How do I know when I ovulate?

[needacupoftea]

TTC baby number 2 and no luck for the past 8 months. Upsetting as it happened within 2 months the first time around. I keep reading other comments about people knowing when they ovulate - how do you know this stuff?! Did I miss out at school?

Cant say as I learnt much at school about signs of ovulation (apart from standard this is the cycle you ovulate so many days from period) looked into it more when considering TTC

They probably do not know at all when they ovulate; "signs" can be misleading.

What are your periods like?. If they are regular in nature generally speaking you are more likely to be ovulating regularly but even normally fertile women have the occasional anovulatory cycle. If periods are irregular it is less likely.

If your periods have changed in nature or are irregular it is better to seek medical advice sooner rather than later. Both of you should be tested at the same time.

Ovulation is not an exact science and a woman can ovulate earlier, later or not at all in ANY given cycle. It certainly is not always the 14th day!!.

If you are over 35 and have been ttc for six months plus without success then a visit to the GP is in order.

There are basically 3 signs - a temperature shift, cervical fluid changes and cervix shape. The first two are the easiest to work out. I highly recommend "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" which I've mentioned in a few previous posts and honestly I didn't write it ;-) but it worked really well for me (DS is 5) and am now TTC #2. At least I know I'm not OV at the moment so I don't wonder why I'm not C!