If you hate OPK's and you know it - clap your hands.

[hippychick66]

For the last 3 months I have failed to get a go ahead from any make of OPK stick.

I have loads of signs of Ov, the right kind of CM, tingly boobs and Ov pains on about day 16 - but I like to get a + just to re-assure me.

For the first couple of months I was ttc I did get a smiley face but now nothing for the last 3 months.

The really annoying thing is that I went for a scan on Friday and he told me that I had a large follicle on the right and some small ones on the left and he expected me to Ov very soon. I couldn't just take that info and go with it though - oh no I still have to POAS twice a day ever since and work myself up into a stress-ball cos I am not getting a smiley face.

Zita West at the fertility show said we should just do it every 3 days and stop stressing about whether we're ov'ing. Why can't I just do that???

I want to trust my body but I can't stop peeing on the stick as well. Is it possible to have very low levels of whatever that hormone is so that it's possible that some women just don't get a + on those bloody sticks???

I hate them
CLAP CLAP

Just me clapping then I guess!!!!

Hippy You are not alone.

Me too. They're crap!

I faffed about with them for months trying to conceive DS and finally conceived when I ditched them, stopped drinking grapefruit juice, quit counting days, threw away the preseed and generally tried not to think about it all.

Having said all that I'm now TTC DC2 and haven't been able to stop myself using OPKs. I've run out now and am determined to not get anymore. ,,

I'm with Zita. Going to try to chill, enjoy the trying and see what happens. Not easy I know but your scan sounds very positive. Much more scientific than a daft stick anyway!

Good luck!

thanks mintchoc - good luck to you too.

I'm on day 17 now and pretty sure all the important stuff is over - just the sitting back and waiting bit to do now.

Note to self, remember to get on with the rest of your life during the 2ww

Hey Hippychick

Just like OPKs, the 2WW is also crap. Definitely worthwhile trying to find interesting and exciting things to do. I find that hanging aroung the conception threads of Mumsnet helps to take my mind of it.

After all my words of wisdom yesterday I did a HPT this morning and of course BFN. Although I'm all out of OPKs, I've plenty of HPTs left.

Was feeling sorry for myself as I was convinved today was CD 27 and have ultra cheapo tests..... however when I counted back to last AF (using my fingers ), I'm actually only CD 23 (hurrah) and usually have 30+ day cycles.

I WILL resist testing again until at least CD 30 if AF doesn't rear her ugly head first

Repeat after me

I will not test
I will not test
I will not test

If I ever get to the point where AF is anything like late I just know I'm gonna be doing HPT's like a loony. So far my cycle has been shorter than it should be and I'm currently using progesterone to extend the Luteal Phase, so my period has always come way way before I even had a chance to get excited.

Good news that you got your dates wrong though - it means you're still in with a shot.

Try to resist, try to resist, try to resist .... oh sod it - who are we kidding!

Hi hippy [clap][clap][clap]

I got nothing on OPKs even when I could feel things afoot in my midriff. Then found out they were out of date (they would have been when I bought them, grrrr at Boots. Thing is you can't take back used sticks and ask for a refund, can you?). I then read about other people not getting positives because their pee was too diluted.

Now I drink like a fish (NON alcoholic, LOL) and there's no chance of me not going for a pee for four hours.

So I bought one of those clear blue monitors. It says I ovulate (woooooooo!). Someone told me that they are as accurate as GP's tests, which was reassuring (I don't work for them, honest )

It could have been that I didn't in previous months, I guess, but the midriff ache says otherwise.

Therefore, I conclude that OPK sticks are rubbish. For me, anyway.

Well done for getting a + on the monitor. Where did you buy - how much etc??? worth the dosh do you think??

I was gonna ask you on our usual thread but other people might look at this one cos they want to talk about this specific subject so thought I'd keep it on this one - d'you see what i mean???

Hi hippy it's a Clear Blue Fertility Monitor. I looked about a bit and bought it from Amazon. It isn't cheap - about £65 (but the full price is £100 )and you need to buy the sticks to pee on, which were about £12 for 20 (full price = £20 - you need half a pack a month, in theory).

I told myself that the price would work out if I made a bargain with myself not to buy OPKs and HPTs unless AF was late.

Of course, if I was up the duff this month it would be a complete waste of money, but I don't think I'd hold it against it.

There is a very sexy statistic - they took two groups of about 300 (?) women, one of which used the test and one which didn't. The +ves in the monitor group were 89% higher than the normals. At my age, this had me hopping for my debit card...

I have spent that much on bloody opk's already - arrgghh.

I have to decide now to either stop doing OPK's for good - oh god the temptation is so strong though. Or to go for one of those.

time for some research i guess.

So glad you got a + though, it must have been fab after all those opk sticks told you nothing doing.

I have been frantically googling whether my short luteal phase is somehow connected to no LH surge. Nothing to suggest it as far as I can see.

Oh for goodness sake Hippy - you saw the flippin follicle at the scan - SHUT UP WOMAN! (by the way am speaking to self there incase anyone thinks am being rude to Mabh! ).

Thing is, hippy you are ovulating - the scan's got to be more reliable than the ruddy sticks, hasn't it?

Is it worth temping? The reason I didn't go down that route is that I am something of an insomniac and I gather that wandering around half the night messes up the stats.

If anyone's lurking , think twice about those OPKs. They clearly don't work all the time, and they mess with your mind!

Hijack alert*

Hi Hippychick. Apologies for hijack, but just wondering whether the progesterone is working for you? I've got a 7-8 day luteal phase and, although I've finally got a gynae referral coming up in a few weeks' time, I decided to give natural progesterone cream a whirl this month (can't bear the thought of 'wasting' another month of beautifully timed BDing ). First day of the cream today. Just curious as to whether you're using the cream, or prescription progesterone, and how you've found it.

Thanks.