Ovulation kits, charts, ... numbers.. help?

[GetExcitedAndMakeThings]

I fell pregnant pretty quick with DD and trying for baby numero 2 but its not happening, the doctor told me ovulation kits are worth a try since my periods are pretty weird, and I am rubbish with numbers and will find it hard to use these charts that you do yourself.. Has anyone found a peticular chart, kit, monitor to be very useful and helpful in the whole conceiving part? We still have a few months to go before the doctor will test our fertility. Any input appreciated :)

I can try and give you the benefit of my (almost) two years of TTC, but sure others will be along with different experiences/views.

First, if you haven't already, it's worth reading Toni Weschler's book 'Taking Control of Your Fertility' which explains charting, cervical mucus and all that 'technical' TTC stuff really well. She also has downloadable chart software that goes with the book that I found easier to use than paper charts as it does a lot of stuff automatically. I charted for about a year but it didn't work for me, I realised only after doing a pharmacy ovulation test that my temperature rises slowly and doesn't conform to the usual 'rules', so I was actually ovulating a few days earlier than I thought, meaning for months DH and I were missing my most fertile days and aiming too late

The thing that seemed to work for us eventually (and for several friends who put me onto it) was the Clear Blue Fertility Monitor (known on the conception boards as the CBFM - lots of threads about it on there if you do a search). It tells you which days of the month you need to pee on the stick that measures your LH levels, and after a month it 'learns' your cycle and gives you a really clear indication of your most fertile days. It is expensive (about £80 for the monitor and then £20 for two month's worth of sticks) and I was initially sceptical, but all I can say is I got pregnant twice in quick succession using it after not much luck for 18 months.

Good luck and hope that helps!

My friend used the First Response Ovulation test kits and fell pregnant first time. They cost around £20 a box and come with a pregnancy test.

I was charting & doing OPK's for 8 months before I got my BFP!
I used the Clearblue Digital ones, which show the smiley face if you are just about to ovulate. They are quite pricey (£11 for 7 from Amazon) but I found I never got a strong line on the cheaper ones & was confused as to whether they were showing a positive result or not. I always got a smiley face with the digital ones & it helped me to time the SWI perfectly - although it still took 8 months though!
Good Luck

I found Fertility Friend to be quite a useful resource - it has masses of free info that covers what your body should be doing and what signs that should generate, and some of the ways things can be slightly less expected. They also allow you free access to charting software and other areas of the site. Membership gives you more options and isn't extortionate. The software can cope with whatever info you choose to collect (temperature, mucus, ovulation kits, plus loads of softer indicators like sore boobs and mood).

I used Basal Body Temperature charting (through FF) to help conceive DD1. I tried to do the same afterwards, but found my sleep was too erratic to get a clear pattern. So shifted to cheap Ovulation Predictor Kits (I found www.accessdiagnostics.co.uk did a good price). From the charting I had a pretty good idea of when I expected to ovulate, and so was using the OPK's as confirmation - they weren't the clearest things, but then I drink a lot of water through the day so wondered if everything was too dilute to get a strong +ve . From my experience the key was to try and be consistent about timing (IIRC they recommend early afternoon as the hormone surge tends to be a daytime thing that doesn't last long) and start way before you expect ovulation so you're confident you can recognise a -ve.