Disclaimer : long post ahead

So when I was 18, I started experiencing this dull but really troubling pain on the left side of my ovary. It used to be so bad that I thought I would cry all night. My thighs would ache, my back would be sore. I would feel nauseous and bloated, I would throw up or even use the restroom multiple times. Painkillers never worked. Only heat pads helped relieve the pain. I showed multiple doctors who did tests but had no idea what it was. Finally at 18, one of the doctors put me on contraceptives and said it will help with the pain. And it did. I barely have the pain when I have my pills. I’m 32 now and always been taking pills ( last 14 years) to manage the pain. If I don’t eat the pills, the pain comes back.

Last year, however in August 2019, we decided to start trying for a baby and my doctor recommended that I stop the pill for at least 3 months before trying. We stopped the pills late August and have been using no protection since then. We seriously started trying only from October. It’s my first time so I had no idea about OPKs, cycle tracking or prenatals. Only in December after reading notes on this community, I feel I started taking the right steps and tracking my cycle.

Now the issue is since I’m not using the pills, my pain has come back- not as severe as it used to be but it troubles me for 3-4 days a month at least. During that time, it hinders my work and I’m totally down. I have no clue what this pain is. My doctor said it could be ovulation pain but this pain always occurs after my ovulation and the reason I feel so is because from December I started tracking my ovulation dates with Glow and OPKs and I noticed the pain always comes 2-3 days after ovulation. I’m not sure what this pain could be ( I’ve consulted many doctors) . So if anyone has any experience, please help me:

- do you know what this pain could be

- have been on pills for 14 years, am I doing this the right way in trying for a baby? I started prenatal in December, try 3-4 days before ovulation. But since I have been taking pills for so many years, do I need to do anything else. My cycle became regular a month after I stopped the pills.

- the only thing that helps me with the pain is a heat pad. When I apply the heat pad over my left ovary, thigh and back, it helps with the pain. But does constant use of heat pad in that area interfere with chances of conceiving ?

I’d love some insights if anyone has and sorry for the long post