TTC baby #1 Threat #2

[GaaaaarlicBread]

Hi ladies ,

@Cheyanne101
@hopefulhel
@Liam2018
@Maddy0405
@notalwaysalondoner
@Hannahb26
@CurbsideProphet
@ToCaden
@JEMMA18
@LeaBri
@bubblyboo900

Our other thread is getting quite long and I know they stop at 1,000 comments so thought I’d make a new one for us .
I am so sorry if I’ve missed anyone , just going by usernames I remember off the top of my head !
I’m currently 5 weeks pregnant (miscalculated and thought I was only 4+3). Going for an 8 week scan (I’ll be almost 9 weeks) on 25th Jan.
but I am really enjoying joining you on your journeys on TTC and you’ve all been amazing so I didn’t want to just say goodbye to the thread .
Please come on in if you’re new here , and join everyone on their journeys . I feel like we’ve been chatting forever but it’s only been a couple of months. What a roller coaster it’s been!

Anyway, as we were!

AF has arrived for me too after a cycle of 32 days (rather than the normal 28) It has never ever been late so got my hopes up but here she is! onto the next!!!

That's kind thank you @Maddy0405
I've been twice now. I saw a female GP today which was better. She wants me off work for another week to give my body time to recover.

Sorry to read your post @Hannahb26 AF always appears exactly when she's not wanted!

@CurbsideProphet I was wondering what was happening with your work. I’m glad you’ve got some time off for yourself and haven’t got to rush back to work.

Hey I hope everyone is doing OK. Sorry to those of you who have been greeted by AF.
@Maddy0405 sometimes your fertile window can change so I recommend the same as Curbside said , DTD every 2-3 days from when AF finishes up until you’re due. So you’re doing good :)
Myself and DH did that after tracking the month before which was so stressful and put DH under pressure and we both dreaded it . As soon as we just DTD every 2-3days I got the BFP . It definitely works not being stressed out and you have a higher chance of catching ovulation that way even if you’re irregular .
Enjoy your break away !

Hi

Hope everyone is doing ok.

We’re now on officially our second cycle of TTC. Currently on CD13 and digital OPK said that apparently I’m ovulating already (was CD15 last month).

We attempted SMEP this month but the frequency was just too intense and exhausting, so we’re just trying to do as much as we can.

On top of the stress of TTC, I’ve been trying to move jobs for months, and was originally putting off TTC until being settled in a new job, but it’s taking so long to find something we’ve ended up starting TTC now. So whilst part of me wants to get pregnant, another half of me is worried that if I get pregnant I could be stuck in my current job for a few more years. So I’m sure that stress isn’t helping!

@itsemily how are you? How’re things going? Great I will carry on with DTD then 😍

@dsttc123 hey! Oh no that does sound really stressful for you. Would you get good maternity pay from your current job? You could try and find something after mat leave? Might not be realistic for you if you’re really unhappy at work.

Forgive my ignorance but what is SMEP?

@Maddy0405 I never get CM changes either - apparently a fair proportion of women get watery rather than egg white mucus which is much harder to spot the difference. I can kind of tell small differences if I check my cervix rather than just on loo paper (sorry tmi) but certainly nothing major.
SMEP is sperm meets egg program- basically a recommended schedule of DTD along with OPKs to maximise your chances. It involves DTD an awful lot though!!
You guys have made me resolve to DTD more reliably - we tended to do it every other day between day 11-17 as I have 25-27 day cycles but I will try and do it in the full window outside AF this month!

SMEP is sperm meets egg plan. Basically you DTD every other day from CD8 until ovulation. Then everyday for 3 days in a row, then a day off, then one more go. So pretty full on!

We’ve managed once every 3 days so far, now I’m ovulating we’ll have another go tonight and then we’ll see. It takes a lot of the fun out of it when you’re on a schedule.

Job is tolerable but not really what I want to do (job description changed a year into the role) and not giving me great experience to move into what I want to do. But the maternity pay is ok (15 weeks full pay then 18 weeks half pay) which is a lot better than my previous job which only paid statutory. If I could get a job that paid at least 10-15% more than my current salary, I could justify not getting maternity pay on the basis that within a few years it would have balanced out.

Ok so I've accepted I'm not pregnant but thought if my period is nowhere to be seen yet then I could only assume I could still yet ovulate I'm on like cycle day 37 and carried on taking ov sticks, would you say positive or close too

@notalwaysalondoner @Maddy0405 I don't really seem to get much change in CM either. Last month I had some days of more watery CM but haven't had anything resembling EWCM. That's interesting not everyone has it. I have worried that I'm just not ovulating. It's all so confusing 🤷‍♀️😂

We've gone for just DTD every other day this month, although I am still doing OPKs as I would like to try and work out if I am ovulating. I don't think we'd cope with every day 😂 this is a step up for us as it is!

Sorry this month hasn't worked for you @Liam2018. Fingers crossed going into the next one.

@dsttc123 that sounds like very good maternity pay to me! Might be worth sticking it out there a while longer?!

@Liam2018 sorry I didn't answer your question... the last one looks high but not peak, but is definitely darker then the one before. Hard to know really, I'm sorry that's not much use.

@notalwaysalondoner @dsttc123 every day is a school day! Never heard of SMEP! That does sound like a lot of doing it! I’ve never really had a high sex drive so we didn’t do it loads. Even in the last few months of TTC we haven’t probably been doing it as often as we should so this month I’m committing to every other day as much as possible so fingers crossed. I’m not gonna do any tests until I’m back from my holiday (unless AF surprises me while we are away of course). So fingers crossed.

@liam2018 they definitely look like that are getting darker. I’d be getting down to it with your husband if I were you 😉

Thanks guys I've told him hes got no choice;) why isnt isnt ttc easy :(

@dsttc123 that maternity scheme is miles better than mine, so it might be worth sticking with it and looking at what CPD you could do in the meantime? I know it's awful to feel like you're putting your life on hold (I'm not really happy at work), but we'll likely be working until our 70s and I feel like there will be a lot more time to progress in work. Though obviously there's nothing to stop you from seeing what else is out there!

@Liam2018 I really struggle with OPKs and can't even work out what I'm supposed to be looking at I just think DTD every few days once AF has been covers most bases.

Yeah I think next month In gonna try problem is I last had af on the 4th December and I'm not sure when my next period is so i dont know wether to keep trying this month or not!

@Liam2018 it’s really hard when your cycle are all over the place. I would carry on DTD until next AF (or BFP!) but I understand it’s difficult to be motivated to do it if you feel like it’s pointless or that you’re not ovulating and therefore not going to conceive. I know this sounds a bit naff but I am enjoying all the intimacy and I do feel more connected with him so even though we haven’t been successful yet, it’s not been totally awful to be left feeling loved up! Having said all that, maybe I am ovulating right now if that’s how I’m feeling 😂😂😂

Also on the subject of maternity leave/pay - I cannot find anything regarding this in my contract and in our employee handbook it says it’s down to the managers discretion which just doesn’t seem right at all!! Just makes me think she can give one person a good deal when another person might be lumped with SMP... but it’s a bit tricky as I don’t feel I can talk about it at work until I’m announcing I’m pregnant at which point, whatever pay I get offered will be too late!!

@Maddy0405 I’m miserable and have been so poorly with morning (all day) sickness . Lost weight , can’t eat, Dr has signed me off work and put me on anti sickness meds . I wish I had enjoyed feeling well whilst I was, because I had no idea pregnancy could make you feel like this!😟😓

@itsemily oh no! I’m sorry to hear that. At least you have some time off work even though you’re not well it’s one less thing to think about. How many weeks are you now? Plenty of fluids and rest for you. Is your husband looking after you? Mines a bit useless when I’m not well but I think he’d be quite good once I’m pregnant.

@Maddy0405 sorry I’d not got any good news to feed back to you ! Well I mean it’s good news that I’m so poorly because it means my hormones are doing their job. I have a private scan next Saturday just for early reassurance and seeing the midwife the following Wednesday. I’m 7 weeks . My husband is good as he’s a nurse so is naturally caring but is saying that seeing your wife so unwell is very hard as looking after patients is different because you’re not connected to them which makes sense . He’s just more concerned about my mental health more than anything

Ohn@itsemily that sounds so rough. Have you been diagnosed with HG?

@itsemily that sounds tough, hope not being at work is helping and that it passes soon! Glad your DH is taking good care of you.

@Maddy0405 that is crazy about the maternity pay, it should be standardised- you shouldn’t reward one woman more than another while she’s on leave?! But I know what you mean about not wanting to ask until you’re pregnant - it’s the same issue when looking for a new job, it would be really nice to know their maternity policies in advance but you can’t really ask in case it puts them off! So unfair women have to deal with this stuff career-wise while men don’t have to worry about it at all.

So sorry guys so confused I never know how to read these tests but I feel like these could be getting positive? I know I'm cycle day 40 but feel like their getting dark and when i put it on the app it said peak? I like to poas I know

Ps the one at the bottom was taken an hour after the other so with less concentrated wee

That definitely looks like you are close to ovulation, when did you come off hormonal birth control? What lengths have your last few cycles been? I’d just DTD every other day until the line disappears again - looks like your cycle is just really long this month probably.

I feel quite lucky that I was on the copper coil so my cycles didn’t change at all so at least they are somewhat predictable now, although since I came off it in October they have been more variable than than normal (22-28 days instead of 24-27).

Hi all, im new on here but hoped for your opinions?

Problem is: Positive clear blue standard pink tests but negative advanced test. Same urine sample.

(Just to also fill you in with my experience. For two months of using the advanced connected test i had nothing but flashing smiley faces or negative results. I was then recommended the standard pink test that only detects the LH surge)

Got my peak the once on CD20 of an average 31 day cycle.