Ovulation testing help

[DHB]

Morning ladies :)

I’m currently on day 4 of cycle 1 TTC after a miscarriage at 8 weeks on 5th March.

I want to try not to miss our chance with this cycle, so have bought some ovulation test sticks, just wondered when would be best to start testing from after my period ends?

I usually have 28-30 day cycles but I don’t know how the miscarriage would have affected the cycles and/or ovulation.

Thank you :)

Im so sorry to hear about your miscarriage, I'm sure that was pretty devastating. I'd probably test everyday after your period to get a sense of when ovulation happens for you. Some sites reccomend testing from cd12 but you might risk identifying peak LH levels

@DHB hi lovely, I'm so sorry to hear of your MC.

I too have just had a miscarriage and I've tracked my ovulation for a few months. I've actually started doing it now just to get a baseline, my LH seems fairly high after my MC so I'm watching to see if it drops or surges, I normally ovulate on CD21 of a 31 day cycle but like you, don't know how it'll be affected x

@Eagerlywaiting1990 Thank you! I think I will just start the day after then.

How are they meant to be done? FMU once a day each day?

With our 8 year old, we conceived straight away and the same again with our little angel, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I may well be fortunate enough to continue the same again this time!

@Angelselevenx Sorry to hear about your MC too, it’s so devastating isn’t it :(

They do say you’re more fertile after a MC don’t they?! See, I’ve never done any ovulation tracking of any sort before so I’m going in blind here haha.

That's how I've always done it and never had an issue but I see some saying they test at noon or multiple times a day. I think you should probably detect it either way.

Sending you lots of luck for this cycle! Xx

@DHB it really is, I was just over 5 weeks so really early but still doesn't make it any easier. Hope you're doing okay.

I have read so many positive stories on being fertile/falling after a miscarriage, hopefully it's the same for us 🤞🏼 trying to not put to much pressure on though incase it doesn't happen straight away.

Do you follow apps or have a rough idea when you ovulate? I'd start doing it once a day after your period and then when it's about the time you ovulate, start doing it a couple of times a day to try and catch your surge. I have quite a long surge so I'll have a few positive tests over the course of 12 hours or so and then it'll drop down the next morning. I also track my body temperature and I can confirm ovulation with the temperature dip and then a temp surge afterwards.

It's confusing and there's a lot to learn but the ovulation test side is fairly straightforward! Are you TTC your first?

@DHB sorry just seen in your other comment you have an 8 year old too 😊

@Eagerlywaiting1990 Ah ok that’s great, thank you :) Can’t wait for AF to end now and back to business!

@Angelselevenx No it doesn’t make it any easier at all, sending virtual hugs to you. I thought I was doing better, but then the emotions came back when AF came along. My and OH had been DTD pretty much every day since the bleeding stopped, although I did have faint positives for around 3.5 weeks after and then AF arrived around a week after that, so not much time to ovulate really.

Me too, it’s my bit of hope at the moment. I feel like all I’ve been doing is searching on here for positive stories! Bit of an obsession now haha.

I’ve downloaded the FLO app yesterday so I have that, but other than that, I am clueless to when I ovulate, I’ve never tracked it or paid any attention annoyingly! Hence the OPKs now, so I will start doing them every day once AF buggers off and then every few hours once the lines start to appear I think!! Thank you for your advice, really helpful to know!

We have an 8 year old who was a missed pill pregnancy so she slipped through the net but obviously, wouldn’t change any of that. Our angel we conceived first try so I’m praying and hoping it’s the same this time 💗

Will this be your first?

@DHB oh bless you it's like a reminder all over again isn't it.

Me too honestly, I spend so much time looking at positive outcomes after MCs and there are soo many! But I'm also mindful it may not be the case for me so to try and just relax (she says).

No problem, it's a bit of a minefield but once you get your head round it it's good to know and understand your body some more. There's also an app called premom which is a bit like Flo (gives an indication on ovulation day etc) but there's a section you can take photos of your ovulation tests and it grades them with a number and captures them all so you can see the trend in your testing, that's a helpful app too as it means you don't have to have a million photos in your camera roll of different piss sticks incase you ever show someone something on your phone 🤣

Aww I'm hopeful for you! Yeah this will be our first, I came off contraception in december then we started trying in February, fell pregnant in March where I felt so lucky as it was only our second try and then had the MC this month. I'm also still bleeding at the moment but waiting to go start pestering the OH again 🤣

@DHB sorry for your loss - I had a mc 4 weeks ago and I started using opk 2 weeks ago when the bleeding from mc had stopped.
I was using them before the mc too. Apparently with lh testing it's best NOT to use fmu but to test anywhere between 10am-6pm. Check the instructions on the tests you have but this is probably what it will say.
Best if you can test around the same time each day which I don't find easy. I also recommend premom app for taking photos of the tests. Flo doesn't offer much when it comes to ovulation tracking.

@Angelselevenx Yes it is! I knew I wouldn’t have conceived last month, as I felt the period between finally getting a neg test and AF arriving, was too short, so I was actually looking forward to AF coming so I knew where we were at, but then it hit home too.

I will try to relax haha! Hope you stop bleeding too and can try again, have you had your negative HCG tests yet? From my reading, you can ovulate as soon as a few days after a negative test post MC so fingers crossed for you!

Oh that app sounds good! goes to App Store right now to download!
I think the grading of the sticks will be helpful! Can never have too many apps haha. I had to hide pissy stick photos yesterday actually haha!!

Oh wow so you were really quick too then!! Hopefully that continues for you. We’ll be dogs on heat for the next few months 😂

@Hankthehonk Thank you - And sorry for yours as well 💗

Someone else has just mentioned that app too, so I’ve just downloaded it and having a play around now :) My OPKs aren’t ready to collect from Boots until tomorrow so I’ll read the instructions too!

Yes see that’ll be my struggle too, I work shifts so can be on earlies, lates or nights and I don’t get chance to breathe at work, let alone have a wee on a stick 😩

@DHB it's hard but the positive is that you've had a normal period now to prep your body for a little sticky baby!

I think it's stopping now finally as today is day 10 😖 I made my OH hide the tests but I went to the EPU last week where they confirmed MC and I had blood tests done. My levels were dropping so I think they'll be zero now as my symptoms have gone now too. Yes I read that to! I'd normally be ovulating around 21st April but like you, have no idea how it'll have affected my cycles.

I have a folder on my phone dedicated to all things TTC honestly 🤣 so many apps but they're all helpful in their own way! I know I get anxious showing people stuff on my phone now incase notifications about sex or babies pop up 😂😂

We really will! Yeah it was quick, hopefully the next few months are lucky for us 🤞🏼🤍

@Angelselevenx Yes exactly! I’m glad AF came as it’s more or less a fresh start again isn’t it, but I’ll have to keep on top of these ovulation tests to make sure we’re not missing it!

Oh bless you! I was the same, I bled for probably around 10 days too, although it was only the first couple of days that was really heavy. But then after that, I was spotting brown on and off up until I got my negatives, then literally had about a week and then bloody AF came, so I feel like all I’ve done last month is bleed 🙃

Hahah! That’s a good idea though, I might sort an actual folder out now. If anyone went through our phones, they’d think we’re crazy 😂

I will keep my fingers and toes crossed for you 💗 You’ll have to update on here!

@DHB exactly that! Yeah just do them daily and track them when it's getting to around the time of ovulation, do them a few times a day. When you hit peak (the test line will be darker than the control line) I think they say you ovulate 12-36 hours after that!

That's good it wasn't too heavy the whole way through mine was spotting to start with and then the heavy started afterwards. I feel you 🤣 how long are your periods normally?

Honestly they would 🤣 the things we do! Are you taking any prenatal vitamins?

You too lovely! There's a TTC 2024 babies thread, I'll tag you in it and you can join there to. There's loads of support and we're all going through the same journey 🤍

Ah perfect thank you so much!!! I might have to get a few more packs though, I only got 10…tests not packs haha!

Oh thats still not too bad though, I read some people bleeding for weeks and weeks and weeks on here!! So we’ve come off lightly really. My periods are usually light to medium, and normally 4 days with the occasional lingering 5th day sometimes for good measure 😂 I’m hoping that will still be the same, I’m day 3 at the moment!

No I’m not oops! I’ve got some folic acid with the test order I need to collect tomorrow though. Other that that, I just take normal probiotics and vitamins in general.

Ah I’ve got the tag thank you!! X

@DHB eBay!! You can pick up so many for so cheap.

Yeah I agree, my bleeding stopped today finally! 10 days it lasted but not sure whether to take the first day of spotting as CD1 (I was still technically pregnant) or the day of heavy bleeding as CD1 which would make me CD5.

Folic acid is good! I signed up to vitl and get my vitamins through them, saves me trying to suss everything out as it's so confusing 🤣

@Angelselevenx Ah I didn’t think of eBay!! I’ll have to check that out :)

I’m the same, I don’t know when to actually start my CD from! My period was pretty much gone yesterday morning but came back red again during the afternoon, but by evening it was back to non existent so we DTD anyway 😂 and so it starts!

@DHB I know! Urgh how annoying it came back but I'm the same as you - my bleeding stopper yesterday to so we also DTD 🤞🏼

@Angelselevenx So annoying, hopefully it’s on its way out, it’s not as heavy when it is coming back so fingers crossed.

Haha yay! Never too early to start DTD 😌

@DHB my periods are normally 8 days so 10 days felt like an absolute life time 🤣 I've had no bleeding today though so fully stopped! Taken my LH this morning and it's dropped really low again which is a good sign and my BBT is stable so hopefully should see a good drop with that around ovulation date! 10 days to go 🤞🏼. Hope you're doing okay!

@Angelselevenx 8 days?! Cor blimey! I shouldn’t be moaning about my 3-4 dayers should I 😂

Oooo yay that’s exciting!!! This month will go so slow 😩

Ladies, quick question! I know all results that aren’t as dark or darker than the control are positive, but yesterday mine was faint but visible, and today it’s absolutely non existent, does this mean anything at all?

@DHB normal for it to go up and down lovely, I've had similar with mine 😊 xx