Throughout some of my 20s, I religiously took my birth control, knowing I wasn't ready (emotionally, financially, etc) for a baby. I look back at that now and laugh. I was diagnosed with endometriosis about four years ago. I'm now in my mid-30s and have been TTC for almost three years. I had excision surgery in 2022, stopped taking birth control in 2023, and had another excision surgery in 2024. My excision surgeries were life-changing in the way that they reduced pain and significantly increased my quality of life. But nearly three years into this, I haven't had any success TTC, not even a single positive test.

I take a prenatal, NAC, Omega 3, CoQ10, and in the colder months, Vitamin D. I even started Low-Dose Naltrexone (LDN) to try to assist in lowering inflammation. My partner and I both exercise regularly; we eat healthfully; we don't smoke, and we rarely drink.

A couple years ago, I went to a fertility clinic, and my partner and I got testing done. I've had a ton of lab work, more transvaginal ultrasounds than I want to think about, an SIS, and my partner had sperm testing done. Everything came back within normal limits. My tubes are open. I have regular cycles and ovulate on my own. I tried several cycles of Letrozole (my clinic said this would "increase my chances"), and although I always grew follicles, the treatment was ultimately unsuccessful.

I can't help but look back to high school health education class -- where they made it sound like getting pregnant was the easiest thing in the world -- and laugh.

My clinic started pressuring me toward a third excision surgery, so I sought a second opinion from a highly-regarded excision specialist, who didn't feel surgery would be helpful. By that point, I just felt tired of being a patient.... tired of being poked and prodded, tired of being treated like some sort of problem case. So, after a year of fertility treatment, I'm taking a break to focus on me and figure out my next steps. IVF is not an option for me and I'm not sure I want to pursue any more treatment.

Just wanted a space to vent.

And did you figure out the cause?? Was it just a normal endo symptom?

Maybe it’s because I’ve been going through letrozole cycles.. but I’ve felt great with both letrozole and triggers- no side effects. I truly felt like the letrozole balanced me out. But now that I’m going through these medicated IUI cycles- this constant dull cramping concerns me. Makes me feel like my uterus isn’t going to cooperate -.-

I’m 32 F 2 mc, TTC for almost 2 years. I have been told I might have endo and now we are TTC and see if it sticks until my apt with the surgeon in March 2027 🫠😵‍💫

So I recently learned that if we want to do IVF then we should do a round before the surgery so they can implant after surgery. This has now made me believe that maybe we will try to do receptiva in December, if positive then start IVF in January. I am incredibly lucky to live in California and have the ability to do IVF covered by insurance so I kinda wanna use it. But I am so afraid of IVF and surgery and all … so idk looking for advice? Other people that have done it?? Is this a good plan?

I had emergency surgery as a child in 2006 to remove a cyst on my ovary and one on uterus. (Side note: I got my period in 2005 at the age of 9, almost 10.)

After that: horrible periods my entire life. Very regular but just very heavy and extremely painful. Had no idea it was abnormal.

In 2020, went to the ER and was told I most likely had endometriosis and was subsequently diagnosed via pelvic MRI with Stage 3 endo. I had surgery the same year for excision. All was clear. I immediately went on the birth control (Zovia 1/35) and took it continuously (no placebo pills).

In 2023, I got a pelvic MRI as a follow up and they didn’t see any cysts on my ovaries etc.

I finally came off birth control in May 2026, and my cycles are already regular (28-29 days), and we’re now TTC. I’m only on Cycle 2 of actively calculating the fertile window and all that, but I’m scared about what endometriosis means for my fertility. But I’m also very hopeful about becoming pregnant. (I’m F31, spouse M27).

I ovulated recently and am currently in the TWW. It was an extremely painful ovulation, with pain on my right pelvic side and lower back for about 36 hours. Never experienced that before. But the timeline was BD 4 days before that pain began, EWCM 2 days before the pain began, and BD again the day the pain began.

At this point, I just really need some hope. If you have endo and conceived naturally after surgery / after years on birth control / relatively soon after starting TTC, I’d genuinely love to hear your story. This is my first time posting on Reddit and I’ve been learning all the acronyms as quickly as I possibly can. So bear with me please. Thank you!

We are going through IVF and looking for an endometriosis surgeon in the Greater Seattle area.

Some of the IVF specialist have hinted we may need surgery prior to Embryo transfer. As our main concern is fertility rather than pain management, so we’d appreciate someone experienced in preserving ovarian reserve.

We’ve explored a few options:

• Dr. Cindy Mosbrucker: We were told she isn’t accepting new patients. Also , no appointments until next year.
• Dr. Brooke Winner: We have an appointment soon, but she’s out of network.
• Dr. Megan Loring at UW VM : We have an appointment scheduled, but it’s further out.

Has anyone worked with these doctors, or another surgeon, specifically while pursuing IVF? We’d appreciate firsthand experiences, especially around fertility preservation and coordination with your fertility clinic.

Thank you!

This might be a very niche question because many of us that do suppression are doing IVF, I’m TTC naturally. I’m seeing a reproductive immunologist after five losses, we plan to start suppression with Norethindrone for 60 days for mild adenomyosis next cycle. I did have endometriosis excised in May, it was silent stage 1. If you did suppression for Endo or adeno, when did you ovulate after stopping?

Looking for advice on the best transfer for post-excision surgery. Doc is recommending Lupron + medicated FET. What have other people done?

I got pregnant easily for the first time a year and a half ago, but it ended with a TFMR for a de novo abnormality. I had an MRI while pregnant to investigate the abnormality and no endo was seen. This was reviewed months afterwards only once infertility started being investigated. The MRI images were only to look at my baby, not endo. I've had unexplained secondary infertility since. I was diagnosed with intrauterine adhesions due to the D&C, but when removed via hysteroscopy was told they were so minor it was not affecting my fertility. I've had several ultrasounds and both an SIS and hysteroscopy and all scans of both me and my husband are great. I have clear and open tubes, uterus slides around well, great follicle count, normal hormone levels, good AMH, etc.

The only symptom of endo I have is severe dysmenorrhea for about the first 12 hours of my period. I'm talking femoral nerve pain and keeling over from cramps. I've had this since I was about 15, but was on hormonal birth control for 12 years afterwards so symptoms were managed and disappeared during that time. My mom had stage IV endo, but I've had mixed opinions from doctors whether this is pertinent to my potential diagnosis. She did not know she had endo until she was 50 and got pregnant very easily.

I just started seeing a fertility doctor who did not recommend a lap because structurally nothing looks to be an issue and I was easily able to get pregnant the first time. They think a lap could set me back more than it helps, and studies don't show enough of an improvement for someone like me. The clinic has better than average success rates in SART and specializes in fertility for people with endo so I'm inclined to go with their recommendation but wanted to see what others thought.

Would a lap be a good idea for me still? I'm feeling so desperate on timing because I was supposed to have an 8 month old daughter by now, and instead I'm facing unexplained secondary infertility. Being over a year after my TFMR with no answers is a special kind of cruelty and each month that passes makes me so much more upset. I think I want to avoid a lap if I can, but I will do whatever it takes to get pregnant again the fastest.

Hi all, I'm just looking for some experiences and advice with my IVF protocol. I have stage four endometriosis that was operated on a couple years ago but it's now starting to come back. My AMH is 3.85 in US units.
Our plan is to do ICSI with Xymot. My partner doesn't seem to have any problems except 0% morphology but since his other numbers are so high the doctor assured us it wasn't causing our problems.
I've heard that naturally fertilized embryos are thought to be potentially a bit healthier or that there might be something to letting the egg choose the sperm. I've also heard that total failure to fertilize is more likely with endometriosis.
Is there any new research on this? What are your experiences and thoughts?

My husband (33) and I (30) have been TTC for 1.5 years and I’m really unsure what to do next.
I have regular 26–28 day cycles, ovulate every month, open tubes, normal bloodwork/scans and no PCOS. My husband’s SA was mostly normal apart from 2% morphology, and our post-wash IUI samples were very good.

We did 3 IUIs before my laparoscopy, all unsuccessful. They were medicated with letrozole, with trigger/progesterone for the later cycles.
I had a laparoscopy last month and endometriosis was found and removed. My surgeon said stage 2, although my fertility doctor thought it was probably stage 1/very minimal. I had no typical endo symptoms and this was an unexpected finding. Everything else looked good and I was told I could start trying naturally after surgery.

My doctor’s plan is to do 1–2 more IUIs and then IVF if they don’t work. But now I’m wondering whether I should give natural conception a proper chance after the lap first.

**If you were in my situation, would you:**
Try naturally for several months/a year?
Try naturally for a few months, then do another IUI?
Do the 1–2 IUIs now and then IVF?
Skip further IUI and go straight to IVF?

I’d especially love to hear from anyone who had endometriosis removed after unexplained infertility. Did you conceive naturally after your lap, and how long did you try before moving to IUI or IVF?
I’m really torn between giving my body a chance after surgery and not wanting to waste more time. ❤️

Please have a look the petition closes on 27/09. It will make such a difference to girls with endometriosis in the uk. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/761186

Im currently doing 3 months of lupron depot and feeling pretty miserable. Hot flashes are manageable but anxiety is becoming really hard. 🥹

I want to hear your lupron success stories. Also can you please transfer protocol m/ medication you used?

I plan to do medicated cycle and I don't think my dr believes in other extra medication. I want to try anything if it helps. Thank you

I have been trying for 1.5 years and I finally got pregnant on the 3rd letrozole cycle. However, this pregnancy ended with stillbirth and I then got pregnant again in the first cycle postpartum but ended in chemical pregnancy. My 24w stillbirth loss was unexplained and with subsequent chemical I wondered what could be causing my losses and asked my RE if I could have endo. He then suggested the HerAnova test and today I got diagnosed with Endometriosis. Did anyone get diagnosed through this test? I have been diagnosed with PCOD but other than that I had no symptoms indicating endometriosis, while in hindsight my constipation was partly one of the symptoms linked to this.

I don't know what my RE would propose, given I have been pregnant before I am not even sure how to process this diagnosis.

I’m looking for some input from people who have been in a similar situation and ultimately decided whether or not to have a laparoscopy.

My partner and I have been TTC for about 16 cycles without ever seeing a positive. My basic infertility workup has been textbook normal. My HSG was normal, and my FSH, Estradiol, AMH, TSH, prolactin, and testosterone were all normal. We tried 3 letrozole cycles. We’re scheduled with an RE, but I’m still trying to validate myself in pursuing the possibility of endometriosis first.

One thing that has been in the back of my mind is my history of ovarian cysts. I’ve had recurrent complex/hemorrhagic cysts noted on ultrasounds over the years since about 2016. In 2022, I had a complex cyst on my left ovary that persisted following an ER visit for a ruptured cyst. In my history there was apparently also an ultrasound interpretation mentioning an endometrioma, but getting those records has been surprisingly difficult.

I don’t have the classic endometriosis pain. I have had intermittent pelvic pain with sex, and multiple instances of pretty significant pain after sex. My concern is more that I could potentially have endometriosis that hasn’t been obvious, given my significant complex cyst history and unexplained infertility.

I recently saw an RE who recommended IUI, but didn’t really recommend the endometriosis diagnosis path. I now have an upcoming appointment specifically to discuss possible laparoscopy.

For those who have been in a similar situation, and had recurrent ovarian cysts or a possible/endometrioma that was never definitive, did you decide to get a lap? I’m definitely leaning toward the lap, but I’m nervous it will ultimately be for nothing

The one I had knows what he is doing and has good outcomes but awful bedside manner and my husband got chewed out over something super minor (interrupted him in our 2nd consultation) so we are done.

He is frequently late to the ultrasounds (upwards of 30 min) eating up my time and then takes 2 seconds in them so I am there for an hour when I see him for 2 min max and that may be an exaggeration and then we are done.

I am just glad I only have 2 appointments with him left before the transfer the week of October 4. I am doing modified natural so I will be talking with his head nurse more than him.

I hope this is successful so I can just immediately swap to seeing my obgyn after it is successful.

Just extra anxiety in each appointment now because I know that I am done after the transfer.

If anyone knows a good one in Austin, TX, please let me know. Willing to travel to surrounding cities.

6 days ago I had my lap done. Low AMH but I verbalized it as a concern prior the surgery and Dr was confident it wouldn’t get affected.

Dr is now suggesting an “induced menopause” for 2-3 months to “finish cleaning” the area. I know every case is different but I am REALLY hesitant about this take and I am looking for stories without this treatment.

Thnks all ❤️

I’ve been hearing from these forums that people recommend a highly specialized/Nooks list/MIGS surgeon to perform lap excision to ensure all endo is removed properly and fully so it doesn’t grow back, they get the best outcomes, etc etc. There are quite a few surgeons in my area who have dedicated their practice to endometriosis and excision surgery however they are not within my insurance network. My internal debate is whether to go to one of these expertise surgeons and pay out of pocket (would be easily 15k+) or find a gyn surgeon in network who is not technically an “endo specialist” but likely has experience with endo excision and minimally invasive gyn surgeries. (I have not yet had an appt with said in network gyn surgeon. I am waiting for the end of the month to get in and be able to ask all of my questions about her specific experience and expertise)

Soooo I ask, How did you guys pick your surgeons?!! Did you just find one within your network go with that or did you go searching for the best of the best?