my son, but the more I Googled, the more I realized that could be a very bad idea. Also, some kids just poop a little less often than others, so that could be it, but it sounds like he is uncomfortable…
Pogo says
I posted a little while back about travelling while doing fertility treatments. I didn’t have all the info from my RE and I went and scheduled a business trip during my p3riod – turns out that they normally do u/s and bloodwork on day 3, even for a clomid-only (no IUI/IVF) cycle.
I can’t cancel the trip (loong story) so my RE suggested if I didn’t want to skip this cycle I could forgo the baseline u/s. Has anyone done this and had anything negative come of it? I’m told it’s to look for cysts, and can make the follicule count later on inaccurate. She didn’t seem concerned but then I’m thinking… why do you normally order it if it’s no big deal to skip?
This whole thing is very stressful. The nurse asked me the other day if I was getting excited – I must have had a glazed over look on my face while she explained how to give myself the trigger shot – and I had to be like, oh right! This is all so we might actually someday have our own human child! It’s been so long since I believed that could be real.
anon says
I always had a day 3 baseline, but for a clomid cycle, I’d probably be okay skipping it. Less thrilled if it’s your first cycle, since it can be instructive on how your body works, and definitely it would worry me more if you don’t have an ultrasound planned later pre-ovulation to count follicles. You can have a lot even on Clomid (I had 5 on just 50 mg Clomid, it happens!) so that would be the big thing that worries me. But at the end of the day, yeah, I’d still probably be okay skipping it. There are many women who take clomid without monitoring at all, which is not the best idea month after month, but nor is it totally insane.
pockets says
I did one cycle on Femara (like Clomid) and I don’t think it would be a big deal to skip the baseline u/s. I had cysts too but cysts can come and go and the doc was able to differentiate cyst from follicle, so the baseline u/s can be helpful, but not necessarily so. I’d go ahead and do the Clomid without the baseline – it might work, and if it doesn’t then you’re in no worse position. Buy OPKs (you can get cheap ones on amazon that work fine) and test while traveling.
In fact, when I try for #2 I’m going to try to cajole by OB to just give me the prescription for Femara, forego all the monitoring, and just use OPKs to figure it out.
Anon says
When I was on Clomid my doctor wouldn’t have let me do it that month without the day three ultrasound. If you have a cyst that is already “too big” they skip that month so it doesn’t become problematic big. I had to skip a month for this reason.
NYCpg says
I’d skip in a heartbeat!! My RE did day 2/3 bloodwork on my first Clomid cycle but not an ultrasound. My insurance actually required the day 2/3 bloodwork for cycle auth purposes once every six months for any sort of monitored cycles, so I would have at least needed the bloodwork done my first cycle, but I got very good at finding someone to draw my blood basically anywhere.
The early ultrasounds became much more important (non-negotiable) once I was doing injectibles. Once I started a cycle with an enormous residual cyst from my prior failed gonal-f cycle and we couldn’t start injecting until it was much smaller.
Pogo says
Thanks guys! I got crazy busy and forgot to check back. I did have day 3 ultrasound and bloodwork on my last cycle, so they do have an idea how my body “works”. I also had an ultrasound on day 12 I believe (when they saw the PCOS).
I for sure will have the later monitoring bloodwork and u/s on every cycle – I don’t want sextuplets!!
I haven’t decided yet what to do, since it all depends on when my cycle starts – it could be a totally moot point. When you call to report day 1 you do speak to the nurse, so I’m hoping at that point she can walk me through the risks again re: cysts.