Vitex - can it actually suppress ovulation??

[honeybee37]

I have been taking vitex for the first half of my cycle for 7 months. I think it helped me ovulate earlier in my cycle, and improve my LP (eventually). Another thing I noticed is that during my time taking it, I never got ovulation pains. Before, I would get really sharp pains for around 45 mins right around the time when I thought I should ovulate. Anyway, this cycle I haven't taken vitex (because I was worried it could somehow be stopping me conceiving), and early this morning lo and behold, sharp, sharp ov pains (had a positive OPK yesterday). Is this coincidence? Can vitex prevent ov pains or even could it have been that I wasn't even ovulating during those months?? I am sooooo ready to get pregnant... please let this be my month!!

[atomic sagebrush]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA guys you HAVE TO ask me about things like this. NO ONE should be still taking vitex when having trouble getting pregnant (unless you have moderate to severe PCOS)

YES vitex can stop ovulation and delay it. It used to be used as a birth control pill in the Middle Ages.

Now, O pains are notoriously hit and miss and I don't think this necessarily means anything, but anyone going on 7 months of TTC should no longer be taking vitex.

[honeybee37]

I still think it's weird that the month after I stopped vitex, I got pregnant!


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[atomic sagebrush]

I saw this happen all. the. time. on IG!!!! People were taking it for like 8 months and BFN and then getting pregnant the next cycle after stopping it.

Thank you for updating this thread BTW!!!!

[cosmosis]

Well, doesn't it help raise progesterone? If so, progesterone can stop ovulation, hence the mini pills and mirena. Women also use progesterone cream in high amounts to stop ovulation.

I think women need to find out WHAT hormones they are lacking (if any) before taking any herbs. You can easily tell by charting a couple of months. If LP is short, you may need progesterone, if Ovulation is very early, you may be low in estrogen. This can be confirmed with some lab work also.

Atomic, for those with low progesterone, vitex for the 2 weeks after Ovulation, correct?

[atomic sagebrush]

We have seen a lot of general weirdness with vitex. Supposedly it helps raise progesterone - but then we saw a lot of people go onto it and develop short LP's. Lab work of some of our members did not seem to support that vitex was helping raise anyone's progesterone, and a lot of these gals went on to be prescribed Clomid because of low progesterone. It's all been extremely puzzling and hard to draw any conclusions.

I personally think that taking anything after ovulation is really too late. (other than prog cream of course) The CL has formed and I feel like the herbs take a little while to get rolling. I've seen quite a few people try vitex after O and B6 after O and it didn't seem to help.

I'm honestly kind of over vitex. I do think it can help people with moderate to severe PCO and I do think it sways pink to some extent (and helped me get a DD) but I'm not sure we really know anything about how it works for swaying and it seems like it causes just so much trouble for people.