Time of day to use ovulation test - confused!

[Anonymous]

I'm using OPK's for the first time and I'm unsure of the best time of day to test. The instructions in the box of OPK's says to use first morning urine, but fertilityfriend.com says it's better to wait until early afternoon because LH surges in early morning and takes 4-6 hours to reach your urine. Any firsthand advice about which instructions I should follow?

[Anonymous]

I test in the morning and early evening. If it were easier at work I might test mid-morning and before bed. It's best to test twice a day.

[Anonymous]

Definitely later in the morning is better. I'd recommend 12pm and 6pm if you can do twice. If only once, then maybe 2pm.

[Anonymous]

I use FMU because that is the only way I can get a + OPK (I drink lots of water and have a really small bladder), but if you get a + with FMU you just have to know that you are getting results a day late (i.e., the surge started the day before) - so rather than expecting O 12-36 hours after your first + OPK, you have to imagine you have 0-24 hours.

[Anonymous]

I tested twice a day - FMU and right when I got home from work. I used the internet cheapies (wondfo from Amazon) which made it more affordable. I don't know why I'm talking in past tense, I'm about to start this all over again as soon as I get my period (after a miscarriage).

[Anonymous]

Thanks, everyone. The tests aren't as cut-and -dry as I would have hoped. The second line is sometimes visible, then it's not, then it is. It's quite questionable. Can anyone recommend a good brand? I'm using the CVS brand.

[Anonymous]

My doctor recommended the Clear Blue Easy sticks with the smiley faces.

[Anonymous]

OP, I used FMU (according to the box), and after several months of inconclusive results (weak lines, disappearing lines), I talked to my gyn. It turned out I wasn't really ovulating at all, and I had to go on Clomid. The first cycle after it went into effect, the two lines were very clear, even with FMU. I was pregnant on the cycle after that. Not saying that faint lines mean you're not ovulating, but it's something to check out if you're using it for several months and are not pregnant. FYI, I had also been on continuous BC to combat my endometriosis, so I was hyper-aware that it could take my body some time to "remember" to ovulate, hence my quick call to my gyn after 3 months of inconclusive readings.

[Anonymous]

I use the CVS brand as well (the box with 20 sticks). I always tested with FMU. The line would gradually get darker and darker until it was clearly at least as dark as the control line. I was also charting, and my temp would spike a day or so after I got the darkest line. I like the CVS ones because my cycle was always 5-7 weeks long and I had enough tests to get me through without worrying about running out.

[Anonymous]

I switched from CVS to Clear Blue Digital. They always suggest testing with FMU, but I stopped that once I figured out my pattern after a few months. Now I test in a four or five-day window at about 2:00 each day. My surge is very short, it turns out, so it's never reflected in FMU. Using BBTs, I now know that generally O the same day as the surge (many people on this site will tell you it's 24-36 hours after surge but that wasn't my case at all). I also realized that I was making a mistake by not knowing that I shouldn't continue to drink fluids during the four-hour window before testing! Once I actually paid attention to all the directions, it worked!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I used FMU (according to the box), and after several months of inconclusive results (weak lines, disappearing lines), I talked to my gyn. It turned out I wasn't really ovulating at all, and I had to go on Clomid. The first cycle after it went into effect, the two lines were very clear, even with FMU. I was pregnant on the cycle after that. Not saying that faint lines mean you're not ovulating, but it's something to check out if you're using it for several months and are not pregnant. FYI, I had also been on continuous BC to combat my endometriosis, so I was hyper-aware that it could take my body some time to "remember" to ovulate, hence my quick call to my gyn after 3 months of inconclusive readings.

OP here - wow, thanks for this post. I also just quit taking BCP continuously for endometriosis. This is my second cycle off the BCP and I know I ovulated the first month b/c I had all the signs (wasn't using OPK's yet though). But this month I haven't had any signs yet. Today is cycle day 15 for me, so maybe I'm just a late ovulater. However, I'll keep your advice in mind. It's hard because everyone is so different. For my first child, I had so much trouble with the BBT's. There was no pattern no matter how careful I was. I followed the directions to a T, but my temps were all over the place all month long. So I'm kind of solely relying on OPK's and they're turning out to be inconsistent as well. If no luck this cycle, maybe I should fork out the extra money and get an expensive digital one. Thanks everyone.