Smiley face on CD 40 !! i'm confused!!

[Tryingandimpatient]

Hi guys,
Can anybody help? i have been ttc for 3 months now with no success. I came off of the pill 5 months ago and had 28 day cycles.
I have been using CBFM and CBOS to track ovulation and this cycle like normal got peaks and smiley faces on CD10 and 11. BD alot around this time and then ..... i expected AF on CD28 and nothing happened!! how excited was i?!?! but BFN many times since.... just to be sure i had a beta hcg and def not pregnant :-(
i suspect it is an anovulatory cycle (i'm a midwife so know they happen).... to be safe i continued to POAS (didn't want to miss anything lol!!) and now i have a second peak on CD40!!!!
does this mean i ovulated twice?? or did i not ovulate first time and now am ovulating??? i'm in a spin as other half away tonight and now feel like we'll have wasted 2 months (is it worth trying tomorrow??)

Sorry to waffle on and any advice would be greatly appreciated :-)

Sounds like you didn't ovulate before, for one reason or another.

If you had ovulated your period would have shown up by now as the hormones in question act like dominos - once one hits a certain level they trigger a chain reaction.

Think of it this way: it is possible to not ovulate and have a period (technically a breakthrough bleed) but it is not possible to ovulate and not have a period.

It may be that you were ill/stressed when your body geared up for ovulation last time so it decided to shut down. Bear in mind that OPKs and CBFM cannot tell you that you will definitely ovulate, it can only tell you that the horm

Oops! Fat fingers

As I was saying, they can only tell you that the hormone levels are building up and that you are likely to ovulate.

Try not to stress, you've not been trying for any real length of time and these things don't always happen as quickly as we'd like.

Thank you for replying.... that was actually really useful advice especially that it is not possible to ovulate and not have a period.... i hadn't thought of it like that

Shame my partner is away tonight!!! frustrating as we tried hard earlier in the cycle lol!! but it has got to be worth trying tomorrow just in case?!?!

It's funny i've midwived for years and advised hundreds of women and now i am trying i question everything i know!!

I am on a timer though as i need a treatment within the next year that means i won't be able to have children so it's pretty much now or never!! feeling the pressure but i know that also won't help with conception grrrrr

Also... One thing that can stop ovulation in its tracks is OTC painkillers taken mid cycle (when the follicle is ripe, but before it ruptures). They interfere with the process of breaking down the surface of the follicle to allow it to rupture and release the egg. So no painkillers mid cycle unless you really really need them. Luteinized unruptured follicle or something, it's called.

ooh i didn't know that!! but def worth remembering thanks

Any tips from anyone about the bast time to BD using OPKs?

Also a friend of mine suggested laying on my tummy after BD instead of raising my hips as i have been.... has anyone heard of this or found it successful??

The best thing to do is aim to have sex 3 times a week, or every other day.

If you rely too heavily on OPKs you may miss your most fertile time - my fertility nurse told me you are much more likely to get pregnant having sex before ovulation occurs.

Things like lie on your stomach/stick your legs in the air are old wives tales. I wouldn't put too much store by that advice.

I ovulated on day 40 last month. Period day 53. I have irregular cycles anyway, posted earlier this week about that. I think my body had tried earlier in the month and then decided against it because a friend died and obviously under a bit of stress there.

I was told that stress at the time of ovulation can stop it from happening and then you kind of get stuck because until you ovulate you wont get AF.
I started Agnus Castus yesterday and had a positive OPK today so hoping maybe that will regulate things a bit.

Just be careful with Agnus Castus, I've heard a lot of stories about it making things worse. You should only be taking herbal remedy's under the guidance of a practitioner.