Clearblue fertility monitor

[chelsbells]

Are they worth it? A little pricey on amazon but seen a few on eBay - all the reviews say they're good but wondered if people do rate it to have helped conceive and have success stories.

Backstory - been trying a while now all doctors tests saying there's no problems so willing to try anything now!

TIA

Certainly worked for me! I had irregular periods so no idea when I was ovulating. Found it really useful to pinpoint peak fertility days as well as ovulation day. Worth every penny in my experience. Also passed to a friend ttc and it's just worked for her too!

Yep, I did the deed after clear blue told me and 9 months later. First month of trying. I'm in my late 30s

I think they're a waste of money and just luring desperate women into spending way more than necessary.

I bought one and hated it by the end... The sticks are £1 each ish. And you can only do one a day. And it recommends you do it in the morning which is the opposite of what all of the other tests say (most recommend late afternoon/early evening), obviously you can choose an afternoon window but it annoys me the instructions say morning.

They also lie to you. As soon as you get one High result, the machine is programmed to keep giving you highs until you get a peak regardless of what the stick actually says. You'll also get a 2nd day of peak after the first regardless of what the stick says. This is all in the instructions but seems a bit disingenuous.

I much much preferred using the internet cheapies twice a day. Then when the lines looked the same confirming a Peak with a clear blue smiley stick. Far far cheaper than the monitor and I think a lot more reliable.

And all the sticks do is compare the two lines electronically which is exactly how all of the other stick work but you look at them rather than have a machine read them.

I genuinely hated that monitor.

We got our bfp a couple of months after I ditched the monitor in favour of internet cheapies.

Best of luck, I know how miserable the ttc months can be. My advice is not to waste your money, or at least spend it on something like acupuncture which is good for the soul as well as conception

Thanks notone! I'm fairly regular but just hasn't happened for us.. yet! Most on eBay say it was only used a few times suggesting they got pregnant quickly by using it - I don't know anyone who's used one so nice to hear two stories of success!

i used it for 5 months and am now expecting. i found it invaluable. it didnt always give me highs. one month i had only lows. its not programmed to tell antyhthing other than low hugh and ovulation hormone detected.

the first month i used 18 sticks. the next few months about 8-10 each. i peed in the evening. im nightshift so that was my morning.

im glad we used it as i was dtd at the wrong time.

clearly it didnt help with my spelling

Thanks DrewsWife, I had wondered how many sticks I'd need as pp mentioned them being expensive, but obviously hoping we won't need to buy them for too many months!

I totally get that it lures you into thinking this will get your pregnant with them stating the high percentages within a few months using the monitor - but also willing to just try anything now and if what they say is right then I'm all for it!! And it's not going to be for everyone but think it's worth a shot!

If you do get one, get it on eBay... At least you're not paying £100 that way

You can have mine, if I can find it, pm me.

Have pm'd you!

Thanks for all advice/stories mumsnetters!

Best of luck OP

I would recommend it. I used it because I had irregular cycles and the monitor helped to identify the fertile days. They are better than cheap sticks, because they measure not only LH but also the oestrogen rise, which is why it can tell you about 5 days in advance when the peak is coming (the high days). It also uses first morning urine, which means that the hormones it's looking for aren't too diluted in your urine. It therefore won't miss your peak (which is exactly why you only need to use it once a day).

I used the monitor alongside tracking cervical changes. This way (because my cycles were very long) I could save on sticks. So if I knew I was still in low fertility I would use an old 'low' stick. Then when I found my cervix was opening, I would use new sticks, get a high and then a peak about 5-7 days later. After the first peak, just use old sticks again (else it will keep asking you for a stick, because it is programmed to use either 10 or 20 in a row, as those are the box sizes). That way you save on sticks. It's fine to use sticks from different boxes. Also, they are cheaper on amazon.

Just remember that in the first month it's getting to know your hormonal levels so you may not get a peak then, just highs, but you will the months after that.

The monitor doesn't lie btw. It will give you a high when it detects a rise in oestrogen, which precedes a rise in LH. There is no reason after you get a high why you would fall back into low, unless you have pcos, but then the monitor may not work anyway. The 2nd day of peak is to indicate that you are still fertile, as you should ovulate 12-48 hours after the first peak.

Thanks Blamber, that's a lot of really useful info, especially about the re-use of sticks in the machine, would never have thought of that!! It seems the majority of people think it's been worth it so will give it a shot! Feels like a whole new world of TTC!

I would recommend it as well. We had been trying for 6 months when I started using it and I fell pregnant on the second month of using it with DC1, first month with DC2 and second month with this pregnancy.

What I liked about it was having the high readings first, which gave us a starting off point to having very regular sex, which I think ultimately made the difference. I had slightly irregular cycles as well (28- 34 days) so found it very useful to target the high and peak periods.