TTC First time poster - nervous!

[freneticfox]

Oh god I have like a thousand questions, but something in particular is bugging me massively...

DH and I are trying for #1 and this is our first official month of trying (AF due in 10 days). Because I've always had an irregular cycle, I bought some ovulation test strips from Amazon a few months back and used them to see if I can get any idea when I ovulate in my cycle.

I got negatives every day throughout my cycle. And still had a period. Erm, normal? Honestly not sure how reliable these strips are. I don't want to start stressing so early, but my Father (sadly no longer with us) was told in his 20s that he was infertile, but after a round of IVF in the early 80s, I came along. I don't know if that kind of issue could be hereditary on the paternal side. Should I raise this with my GP?

And hi everyone! :)

[Lizs1985]

Hiya,
I'm not sure how reliable they are but I would go to your gp just to put your mind at rest.
I'm in a similar situation. First month of using clear blue ov strips; I did get a smiley face but it showed 9 days to af which I've read could mean a luteal defect :( hoping it's just a faulty test.
Good luck! Hope you get your bfp soon.

[freneticfox]

Thank you for the reply, will give my GP a call!

[hanflan]

When were you testing? I started by testing first wee of the morning and they were always negative. Then found out my LH surge was later in the day as I started testing twice a day, 1pm and 7pm. BOOM, clear positives! Sometimes it takes a little shifting around and practice to find out when your LH surge is don't get too worried just yet about not ovulating!

[Lizs1985]

Sorry Freneticfox, I miss-read your post and thought you'd said you'd been testing for a few months without a positive test. I wouldn't worry just yet, as it is just your first month. I would keep trying for a few months and see if it changes. Another thing is, if you bought your tests a few months ago, have you checked when the expiry date is?
Have you thought of trying clear blue digital? They are a bit more expensive but they give you a smiley face, so you dont have to try and guess if the lines darker.
Apparantly, Ovulation sticks aren't the best way to check if you are ovulating, charting your BP is meant to be more accurate. I haven't tried that yet but going to try next month.

[freneticfox]

BP? God I'm so clueless!

I've been testing about 6pm or later, I know it's meant to be less accurate first thing.

I think I'm just brooding a bit over it because of my parental history!

[Lizs1985]

Typo, sorry! Meant BT is Basal temperature. If you chart it every day in your cycle you should see a spike in the chart to indicate you've ovulated. Sorry, I don't know much more than that about it.

Not sure about other Ov sticks but on the clear blue ones i've used it says to test with first urine of the morning.

I really wouldn't worry, you will be fine :)

[hanflan]

Try doing one around early afternoon as well, and make sure your wee is nice and concentrated too (don't drink or wee for a couple of hours beforehand). You might just have a very sharp surge and so catching it might be hard! I use the cheapies from Amazon (good thing too as I would be broke if I used clearblue haha). You can always chat to your GP about it but they won't usually do any investigating until you have been trying for a year or so, so I would push the family history thing, and also the fact that you have irregular periods and can't detect ovulation using opks.
I think the other poster is referring to basal body temperature. It's the only thing that really truly can confirm ovulation! If you have a read up on it on Fertility Friend .com it has a whole bunch of info on there! Good luck

[Lizs1985]

Think its actually known as BBT basal body temperature. Sorry, i'm still getting to grips with all this stuff- i'm pretty clueless!!

[Lizs1985]

Sorry, didn't see the previous post, when I wrote my last. Just looked up Fertility friend.com looks really good, will definately try and chart my basal body temp that next month. I know what you mean about clear blue being expensive, I don't think I could afford to try them every month, just purchased them in a moment of desperation I think!!

[freneticfox]

Thank you for the feedback, all! We're just going to try and relax for a few months and go with trying naturally, then perhaps we'll try charting basal body temp. It's nerve wracking and exciting - we wanted to start trying after we got married nearly two years ago, but my Dad passed away suddenly and it's taken me nearly 18months to get to a place where the thought of trying doesn't completely break my heart!

[Lizs1985]

I'm so sorry for your loss, it must have been a really difficult time for you.
I think you do right by just trying to relax and enjoy trying to conceive for a few months. I really do hope you get your bfp soon :) good luck

[ALittleFaith]

Hello, I'm Faith. Was a long term TTCer (now blessed with a cheeky DD!).

Couple of queries - were you on contraception before you started TTC? How irregular are your cycles? Like 29, 31, 33 or like 56, 79?! If it's the latter it could be that you have PCOS - if they are that irregular I'd speak to your GP. I don't think male factor infertility should affect you but it's worth asking about. Good luck TTC :)

[freneticfox]

My cycle varies between 28-38 days, usually hovers around the 30 mark for a couple of months at a time.

I got my first positive ovulation strip this morning, I can't believe it! Definitely going to make the most of it, wish me luck!