Temping Issues

[Broodzilla]

Any fellow tempers out there?

I've started temping this month, and my temp seems to be see-sawing quite considerably. I've already had 0.6 degrees between the highest and lowest recorded so far, and I'm only 4 days in. I gather that the "shift" can be anything from 0.2 degrees upwards, so I don't see how I'd pick it up when my temp is so up and down!

(For what it's worth, I've taken it at 6AM exactly each morning, before I've got out of bed or even moved... may well sleep with my mouth open, but am using an in-ear thermometer so that shouldn't matter.)

Do you all get as much variation as that?
I started temping as that was meant to be the sure fire way of knowing that you have OVed, now I'm thinking it is just a waste of time.

im temping this month too for the first time reg from the charts ive researched it does seem they can shift up and down quite a bit but you should see a bigger shift around the time of ovulation.

what do you mean by ineaqr thermometer? Is it not a bbt one your using|??

xx

oh i have also reg with fertility friend to monitor my temps, you may find that helpful
x

Firstly you should should ditch the ear thermometer. They are not accurate enough for charting. Instead get one of these which measure temps to 2 decimal places.

If you started charting at CD1 you may find that your temp is high for a couple of days or bounces around. This can be caused by residual progesterone which can make temps higher than a normal follicular phase. Also you need to look for general patterns over the whole cycle to work out what is going on. Looking at 4 temps in a row could be quite confusing.

I second Wishing's recommendation of using Fertilityfriend.com. You might also want to get a copy of "Taking Charge of your Fertility" out of the library as it contains tonnes of useful info.

HTH. If there is anything else, just ask. There are lots of us who temp around here.

Hi there,
Started temping again last month as TTC number 2, worked a treat last time (2 years ago), tracked it on fertility friend which is really really useful.
Am still BF DD who is just over 1, my temps seem very low and no clear shift - last time they were up and down but you could definitely see the shift each month if you looked at the graph as a whole. (I know I've only been doing it for just over a month so maybe I'm being impatient )
Does anyone know how BF affects basal body temp?

I have started temping this month too and am also confused. My temps were pretty consistent at 97.5 but last two have been 97.7. Have been getting pos OPKs for last 4 days but have done a bit of research on the brand and think they are notorious for false positives. Do you think a 0.2 rise is enough for ovulation? Am alreayd on CD22 of a normally 28/29 day cycle, although was INCREDIBLY stressed at start of cycle which could have pushed things back.
Broodzilla I think you are meant to do a mouth thermometer, I got one for 8.99 off accessdiagnostics. I panicked because I had a drink of (very cold) water about an hour before temping this morning. It's all so confusing isn't it? Also are you temping in F or C? I think F will show more accuracy.

Thanks for that londonlottie. It is my frst month temping and have had 2 last temps 0.2 higher than the rest of the month. The OPKs are Instalert and were v cheap for 25. About 3 quid i think?! I read somewhere online that they can give false positives which is reassuring as i have had positives the last 4 days.
I have ordered TCOYF off amazon so hopefully it will be here soon...

Just wanted to say thanks for the top tip londonlottie I shall definitly try buying persona test strips (have been forking out on the clearblue digital ones for a copuple of months now, ouch!)

I also echo seeing month one as a "test" month and reading TCOYF, it is really infomative and reassuring, answers most of my questions and given me lots to think about. When I look back at my first month it seems really irratic, I think it just takes you awhile to settle into it.

Thank you for all the answers!
I've just entered this mornings temp in fertility friend, and my chart looks like a V!!! So, CD1 was high, then it dipped and now it's high again. Who knows...

I went for the ear thermometer partly because I think I sleep with my mouth open but also because it's so quick - literally as quick as pushing a button.

In the leaflet it says that it's very accurate as it basically measures the temperature of the blood in your head...
I read on FF that some people who can't manage to get reliable readings end up temping "vaginally" but somehow, I prefer just sticking it in my ear.

Good point Katster, I am temping in C, perhaps should try F next month.

Maybe I'm just being impatient.

MrsHappy thanks for explaining about the residual prog, that would explain it. I'll just have to wait and see what happens over the next couple of weeks.

One more question - I'm about to get on a long haul flight towards the start of the 2ww. Is is worth trying to temp then as well (I've got 2 over night flights) or should I stop once FF tells me I've OVed?

Broodzilla I really do think you should get rid of the ear thermometer. Hospitals don't use them for checking fevers because they are not that accurate (and can give a reading that is too low) so I certainly would not use one for charting. Proper basal body thermometers do generally take longer to get your temp - mine takes 5 minutes although there are faster ones - but the results are more accurate and better for charting. My temps often start out high at the beginning of a cycle and as long as they go down by about CD4 I figure that is fine.

Katster for me 0.2 degrees C counts as a thermal shift, but ideally you need three high temps in a row to confirm ovulation (since that is enough to rule out one off high temps). I second Lottie's advice re viewing the first month as a trial run. Charting isn't an instant fix-all but will help you get to know your body over time (and I even credit it with saving my life once, so think it is really great).

Betty Fertility Friend contains some advice on charting while breastfeeding. It does look like erratic temps might happen. Also, when I was breastfeeding my DD even after my periods returned they were a bit all over the place and I did not ovulate that regularly. Maybe yours are just a bit messy at the moment...

(Lottie I didn't realise that about the persona sticks. How fabulous. I reckon you've saved me a fortune with that little gem. )