The Elderberry Pavlovas who occasionally sausage wang – a fabulous thread for 30+ ladies TTC #1 (Thread 8)

To add to Boodles post re temping for the new tempy people;
Take your temperature at the same time each day at least 30 mins before you would normally wake up. This is a must if you want it to work
Make sure you get the thermometer in your mouth in the right place (a heat spot)
No need to write down your temperature when half asleep, simply turn the thermometer off and (provided it has a memory function, i think most work like mine where, when you turn it on later, you press and hold the on button to display the temp in memory) read it and record it later
Use fertility friend to record your temps, the free version is fine
Approx 2 or 3 days post ovulation fertility friend will give you crosshairs (in a normal world) which will 'cross' on the day it thinks you ovulated
The crosshairs are normally based on the fact that post O your temps will rise and stay higher than your pre O temps until AF, OR they will stay high if you are pregnant
Temps during AF and just after AF are erratic and may be as high as post O temps - don't worry. The pattern is normally a fairly stable set of lower temps for 5 - 7 days pre O, and a higher set of temps post O
Temping will only tell you when you ovulate (and/or IF your ovulate). It won't give you a pre warning of ovulation until you get to know your cycles. Therefore temping as well as using OPK's covers all bases, OPK will give you some warning of O, temping will confirm you O'd (remember it is possible to get a positive OPK and not actually O) and your chart pattern over a couple of cycles will help you learn about the length of your normal LP
Lecture over! Oh, and evening all!

barking tbh I'm just ignoring the appointments and just continuing to dtd 'as normal' rather than thinking of it as pointless. the appointments r just a bonus!

the whole ttc process is a total bag of shit!! its horrible every month, waiting for af and then there she is, without fail.
we have tried all the tricks, dtd every day, pillows, vitamins etc etc. nothing bloody works! aarrggh its the most difficult thing I have ever bothered to do...
why can't we just make a baby. we dtd every other day the whole month without fail. stupid egg, stupid sperm!

rant over!!!

Boodle after reading about puppy and now you I'm bracing myself for the same 3 more months of pointless dtd . Why does it take them this long to get things moving when they already make you wait a year to start with?!
How are you feeling about it now? Did they not have any blood tests to show o? I had the 21 day test (knowing it wasn't going to show anything) and they called me to go back for a 28 day test as well, which had 'normal' levels.

Temping all the way. Taught me loads. Basically, put all your data into fertility friend and it will look like your temps are all over the place. Do not panic. At some point they will rise and stay high until AF BFP time. You may not see this pattern clearly until you can see the cycle as a whole. FF will attempt to help you pinpoint when O happened with some crosshairs. You will probably get random erratic readings. Do not worry about this.

I'll be joining you there bajas. Feeling optimistic that period must return at some point so have taken the temping plunge and got me a thermometer. So experienced berries, can you tell us what we should be looking for? Ta!

Hope everyone's appts went well today. boodle sorry to hear you're disappointed at the pace of things. You'd think they would fast track people in their 30s seeing as we're constantly being reminded that it's not ideal timing (although I only met dh at 35 so not sure how it could have been ideal timing before then...)

Got my thermometer from amazon today so ready to start temping in the morning. Here's hoping it'll give me some insight into when I'm fertile if ever

Thanks, Peanut, I'm not really disappointed as such; I'm glad that I'm getting the HSG before the clomid, rather than the other way round. Of course, having clomid AND being booked for an HSG would be lovely, but that's just not how the NHS roll, is it?!

On the subject of temping, I've shared my opinion many-a-time before, but I'm going for it again! And hoping none of the long-established berries sausage-pelt me.

For me, temping has been a massive help. My cycles are fairly regular, but ovulation date (and therefore cycle length) can fluctuate by 8-10 days. Temping has helped me spot ovulation and identify my short luteal phase problems. I always temp at the same time in the morning (6am). When at work, this is half an hour before I have to get up. I then hit snooze, which I have programmed for half an hour later! On the weekend, I still take temp at 6am, but I switch alarm straight off and go back to sleep! I am usually 'with it' enough to wait for the beeps and put the thermometer back on the side to check later. Occasionally I don't even make it to the beeps, and I wake up with thermometer still in mouth/in the bed/under the pillow! I then just use the 'press and hold' memory recall to get the reading.

Medical professionals have (so far) shown NO interest in my charts, but I'm glad that I've done them just for my own benefit.

Peanut I think I wouldn't bother with the CBFM as it only really works if your cycle is under 45 days. Also, I found when using mine that I would put the stick in the CBFM, listen to what it said, then have a good look at the stick and decide what I thought it meant. I soon realised that I might as well be using OPKs anyway. My opinion is temping and cheap OPKs off ebay.

Boodle exactly what happened with me. As blood tests showed that I was OVing then something else was clearly the problem and no amount of Clomid was going to fix it. The HSG wasn't so bad really, rather like a smear with an audience as someone else said.

Aaah boodle sorry you're disappointed. Was hoping you'd be fast-tracked, it's all very well setting it all in motion but it doesn't make it any less frustrating does it? Why the chuffing hell heck do they have to make it so painful for us all, I bet if it was a consultant obstetrician who couldn't get diffed they'd be sorted in a month! I know it makes 'sense' not to throw clomid at you before getting tubes checked, but actually why the hell not, then if you get knocked up before they save themselves an HSG appointment! Annoyed on your behalf

Had some spotting just now and furtled around to make sure and crampy as hell, so it would appear I'm finally back to cd1, after a mere 47 day cycle this time. (I wonder if the acu had anything to do with it...?) Question is, do I now start to temp/cbfm? I have a thermometer and the monitor (although no batteries, which is why I didn't use it last cycle) but given how long my cycles are, I'm not sure I won't become an obsessive lunatic...advice appreciated Berries!

Soooooooooo, I'm back. Bottom line is that I have A LOT more waiting to do. Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!

I've been referred for an HSG, which I guess makes sense as no point throwing clomid at me if there is a problem in the tubes. She reckoned it will take 8-10 weeks for that appointment. I also have to get more blood tests done to check my progesterone and prolactin levels as the short LP was a concern. She told me to make sure I get them done on the "right" day this time as, in the past, doctor has been adamant that they were done on day 21, no matter what. She wants me to make sure they are done 7 days before AF due, which will mean no more than 2 days after ovulation for me! I'll then have an appointment with her in 3 months time to discuss all the results of these tests. If nothing is found with these tests, I will be off down the clomid path after that. I discussed thyroid with her but got the same old 'it's normal' spiel. DH went in for the kill at that point and she's agreed to review it next time once we know prolactin results as there could be a link, apparently.

So yeah. That's it. Another three months of futile shagging.

Afternoon berries!

Barking ha I love that you sleep-temped! Is this the start of something..will it be sleep-pimping next?!

Charming absolutely get your jiggy on. Speaking as someone who is often at the other end of the speculum, I couldn't care less, or be able to tell for that matter (unless as Frog says you specifically got told not to for swabs or something)!

Looking forward to some FC appt updates. I went to see my friend's baby today, 6wks but haven't been able to bring myself to go before. She was an IVF baby after three years of trying, so my friend knows how I feel and didn't push an earlier visit! Was actually lovely, the baby was very cute and I got to have a good whinge about how long it takes to get Clomid with someone who understands. First baby-visit in a while I haven't cried after (although give me time...)

Barking if its anything like mine you need to press and hold the on button to see the last temp in memory (not just turn it on)

Nothing extreme in the charming house, I can assure you. Right! Message understood.

Just go for it cats You don't want to miss a potential chance & I work on the theory that people who do that job must have seen everything before. That's if they haven't told you specifically not to obvs (or you're into extreme kinkiness with barbed wire or summat that might cause the gynae to make comment!)

Good luck with appointments today, berries - even those 'just' having blood tests!

Pimped for the cbfm this morning and it's reading 'high'. Wtf? It's only cd6!!! Don't want to dtd tonight as I'm going to the gynea tomorrow & he might examine me....appt not til 5.30pm, though. Do you think I would have 'recovered' enough, or will it still be obvious??

Good luck today to the berries with appointments!

This is why temping will be useful for me too Barking. (Once I can get it right & identify O anyway). So far I've varied between 25 & 34 days & they seem to be getting longer each month which is why I convince myself (& you've seen how well & how rationally I can do it!) that I am late when I'm not. This month AF was right on time in line with O at CD21ish but I'd never had a 34 day cycle before so thought I must be pregnant late!

Correction, a 13 day difference, shortest was 24, longest was 37.

Thunder No idea what time, it didn't give me a reading when I turned it on just said 'Lo'. I doubt I managed to turn it on when asleep though, I struggle to find the button on the right side when I'm only half asleep!

I would say it's time to stop temping, but I can't let go as then I wouldn't have a clue when AF was due and would drive myself crazy again convincing myself I was pg on the longer cycles as I used to before I realised I could identify O and predict from there. There is a 10 day difference between my shortest and longest cycles, I would have no idea whether I was still waiting, or AF was late. I'm on CD24 this cycle and still no temp rise, on a previous cycle AF was due tomorrow!

Good luck with all the appointments today berries!! Had a bit of a panic today when thinking about DP & his new meds for colitis as a friend of mine had to come off his Crohn's disease meds when he & his wife were TTC & they can be similar. Anyway Google official confirmation this morning confirmed that the ones he's on are fine & don't interfere with TTC from the male side. Phew! My mate had to basically give up drinking & be really miserable careful what he ate to control his condition without meds so everyone knew that they were TTC.
at barking & the thermometer. I forgot to put mine away before a house viewing yesterday so that would been obvious to anyone who saw it & knew what it was for.

barking sounds like you are just a little bit obsessed.

barking (apt eh?!). Does it tell you what time you took it?

barking (apt eh?!). Does it tell you what time you took it?

My name is barking and I'm a tempaholic .
Last night before I went to bed I made sure I got my thermometer out of my bag (as I'd been away) and put it in the usual spot by my bed. This morning I woke up, reached out sleepily as usual and there was no thermometer, just the empty plastic case!!! I couldn't imagine I'd put an empty plastic case by my bed last night but went and checked my bag and no thermometer, not on the floor by the bed etc. The lid was on the case though so don't know how it could have fallen out.
Anyway, got back into bed and found it. In my bed under the duvet. I must have taken my temperature in my sleep .
I think I may have a problem....

puppy We did the gp visit and the blood tests and referrals back in December/January and our FC is next week, so that's a pretty standard 3-4 month wait. I was hoping once we'd got our foot in the door of the FC clinic it might speed up a little though! .