Looking for advice from all of your pregnant moms

[Anonymous]

I figured posting on this board would be helpful since many of you were successful in conceiving. We recently started ttc but are eager to maximize our chances. I spent the first two months trying to pay close attention to my cervical mucus but just started using opk. Please let me know if you found opk to be reliable and if so were they in line with your cm? I don't produce much cm but according to my cm this month I would have already ovulated but the opk shows an LH surge now indicating that I haven't ovulated yet or am about to. Any advice about relying on opk and/or cervical mucus clues would be appreciated. I want to make sure that we're focusing our energy and effort on the right days! Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Honestly, I never had much luck with figuring out my cm and it never seemed like I had very much of it. but I got pregnant on my second month of using opks so for me they were more reliable than anything else. If you got a positive opk than the time to focus your energy is right now! good luck. you may want to also check out toni weschler's book, I only read summaries on the internet (and maybe that is why I could not figure out the cm thing) but it is supposedly the best source for determining your ovulation cues.

[Anonymous]

I found morning temperature to be a much more accurate way to judge than cm. You can combine it with OPK as well and test a lot less often. Online sites like Fertility Friend will let you input your morning temp, after a short tutorial, and do the calculation for you if you want to skip reading the book ("Taking Control of Your Fertility").

[Anonymous]

I had terrific luck with OPK - I tried calculating my ovulation date based on cycle length and failed miserably. Turns out I ovulated a good 8 days later than expected. For the five previous months, by the time we got that far in my cycle i was tired of daily sex! I got pregnant the first month using the clearblue easy OPK.

My doc suggested going at it every other day from cycle days 12-24; that way we didn't get burned out and enjoyed it more. that's what we did the month we conceived (I didn't rely entirely on the OPK; i wasn't convinced i'd get a positive reading.)

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

The month I conceived I used the OPK sticks every day, and got a negative result every time so assumed I never ovulated. I have two friends who had the same experience -- OPKs never predicted ovulation, and they got pregnant anyway. So I consider them a waste of money (and the clear blue easy can be expensive!!)

I also found CM really tricky-- seemed so difficult to tell how to "classify it."

I found temperature charting to be really useful. Once I figured out about when I ovulated, we would have sex every day during the 10 day period around when I expected to O.

[Anonymous]

PP here -- I meant to say every other day. Sex every day for 10 days was, embarassingly, too much for us, and we got really tired. Anyway, every other day is supposed to be just fine.

[cmkeough]

My last pregnancy (DD is 26 months old) we got very lucky and nailed it on the first try based on counting days from my menstral cycle. This time around (I'm currently 36 weeks) we tried for a two or three (my memory is failing me) months using the ovulation sticks and having a lot of sex around the time I would have been ovulating. No such luck! Oddly enough I got pregnant when I stopped doing the sticks/strips and we had sex and I thought, I don't think I can get pregnant now. Well, wouldn't you know it I did! About 5.5 weeks after conceiving I was wondering why I could smell everything and thought, hmmm....let me try a pregnancy test. Came down the stairs (in shock) and told my husband "Uh, I'm pregnant". His response "How did that happen?"

So I think the moral of the story is it's different for all of us. Sometimes there's no planning/predicting when it will happen.

Best of luck though!
CK

[Anonymous]

It's my first pregnancy at 35. I used OPKs but switched to the Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor for Month 4 - the first month with the monitor we conceived. We also used Pre-Seed. (If you go to their website you can see where it's available in the area.)

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

I also recommend the Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor if you can afford it, and I liked also tracking temps to verify the data was right.

[Anonymous]

If you're cheap (like me), every other day works like a charm...

[Anonymous]

Highly recommend charting and preseed.

[Anonymous]

I conceived #1 on my first month of trying at 33. Just conceived #2, second month of trying, at 35.

I think the OPKs help, but honestly, I think the best advice is to have sex every day in the five or six days you suspect you're most fertile. And then have sex every 3 or 4 days the rest of the month, to keep the sperm fresh and healthy.

[Anonymous]

I just wanted to put in a quick word for not giving up on tracking your CM & temping--it might take a few months to recognize the different types of CM and to see your own unique pattern. It took me 4 or 5 cycles of charting but eventually I could tell just from my chart when I was about to ovulate. I am blessed with a very regular cycle though, and def. know that's not the case for everyone.

Toni Weschler's book is an excellent reference and has some good pictures (if you aren't queasy) that might help you id your CM and make sense of your particular pattern.

I know you hope to be pregnant by 4 or 5 months from now , but just in case, it might not hurt to keep charting. Not saying you shouldn't also use an OPK, but more info/inputs you have, the more you can maximize your chances. Of course it's also a good idea to balance all the science with trying to just relax and let it happen...easier said than done for me.

I'll also say that it was the month we switched from every day to every other day (actually ever 36 hours) during peak time that we finally got pregnant...

[Anonymous]

charting, pre-seed, fertility friend.

i was never able to catch a positive opk...but i know they work for many people. clearly i was ovulating because i'm now 4 months pregnant. GOOD LUCK!!!

[Anonymous]

I would make sure that you're having sex for a longer window than 5-6 days, especially if you're predicting ovulation by counting back from the last day of your menstrual cycle. We did that for months and had no luck; every other day for two weeks worked for us the first time we did that. Turns out we missed ovulation completely when we stuck to 5-6 days.

Clearblue Easy sticks are available at costco much cheaper than anywhere else. Depending on time of day you test, you may not catch the hormone surge (I have heard that for some people it lasts only a few hours!). I tried doing it in the morning, around 8 , and then in the evening, around 6. I have heard that midday is better but didn't feel like peeing and waiting 3 minutes for a result in an office bathroom.

So, I'd say try every other day for 2 weeks, and then try the OPK if that doesn't work for you after a few months. Good luck!