Help a Girl Out - Confused About EWCM & OPKs

[MintGreenLife]

Hi all :)

Hoping you guys might have experience with a similar situation or may be able to shed some light on this...

This my my first cycle TTC and I'm on CD14. I'm using OPKs and have been daily since CD5 after AF finished. My Premom app is predicting ovulation on CD17, and yesterday I got EWCM for the first time in this cycle. I got pretty excited thinking that ovulation was coming, but today I have no EWCM and am still getting negatives on OPKs. Anyone had this kind of thing happen before? Or know what might be going on? I get a faint line on my OPKs everyday and for the last three days it's been increasing ever so slightly according to the TC ratio when I input the results into my Premom app, but nothing to write home about. Think i wouldn't be fussing so much if EWCM arrived yesterday and then is no more today. Any ideas?

Anyone got any thoughts on this?

@Mintgreenlife

Hiya! I had this too, few days ago (Cd12) I had egwcm but only noticed it the once on toilet paper. Since then nothing but yesterday got my positive opk so it could just mean you're in your fertile window now, hopefully you get your positive over next couple days ☺️ all the best! X

Ah awesome, thanks so much for your reply @Sho2207 ☺️ Really good of you to take the time to get back to me. I have the exact same thing - EWCM on the toilet paper just a couple of times yesterday, but none today and obviously nothing on OPKs apart from a very faint line which I always get. Fingers crossed I'll get my positive soon. Will keep testing ☺️

@mintgreenlife
That’s ok, I know how it is when you want an answer or advice and no one gets back to you 😂
How many times a day are you testing and is there an occurring time you’re doing them? I always make sure I test around the same time each month, last month I was cycle day 17 and was testing around 2pm, this time round I’m cycle day 15 and was testing around 4pm.
Let me know how you get on ☺️

It helps so much to know what's happening is normal and happens to other people too ☺️ I'm new to all this and keen to track ovulation etc, so was getting worried I would miss it this month and didn't really understand why I had EWCM for just a day but no surge in OPKs. I've just been testing once a day and between 2-3pm everyday. I think I'll test 2-3 times a day over the next few days though to try and make sure I don't miss my peak. So am I right in saying toy had EWCM on CD12 and then positive on OPKs on CD15? Makes me feel so much better knowing it's pretty normal to get EWCM a few days ahead of a peak, as I was surprised to see negatives today and yesterday. Thanks so much, will certainly let you know how testing goes over the next few days ☺️

@Sho2207 message for you above - wouldn't let me tag you x

@mintgreenlife
Yeah I think egwcm is actually just telling you that you’re fertile rather than ovulating, I suppose once you see that you should start dtd when you can ☺️ I never used to use opk’s but I never got any symptoms or cm before ovulation so never had an idea of when it would happen, since using them I’ve always managed to catch the surge luckily ☺️ X

Well that's encouraging ☺️ From what I've read you're right and EWCM just indicated the start of your fertile period, think it can come anywhere from 5 days before ovulation, what I didn't understand is why I had it for a day and then it disappeared without OPK surge, but then I guess everyone has different amounts. We DTD Friday and Saturday as I didn't really know what was going on so wanted to be on the safe side, otherwise we are just going for every other day. Hopefully this is my fertile window and we've timed it right ☺️

How far into TTC are you? Is this your first? Xx

@Sho2207 message above xx

@MintGreenLife
I literally had egwcm the once and that was it, I didn’t know if it was definitely it or not but assumed it was because of the positive opk today. Yeah me and OH are doing smep (sperm meets egg plan) were we dtd every other day and now I’ve got my positive we dtd every day for the next two days.
It’s my first but had a chemical back last year, started ttc again in december 2019 and fell pregnant in March, that ended at 6 weeks unfortunately, we got straight back into it and hoping it happens soon and everything goes well.

Will this be your first? Xx

Ah fair enough, not just me then :) @Sho2207 I'm 99% certain what I had was EWCM - I had it last month too just for two days, but wasn't tracking ovulation or anything then. That's what I was planning on doing - the SMEP, but feel like I've messed it up now as we skipped yesterday as I didn't really feel like I was in my fertile window after all. Will pick it back up again today and hopefully get a positive OPK in the next day or two :)

Sorry to hear about your losses. Well done for staying positive though. Yep first for me also. We were meant to be getting married in September and planned to start trying after, but that's looking unlikely now so thought we would start focusing on TTC now instead :) xx

@MintGreenLife
Well it only takes one☺️ Me and OH was well on track with smep but I couldn’t notice my tests getting darker so we decided to just dtd every night now. I think after tonight we’ll probably give it a rest😂

Oh no! I hate the fact this situation has ruined everyone’s plans, I know so many people who were meant to be getting married but now can’t. At least you’ve got something else to look forward to though ☺️ Xx

@Sho2207 well it's nowhere near a positive, but LH levels appear to be going up, which I guess could mean surge is coming, fingers crossed I get a positive later today or tomorrow.

That's very true. Haha that's now I felt yesterday, that I just needed a night off 😂

That was our exact thinking with planning to TTC, as it gives us something positive focus on, rather than constantly fretting about the wedding x

@MintGreenLife
Ooh yay! As long as they’re getting stronger 😁 how long are your cycles usually?
Are you also taking any vitamins? X

@Sho2207 alas I got excited too soon - it went back down again last night 🙄 I've done my first BBT reading today so hopefully tracking my temp too will help me work out what's going on. My last cycle was 30 days, so according to my app ovulation should be tomorrow. But I've only had one natural cycle since coming off the pill, so I guess they could be irregular, but was hoping seeing as AF came exactly 30 days after the first day of my withdrawal bleed that might be a sign my cycle was going back to normal. I'm taking vitamin d and folic acid.

Are you currently in the two week wait? Hope all is good your end ☺️

@mintgreenlife
Mine were constantly fluctuating this month, and then out of nowhere the line was darker than the control, I think it’s quite normal for it to fluctuate.
I got way too obsessed with checking my temps but I still do every so often, especially in these times haha.
So I’m not sure if it works yet or not because I haven’t given it enough time but I bought this powder off nature’s best website, it’s called myo-inositol. You put 8 tiny scoops (scoop included) into a cup of tea or juice and it’s supposed to help with bringing on ovulation, I’ve heard it really helps people who suffer with pcos, I thought I’d give it ago and try it out so if you ever want to try something new ☺️

Yes two week wait now, although this month I’m gonna try my hardest to have the ‘chilled’ attitude towards it, I’m going to try and forget what day I’m on and hopefully it’ll work and I’ll be surprised at the end of it 😂

Also these are my tests, the top one was day before positive around 2 o clock, the middle one was day before positive around 8 o clock, and then bottom was positive. You can see it’s dark then light then extremely dark again

I think I thought because I was doing everything I could to track my cycle that I would be sure of when I ovulated, but I have no idea what's happening and it's just making me super frustrated. I really hope I get a darker like on OPKS in the next few days. Oh thanks for the tip, will look into that :)

Ah well good for you, that's a good idea not to count down the days! Right now I feel like I'm not going to have a clue when my TWW even begins.

Will let you know if/when I get my darker lines on OPKs, and you'll have to let me know if you get your BFP :) x

@Sho2207 oh thanks so much for sharing your tests! That's really encouraging that you go from light to dark like that, as I've been stressing that mine aren't getting any darker, but maybe they will just get dark suddenly, fingers crossed xx

@Sho2207 this is what I had yesterday too - darker at 3pm, light again at 9pm...really hope I get a darker one at 3ish today!

@mintgreenlife
Yeah it’s always a struggle after coming off contraception, I had the same.
Yes let me know please 😁 just make sure you really hold that wee until you can’t any longer. I can’t actually remember what time I got my positive, I think it was around 4 o clock, and I’d held my urine in all day whilst being at work, so as soon as I got home I did a test😂

Oh wow, maybe that's where I'm going wrong! I'm probably only managing to hold my wee a couple of hours before testing, sometimes less :/ I might go now and then not again until 3ish and test then...I usually workout around midday, so not sure how that'll go with a full bladder ha. Glad it's not just me that is finding things tricky after stopping the pill. Thanks so much for all your help so far :) feel much better about things x

@Sho2207 message above x

@mintgreenlife
Yeah I always find that 3-4 hours of a hold is a lot more accurate. Oh haha good luck with that, no worries ☺️ Anything else just ask, I won’t know everything but I’ll try my best from my experiences ☺️ X

@MintGreenLife
Hey! Any updates? Get your positive opk in the end? X