I’ve been giving myself a break from taking my BBT for the last 11 days. It’s been nice to not have to think about anything the moment my alarm goes off. Tomorrow is CD12, so I’ll start my chart to see when I ovulate. My CM is starting to change, so I think my body will be getting ready to ovulate sometime this week. I’ll start using the OPK as well. The nurse at my dr.’s office wants me to call when I get a positive, so that I can schedule a time to come in at 7 dpo to check my hormones. It’ll be nice to get some information. I’m not looking to take any medication just yet, but I’d like to make sure everything is working right. I just wish my AF would stop coming early!!! I went back to acupuncture to get my system in order. She gave me some funny herbs to take. I’m not sure if I will… TTC hits a funny nerve. I normally hate taking medication and will do anything to avoid it. But, I find myself actually considering taking this herb on the off chance that it is the magic pill to help me conceive a healthy baby. Crazy!
I had a great conversation with the fertility nurse at the practice I go to. I was completely prepared for her to blow me off since I’ve only been TTC for two months. I feel so much better now that I have a plan. She wants me to use the OPK and call when I get a positive. Then we’ll test my progesterone at 7 dpo. She confirmed my suspicion that this was why my period was coming early and getting lighter. She also wants me to fax over my charts. To be honest, I am really excited to share my charts. I’m very proud of them! FF makes them look so great! I’m hoping that all this will help solve my early AF visits. So, DH and I aren’t going to try too hard to get a BFP this month. I feel a little more relaxed now. I also saw that I will probably be ovulating when I took vacation time in December/January for the holidays! Maybe that’s a sign that the new year will bring a BFP for me!!!!
I had spotting last night. I wanted to hope it was implantation bleeding, but this time I knew better. AF was early again. I was only 8 dpo. Ugh!!! Why is my LP so short! I was concerned when it was 10 dpo, but now it’s 8 dpo. I thought this was the part of the cycle that wasn’t suppose to change! So, I am sad. I am going to try to talk to a nurse tomorrow. I’m hoping they take me seriously, but I know that they might blow me off because it’s only my second month TTC and my age. Hopefully this next cycle will be better. I think I’m going to stop the Vit B6 to see if I notice a difference. TTC is emotionally exhausting!
I have to admit that I spend way to much time on Fertility Friend during this TWW. In one of my most recent FF binges, I came across a post about OPK. It seems as though OPKs can be used to test for pregnancy… sort of. It’s not really the most reliable way to test, but it can work.
I’m not sure I totally understand the science of how this works, but I’m going to try to explain it. Here goes… The last hormone to surge before ovulation is the LH. The pregnancy hormone is hCG. Apparently these two hormones are similar. The OPKs can pick up both LH and hCG. Pregnancy tests pick up only hCG. The OPK are not as sensitive as the pregnancy test, so it really isn’t reliable to use the OPK to test for pregnancy- except for fun… or in the name of science!
Which is what I did. For research purposes only, and not because I’m antsy about the outcome of this TWW, I went out and invested in a box of OPK. I explained to my DH, who thought this wasn’t one of my best TTC ideas, that this was necessary research for my blog. I eagerly awaited the outcome of my study. It was negative. No LH or hCG in my system. I’m not ovulating and I’m not pregnant. I’m exactly in the middle of a TWW. Perfect.
This will help me wait a bit longer to POAS. I’m not sure if I want to just wait for my AF or to test early and risk a BFN. At least I know there isn’t any hCG in my system yet, which makes sense since I’m only 6 dpo.
Now, OPK are best for predicting ovulation, and pregnancy tests are best for testing for pregnancy. But, for fun, if I am lucky enough to get a BFP some day, I’ll just check the OPK to see if it works. My research will continue. I’ll keep you posted.
From what I can gather the Jonas Method of Conception looks to the stars for fertility signs- EWCM and PMS be damned! You enter your birth date and exact time of birth, and from this information the calculator tells you what date and time to BD, the gender of the child, and risk factors for birth defects. I’m not totally sure, but I think their theory is that your fertility is affected by the sun, moon, and planet orientation when you were born. The creator thinks that there is a second unexplained fertile period that corresponds to different phases of the moon. He thinks this explains a lot of what medicine can’t about fertility.
It’s interesting, but I don’t think I buy into it. Especially since my fertile day for October is suppose to be next Friday- 4 days before my AF… not to mention 7 days after ovulation. I’m pretty sure the egg won’t be around for that, which is too bad. Apparently, I if I conceive on Friday I will have a boy with no risk factors for defects. That would be wonderful!
Now, if you want more information beyond the calculator, there is a catch. It costs something like $100-$200. The calculator is interesting, but I wouldn’t invest money into this. I don’t think this could hurt your chances unless you only BD on the days they give… I like acupuncture and Feng Shui, but I’ll pass on the Jonas Method.
Am I pregnant? Am I not pregnant? I have no symptoms. How boring! There is nothing to obsess over. I don’t even have PMS symptoms. Odd… I usually have tender BB the week before my AF. Today- nothing. Is that a good thing? I know that Vitamin B6 helps with PMS symptoms, so is that why I feel nothing in the BB area? I might be getting a sore throat. That’s suppose to be a good sign… but I could just be getting a sore throat. What I know for sure is that I ovulated on CD19, and I am going to test on Saturday. Everything else is just a TTC fantasy.
I have found myself at 1 dpo again. So the TWW begins! My DH and I went to dinner and a movie to celebrate us. It’s nice to know that I ovulate on a monthly basis so far. It will be interesting to see if I was able to extend my LP with the vitamin B6. I think I learned a lot last cycle, so I was able to make some changes this time. BDing every other day was more fun and less stressful than every day! We’ll see if that give me a BFP!
I have a few non-baby books to read to get me through the week of imaginary symptoms. My first symptom is that I’m starting to get a cold, which I find to be funny since a stuffy nose and sore throat often happen at the beginning of a pregnancy. I work with young children, so getting a cold is typical (but secretly I hope that means I conceived- I know I’m nuts). My BB are sort of sore, but it may be because I keep checking to see if they are sore. I’m sure by the end of the week I’ll have a whole list of symptoms that I concocted to convince myself that this is THE month!
I finally got two dark lines on the OPK. Geez- it took long enough, it’s Day 18! I know last month I ovulated on Day 19, but I thought I was late because of stress. I thought I was going to ovulate earlier because of the spotting, cramping, and last weekend I had TONS of EWCM. I don’t have much now, which was why I was stressing about not ovulating. I rationalized it to myself. You need the EWCM before ovulation so that the sperm lasts longer. You don’t really need it right before ovulation since the egg will be there. After I thought about that, I felt much better. I guess I typically ovulate on Day 19. Next month, I will try to not get so worked up. I’ve been using the First Response 20 pack, but I think I get the 7 pack next month. It’s too stressful to use the OPK day after day with negative results. It’s like getting BFN all the time. I’ve got a good idea when I ovulate, so I’ll switch to that. My DH hates the OPK because it just gets me worked up! Since we BD often- it seems unnecessary, but I hate to not have that extra information. So, tomorrow, I should ovulate, and I will start my TWW (or in my case the 10 Day Wait). I’m hoping that the vitamin B6 lengthens my LP. It would be nice to have it around 12. If I finish this bottle with no BFP, I will switch to taking a B complex. I read that the B vitamins work better in combination with each other. I feel like such a load is off my shoulders now that I got a positive OPK result. It’s so funny how much effect that all has on your body. One more BD, and I’m crossing my fingers that my baby is created!
Ah- the endless waiting while TCC. Waiting to O. TWW. Waiting for AF to end. Repeat.
I was happy that my spotting stopped today. I knew it was ovulation bleeding, but I couldn’t help worrying that I had cancer or that something important was broken! I decided that I wouldn’t worry about it unless I was still spotting after the weekend. Hurray- no spotting!
Since I’ve ruled out something being wrong, I am pretty convinced that it was due to ovulation, so I’m excited. Yep. I’m excited about spotting. And EWCM- Bizarre. I’ve never had spotting mid-cycle before! I have no idea why this happened this month. My sources say that this is a great fertility sign. My temp dipped way down today, but my OPK was negative. Maybe I’ll get a positive result tomorrow. I feel such a rush to get to the next part of the cycle- TWW. Which is funny because there isn’t anything to do except wait… and obsess over imaginary symptoms.
My DH and I decided to take a day off of BD to help him “recharge.” I’ve heard mixed advice about timing BD while TCC. Some say BD every day there’s fertile CM. Some say every other day. Some say it doesn’t matter, but you increase your chances of success with daily BD. Some say every day depletes DH’s sperm supply. Some say 2-3 times a week is sufficient. I’m assuming DH has an adequate supply of little guys, so we’re just going with the flow. Here’s to hoping that this is THE month!!!!
I have some spotting again today- ovulation? My OPK was negative yesterday. I’m looking forward to seeing what the OPK says today. I can’t believe how emotional it is to POAS. During my daily CM check I found EWCM that is slightly brown. I don’t know if I should be excited or concerned. I’m trying to be excited because that is so much more fun. I’m always concerned. (Off to get a massage today to help with that!) My DH and I BD last night, and maybe today since I am apparently very fertile right now. In addition to trying to be excited, I am trying not to get my hopes up too much that this will be THE month. This is only my second month trying. Any time I start getting my hopes up that I’ll get pregnant, I start to worry about all the stuff that comes next… It is exhausting! So, back to focusing only on today. Today I have ovulation spotting. I will ovulate soon and be in the TWW again.
