Ovulation

[trinot]

brief history: TTC but I have very irregular periods (cycles of the last 6 months were 35 day cycle, 28, 42, 33, 30, 26) which make using ovulation calculators impossible.
So I am trying to monitor my CM as a way of detecting ovulation. Does anyone know exactly what egg white consistency indicates: ovulation about to happen, ovulation occurring or ovulation has already occurred?

[kat2504]

egg white means ovulation is imminent. Once it has occured your cm should change back to non-fertile (thick white, dryer etc) the next day. A lot of people recommend the Taking Charge of your Fertility book by Toni Wechsler which is apparently very informative about recognising your fertile signs. I've not read it but it gets mentioned a lot round here.

Have you considered using the super cheap opk tests off the internet? I got some that were so cheap that I didn't mind using them for more days per month, staring from CD8. Lots of places sell them Home Health site/Amazon/Ebay. I bought a hundred at once for about the same price that one month on one of the expensive digital kits would be.

[trinot]

thanks Kat, I too bought some op stick off the internet but I used them for an entire month at one point and never got a positive so thought maybe they were duff...I have been tested by my doctor and found to have hormones 'consistent with ovulation' so I am pretty sure that I do ovulate...

[kat2504]

I never actually got a line which was clearly darker than the control, I think that is the issue with cheap sticks. However, when I kept sticks for 10 days in a row for comparison purposes, I could see them getting a bit darker, then much darker, then the line going again so I kept a stick which was the darkest colour I had that month for future reference. It also matched up to other signs of ovulation such as CM changes.

Although your cycle is irregular, all but one of your last 6 cycle lengths are well within the normal range so you ought to be ovulating.

In all honesty, the failproof method is to have sex three times a week throughout the month. Then it doesn't matter when you are ovulating as you will catch the egg anyway. well it isn't failproof of course, even if you do everything right and have sex three days in a row leading up to ovulation, it can still take some months.

Good luck!

[LIG1979]

I think everyone is different but when I 1st get EWCM and test with an opk stick it is positive. It then stays positive for the next day or so. I then get a raise in body temperature about 4 days after the 1st EWCM indicating I have ovulated.

I have very long erratical cycles (last one was 56 days) and testing from day 10 with opk sticks is very depressing but as soon as I get the EWCM I know the opk will be positive.

Taking your body temperature can also then help you to pinpoint if you have ovulated....try fertility friend online as it lets you track symptoms and body temperature.

The other option is to make sure you SWI every other day just to make sure you don't miss the window. Fun but it can turn into a chore making sure you don't miss a slot! Good luck!

[LIG1979]

Crossed messages with Kat,
Yes, mine only once got darker than the control line but after doing them for so many days I was used to what the background looked like and they definitely got darker just before ovulation. (I think because you use them in the afternoon, the urine is not a concentrated.)

[trinot]

ah, tbh I know what my real problem is and that it the regular sex. I think I might just be distracting myself with exact ovulation times and my irregular cycle. I really want to have another baby and so does my partner but keeping the sex thing up is a real problem for me. We can go a month or two without doing it at all, hence I have not been on contraception for years (with the intention of getting pregnant) but not really classed myself as actively trying because I know that if you're not having sex then your not trying...does that make sense?
I think my post has just taken a turn....

[LIG1979]

Yes - think you definitely need to have sex to have a chance of getting pregnant.

[kat2504]

Yep, you need to try and build it up to three times a week. It can seem like a bit of a chore but if you make the time for it and try to keep it fun you will find it easier. don't make it all about conception at first or else it will be a lot of sudden pressure and therefore counterproductive. Just make more time to have sex together without pressure of timing etc, perhaps combining it with a nice meal out, a couple of glasses of wine, something fun like a bath together or whatever you used to do in the early days.

Then you will find you are actually enjoying it and doing it 2-3 times a week will not seem like a chore. Put the ovulation testing away for now and concentrate on the sex. Unfortunately you two are going to have to have a nice "chat" on this topic to talk about why you haven't been doing it already!

[trinot]

thanks for the advice and although i got sidetracked I was interested about the EWCM and you guys have answered my questions..i know what i need to do...just need to do it and keep doing it!

[leeloo1]

Do you have an account with friend.com? If not then do get one, as it really helps to chart your fertile times. I'm currently ttc DC2, but when I got pregnant with DC1 my cycles were between 28 and 65 days long (eek!). I thought it would take forever to get pregnant, but by charting it happened really quickly.

All you need to do is record your temperature as soon as you wake up and record what CM you see that day. You (should) see EWCM before you ovulate and your temp will rise to show you've ovulated (it may dip on the day of ovulation).

Good luck (and for me too!). :)

[leeloo1]

Not sure what happened to my link? That should have been //www.fertilityfriend.com