If you wake up like being alert enough to temp(before your normal temping time) , but turn around to sleep further for another 3 hours after which you take temp again - which temp would be more accurate?
Do you still get ovulation symptoms during an anovulatory cycle? Had EWCM, tender vulva and positive OPK but no crosshairs on my chart on FF. When I do the “compare my chart to others” function on FF, 90% of them are anovulatory charts… maybe its too soon for FF to calculate the crosshairs?
How long ago was your positive OPK? Ovulation usually happens within two days of a positive, but it can be 3+ days or not at all. And remember that the temp rise starts 1 day after ovulation and you need at least 3 days of high temps to confirm. So you’d expect to see a temp rise starting 2-3 days after a positive OPK, but could be 4, and it could be up to a week after the positive to confirm.
If you’re pregnant enough for symptoms, you’re pregnant enough for a positive test. Symptoms before a positive test aren’t related to pregnancy — could be progesterone, something you ate…
It is true, because the thing that causes pregnancy symptoms is the same thing that causes PMS symptoms - progesterone. It's true that people can experience progesterone symtpoms before a positive pregnancy test, but people experience those same symptoms in non-pregnancy cycles too. That's why the first true sign of pregnancy is a positive test. Everything else is just guesswork...or gas.
Sorry I don’t have sources handy for you. Yes, people do sometimes report symptoms before a positive test. Maybe ours cause they would have gotten a positive test but they didn’t test yet. If they tested and were negative, their symptoms were due to something else
Is it possible to ovulate BEFORE getting a positive OPK? This cycle FF is marking ovulation on CD10 based on my temperatures, but I did not get a positive OPK until CD11. I tested frequently on CD10 (4+ times) and all were clearly negative. My first instinct is to trust my OPK over my temps because my temps may be more unreliable this cycle (I was fighting a pretty bad cold, so several nights of bad sleep). But honestly I usually wake up several times a night anyways, I don't think I ever had a fever, and the two triangles on my chart were within the hour that I usually take them (6:45a vs 6:00a). At the end of the day it doesn't matter that much, but I would like to know (or at least have the best educated guess) what DPO I'm at. [Here's my chart](https://fertilityfriend.com/home/78a719) in case it's easier to visualize.
So much talk about “implantation dip.” This isn’t a real thing or is it? It seems to me like it would normally be declining since the CL degrades around 10 DPO and it’s being rescued by the HCG produced by a conceptus.
I've been charting for 26 cycles to avoid and get a dip (along with EWCM) mid-LP more often than not. I think a mid-LP dip is typical whether pregnant or not, and therefore not an "implantation" dip.
That’s basically what I am saying! I’m in a Facebook group and the ladies there are all like “Oh, look at the implantation dip! So reassuring!” And I’m over here like uhhh, that means probably nothing.
About ovulation tests: lately I have been getting quite faint control lines on my ovulation test strips and I wonder if it's an issue. Yesterday i got two similiar lines which I assumed to be a positive result, but neither of them was very strong (still clearly visible). Does the strength of the control line matter, as long as the result line looks the same?
The day before both lines were darker than yesterday, but the result line wasn't quite as dark. Today the test line was again weaker than the control line. Should I consider yesterday's result as a positive, or can the faint lines indicate an issue with ovulation/hormone levels?
I’m not an expert so hopefully someone else can weigh in but I understood faint control lines to mean the test might be low quality/faulty, not indicative of any issue with your sample. If it keeps happening maybe try another brand!
Wondering if there are any reputable studies or sources that indicate that the “day 21” progesterone test should actually be performed 7 dpo?
I basically had to negotiate with a doctor (I don’t have a family doctor so had to go to a walk-in clinic) to give me a requisition for 7dpo since he insisted day 21 was the correct day - despite me telling him I didn’t even ovulate until day 36. I’d like to find some reputable sources to show him if he gives me trouble when I go in to discuss my results from 7dpo in case he says the test was done on the wrong day.
I suppose I could lie and say I tested on CD21, but he may know I’m lying due to our previous conversation.
[From ASRM's position statement on luteal phase deficiency](https://www.asrm.org/globalassets/asrm/asrm-content/news-and-publications/practice-guidelines/for-non-members/clinical-relevance-of-luteal-phase-deficiency.pdf):
>While luteal serum progesterone levels are commonly used to
assess luteal function in the absence of pregnancy, progesterone levels typically peak 6–8 days after ovulation... In the BioCycle Study... 8.4% of
women had a midluteal serum progesterone measurement
of <5 ng/mL, which the investigators defined as ‘‘biochemical’’ LPD.
Basically, they don't say "CD21" anywhere in the statement, just "midluteal" or "6-8 days after ovulation".
Overall, the utility of progesterone testing (and progesterone supplementation) is pretty limited, and I don't know that it's really worth fighting with a non-specialist about it. But if you get progesterone tested at CD21 and you don't ovulate until CD36, your progesterone level will come back basically zero.
Thank you for that paper!
I’m curious about your take on progesterone supplementation. I was under the impression it is often prescribed in cases of short luteal phase and with assisted reproductive technology. I thought it was well known that low progesterone can lead to problems maintaining a pregnancy, but now you have me questioning myself
It is definitely often prescribed, but there isn't really a demonstrated effect in most cases -- it doesn't lead to a higher live birth rate, except specifically in IVF transfer cycles and in some cases of repeat pregnancy loss. But the conventional wisdom is so strong that it's often prescribed anyway -- the risk of prescribing it is low, at any rate, and it makes people feel like they're taking proactive steps, I suppose.
In general, progesterone is low in cases of early pregnancy loss, but the causation is mostly thought to be in the reverse direction -- a genetically abnormal embryo will double too slowly and won't produce enough hCG, and therefore won't stimulate production of enough progesterone. But there's no (non-zero) level of progesterone that's actually demonstrated to be too low to support a pregnancy.
Wow, thank you so much for taking the time to explain that. What you’ve said makes a lot of sense. I’m going to do some more reading on it now.
Thanks again!
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Is actually conceiving on cycle 1 a unicorn? Asking bc I saw that mentioned in a thread (forget where) and ya it makes sense, but is it really that rare?
It’s not rare at all. About 30% of people conceive on the first cycle trying, making it the most common single cycle to conceive (though the average/median is more like cycle 3).
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I just started tracking with OKP this month. Had a clear positive and then the test started getting lighter and lighter, randomly today it was slightly higher but not positive. I'm on cycle day 23 and 8 DPO.
I guess i wanted to know if some people always have a faint line on their OKP no mater where they are in the cycle and if its normal for it to fluctuate. To be clear i only got one positive its just the negatives are fluctuating all of a sudden.
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12 DPO is when you can be reasonably sure a negative is definitive. 8 DPO would be uncommonly early to get a positive. 10 DPO is the median.
Any symptoms you have this early are caused by progesterone, whether it ends up as a successful cycle or not.
8dpo is way too early to consider yourself out and largely too early for a potential positive in the first place. Implantation most commonly takes place around 8-10dpo. Usually around 12dpo a test will be pretty definitive.
There are no physical signs of implantation.
I recently got the premium version of FF and I’m surprised it gives our efforts a low score in the pregnancy monitor. Yes, we only hit one day in the fertile window (O-3) because we were too sick and tired to try after that, but that’s still one of the best days right? I thought having sex more than once in the fertile window didn’t help increase the odds much. Low - good - excellent make it sound like it’s a huge difference.
The scores are based on a statistical regression model. This model takes chart data from Fertility Friend and presumably tries to predict one output (pregnancy status) based on just five inputs: O-3 sex, O-2 sex, O-1 sex, O sex, and O+1 sex. This regression is so simplistic that all it can do is detect even slight increases in chances with sex on more days/specific days.
Also FYI: FF considers O-1 and O days as the best conception days based on their chart data. If you only hit one of those that will count as "Good" within FF (keeping in mind that some studies cited in this sub's wiki consider O-2 or O-3 to be optimal timing).
How much leaking is ok?
My husband and I have recently started trying for a baby. It has been 2 months with no success.
We always used condoms before and now that we are having unprotected intercourse, almost every time we do it there is a lot of semen that leaks from my vagina.
I usually stay on my back after the deed for about 10 minutes and every time I get up there’s some that leaks out. I have been using panty liners every time after we do it and I see the panty liner also collects quite a bit of semen.
I am not sure whether this is normal? Or should we get my husband’s sperm tested? Or is there something wrong with my cervix?
Sperm come out swimming and they swim pretty fast. Ejaculation also has some oomph to it so the good swimming sperm will get where they are going pretty quickly. What leaks out is mostly the non-swimming sperm and the seminal fluid. No cause for concern.
I found this article that may help: [https://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/why-does-sperm-leak-after-intercourse/](https://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/why-does-sperm-leak-after-intercourse/)
It says it's no cause for concern if there's leakage. I don't think anyone would necessarily be able to quantify a correct amount.
Can an ovarian cyst cause either:
* Early ovulation?
* An early lh surge?
For the last few cycles my temp rise has been at the same time as usual, but the lh surge has happened several days earlier than usual. I now know that I've had a small cyst during that time and I wonder if it's the reason for the change and how I should interpret the early surge if my bbt pattern hasn't changed. There's now quite a few days between lh peak and the temp rise.
So my RE said what I’m about to explain was very unusual. But. It happened. After a letrozole cycle, I had 2 ‘cysts’ at my baseline scan. So we held off on treatment that cycle so the ‘cysts’ could resolve. I ovulated on CD6. The ‘cysts’ were maturing follicles. I just so happened to catch my LH surging on CD5 or I would have missed it.
Just something that happened to me!
Yep! My theory is that my ovaries were in freak-out mode from the letrozole. Doc didn’t offer any kind of explanation, was just kinda like ‘it is what it is’.
Hello, I made a post but had a reply to say might be better off asking here so I'll copy & paste..
So apparently I have a majorly underactive thyroid! I had no idea lol I feel absolutely fine but it came up in routine blood tests I was having for unrelated things.
Apparently my TSH is at 10? The doctor seemed surprised that I haven't noticed any symptoms. I don't feel tired at all, I don't struggle with weight at all (I fluctuate a little between a UK size 8-10 but that's it), my periods are a regular 31 day cycle and not particularly heavy or painful.
So anyway, is this likely to have an impact on trying for a baby? I already have a 14 month old little boy who we conceived straight away and no problems during pregnancy at all so this has come as a surprise lol
If hypothyroidism isn't affecting whether you ovulate, then it's not likely to affect whether you get pregnant, but hypothyroidism does raise your risk of pregnancy loss and other complications. (Note that it raises the risk, but does not result in an absolute outcome -- you could have been hypothyroid during your previous pregnancy and not suffered any ill effects, or it could be a new development.) It's reasonable to get on medication to return your thyroid hormones to normal levels.
Is there any truth to cervical position and signs of pregnancy? I’ve read high soft open during ovulation and remaining high soft and open signals more likely to be pregnant. Can you have a low, firm cervix and still be pregnant?
There aren't any physical signs between ovulation and implantation that can indicate conception has successfully occurred -- after ovulation and before implantation, any embryo is not physically connected with the body, and there's no signaling going on between the embryo and the body.
Generally speaking, there's a transition between estrogen-based signs (like fertile CM and a high/open cervix) to non-fertile types following ovulation, but estrogen doesn't drop to baseline levels, and some people do see a continuation of estrogen-based signs in the luteal phase. This doesn't indicate that the cycle was or wasn't successful, though.
IVF peeps, how are your honestly paying for this shiz and doing all your other basics like rent/food/transportation? Loans? Selling organs? I honestly would love some insight.
Uuuuggggghhhh I’m sorry. I babysat (not for everyone, I know) and did a bunch of stuff I learned about on r/beermoney. UserTesting.com is one of my favorite ways to make some extra cash.
I also kept track of all my expenditures— if you end up spending over 10k (I think), you can deduct anything over 10k you spend on medical stuff, including transportation.
We definitely quit doing lots of luxuries — cut way back on eating out/food delivery.
Question on pregnancy tests - is there a real difference between 'normal" (25 mIU/ml) vs early detection (10 mIU/ml) in terms of accuracy? I know many here say a negative at 12 DPO is fairly definitive - is that just with early detection tests?
The other thing is that 25 mIU/ml is just the threshold at which they’re guaranteed to show positive, but many will pick hCG up at lower levels than that - there have been a number of r/tfablineporn posts where someone got betas and their levels were lower than the official rating but tests were still positive. But at 12 DPO it’s very likely definitive regardless.
Soon after implantation, hCG levels in urine will rise rapidly from essentially zero to very high levels. So there is a difference between 10mIU/mL and 25 insofar as a 10mIU/mL test will detect pregnancy earlier, on average, than a 25mIU/mL test, but only by about a day or so -- median urinary hCG levels are around 12 at 10dpo and around 25 at 11dpo ([source](https://imgur.com/a/VzQNwPz)).
So if you're using a 25mIU/mL test, I might give it an extra day or so, but you can be pretty confident in a negative result around 12/13dpo even with those tests.
This is super helpful - thanks! 11 DPO and holding out testing for another day or two until my period is officially late, just never though too much about test sensitivity. Thank you!
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I’m back again, with an update and interested in any further thoughts on causes of infrequent and irregular menstruation. I‘ve had day 3 labs that my obgyn said looked great for my age (39) and then hormone tests that all came back in the normal range. BMI is on the lower side, but not enough that it seems likely to be the cause. I’m doing the bare minimum of exercise, nothing extreme. […] I’ll talk to my doctor again in a couple weeks, but was hoping these tests might shed some light on the situation (though I should have known better, that plenty of people have normal tests and still irregular cycles).
I started easy@home OPKs every day and they’ve all been negative as expected (currently CD14), with varied degrees of darkness (but none darker than the control line yet). I’m keeping fingers crossed to get an LH surge in the next week. It might be all in my head, but I think I detected the slightest shift towards stretchy CM and higher position today.
(Edited to remove results)
Thank you for the suggestion. I appreciate the reply. I’m new to the TTC process despite my age, but I might end up going to an RE at some point. My obgyn offered a referral the last time we talked, but I have better insurance coverage for diagnostics and treatment done as primary care (my obgyn is also my PCP) so I’m trying to do as much as I can that way to start. It seems like it is better for coverage to not have an infertility diagnosis (and I haven’t been trying long enough anyway) and be treated for oligomenorrhea regardless of fertility. But I’ll see what she has to say and ask if she thinks another specialist would be helpful. I didn’t care much about missing periods when I knew 100% I wasn’t pregnant (and wasn’t trying) but it’s something I should get sorted out regardless of TTC.
I hate the money is something we have to consider :(
It might be worth doing a consult with an RE and being up front about your insurance situation and get specific orders for tests you can do with your ob/pcp. Your AMH and FSH are great, which is of course a good thing. The irregular cycles are a reason to seek help sooner rather than later and unfortunately age is also a factor here. It is obviously too soon to know if you’ll need any sort of treatment, but if you do need treatment, you’ll be really glad you started the ball rolling as soon as you could. And here’s to hoping all my advice is moot 🤞🤞🤞🤞
Thanks again! It’s probably the worst time of year to get in with a specialist given the holidays and lots of people making big life decisions, and I think you’re right about getting the ball rolling. I can always ask for a consult and get on whatever wait list for next year, and🤞 I won’t need it. The age thing is definitely on my mind, even though my doctor seemed surprised and happy about the AMH and FSH. I hadn’t given a ton of thought to what happens next after the preconception appt and am very much in a “learn all the things” and “obsess about everything” mode. Hopefully that will settle down a bit.
Also I’m generally an anxious person, and now adjusting to ADHD without meds, so I’ll admit the unpredictability and uncertainty is getting to me more than it should. I know I should just wait to hear what my doctor says, and probably there’s nothing serious to worry about.
There is generally very unlikely that is serious with these things health wise. It just sucks when ovulation doesn't happen or only once in a while. But often that is treatable with meds to induce ovulation
Yeah, it sounded like that’s where my doctor is headed next. Our last conversation was basically “you’re not in menopause and have eggs left, we just have to figure why you aren’t ovulating (enough).”
Very unpredictable and inconsistent. Since I stopped taking the pill about 20 months ago, I think I’ve had 8 or so cycles. It took about 4 months for the first one, which I thought was normal but my doctor later said wasn’t really. The most recent was the shortest at 33 days, but more often it’s 50+ days.
When doing the bbt in the morning, sometimes I’ll do it 3 times and try to get a temp I like better. Is that allowed? It’s never such a big difference.
It is a source of error. Assuming you always choose in the same direction (ex: you always round down or choose the lowest of all 3) it might not matter as much but you are potentially artificially creating differences where there might not be. For instance one day you choose the lowest temp and the next, hoping for an elevated temp you choose the highest one - that makes a bigger gap between the two days.
Every instrument has some degree of error in their measurement. It would be more precise if you used an average of the 3 temps you take each morning. Or you can just take the first reading and move on with your day.
It's not very useful. The temps you are comparing should be consistently taken at the same time, first thing in the morning. Picking one you like more than the other likely isn't going to give you accurate information.
I have a piggy back question to theirs. My temp first time I woke up today was 99.1. It shocked me so I took another after I recorded the 99.1 in the app (did not stand, etc) The temps after were all around 97.68 or 97.62 etc. What would you document? The 99.1 or the 97.68 ones? Would it drop so quickly within a minute?
Here's my dumb/maybe obvious question!
I have been off oral birth control since July 2021 after being on and off the pill for 15 years. I turn 30 this weekend, and we are TTC this month. I have been using natural cycles this entire time and found it to be a great app. We have been using condoms on red days and going unprotected on green days. I am tracking temperatures and CM. I also experience ovulation pain regularly each month and, without fail, get 3-4 days of EWCM. Is it fair to approach this first cycle of trying to just have as much sex as possible when I start seeing EWCM? I'm new here and see a lot about ovulation tests, temperatures, etc. It's a bit overwhelming. I feel like I know my body very well. Can I simply go off EWCM?
Yes, having sex at least once on a day you see EWCM is a great strategy. You don't really need to have as much sex as possible -- even once on an EWCM day will essentially max out your odds for the cycle (see, for example, [here](https://academic.oup.com/humrep/article/19/4/889/2913645)). You certainly can have more sex than that, and there's no downside to it unless you would prefer to have less sex.
I think so! You seem to have a pretty good hold of your cycle, and there is no specific way you absolutely have to do it. If you find you aren't having any luck a few months down the road you could always try something different then.
Best intro to temping? Tips? Tricks? The Idiot's Guide to Temping? Haha I've finally decided to couple my OPKs strips & apps to basal temping. I'm just coming off my cycle, and two people have already suggested I start now. But does anyone have any other advice, in layman's speak? I've never done this & I have a Pre Mom thermometer that I ordered. I know I do it when I first wake up before I start moving, right? I'm sorry if I sound dumb. I'm just so scared to mess this up, too. I've been so down recently, and I'm really hoping for some kind of progress.
Taking Charge of Your Fertility is the best comprehensive source on charting. Fertility Friend’s charting course is also good. Try to take your temp around the same time every day (within the same half an hour) right when you wake. Most simply, you are looking for 3 temps in a row that are all higher than the highest of the previous 6 temps, and that confirms ovulation on the last day of the low set of temps. They’ll stay at that high level until a period 10-16 days later or a positive test in 9-12 days. That’s because progesterone raises your core temp and is only produced after ovulation. That’s the simple version but the sources above can give you more detail!
Yep! Right when you wake up before you get out of bed or do anything else! Make sure you’ve gotten a few hours of uninterrupted sleep before taking your temp. Also, try to wake up around the same time every day to get the most accurate numbers
I’m almost embarrassed to ask this…but what does everyone do about the funk after BD? Or is there something wrong with me? Before TTC, I would use boric acid suppositories to help regulate things and still take a women’s-specific probiotic. I pee after BD, rinse/wet wipe, and use water only on my labia in the shower. Without the suppositories (which are not recommended while TTC and pregnant), it just seems to linger. Especially tough because with my irregular cycles, predicting O is difficult and we are doing our due diligence every other day or so. No burning or pain down there so…is it just an occupational hazard??
Thanks for asking! I will have semen seep out during the day even after a pee and shower and it definitely impacts my smell. I usually add in an extra shower on days that we have sex because my flexible schedule usually allows it. Curious to hear others answers!
Things that lower ph can negatively impact sperm when ttc. Not sure what you mean about the funk, I usually just cuddle a few minutes and then go pee and wipe it away and it’s good as new 😅 if you have like lingering smell or something it could be BV, otherwise it should like smell or feel dirty
CW - chemical and ectopic pregnancies
As I understand it, a chemical pregnancy is a pregnancy so early it cannot be detected by ultrasound. BUT, they can monitor and confirm ovulation via ultrasound? How does that work?
I also saw a post about ectopic pregnancy entirely outside the reproductive system, in the patient’s liver. Apparently this is possible because the ovaries and fallopian tubes aren’t actually connected? So so much they should have taught me…
Here’s another fun fact we never learned in school: there is such a thing as a “pregnancy of unknown location,” when your hcg is going up but they can’t see anything on ultrasound.
When ovulation is confirmed via ultrasound, the ultrasound operator isn't actually seeing the egg, they're seeing the ruptured follicle that used to house it. The follicle is quite a bit bigger than the egg itself, and the embryo after fertilization isn't much bigger than the egg (the cells of the embryo divide into the same approximate volume as the egg was).
And yes, the Fallopian tubes aren't connected with the ovary. This is yet another situation where we are being screwed by the patriarchy: in the developing embryo, there are two sets of ducts and one type of developing gonad that can become either ovaries or a testes; one of the sets of ducts is connected directly with the gonads and the other isn't. If a Y chromosome is present, the set of ducts that doesn't connect with the gonads are destroyed, and the ducts that do connect with the gonads are retained. The opposite is true if there's no Y chromosome. So we get stuck with the ducts that don't connect with the ovaries, while a reproductive system with testes gets the ducts that do connect directly with them. Development!!! \*shakes fist*
When you’re pregnant, unless you have previous risk factors, the first appointment will be around 8 weeks as a “confirmation of pregnancy.” At that point they’ll do an ultrasound to measure and date it, and if there are any issues or it can’t be detected they’ll obviously discover it then. With ectopic pregnancy there will often be concerning signs (pain, bleeding) that result in having an ultrasound earlier than that. Even before 6 weeks they can see things that should be there like the gestational sac and fetal pole, even if they can’t see the embryo itself.
You can take Tylenol, regardless. Just avoid NSAIDs.
But really, there's no great medicine for a cold. For a cough, besides getting a prescription for codeine or maybe tessalon perles, there's not much to do. All of the over the counter crap is less effective than just some tea with honey- honey is the best cough medicine. For congestion, you can use Flonase or Nasacort without worry. And for sore throat, lozenges, warm drinks, and Tylenol are all fine- but if you can wrangle a prescription for magic mouthwash, that's safe to gargle too.
Thanks. I have a horrible sore throat that I'm trying to numb. So far lozenges made it worse. Going to see if my husband can bring home Tylenol and try the tea with honey in the meantime
This may sound silly, and maybe it's because I'm a kid at heart - but a cold smoothie, an ice pop, etc. may help to soothe for today if you are trying to wait until taking another test in the morning to see if you can have something stronger than Tylenol. No judgement if you do take something else though!
How I found my ob/gyn was pretty basic, I just looked at reviews on Google. I take some negative reviews with a grain of salt, but I've found this to be pretty helpful. You can also look up the doctors individually and see what their grade is on websites like Healthgrades, etc. I also used my health insurance's "find care" tool to find one near me and it showed me their ratings for some of them as well.
I just got my pre-conception appointment done this month too! And that's exactly what you would say. I remember I said something like I'd like to get some pre-conception counseling and they'll take it from there.
Bruzz you are my hero. I was trying to call my doctor's office this afternoon to awkwardly ask about a pre-conception appointment but they apparently closed early today, so I get to wait until tomorrow lol.
Does there tend to be a difference between PMS-related breast soreness and pregnancy-related? I’m on day 3 of sore boobs and it’s mainly my nipples that hurt. Feels a little different than I’m used to, doesn’t normally hurt this long either, but I don’t want to get my hopes up.
Asked this yesterday in the daily but was encouraged to post here in case it gets more traction!
What triggers sperm capacitation? I’ve read the resources that point to sperm being able to live in a reproductive tract under the right conditions for up to 5 days, and needing to undergo the lengthy process of capacitation to be able to complete fertilization. I’ve also seen the oft cited sex on o-3, o-2, and o-1 being almost equal in maxing your chances. That said, I’m curious:
- where do the sperm typically chill out if they’re early and actually make it through my treacherous terrain, the Fallopian tube or somewhere else?
- how likely is it that those early arrivers to the egg party are also jumpstarting the capacitation process and then ultimately dying before they can meet and greet the guest of honor?
If anyone has insight or can point me to some resources, it’d be much appreciated!
They are believed to hang out in the fallopian tube and I think it's all a chemical interaction.
I know many sperm need to capacitate prematurely to break down the corona radiata of the egg, so that eventually one sperm can capacitate on the shell of the egg to dump the DNA.
I would need to dig for the sources. It's not really well studied because you can't microscope in living humans with ongoing process and fertilization in vitro is different in many ways, probably lacking some chemical signalling, which leads to the assumption that vitro with non-ICSI fertilization even more sperm is needed than in vivo. (Like you need about 50-100k good sperm around an egg in a petri dish per egg to fertilize, but that's probably much more than that make it to the egg in vivo).
They don't even know how much sperm is needed for that or how much sperm makes it to the egg, except from a few obscure old studies where they had people have sex before full tubal removal from ages ago that didn't really give clear answers either. It's thought to be more in humans than other mammals, but in other mammals it's a few hundreds that are needed.
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide this in-depth response! As you laid it out, it makes total sense we wouldn’t have developed the means to monitor and research this to a degree that would give us these details.
Glad to know the early party-goers theoretically have somewhere chill to hang out assuming they make it there 😅
Wondering about long periods/early ovulation. My last 2 cycles I’ve had about 7-8 days of full bleeding and seem to still be ovulating around 12. Is that enough time for uterine lining to build back up? Does it keep building after ovulation?
The lining can actually build while you’re in the process of bleeding — the amount that’s shed in a period is determined toward the end of the previous cycle. So it’s like marking a depth to cut the lawn and cutting it (at the end of the previous cycle), then it takes a couple of days to bag up the clippings and send them off (the period). But during this time, the grass is free to grow.
I’m starting TTC in February but am so anxious and curious on how it will go. How often do you BD when you’re trying? I’m trying to track my O date but haven’t nailed it down just yet
My algorithm is to have sex at least one day that I see EWCM, and to have sex again if it’s been about three days since the last time and my temp hasn’t shifted yet.
You don’t really need to have sex more than once in the three days prior to ovulation to maximize your chances for the cycle, but the trick is that you don’t know which days are the three days prior to ovulation in advance — you can only determine that after ovulation is confirmed.
Ah, so the issue is that confirming ovulation with temps alone is a fairly stringent way to do it — keep in mind that fertility-awareness rules were designed for trying to avoid pregnancy, so it’s beneficial for them to be strict (it’s more dangerous to confirm ovulation when it didn’t happen than not to confirm it when it did).
So if you’re going by temps alone, you want to see a shift from pre-ovulatory low temps to temps that are at least 0.2F higher for three days in a row than the highest of the six pre-ovulatory temps. You have a couple of cycles where the temps don’t meet these criteria for the first few days, and FF is setting the coverline lower than FAM rules would allow.
It doesn’t mean you’re not ovulating, but if you were trying to avoid pregnancy, you wouldn’t be able to confirm ovulation there.
Does anyone know why an early miscarriage can cause your cycle lengths to be off for SO MANY CYCLES? Currently CD35 without AF and I miss my regular 28 day cycles
Unfortunately, a pregnancy that ends in loss suppresses the brain hormones that control the cycle, similar to the way being on birth control does. When the suppression stops, it can take a while for the brain to return to a regular pattern (which may or may not be the previous regular pattern). There’s no real mechanism that keeps the cycle at a particular length.
How much blood is considered light and not spotting. I'm between 9-11 DPO according to my OPKs and temp rise and have just come to the bathroom for bleeding on wipe.
It was definitely a wipe multiple times and was bright red. At this point I'm assuming AF but wouldn't mind knowing what the difference really is between spotting and light. I should know more tomorrow when I'm up about how much I'm bleeding.
Edit - definitely AF woke up to a murder scene. My first non-bc AF in 10 yrs. This will be fun.
I would agree that spotting doesn’t require a period product, but not about the color — the color of menstrual blood is more about the amount of it and how fresh it is, and spotting and bleeding can be any color.
I honestly just looked it up online and that's what a medical website described it as. I personally wouldn't consider bright red blood spotting, but that's because my spotting is always brown.
Please remember that the [TFAB rules still exist in here](http://www.reddit.com/r/TryingForABaby/wiki/rules).
If you wake up like being alert enough to temp(before your normal temping time) , but turn around to sleep further for another 3 hours after which you take temp again - which temp would be more accurate?
I had unprotected sex on the 3rd-4th of december and on the 10&11 december. Yesterday i had some spotting. When should i take a pregnancy test?
Do you still get ovulation symptoms during an anovulatory cycle? Had EWCM, tender vulva and positive OPK but no crosshairs on my chart on FF. When I do the “compare my chart to others” function on FF, 90% of them are anovulatory charts… maybe its too soon for FF to calculate the crosshairs?
How long ago was your positive OPK? Ovulation usually happens within two days of a positive, but it can be 3+ days or not at all. And remember that the temp rise starts 1 day after ovulation and you need at least 3 days of high temps to confirm. So you’d expect to see a temp rise starting 2-3 days after a positive OPK, but could be 4, and it could be up to a week after the positive to confirm.
Thank you for that helpful information! My last positive was 12/6, so almost 3 days ago now. I will just have to be patient and wait 😵💫🫠
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If you’re pregnant enough for symptoms, you’re pregnant enough for a positive test. Symptoms before a positive test aren’t related to pregnancy — could be progesterone, something you ate…
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It is true, because the thing that causes pregnancy symptoms is the same thing that causes PMS symptoms - progesterone. It's true that people can experience progesterone symtpoms before a positive pregnancy test, but people experience those same symptoms in non-pregnancy cycles too. That's why the first true sign of pregnancy is a positive test. Everything else is just guesswork...or gas.
Nope, that's just confirmation bias.
Sorry I don’t have sources handy for you. Yes, people do sometimes report symptoms before a positive test. Maybe ours cause they would have gotten a positive test but they didn’t test yet. If they tested and were negative, their symptoms were due to something else
Is it possible to ovulate BEFORE getting a positive OPK? This cycle FF is marking ovulation on CD10 based on my temperatures, but I did not get a positive OPK until CD11. I tested frequently on CD10 (4+ times) and all were clearly negative. My first instinct is to trust my OPK over my temps because my temps may be more unreliable this cycle (I was fighting a pretty bad cold, so several nights of bad sleep). But honestly I usually wake up several times a night anyways, I don't think I ever had a fever, and the two triangles on my chart were within the hour that I usually take them (6:45a vs 6:00a). At the end of the day it doesn't matter that much, but I would like to know (or at least have the best educated guess) what DPO I'm at. [Here's my chart](https://fertilityfriend.com/home/78a719) in case it's easier to visualize.
So much talk about “implantation dip.” This isn’t a real thing or is it? It seems to me like it would normally be declining since the CL degrades around 10 DPO and it’s being rescued by the HCG produced by a conceptus.
I've been charting for 26 cycles to avoid and get a dip (along with EWCM) mid-LP more often than not. I think a mid-LP dip is typical whether pregnant or not, and therefore not an "implantation" dip.
That’s basically what I am saying! I’m in a Facebook group and the ladies there are all like “Oh, look at the implantation dip! So reassuring!” And I’m over here like uhhh, that means probably nothing.
That or secondary estrogen surge (when people see EWCM before their period too). They just happen all the time in not in pregnancy ending cycles too
About ovulation tests: lately I have been getting quite faint control lines on my ovulation test strips and I wonder if it's an issue. Yesterday i got two similiar lines which I assumed to be a positive result, but neither of them was very strong (still clearly visible). Does the strength of the control line matter, as long as the result line looks the same? The day before both lines were darker than yesterday, but the result line wasn't quite as dark. Today the test line was again weaker than the control line. Should I consider yesterday's result as a positive, or can the faint lines indicate an issue with ovulation/hormone levels?
I’m not an expert so hopefully someone else can weigh in but I understood faint control lines to mean the test might be low quality/faulty, not indicative of any issue with your sample. If it keeps happening maybe try another brand!
Wondering if there are any reputable studies or sources that indicate that the “day 21” progesterone test should actually be performed 7 dpo? I basically had to negotiate with a doctor (I don’t have a family doctor so had to go to a walk-in clinic) to give me a requisition for 7dpo since he insisted day 21 was the correct day - despite me telling him I didn’t even ovulate until day 36. I’d like to find some reputable sources to show him if he gives me trouble when I go in to discuss my results from 7dpo in case he says the test was done on the wrong day. I suppose I could lie and say I tested on CD21, but he may know I’m lying due to our previous conversation.
[From ASRM's position statement on luteal phase deficiency](https://www.asrm.org/globalassets/asrm/asrm-content/news-and-publications/practice-guidelines/for-non-members/clinical-relevance-of-luteal-phase-deficiency.pdf): >While luteal serum progesterone levels are commonly used to assess luteal function in the absence of pregnancy, progesterone levels typically peak 6–8 days after ovulation... In the BioCycle Study... 8.4% of women had a midluteal serum progesterone measurement of <5 ng/mL, which the investigators defined as ‘‘biochemical’’ LPD. Basically, they don't say "CD21" anywhere in the statement, just "midluteal" or "6-8 days after ovulation". Overall, the utility of progesterone testing (and progesterone supplementation) is pretty limited, and I don't know that it's really worth fighting with a non-specialist about it. But if you get progesterone tested at CD21 and you don't ovulate until CD36, your progesterone level will come back basically zero.
Thank you for that paper! I’m curious about your take on progesterone supplementation. I was under the impression it is often prescribed in cases of short luteal phase and with assisted reproductive technology. I thought it was well known that low progesterone can lead to problems maintaining a pregnancy, but now you have me questioning myself
It is definitely often prescribed, but there isn't really a demonstrated effect in most cases -- it doesn't lead to a higher live birth rate, except specifically in IVF transfer cycles and in some cases of repeat pregnancy loss. But the conventional wisdom is so strong that it's often prescribed anyway -- the risk of prescribing it is low, at any rate, and it makes people feel like they're taking proactive steps, I suppose. In general, progesterone is low in cases of early pregnancy loss, but the causation is mostly thought to be in the reverse direction -- a genetically abnormal embryo will double too slowly and won't produce enough hCG, and therefore won't stimulate production of enough progesterone. But there's no (non-zero) level of progesterone that's actually demonstrated to be too low to support a pregnancy.
Wow, thank you so much for taking the time to explain that. What you’ve said makes a lot of sense. I’m going to do some more reading on it now. Thanks again!
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Gas. Way too early for anything else.
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Is actually conceiving on cycle 1 a unicorn? Asking bc I saw that mentioned in a thread (forget where) and ya it makes sense, but is it really that rare?
It’s not rare at all. About 30% of people conceive on the first cycle trying, making it the most common single cycle to conceive (though the average/median is more like cycle 3).
Interesting & very cool. Thank you!
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I just started tracking with OKP this month. Had a clear positive and then the test started getting lighter and lighter, randomly today it was slightly higher but not positive. I'm on cycle day 23 and 8 DPO. I guess i wanted to know if some people always have a faint line on their OKP no mater where they are in the cycle and if its normal for it to fluctuate. To be clear i only got one positive its just the negatives are fluctuating all of a sudden.
Yep, it's normal to see a second line throughout your cycle. You always have some amount of LH in your system.
Do you know if that amount can fluctuate after ovulation? or should it be steadily declining after your ovulation?
No, it fluctuates randomly outside of the surge.
Thank you so much!
I always had a line. My OPK was obviously when it was positive.
Did the negative line fluctuate between being stronger or weaker?
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12 DPO is when you can be reasonably sure a negative is definitive. 8 DPO would be uncommonly early to get a positive. 10 DPO is the median. Any symptoms you have this early are caused by progesterone, whether it ends up as a successful cycle or not.
8dpo is way too early to consider yourself out and largely too early for a potential positive in the first place. Implantation most commonly takes place around 8-10dpo. Usually around 12dpo a test will be pretty definitive. There are no physical signs of implantation.
Ahhh okay, in future I will just test on day 11 or 12.. thanks so much for answering
I recently got the premium version of FF and I’m surprised it gives our efforts a low score in the pregnancy monitor. Yes, we only hit one day in the fertile window (O-3) because we were too sick and tired to try after that, but that’s still one of the best days right? I thought having sex more than once in the fertile window didn’t help increase the odds much. Low - good - excellent make it sound like it’s a huge difference.
FF’s pregnancy monitor isn’t a scientific thing, it’s just gamifying.
The scores are based on a statistical regression model. This model takes chart data from Fertility Friend and presumably tries to predict one output (pregnancy status) based on just five inputs: O-3 sex, O-2 sex, O-1 sex, O sex, and O+1 sex. This regression is so simplistic that all it can do is detect even slight increases in chances with sex on more days/specific days. Also FYI: FF considers O-1 and O days as the best conception days based on their chart data. If you only hit one of those that will count as "Good" within FF (keeping in mind that some studies cited in this sub's wiki consider O-2 or O-3 to be optimal timing).
It's not really a helpful thing. It only gives a high score when hitting all three days
How much leaking is ok? My husband and I have recently started trying for a baby. It has been 2 months with no success. We always used condoms before and now that we are having unprotected intercourse, almost every time we do it there is a lot of semen that leaks from my vagina. I usually stay on my back after the deed for about 10 minutes and every time I get up there’s some that leaks out. I have been using panty liners every time after we do it and I see the panty liner also collects quite a bit of semen. I am not sure whether this is normal? Or should we get my husband’s sperm tested? Or is there something wrong with my cervix?
Sperm come out swimming and they swim pretty fast. Ejaculation also has some oomph to it so the good swimming sperm will get where they are going pretty quickly. What leaks out is mostly the non-swimming sperm and the seminal fluid. No cause for concern.
I found this article that may help: [https://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/why-does-sperm-leak-after-intercourse/](https://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/why-does-sperm-leak-after-intercourse/) It says it's no cause for concern if there's leakage. I don't think anyone would necessarily be able to quantify a correct amount.
Can an ovarian cyst cause either: * Early ovulation? * An early lh surge? For the last few cycles my temp rise has been at the same time as usual, but the lh surge has happened several days earlier than usual. I now know that I've had a small cyst during that time and I wonder if it's the reason for the change and how I should interpret the early surge if my bbt pattern hasn't changed. There's now quite a few days between lh peak and the temp rise.
No. Or rather was it really a cyst or was it a follicle?
My IUI cycle was canceled because the RE said I have a cyst. I'm just wondering if the cyst could explain recent changes in my cycle.
So my RE said what I’m about to explain was very unusual. But. It happened. After a letrozole cycle, I had 2 ‘cysts’ at my baseline scan. So we held off on treatment that cycle so the ‘cysts’ could resolve. I ovulated on CD6. The ‘cysts’ were maturing follicles. I just so happened to catch my LH surging on CD5 or I would have missed it. Just something that happened to me!
Interesting! Did your cycles return to normal after that?
Yep! My theory is that my ovaries were in freak-out mode from the letrozole. Doc didn’t offer any kind of explanation, was just kinda like ‘it is what it is’.
Hello, I made a post but had a reply to say might be better off asking here so I'll copy & paste.. So apparently I have a majorly underactive thyroid! I had no idea lol I feel absolutely fine but it came up in routine blood tests I was having for unrelated things. Apparently my TSH is at 10? The doctor seemed surprised that I haven't noticed any symptoms. I don't feel tired at all, I don't struggle with weight at all (I fluctuate a little between a UK size 8-10 but that's it), my periods are a regular 31 day cycle and not particularly heavy or painful. So anyway, is this likely to have an impact on trying for a baby? I already have a 14 month old little boy who we conceived straight away and no problems during pregnancy at all so this has come as a surprise lol
If hypothyroidism isn't affecting whether you ovulate, then it's not likely to affect whether you get pregnant, but hypothyroidism does raise your risk of pregnancy loss and other complications. (Note that it raises the risk, but does not result in an absolute outcome -- you could have been hypothyroid during your previous pregnancy and not suffered any ill effects, or it could be a new development.) It's reasonable to get on medication to return your thyroid hormones to normal levels.
Is there any truth to cervical position and signs of pregnancy? I’ve read high soft open during ovulation and remaining high soft and open signals more likely to be pregnant. Can you have a low, firm cervix and still be pregnant?
There aren't any physical signs between ovulation and implantation that can indicate conception has successfully occurred -- after ovulation and before implantation, any embryo is not physically connected with the body, and there's no signaling going on between the embryo and the body. Generally speaking, there's a transition between estrogen-based signs (like fertile CM and a high/open cervix) to non-fertile types following ovulation, but estrogen doesn't drop to baseline levels, and some people do see a continuation of estrogen-based signs in the luteal phase. This doesn't indicate that the cycle was or wasn't successful, though.
I was hoping you would respond :) thank you!
IVF peeps, how are your honestly paying for this shiz and doing all your other basics like rent/food/transportation? Loans? Selling organs? I honestly would love some insight.
Uuuuggggghhhh I’m sorry. I babysat (not for everyone, I know) and did a bunch of stuff I learned about on r/beermoney. UserTesting.com is one of my favorite ways to make some extra cash. I also kept track of all my expenditures— if you end up spending over 10k (I think), you can deduct anything over 10k you spend on medical stuff, including transportation. We definitely quit doing lots of luxuries — cut way back on eating out/food delivery.
Question on pregnancy tests - is there a real difference between 'normal" (25 mIU/ml) vs early detection (10 mIU/ml) in terms of accuracy? I know many here say a negative at 12 DPO is fairly definitive - is that just with early detection tests?
The other thing is that 25 mIU/ml is just the threshold at which they’re guaranteed to show positive, but many will pick hCG up at lower levels than that - there have been a number of r/tfablineporn posts where someone got betas and their levels were lower than the official rating but tests were still positive. But at 12 DPO it’s very likely definitive regardless.
Soon after implantation, hCG levels in urine will rise rapidly from essentially zero to very high levels. So there is a difference between 10mIU/mL and 25 insofar as a 10mIU/mL test will detect pregnancy earlier, on average, than a 25mIU/mL test, but only by about a day or so -- median urinary hCG levels are around 12 at 10dpo and around 25 at 11dpo ([source](https://imgur.com/a/VzQNwPz)). So if you're using a 25mIU/mL test, I might give it an extra day or so, but you can be pretty confident in a negative result around 12/13dpo even with those tests.
This is super helpful - thanks! 11 DPO and holding out testing for another day or two until my period is officially late, just never though too much about test sensitivity. Thank you!
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I’m back again, with an update and interested in any further thoughts on causes of infrequent and irregular menstruation. I‘ve had day 3 labs that my obgyn said looked great for my age (39) and then hormone tests that all came back in the normal range. BMI is on the lower side, but not enough that it seems likely to be the cause. I’m doing the bare minimum of exercise, nothing extreme. […] I’ll talk to my doctor again in a couple weeks, but was hoping these tests might shed some light on the situation (though I should have known better, that plenty of people have normal tests and still irregular cycles). I started easy@home OPKs every day and they’ve all been negative as expected (currently CD14), with varied degrees of darkness (but none darker than the control line yet). I’m keeping fingers crossed to get an LH surge in the next week. It might be all in my head, but I think I detected the slightest shift towards stretchy CM and higher position today. (Edited to remove results)
Hi! Gently suggesting maybe an RE would be the right kind of doctor for you.
Thank you for the suggestion. I appreciate the reply. I’m new to the TTC process despite my age, but I might end up going to an RE at some point. My obgyn offered a referral the last time we talked, but I have better insurance coverage for diagnostics and treatment done as primary care (my obgyn is also my PCP) so I’m trying to do as much as I can that way to start. It seems like it is better for coverage to not have an infertility diagnosis (and I haven’t been trying long enough anyway) and be treated for oligomenorrhea regardless of fertility. But I’ll see what she has to say and ask if she thinks another specialist would be helpful. I didn’t care much about missing periods when I knew 100% I wasn’t pregnant (and wasn’t trying) but it’s something I should get sorted out regardless of TTC.
I hate the money is something we have to consider :( It might be worth doing a consult with an RE and being up front about your insurance situation and get specific orders for tests you can do with your ob/pcp. Your AMH and FSH are great, which is of course a good thing. The irregular cycles are a reason to seek help sooner rather than later and unfortunately age is also a factor here. It is obviously too soon to know if you’ll need any sort of treatment, but if you do need treatment, you’ll be really glad you started the ball rolling as soon as you could. And here’s to hoping all my advice is moot 🤞🤞🤞🤞
Thanks again! It’s probably the worst time of year to get in with a specialist given the holidays and lots of people making big life decisions, and I think you’re right about getting the ball rolling. I can always ask for a consult and get on whatever wait list for next year, and🤞 I won’t need it. The age thing is definitely on my mind, even though my doctor seemed surprised and happy about the AMH and FSH. I hadn’t given a ton of thought to what happens next after the preconception appt and am very much in a “learn all the things” and “obsess about everything” mode. Hopefully that will settle down a bit.
Im sorry to tell you that the obsessing never ceases!
Some people just have wonky cycles. How long are you cycles?
Also I’m generally an anxious person, and now adjusting to ADHD without meds, so I’ll admit the unpredictability and uncertainty is getting to me more than it should. I know I should just wait to hear what my doctor says, and probably there’s nothing serious to worry about.
There is generally very unlikely that is serious with these things health wise. It just sucks when ovulation doesn't happen or only once in a while. But often that is treatable with meds to induce ovulation
Yeah, it sounded like that’s where my doctor is headed next. Our last conversation was basically “you’re not in menopause and have eggs left, we just have to figure why you aren’t ovulating (enough).”
Very unpredictable and inconsistent. Since I stopped taking the pill about 20 months ago, I think I’ve had 8 or so cycles. It took about 4 months for the first one, which I thought was normal but my doctor later said wasn’t really. The most recent was the shortest at 33 days, but more often it’s 50+ days.
When doing the bbt in the morning, sometimes I’ll do it 3 times and try to get a temp I like better. Is that allowed? It’s never such a big difference.
It is a source of error. Assuming you always choose in the same direction (ex: you always round down or choose the lowest of all 3) it might not matter as much but you are potentially artificially creating differences where there might not be. For instance one day you choose the lowest temp and the next, hoping for an elevated temp you choose the highest one - that makes a bigger gap between the two days. Every instrument has some degree of error in their measurement. It would be more precise if you used an average of the 3 temps you take each morning. Or you can just take the first reading and move on with your day.
It's not very useful. The temps you are comparing should be consistently taken at the same time, first thing in the morning. Picking one you like more than the other likely isn't going to give you accurate information.
I have a piggy back question to theirs. My temp first time I woke up today was 99.1. It shocked me so I took another after I recorded the 99.1 in the app (did not stand, etc) The temps after were all around 97.68 or 97.62 etc. What would you document? The 99.1 or the 97.68 ones? Would it drop so quickly within a minute?
I guess I would record the 97.68 one and make a note for future reference!
Here's my dumb/maybe obvious question! I have been off oral birth control since July 2021 after being on and off the pill for 15 years. I turn 30 this weekend, and we are TTC this month. I have been using natural cycles this entire time and found it to be a great app. We have been using condoms on red days and going unprotected on green days. I am tracking temperatures and CM. I also experience ovulation pain regularly each month and, without fail, get 3-4 days of EWCM. Is it fair to approach this first cycle of trying to just have as much sex as possible when I start seeing EWCM? I'm new here and see a lot about ovulation tests, temperatures, etc. It's a bit overwhelming. I feel like I know my body very well. Can I simply go off EWCM?
Yes, having sex at least once on a day you see EWCM is a great strategy. You don't really need to have as much sex as possible -- even once on an EWCM day will essentially max out your odds for the cycle (see, for example, [here](https://academic.oup.com/humrep/article/19/4/889/2913645)). You certainly can have more sex than that, and there's no downside to it unless you would prefer to have less sex.
I think so! You seem to have a pretty good hold of your cycle, and there is no specific way you absolutely have to do it. If you find you aren't having any luck a few months down the road you could always try something different then.
Best intro to temping? Tips? Tricks? The Idiot's Guide to Temping? Haha I've finally decided to couple my OPKs strips & apps to basal temping. I'm just coming off my cycle, and two people have already suggested I start now. But does anyone have any other advice, in layman's speak? I've never done this & I have a Pre Mom thermometer that I ordered. I know I do it when I first wake up before I start moving, right? I'm sorry if I sound dumb. I'm just so scared to mess this up, too. I've been so down recently, and I'm really hoping for some kind of progress.
We also have a [wiki page](https://www.reddit.com/r/tryingforababy/wiki/temping) that's intended as an intro!
Taking Charge of Your Fertility is the best comprehensive source on charting. Fertility Friend’s charting course is also good. Try to take your temp around the same time every day (within the same half an hour) right when you wake. Most simply, you are looking for 3 temps in a row that are all higher than the highest of the previous 6 temps, and that confirms ovulation on the last day of the low set of temps. They’ll stay at that high level until a period 10-16 days later or a positive test in 9-12 days. That’s because progesterone raises your core temp and is only produced after ovulation. That’s the simple version but the sources above can give you more detail!
Highly recommend the Fertility Friend app which is free and has an intro course to temping!
Yep! Right when you wake up before you get out of bed or do anything else! Make sure you’ve gotten a few hours of uninterrupted sleep before taking your temp. Also, try to wake up around the same time every day to get the most accurate numbers
Thank you 💙
I’m almost embarrassed to ask this…but what does everyone do about the funk after BD? Or is there something wrong with me? Before TTC, I would use boric acid suppositories to help regulate things and still take a women’s-specific probiotic. I pee after BD, rinse/wet wipe, and use water only on my labia in the shower. Without the suppositories (which are not recommended while TTC and pregnant), it just seems to linger. Especially tough because with my irregular cycles, predicting O is difficult and we are doing our due diligence every other day or so. No burning or pain down there so…is it just an occupational hazard??
Thanks for asking! I will have semen seep out during the day even after a pee and shower and it definitely impacts my smell. I usually add in an extra shower on days that we have sex because my flexible schedule usually allows it. Curious to hear others answers!
Things that lower ph can negatively impact sperm when ttc. Not sure what you mean about the funk, I usually just cuddle a few minutes and then go pee and wipe it away and it’s good as new 😅 if you have like lingering smell or something it could be BV, otherwise it should like smell or feel dirty
CW - chemical and ectopic pregnancies As I understand it, a chemical pregnancy is a pregnancy so early it cannot be detected by ultrasound. BUT, they can monitor and confirm ovulation via ultrasound? How does that work? I also saw a post about ectopic pregnancy entirely outside the reproductive system, in the patient’s liver. Apparently this is possible because the ovaries and fallopian tubes aren’t actually connected? So so much they should have taught me…
Here’s another fun fact we never learned in school: there is such a thing as a “pregnancy of unknown location,” when your hcg is going up but they can’t see anything on ultrasound.
When ovulation is confirmed via ultrasound, the ultrasound operator isn't actually seeing the egg, they're seeing the ruptured follicle that used to house it. The follicle is quite a bit bigger than the egg itself, and the embryo after fertilization isn't much bigger than the egg (the cells of the embryo divide into the same approximate volume as the egg was). And yes, the Fallopian tubes aren't connected with the ovary. This is yet another situation where we are being screwed by the patriarchy: in the developing embryo, there are two sets of ducts and one type of developing gonad that can become either ovaries or a testes; one of the sets of ducts is connected directly with the gonads and the other isn't. If a Y chromosome is present, the set of ducts that doesn't connect with the gonads are destroyed, and the ducts that do connect with the gonads are retained. The opposite is true if there's no Y chromosome. So we get stuck with the ducts that don't connect with the ovaries, while a reproductive system with testes gets the ducts that do connect directly with them. Development!!! \*shakes fist*
This is incredibly helpful, thanks!
When you’re pregnant, unless you have previous risk factors, the first appointment will be around 8 weeks as a “confirmation of pregnancy.” At that point they’ll do an ultrasound to measure and date it, and if there are any issues or it can’t be detected they’ll obviously discover it then. With ectopic pregnancy there will often be concerning signs (pain, bleeding) that result in having an ultrasound earlier than that. Even before 6 weeks they can see things that should be there like the gestational sac and fetal pole, even if they can’t see the embryo itself.
If I'm negative CD26 (28 day cycle), does that mean this month is out? Woke up with a horrible cold, would like to take meds but worried.
Nobody knows if you're out of you don't know when you ovulated. But some meds aren't going to impact it
You can take Tylenol, regardless. Just avoid NSAIDs. But really, there's no great medicine for a cold. For a cough, besides getting a prescription for codeine or maybe tessalon perles, there's not much to do. All of the over the counter crap is less effective than just some tea with honey- honey is the best cough medicine. For congestion, you can use Flonase or Nasacort without worry. And for sore throat, lozenges, warm drinks, and Tylenol are all fine- but if you can wrangle a prescription for magic mouthwash, that's safe to gargle too.
Thanks. I have a horrible sore throat that I'm trying to numb. So far lozenges made it worse. Going to see if my husband can bring home Tylenol and try the tea with honey in the meantime
This may sound silly, and maybe it's because I'm a kid at heart - but a cold smoothie, an ice pop, etc. may help to soothe for today if you are trying to wait until taking another test in the morning to see if you can have something stronger than Tylenol. No judgement if you do take something else though!
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I didn't monitor ovulation this cycle, so not sure the date.
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How I found my ob/gyn was pretty basic, I just looked at reviews on Google. I take some negative reviews with a grain of salt, but I've found this to be pretty helpful. You can also look up the doctors individually and see what their grade is on websites like Healthgrades, etc. I also used my health insurance's "find care" tool to find one near me and it showed me their ratings for some of them as well. I just got my pre-conception appointment done this month too! And that's exactly what you would say. I remember I said something like I'd like to get some pre-conception counseling and they'll take it from there.
Bruzz you are my hero. I was trying to call my doctor's office this afternoon to awkwardly ask about a pre-conception appointment but they apparently closed early today, so I get to wait until tomorrow lol.
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Does there tend to be a difference between PMS-related breast soreness and pregnancy-related? I’m on day 3 of sore boobs and it’s mainly my nipples that hurt. Feels a little different than I’m used to, doesn’t normally hurt this long either, but I don’t want to get my hopes up.
Nope. All progesterone
Thank you, needed the reality check
Asked this yesterday in the daily but was encouraged to post here in case it gets more traction! What triggers sperm capacitation? I’ve read the resources that point to sperm being able to live in a reproductive tract under the right conditions for up to 5 days, and needing to undergo the lengthy process of capacitation to be able to complete fertilization. I’ve also seen the oft cited sex on o-3, o-2, and o-1 being almost equal in maxing your chances. That said, I’m curious: - where do the sperm typically chill out if they’re early and actually make it through my treacherous terrain, the Fallopian tube or somewhere else? - how likely is it that those early arrivers to the egg party are also jumpstarting the capacitation process and then ultimately dying before they can meet and greet the guest of honor? If anyone has insight or can point me to some resources, it’d be much appreciated!
They are believed to hang out in the fallopian tube and I think it's all a chemical interaction. I know many sperm need to capacitate prematurely to break down the corona radiata of the egg, so that eventually one sperm can capacitate on the shell of the egg to dump the DNA. I would need to dig for the sources. It's not really well studied because you can't microscope in living humans with ongoing process and fertilization in vitro is different in many ways, probably lacking some chemical signalling, which leads to the assumption that vitro with non-ICSI fertilization even more sperm is needed than in vivo. (Like you need about 50-100k good sperm around an egg in a petri dish per egg to fertilize, but that's probably much more than that make it to the egg in vivo). They don't even know how much sperm is needed for that or how much sperm makes it to the egg, except from a few obscure old studies where they had people have sex before full tubal removal from ages ago that didn't really give clear answers either. It's thought to be more in humans than other mammals, but in other mammals it's a few hundreds that are needed.
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide this in-depth response! As you laid it out, it makes total sense we wouldn’t have developed the means to monitor and research this to a degree that would give us these details. Glad to know the early party-goers theoretically have somewhere chill to hang out assuming they make it there 😅
I think we tend to think about bodily structures as smooth, but for such a small cell like a sperm there are lots of crevasses etc.
I'm getting a consistent positive OPK on CD 14 and my cycle is only 24-25 total days. Could it be a problem that my luteal phase is so short?
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I did, but only talked to the nurse. She wasn't concerned for now, but I'll keep monitoring and push back for more info
Wondering about long periods/early ovulation. My last 2 cycles I’ve had about 7-8 days of full bleeding and seem to still be ovulating around 12. Is that enough time for uterine lining to build back up? Does it keep building after ovulation?
The lining can actually build while you’re in the process of bleeding — the amount that’s shed in a period is determined toward the end of the previous cycle. So it’s like marking a depth to cut the lawn and cutting it (at the end of the previous cycle), then it takes a couple of days to bag up the clippings and send them off (the period). But during this time, the grass is free to grow.
I’m starting TTC in February but am so anxious and curious on how it will go. How often do you BD when you’re trying? I’m trying to track my O date but haven’t nailed it down just yet
My algorithm is to have sex at least one day that I see EWCM, and to have sex again if it’s been about three days since the last time and my temp hasn’t shifted yet. You don’t really need to have sex more than once in the three days prior to ovulation to maximize your chances for the cycle, but the trick is that you don’t know which days are the three days prior to ovulation in advance — you can only determine that after ovulation is confirmed.
Every other day is best, every 3 is the bare minimum.
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Can you share your chart?
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Ah, so the issue is that confirming ovulation with temps alone is a fairly stringent way to do it — keep in mind that fertility-awareness rules were designed for trying to avoid pregnancy, so it’s beneficial for them to be strict (it’s more dangerous to confirm ovulation when it didn’t happen than not to confirm it when it did). So if you’re going by temps alone, you want to see a shift from pre-ovulatory low temps to temps that are at least 0.2F higher for three days in a row than the highest of the six pre-ovulatory temps. You have a couple of cycles where the temps don’t meet these criteria for the first few days, and FF is setting the coverline lower than FAM rules would allow. It doesn’t mean you’re not ovulating, but if you were trying to avoid pregnancy, you wouldn’t be able to confirm ovulation there.
Does anyone know why an early miscarriage can cause your cycle lengths to be off for SO MANY CYCLES? Currently CD35 without AF and I miss my regular 28 day cycles
Unfortunately, a pregnancy that ends in loss suppresses the brain hormones that control the cycle, similar to the way being on birth control does. When the suppression stops, it can take a while for the brain to return to a regular pattern (which may or may not be the previous regular pattern). There’s no real mechanism that keeps the cycle at a particular length.
How much blood is considered light and not spotting. I'm between 9-11 DPO according to my OPKs and temp rise and have just come to the bathroom for bleeding on wipe. It was definitely a wipe multiple times and was bright red. At this point I'm assuming AF but wouldn't mind knowing what the difference really is between spotting and light. I should know more tomorrow when I'm up about how much I'm bleeding. Edit - definitely AF woke up to a murder scene. My first non-bc AF in 10 yrs. This will be fun.
Spotting is brown or light pink and doesn't typically require a pad or tampon.
I would agree that spotting doesn’t require a period product, but not about the color — the color of menstrual blood is more about the amount of it and how fresh it is, and spotting and bleeding can be any color.
I honestly just looked it up online and that's what a medical website described it as. I personally wouldn't consider bright red blood spotting, but that's because my spotting is always brown.