Some basic questions about TTC

[PumpkinPatty]

I'm TTC baby number 2 at the moment. I've not done this before (DD wasn't planned) so I'm not sure of some of the basics.

I want to find out when I am ovulating - but I don't want to do the temperature thing ot test thing as I am not organised enough. So I'm trying to take note of my cervical mucus, as I read on here that when it becomes like egg white you are fertile. So here are my questions:

How long / how many days do you have ewcm for? I think I had it for 3 or 4 days last month, does this seem about right?
Also when do you ovulate in relation to ewcm-is it when it appears, or just after? So would I have ovulated on 1st day of ewcm, or last day, or after this?

TIA

HI, it's been a few years since I was TTC, but yes ewcm for 3-4 days sounds quite normal. You usually ovulate just after it appears, but you should aim to have sex throughout the time you have ewcm. (When I say throughout, I don't mean continuously of course, but every day.)

EWCM dries up pretty promptly after ovulation, so when it has gone that means you have ovulated. The number of days of EWCM varies from woman to woman, and often decreases with age. I get patches of it either side of ovulation and get as many as 6 continuous days of it in the run up to ov, but there is usually one day when it absolutely unmissable and that is usually a day or two before ov.

OK, thank you!
I have another question -

It would seem from my EWCM that I ovulate quite late in my cycle. My cycle is normally 31 days (can be up to 33 days), but I had EWCM on days 20 - 23 last month. So I presume I ovulated on day 22 or 23. Is this normal?

Hm, that's a bit more difficult.
It is entirely normal to ovulate after day 14 (what they taught us at school about that is so utterly wrong).
If you are ovulating on day 23, for example, that would give you at most 10 days in which a fertilised egg could implant before your period, which does seem a bit short in my non-expert opinion. BUT it is possible to get EWCM at different times in your cycle (including after ovulation) and so I would seriously caution against trying to pinpoint ov exactly based on EWCM alone.

Since you already have a child who you conceived easily and since there is no reason to think you will have any problem this time around why don't you just try having sex every 2-3 days through your cycle and a little bit more if you see EWCM?

The point of the EWCM is to assist in keeping sperm alive for the egg. If you see EWCM and have sex, there is a fair chance that the sperm will be able to get into position for when the egg arrives. And you ideally want to be having sex in the couple of days before ov and until the EWCM dries up. So basically, if you see EWCM and have sex you may well be timing things right.

Thanks for your advice Mrs Happy.

My cycles seem to have got a lot more irregular since having DD, especially recently - and this makes it harder to work out when I'm ovulating. They're usually 31 days, but have been 33 days and this month 36 days and counting...possibly because I ovulated late (I'm not pregnant BTW).
Sex every 2/3 days would probably be best.

I agree with Mrs Happy. I think you need 9-10 days after ovulation before your period starts - any less and you might not have built up enough of whatever hormone it is (progesterone?) to sustain a pregnancy. But given that you have quite a long cycle, and that it is a bit irregular, I would go with sex every couple of days and a relaxed attitude.

It is amazing how many women believe/are told that they ovulate on day 14. I conceived dd on day 9 and have ovulated as early as day 6.

Hi Pumpkin Patty

"Fertility awareness", which is what we are talking about here, is what I do professionally, and I can confirm that you have had v good advice from Mrs Happy and Uncle Hester. It is indeed perfectly possible to have ovulated as late as day 23 and as long as you have 10 days between then and your period starting it is possible to get pregnant. It's also possible to get pregnant with fewer days than that but much more difficult so I would suggest that if you have sex on as many of your EWCM days as poss for 3/4 months and are still not pg, get this checked out. So often women's cycles change after their first baby and things are just different than they were 1st time round. Re your irregular cycles you might find that some acupuncture or herbs (from a qualified herbalist) would help to regulate them and get you ovulating earlier in your cycle which would be desirable.

HTH - good luck!

Thanks for your advice ilovemcdreamy.

My periods have only really been irregular since I started TTC. When my periods came back after having DD I had regular 31 day cycles for a few months and could usually predict when my period would start to the hour!
But then I started TTC, and I've had a few irregular ones of 33 and this one which is now 37 days and counting....

Is it normal for your cycles to go a bit wonky when TTC?

I'm not sure about acupuncture or herbs just yet as I'm sure that it's TTC that's messing my cycles up ATM for some bizzare reason.

ilovemcdreamy - I too have really irregular cycles - anywhere from 28-42 days. I already have two children so know I can conceive but I am really interested in the herbs that you mention to regulate the cycle. Is there anything in particular I should be asking for when i go to the shop?

I didn't know you were a FAM person ilovemcdreamy. I really rate FAM and credit it with basically saving my life by helping me to tell firstly that I was pregnant (when HPTs and my "period" sugested otherwise) and secondly that there was something wrong with my pregnancy (because my temps were not as high as they should have been) which turned out to be ectopic. I don't think the EPAU staff could quite believe it when I turned up telling them something was wrong with no pain and no symptoms!

LJ29 - if you want to try herbs you should probably speak to a qualified herbalist. I know it's tempting to think "oh it's only herbs" but they can be pretty potent! You might also want to Google agnus castus which some people take to help regulate cycles and also I find evening primrose oil (a fairly low dose in my case) is helpful.