Using OPK but not detecting ovulation

[Anonymous]

This is the first time I have used OPK's and I have never gotten a positive reading. I just had my first cycle on 11/13 after having a stillborn on 9/30. I was told to use OPK's because I have to start blood thinning medication after ovulation. I used them for about 2 weeks and just never had a positive reading. The first few days I was only testing once a day but then closer to when I thought I would ovulate I used them twice a day. Is there still a chance I missed the LH surge, or could I just not have ovulated? I thought you always ovulated if you were getting your period. We never had a problem getting pregnant before, so I'm new to this whole charting and OPK thing.

[Anonymous]

Have you looked at the thread re timing of OPKs? There are some helpful hints there. Are you testing after 2 hours of holding your urine? Limiting fluids?

I'm sorry for your loss.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for your response. Yes, I did look there before posting but am not asking the same question about timing. I was wondering if there were others who used OPK's and did not get a positive reading but were still ovulating. I'm not sure if I'm ovulating and not catching it using the OPK's or if I didn't ovulate this cycle.

[Anonymous]

OP, so sorry for your loss. If your question is whether it's possible to have your period but not ovulate, the answer is yes. Depending on how much of a rush you're in, you could experiment with timing and the strips for a month (or a few) to see if you're just not catching the surge. If you're still not getting anything, I'd go to an RE (or perhaps, just your ob/gyn, but RE better) for bloodwork. Good luck to you.

[Anonymous]

there are many possible reasons! first of all - the LH surge is really brief, and you need to test 2x day, once in late morning after 11 am or so, once in the evening, at least 6 hrs apart, to be absolutely sure that you didn't miss it. and then, keep testing even after cycle day 15... keep testing, you might be ovulating late. finally, the lh surge is showing the signal for ovulation, but it's not a proof that the egg is actually released (rare, but happens)

[Anonymous]

This happened to me - I was tracking on OPK, but it never got dark enough. I thought I didn't ovulate, but got bloodwork done (I'm starting fertility treatment), and it turns out that I HAD ovulated and it just never registered. The OPK did get darker though, just not as dark as the control line. Did that happen at all? Also, are you charting with your temperature? That would tell you if you had ovulated.

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[Anonymous]

The line did get darker but not as dark as the control line. I hadn't been tracking my temp but will start next cycle. Thank you all for your responses.

[Anonymous]

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's also possible that during your first post-partum cycle you didn't ovulate but still got a period (that happened to me). Agree with tracking temps because that will tell you definitively that you have ovulated.

[Anonymous]

I could never get the OPKs to work for me either. Might have been a timing issue but who knows. I ordered this saliva test kit - it's like a microscope that you spit onto a disc and use to see if your estrogen levels have risen (indicating ovulation). the brand I used was maybemom or something like that.

[Anonymous]

" I ordered this saliva test kit"

Hum - how accurate is that?

[Anonymous]

http://www.maybemom.com/

check out the reviews on amazon too. like everything, works for some people but not others. for me OPKs never worked AND I have super irregular periods (30-60 days), so paying $$$ each month for tests and then trying to guess the days to take them on wasn't great (and I was not great about doing the temp thing either). Whereas this is just a one time purchase and is reusable. All I know is that last month was the first I used the saliva test and I got a BFP over the weekend. I definitely identified a two week period when I thought it was most likely and just spit onto the little slide in the mid-afternoon every day until I started seeing the pattern. DH and I then had sex every day or every other day while the pattern was there. Who knows? Sounds crazy I know but so much better than seeing that empty circle on the OPKs. drove me nuts.

Just read the directions carefully. You really can't eat or drink for 2-3 hrs before doing it. So sometime mid afternoon, long enough after lunch, worked for me.

[Anonymous]

Read Taking Charge of Your Fertility. It will really help you figure things out.

It will help you realize when you are about to ovulate. You can also temp as well. Basically, before ovulation your temp will typically be one range of temp, but after ovulation your temp will be slightly higher. This only helps to CONFIRM ovulation.

When you are about to ovulate you typically have Egg white cervical mucous.