SMEP - feel free to join! :)

[danielasummer]

Hi everyone, just making this thread as it seems a few of us will be trying SMEP to TTC! Adding these lovely ladies in from another thread but I hope everyone feels free to join! All welcome :)

@Devgirl31 @fayy123 @NCON @MrsKJW19

Some stats about me:

TTC #1
27 years old, DH is 28 years old
Missed miscarriage in October 2019 at 7+2 weeks
Still in that cycle (no AF yet)
Long and irregular cycles, some anovulatory
Suspected low progesterone/hypothyroidism (I think this based on symptoms, not diagnosed yet!)

Hope we can all provide support for each other in this crazy TTC journey.

Feel free to introduce yourselves :)

I'm CD9 today. Have a flashing smiley on clear blue but nothing showing yet on cheap one steps.

We dtd day 6 and 7. My plan is smep this month and I've warned DH about it. So that means we have to do it tonight. 😂 Last month I ovulated day 11 I think but I think it'll happen by day 13. So we shall see!

@Pixielou16 thats a relief just to know she came and you can start again! Good luck 🍀

@danielasummer im on CD28 today, havent a clue when i Ovulated or if i even have, i started with sore boobs the other day which is a sign of AF even tho shes only due in 7 days 😩

same AF got me last night as well😔😔😔😔 does anyone use any lube? I use almond oil as a form of lube, i checked to see if it’s okay and dr google said it’s fine to use

@danielasummer heyyyy how you getting on? AF got me last night, it’s so on point it’s beyond me! I used OPKS last cycle and my ovulation day was on CD11. Do you think I could do SMEP even though my fertile window is literally straight after my period finishes?

@Shazzzzz how you getting on?

@fayy123 if I were you I would DTD every other day starting from the day AF finishes. If you ovulate that early you might miss it on SMEP.

@fayy123 I sometimes use a normal lube but I've bought preseed this time. Just in case.

@bluemoon2468 yeah I ovulate quite early.. CD11! You think smep won’t work? I got positive OPK on cd11 last cycle and felt ovulation cramps!

@bluemoon2468 did you use lube?

@paintfairy Yhh I might try that as well x

Hi @danielasummer all good here had my early scan and everything looks good thankfully 😊 have my 1st midwife appointment next week. Glad you like the cb digital tests I personally didn't like the strips as I found them difficult to read.
@fayy123 I used preseed as it says it's sperm friendly.

@danielasummer @Shazzzzz yeah, pleased to get it out the way to be honest! I'm now CD1 after the longest wait for the first proper period after stopping the pill. Ready to try SMEP properly once AF is done! Also heading to docs for blood test to check thyroid level and having an ultrasound soon to check for any anomalies due to irregular periods previously and bad acne. We've used Preseed which I quite like. Do people prefer the CB digital tests? I've only used OPKs and they are a bit of a faff x

@fayy123 im ok CD 28 and my cycle is normally 34 days so not long until i can test but im only gonna do it when my period is missed, i havent dont any opks or symptom spotting so just what will be will be 😄 trying stay calm but i know test day is soon coming 🙈, did you stick to SMEP last month? X

@Shazzzzz no I couldn’t.. I got a UTI half way through and fell really sick was on antibiotics, but hopefully will give it a go this cycle, also going to try out preeseed! What about you? X

@fayy123 no i got annoyed with it i dont know when i ovulate as the cheap one steps didnt give me any clue, i dont really want spend a fortune on the clear blue so im just dtd every chance i can and just keeping my hopes up! Whats preeseed?!🙈

Hey guys! Trying SMEP for the first time. Been reading this chat with interest! We have been dtd every other day since day 8. Day 14 today and I've had a 'mare with opks...ran out of my usually reliable One Steps this morning. They usually build up and then I get an obvious positive. They had been building since the weekend so was hoping for a positive this afternoon or evening. Anyway, in absence of the One Steps I tested with Tesco instead and got a complete blank. Now I'm not sure how to carry on with SMEP as don't know when I ovulated. Full time job and 4 year old in the house means stamina for dtd every day without fail is limited! Every other day was manageable knowing we only had to dtd every day once we got the positive opk. Sigh!! Hateful opks!

@Lnix if i was you i would try and dtd like 5 times in a row, if you knew it was building then its gotta be soon! X

@Lnix maybe just keep DTD every other day until AF! Or not AF hopefully
@Shazzzzz It’s a sperm friendly lube, mimics your CM! Helps the swimmers get up there

@fayy123 if you ovulate on CD11 usually then I wouldn't wait until CD8 to start. If I were you I'd probably DTD CDs 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14. No I've never used lube, got pregnant 2nd cycle without it, DTD every second day from day 6 to 14. I know some women swear by preseed, but from my reading it doesn't actually improve fertility, it's just less harmful to sperm than regular lube.

Yeah maybe every other day til AF. I don't understand it, I'm normally pretty predictable with when I ovulate. Lucky me I guess...but this has thrown me off! Can't face 5 days dtd in a row - it's Monday, that's 5 school nights!! 🤣 can only try I suppose!

@paintfairy good luck for SMEP! Great news about flashing smiley. I'm still waiting on mine..!

@Shazzzzz sore boobs aren't just a sign of AF (not to get your hopes up). How do you usually track ov or are you not this cycle?

@fayy123 hello, sorry AF got you :( happy to hear your cycles are regular and predictable though. I don't use lube but have tried preseed in a previous cycle..don't think I'll bother again. If I were you I would DTD every other day from when you finish AF. I'm getting on ok. Willing ovulation to happen now!

@HE88 so glad your scan went well, good luck for your first midwife app! How far along are you now? I can't be doing with strip OPKs anymore.. I was getting obsessed about them.

@Pixielou16 hi, always good to get bloods etc done. So is this your first cycle TTC? Yes I'm using the CB Dual Digital for the first time this cycle and I like it. Pricey though! On sale at Boots currently though.

@Lnix good luck for SMEP this cycle! I would do every other day from AF until next AF (hopefully it won't come for you) to cover yourself. Sperm can live up to 5 days so you should be fine. Is this your first cycle TTC?

Do any of you track BBT? Just asking because a lot of people on MN post about uncertainty with ovulation. I've been tracking BBT for around 3.5 years and love it for confirming ov. Definitely recommend it :)

@danielasummer ive not this cycle! Im not getting my hopes up, if it is a sign of AF hopefully she is early so we can try again sooner 😄

@danielasummer yes I track BBT. Sometimes it's hard as I wake random times. But having a general pattern definitely helps (although you only know that after the effect. Lol).

Hey @danielasummer no this is my 7th cycle CD day 15. Feel quite down as every other month I've had a very obvious positive opk. Hoping I've just missed the surge rather than not had a surge. The idea of that is quite depressing! 7 months doesn't seem long but it feels like forever 😏 I haven't bbt before - I'm not sure where to start with it...is there an app you can log temps and it all looks fairly obvious to an untrained eye?? To be honest I wasn't that keen as it's just another thing to add to the pressure of ttc but right now I'd absolutely love to know if I had. No knowing that now of course! Ahh! I have regular cycles and have had a positive opk every month since using them so that's pretty encouraging but this has made me feel less hopeful that "everything is ok and it's only a matter of time..." Glad we have been doing SMEP this month at least! X

@Shazzzzz that's such a great way of looking at it.. I kind of felt the same last cycle and I think it's contributed to me feeling more relaxed this cycle! Fingers are crossed for you x

@paintfairy oh I wake up in the night all the time and all sorts! As long as I've had 3 hours of sleep, I log it and I always see a pattern :) it's so helpful I find x

@Lnix Please don't despair with the OPKs, I kept getting random surges and no positive, I feel much more relaxed with the CB this cycle. Have you tried the CB? My fingers are crossed it'll happen for you soon. Stay positive, only 5 more months I guess of trying and if no luck (which I'm hoping there is for you) then you can try the doctors to find out why. It's great too that your cycles are regular as it shows things are happening on time within your body. I'm slightly envious, my cycles are crazy haha. Also with temping I love it because temping, blood tests and an ultrasound are the only ways you can confirm definite ovulation. I like to use the OPKs to predict it and temping to confirm it. I use the app Natural Cycles which I've used for years (I used to use it for birth control, then when I fell pregnant used it to track my pregnancy - sadly miscarried - now using it for TTC) and I love it. If you want to try it I have a discount link so let me know if you'd like to try it and I'll send it over! x

@danielasummer thank you was such a relief knowing everything is OK. Well going by my last period I'm 9 weeks +1 but the scan was showing me as being not as far as that so I would be 8 weeks +1 going by the scan so who knows ha ha I'll find out for definite at my 12 week scan. Xx