BBT....how does that go then??

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Hey ladies....so Im def out for this month as AF showed up this morning in a rather hostile mood so......

Ive decided to keep on with the Ov sticks again, but also try BBT'ing....

So whos doing it.....?
How does it work?
And is it any good??

Thanks ladies xxx

 

[Bead]

Good question Wilma! Wondering the same thing here... but then on the other hand worry that I'm getting too obsessed.... what to do!?? Xx

 

[Sam's Mum]

I'm so sorry ...all your symptoms and tests seemed so promising last month

Temping has always worked really well for me, as well as opks. You take your temperature at the same time every morning, preferably after 3 or more hours of uninterrupted sleep and before doing anything else (talking, drinking, getting up...) and record your temps on a chart - Fertility Friend is a great site for charting, and you can also mark any symptoms, opk test results, illness etc that might affect your temp on it, and it predicts your most likely ovulation day. You should see a rise in temperature just after ovulation, and your temperature will remain higher for the rest of the month (or longer if AF doesn't arrive).

Obviously seeing a rise in temp after ovulation doesn't sound particularly useful on the first month, but used in combination with opks it's great, as a positive opk should be followed by a sustained temperature rise if the LH surge resulted in ovulation (it doesn't always). It's also great for predicting when you will ovulate in future cycles once you can match up days of ovulation to changes in cervical mucus etc.

It's best to use a BBT thermometer that gives your temperature to 2 decimal places rather than just one, as changes in temperature can be quite small. I really would recommend it though!

Good luck

 

[Annie050408]

^^ agree with all of that.

I did bbt during my first month ttc and found it an excellent method because it shows you fairly clearly what your body is doing. I was fairly confident i was pregnant when my temps stayed high and didn't show signs of dropping down to pre-ovulation temps.

Would also recommend fertility friend.

Good luck! xx

 

[Sam's Mum]

Good question Wilma! Wondering the same thing here... but then on the other hand worry that I'm getting too obsessed.... what to do!?? Xx

It's hard not to get too obsessed isn't it?! You can always try it out for a couple of months to get an idea of what your body is doing when during your cycles, then relax a bit once you know more accurately when your most fertile time is likely to be

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Hey ladies thanks for all that sound advice....but ive got another question and I know it sounds dumb but I dont know the answer so here goes.....when do I start taking my temps given that AF is here now? Thanks ladies xx

 

[Sam's Mum]

Now (or any time soon) would be good They can be a bit erratic during AF but it's good to get an idea of what your pre-ovulation temps are like so that a temperature shift is more obvious. If you join fertility friend it asks you what date your cycle started and it doesn't matter if you miss a few

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Ah fab thanks SM....Ive bought a BBT thermometer and Im armed with my pen and paper on bedside cabinet too lol!
One thing concerns me a little but hopefully wont matter....as I have ME I sometimes sleep in excess of 12-14 hours....will that matter or do I still just take temp when I wake up before moving out of bed?

Oh and another Q sorry! As I started spotting from Fri albeit light, do I calss af started on fri or today when bleeding became very heavy? xx

 

[Sam's Mum]

I'd count your first day of heavy bleeding as CD1, and just take your temp when you wake up but it's best if you can do it at roughly the same time every day as your temp will vary throughout the day x

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Ok...thanks for that mamfy I will get cracking with the fertile friend account too...god talk about obsessing lol I just think with my age etc every month counts and I havent really got time to hang about iykwim lol!!
Right well I think I know what Im doing but will ask if I need anymore info...so did you get preg using this method? x

 

[Sam's Mum]

With Sam I was charting my cycles but we were told we'd be very likely to need IVF, so once I knew what my body was doing each month I stopped temping etc. as I knew when I was ovulating but didn't think it mattered much, even though we were still trying (I have one completely blocked tube and one partially blocked due to peritonitis when my appendix burst years ago). When we started TTC with Toby I started charting straight away - thinking it could take years - and somehow it only took 3 months! It's really encouraging when you see a temperature shift after a positive opk and you know that all the ing was timed perfectly to give you every possible chance

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Ah wow thats fantastic.....can I ask did you end up having IVF? I was told in 99 that if I ever tried again I would prob need IVF due to severe endometriosis as I prob only had around a 2% chance getting preg unaided....hence the Marine coil in for over 10 years....but then another Dr said theres no way they could tell me back then what my chances of concieving naturally were....and obviously as this is the only time ive TTC since getting preg withmy daughter 17years ago I have no idea if I will encounter probs or not....

In def excited to be in the running again this month as altho upset at no BFP its still a great buzz actually TTC isnt it! xx

 

[Sam's Mum]

I know what you mean about that buzz! We didn't need IVF - we'd been trying to find the best time to go back to my specialist about it (timing it around new jobs etc.) when I found out I was pregnant with Sam. It's only thanks to my wonderful specialist who decided half way through my surgery to remove one of my tubes - I was in lots of pain and the tube and my ovary were surrounded by so much scar tissue - that he shouldn't do it as it was my only slight chance to conceive naturally

Fingers crossed for you for this month I have a good friend who had severe endometriosis who has just had her second baby - did you find that your symptoms improved at all after your first pregnancy? x

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Oh my goodness SM thats awful....wow your very lucky you managed to concieve tho thats amazing.....

Your friends onto her 2nd...well thats good to hear lol!!

Well I had always had hprrendous AG from them starting at 11....very heavy lots of passing out and time off school etc...then had dd at 22 and things got a bit worse...went on pill, and then in 98 I was in london for weekend and literally as got to hotel I collapsed with what I would only describe as end stage labour pains....horrendously painfull....cut a long story short had emergency op and told the pain on that occasion was a Chocolate cyst on my ovary and that I also had sever endo....had another two ops to cut away the scar tissue and then a 3rd using laser surgery....then went onto meds, then had Zoladex implants for 12 months, then last strw before hysterectomy was Marina...and that was great....so kept it in and had no periods or problems to speak of for over ten years! Then we eventually decided we wanted another child about 3 years ago .... so we went down the adoption route as I had eclampsia with DD and tbh I was so scared of going through all that again....but then I became ill quite quickly so we had to put the adoption on the back burner for a while....then about a year ago we decided we would try adoption again....got accepted and took things from there....then decided after seeing our GP and my consultants over the last 6 months that as long as they thought it was safe and I was ok to, we would TTC...so here we are!! Adoption isnt ruled out for us tho but as that takes a long time to go through the process we decided to go for it....and see if we get through panel and get accepted or if we concieve naturally! xx

 

[Sam's Mum]

Oh that sounde terrible with the endometriosis - so glad you found something that gelped to give you that chance to TTC again.

Wonderful news on being accepted for adoption though! Fingers crossed both for that and the TTC, and let us know if you have any other questions on the temping etc - I think it's a fantastic way of giving yourself as much chance of possible of conceiving each month x

 

[Rosie's Mummy]

Oh Wilma, Ive been reading this and have loads of admiration for you - and Sam's Mum - what a journey!

I will be following your story and I wish you loads and loads of xx

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Thanks SM.....yes its all very exciting isnt it....mind what I would give to have my Marina back in and no AF!!! lol Ha will hopefully all be worth it tho!

Yeah ideally we would love for both to happen but will be happy with just one...for the time being lol! We always wanted alarger family (im one of 10) but its just never happend so although were a little older, its never too late....hopefully!

Temping well I did it this morning and will be watching closely for changes....and no doubt will be asking lots of silly questions too.....so sorry in advance! lol but thanks!

Ahh thanks RM.....I just hope it all happens and doesnt take too long....I already feel a bit cheated with not having any more children earlier but tbh life just didnt allow.....I had two career break to look after my mam and my dad respectivly when they were teminally ill which was between 98 and 2006 and then I got ill in 07 so there literally was never a good time until now...so I just pray that the powers that be allow us to have another little one either way.....I may not have my house fillied with as many as I had dreamt of as a young mother but any more is a bonus! lol xxx

xxx

 

[SmallPurpleCat]

Awww - Wilma - what a story. Thanks for sharing it with us. You really are so strong!! I really hope this all works out for you.

SPC xx

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Thanks SPC....I hope so too....just hope it doesnt take too long for us as David and I arnt getting any younger lol!! Ha hes big 40 on the 26th....still young enough to parent for sure....but I want a brood!!! lol hee hee xxx

 

[WILMAFLINSTONE]

Me again.....what is the normal temp range? Or is it defferent for everyone? I did it this morning and it was 98.6?? Means nothing to me....doh lol!

And what happens at Ovulation? I get a dip or a spike?
Also what happens if I get pregnant? Does it stay consistently high? Thanks x