Kristin, my EPO softgels are 500mg each. I've read that your dose for cm should be 1500-3000 mg per day. I've been taking one softgel 3 times a day and then at the middle dose, once in a while, I'd throw in an extra one. So I've been taking 1500-2000 mg a day. I'm going to continue taking it until I know ovulation is over...like a typical post-O temp. I read an article written by the head of ob/gyn (who specializes in high risk pregnancies) at the University of Pennsylvania, which is one of the most well-respected medical programs and hospitals we have here. I'm following her advice for now. I'm not taking a major prenatal vitamin...just supplementing with particular things (folic acid, some Bs, a teeny bit of iron, and some calcium). ↑
I had a positive OPK this afternoon. I didn't want to go into all of this earlier, but there's actually some confusion because I was trying a couple of different brands...just to see...and the first POSSIBLE positive...which I don't really think counted...was last night. Anyway, that led me to the internet today and I found this on a reviews website: Recently, Consumer Reports tested ovulation prediction kits using urine samples spiked with LH.[13] (At peak, LH surges are typically less than 22 to 100 mIU/mL.) The organization followed labeling directions for the products and tested samples using 11 brands, slowly increasing the amounts of LH until the tests showed a positive response. Researchers read the results after the manufacturers' suggested reading time (eg, one to five minutes) and again after the maximal allowed reading time (eg, 10 to 60 minutes). The results were surprising. Many products were unable to detect LH in concentrations that would meet their labeling claims of 99% clinical accuracy. Only one, the ClearPlan Easy Ovulation Test Pack (since renamed the ClearBlue Easy Ovulation Test Pack) detected LH in concentrations as low as 22 mIU/mL. The second most sensitive test, the ClearPlan Easy Fertility Monitor, was sensitive only as low as 36 mIU/mL. Among the least sensitive tests were the First Response Pregnancy Planning Kit, which detected only 91 mIU/mL, and the Answer Quick & Simple One-Step Ovulation test. Only one out of six Answer kits detected 91 mIU/mL, making it the worst choice. With hope, manufacturers of these kits will increase the sensitivity of their products. Until updated information on the clinical accuracy of these products is available, pharmacists should recommend the products that performed best in independent testing. ++++Interesting, huh? I'm shocked that there's that much disparity in the darn things. Remember the issues I had last month with the OPKs? Well, both types of test strips I used last month were Answer brand. The "tracker" and the "one step." NO WONDER the "one step" one never showed a positive! Holy cow!!! They're the WORST choice! I wonder where the tracker stacks up? Anyway, I purchased a membership to Consumer Reports a while ago. I'm going to go to their website and see if I can find the info on OPKs. ↑
Found it. A problem though is that it's from 2003, so manufacturers may have changed their products andConsumer Reports didn't test a lot of the brands that we use today. There was only one that was given an "excellent" rating in their tests - the ClearBlue Easy test. The only "very good" was the the ClearBlue Easy Fertility Monitor. There were a bunch of "goods" - in order: CVS, Eckerd, Iverness (Accu Clear), Rite Aid, Target, and Walgreen's. First Response and Answer One Step got "Poor" ratings. As I said, those results are from a 2003 study so it may have limited applicability today. BUT...to be on the safe side..I think I may just stick with ClearBlue from now on and just deal with the sticker shock! BTW - I also checked out Consumer Reports Pregnancy Test Ratings. First Response was the clear winner. ↑
Friday! Finally! Good morning, ladies. I'm on CD11 (or 12 or 13) and am officially lost. First I wasn't sure exactly which day to call CD1. Then there was confusion about the OPK results. Now there's also confusing temperatures. No clue when or if I already ovulated or if I'm just getting ready to. I've about had it with worrying and stressing and trying to figure this stuff out for this month. We bd'd last night and this morning. If we feel like it, we will again tonight. If we don't feel like it - screw it. (pardon the pun) I'm gonna go have a cup of tea and forget all about ttc-ing for a while! Have a good day. ↑
Aspen thanks for all the info on OPK's. I am and have used the clearplan easy fertility monitor but it is the pee on the stick kind (is that the one you mean has good results?). I fell pregnant using these with my lo. I only used them one month when I got preggers with her. When I got preggers with my ectopic I had ewcm..so I bought a pack and the test was positive with just one test. Did it that night (one time only) that cycle..and I got pregnant again. I think Clearplan sounds like it is probably the best. I also do not recommend the first response hpt. I have had 2 false negatives with that brand..which is bullsh*T because you have to buy more tests to make sure. Aspen don't get too discouraged. As long as you are having sex during your fertile time which you are... You should be covered. I know we like to get a window into our fertility so we know if we had sex close to our "O's" but you can drive yourself nuts comparing brands. It is just a matter of time for all of us. Bottom line have sex every day for the week leading up to your O then a couple days or so beyond for good measure. Let's all try to remain stress free. Oh and thanks for the info on the EPO. I took 1 caplet thismorning..but it says to take 3-4 a day..and not to take beyond 12 weeks? I asked the herbalist and he said he did not no why it said not beyond 12 weeks other than your body should have EPO and to only maintain your levels by 1 a day after that time. I know that you should not take beyond your O as to avoid uterine contractions. Anyway..Joelle have you done another hpt? I read somewhere that it can be completely normal to have the odd lengthy cycle or shorten one..as long as your luteal phase is long enough. I started the b6 a while back and that could be the reason for the extra day or two. The b6 is suppose to lengthen luteal phase and looks like it may have..again it is only suppose to legthen it by a couple of days. So I am on cd 7or 8 I think (duh) and we bd'd this morning. I had some sorta fertile cm yesterday..but Iknow it would be early in my cycle. I also had partail ferning on my microscope but none today. I guess it just means I am approaching a fertile time in my cycle. Have a nice day and weekend ladies. Keep on bd'ing Aspen..and Joelle my fingers and toes are crossed for you. xo ↑
I just got home from a lunch with my girlfriends ...We had Sangria and italian... i got home 10 min ago and grabbed my ept test......
BFP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!- it is FAINT. BUt it is there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-!- ↑
Now im 2nd guessing...is it there??? am i imagining things??? i have to go by the door to seee it in the light....oh god. Boyfriend is sleeping and noone to talk to.........if I am i will hold out till Fathers Day and tell him that way!!! ↑
Its definitely a BFP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! its DEFINITELY PINK. Very light but PINK. Can someone help me figure out how far along i would be???? ↑
joellewantsababy - Congtats and I'm not sure but I would say if you are late then you could be anywhere between 3 to 4 weeks along. Are you going to test again? I'm so happy for you. Krissy68 ↑
JOELLE!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Perl was right...when she gets back ans checks in again someone WILL have reported a BFP. Way to go, girl! Now we're sending extra special STICKY baby dust to you! I was gonna suggest that you use the FF calculator for your due date but you did that already. WOO HOO! Now you and me Kristin....we gotta join Joelle and Perl soon! ↑
Kristin, thanks for the pep talk. I know you're right. I'm just one of those people who likes clear-cut answers in cases like this and I can't stand it when I'm not sure of my footing. Next month I'm just going to buy the Clear Blue OPK and be done with it. Yes...the monitor you're using is the only one with the "very good" rating. I have no idea why the EPO directions say to not take it beyond 12 weeks. Hmmm...I'm not taking it any more this cycle but I'll look around the internet and see if I can find any info on that. Maybe they mean don't take it for more than 12 weeks in a row? Dunno. At any rate, I'm going to switch to Omega 3 fish oil now for the rest of this cycle and then switch back to EPO on CD1. I can't say that the EPO (or the carrots -lol) helped this month, but SOMETHING definitely made my cm better. So in case it was one of those two things, I'll definitely keep it up. ↑
Oh...CD13 today. I was hoping that to relieve my confusion my temp would either shoot up to normal post-O levels (97.7s) or dip down to a characteristic "dip before the rise" level (97.1 or 97.2). Nope...it did the one thing that tells me nothing...I got EXACTLY the same temp as yesterday morning...97.48. Lol. (I tested my thermometer...it works fine.) Even Fertility Friend is confused. It's tentatively putting ovulation on day 10 but it's with dotted lines....and I don't believe it was day 10 anyway...my OPK wasn't even positive until day 11. Who knows? We're gonna bd one more time tonight just to be on the safe side and then we'll just wait and see. ↑
Wow!!! Joelle..that's fantastic! Congrats on the BFP!!!!!!!! Very happy for you!!! Let us know how things progress! Are you gonna have a blood test? When are you going to tell the dh? All the best to you!! LEt us know how you are feeling????For me we bd'd last night but I have not started my opk's yet. I have not had additional ferning yet either. I am suppose to be apporaching my fertile time early next week. Aspen~ it looks like it is just you and me kiddo...we are in this together..do you still think you will take time off. I hope not. But it is good for us to relax a bit. I have to run.. but will check in when the lo naps. again Congratulations Joelle I couldn't be happier for you. Sticky sticky Baby Dust Girlfriend!! ↑
Happy Saturday. Well I am at school now and feeling queasy. I In a great mood but queazy. I am making an appt monday to see the doc to take the blood test but im prettttttttttttttttttttttttttttttty sure this is it.. My suggestion for you all to copy what i did? bd on 8th, 10th 12th 14th and 17th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ↑
I disappear for a couple weeks, and we've got a new thread and a BFP. Congrats, Joelle!!! LOTS of sticky dust to you. Just wanted to stay HI to everyone. It's been a little over two weeks since the mini-vacuum aspiration. It all went smoothly, much better than the hospital procedure last January. Very little bleeding afterwards. Dh and I bd'd before the 2 weeks were up, and it wasn't the least bit painful unlike last time. Thinking I'm O'ing or about to, got the clear egg white cm, right on schedule. Expecting AF to show up around 6/16. So far, we're still planning to wait three cycles that my ob recommended. Last time, we only waited two. Anway, I hope to see lots more BFPs before then. Baby dust to you all. ↑
FYI: Last time, dh and I bd'd on the 10th, 12th, 14th, and 17th, too. One of those days hit the jackpot. Course, I've got a pretty reliable 28-day cycle. Good luck eveyone. ↑
Hey gals...Calitrish..nice to hear from you again. Glad your aspiration ran smoothly. Hoping you will get back on the band wagon when you are ready. Joelle~ How are you feeling?Have you told the Daddy yet?? Thanks for the advice on bding dates ...but seeing that I have an approx 28 day cycle..and I have bd'd similarily to those days... but maybe I need to tack on a few more days ;) when I fell preggers with Zoe..we just did it every day while on holidays. and BAM! I hope to do it as much as we can starting tomorrow and all week. I want the dh to save all his little guys for me..none for Palmela ;) if you know what I mean. Anyway, I am cd8 noticed some egcm again..have not done an opk yet..think it is still a little early but FF says I should be doin' it. Anway..gotta run. BABY DUSTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT ↑
On looking at the earlier posts on when you are BDing..I see a lot of the grls here dont start till the 14th....I really think my doctor was rght when he said to start around 8-16th. then STOP. If I had gone by fertility friend and my OPK i would not have gotten pregnant!!!!!!!! My stick did not even SHOW A POSITIVE till the 15th but i got pregnant around the 10th.........so who KNOWS. As far as how i am feeling: SICK. Nauseaus and feel feverish....real hot and sweaty.. then it goes away! Other than that ive been deliriously good mood just anxious to get to the doctor. Anyone else having any symptoms? Kristin? How ya feeling there? Calitrish--good to hear form yoU! PERL----helloooooooooooooooooooooooo: ASPEN: Hang in there girl!!!!!!!!!!--Krissy, Bd BD BD! ↑
Joelle, sorry you're feeling queasy but I'm happy to hear that you're in a great mood! Hmmm....I'm trying to think who waits until the CD14 to bd. I think what we've usually said was some variation of "at LEAST every other day until your OPK goes positive and then every day." If I'd waited until cd14 this month, I would have missed the whole thing! We ended up bd'ing on CD8, CD11, CD12, and CD13 this month. (Schedules just did'nt work out for CD10.) We'll bd on CD 15 too, for good measure, although I'm pretty sure I ovulated already and CD15 is waaaay too late to get pregnant for this cycle. After that, we'll just switch to doing whenever we feel like it. Hope the nausea doesn't get too bad! What has helped you with nausea in the past? -KRISTIN - Lol! Definitely no swimmers for Palmela!!!! Too funny. Don't worry, even if I take a month off of ttc next month, I won't be going anywhere. I have a couple of really big jobs to do around the house which involve lots of heavy, heavy lifting and just generally back-breaking stuff. I want a month when I can do whatever the heck I want to do for all 4 weeks...know what I mean? Remember when you were thinking that you might be pregnant and were constantly angsting about whether or not you should lift this or push that or whatever? That's what I mean. I just need some time to bang stuff out and not have any inhibitions about it. I don't know yet though if it will be next month or the month after. BUT....it won't matter anyway...because you and I are both gonna get our BFPs this cycle! -CALITRISH- Oh, it's so nice to see your screen name again! I'm glad things have gone well and you really sound like you're doing okay. It must be so hard to wait the time suggested by your doctor when you're seeing ewcm and just "feeling" fertile. But it's probably really smart to wait if you can stand it. Please keep stopping by and letting us know how you're doing. -PERL - Hi...wherever you are. We're getting a little concerned. I hope to hear soon that you had a great vacation and then just got super busy....and not that some mean ole doctor put you on bed rest where you can't get to your computer! ↑
That's the optimism I like to hear Aspen! Now that we have the hang of ttc ;) I truly feel like I will get preggers this month. I am trying to be optimistic :) Joelle I don't wait until the 14th to bd either ...or I kow I';d totally miss the mark. I have usually started atleast the week b4...but sometimes burn out when the OPK's are positive. I feel really healthy these days. Knock on wood! I was sick for my first 2 cycles ttc and last two cycles were short and then long. Anyway, Joelle since you have a cycle 4 days shorter than mine or Aspen's it makes sense that you would start a little earlier. I usually start bd'ing once the af is gone. Anyway,sorry to hear your feeling a little crappy..but being happy can totally override the nausea. And yes Aspen your dh is going to be doing allllll the lifting this cycle...February Babies for us all!!! xo ladies. and btw cd9 for me :)talk to you all soon ↑
I AM MAD. So I called the obgyn and told them I wanted to come in and get a blood test. She told me that they dont do them unless theres "need for concern". I told her my concern was i did a hpt at home and that it was a tad on the faint side. She said to me"When we test our patients with the urine tests and its a "tad on the faint side" we call that Pregnant".-----------so basically they dont do blood tests?? what the hck?? shoud i go to the hospital? i am not sure what to do. ↑
Yes go to the hospital!! Arghhh! Tell them you have had 3 miscarriages and your age and tell them you are concerned for your health and welfare of your baby..tell them you need and hcg..don't except no. That is just ridiculous. ↑
cd10 for me had ewcm agaiun..bd'd this morning,yesterday morning and sat day and night. I think I may start my opk's....Joelle~have you done another hpt? is the line darker? anyway~ go get the blood test..I can't believe the american health care..sorry but in canada we seem to be taken care of way better than this! ↑
KRISTIN: USA sucks for healthcare. It really does... so here is what is going on. I called the obgyn clinic at our hospital and talked to the lady in charge. She got me in tomorrow to get a test then even went ahead and set me up for an exam on Jne 23rd( they are booked solid). I havent taken another test but at 12 tomorrow i go to a place to get one... i have FIRED the obgyn........... The only good thing they were for was him telling me to make sure you ALWAYS bd on th 8th and forward then stop. It worked. I will update you all tomorrow. ↑
Hi everyone, I'm back!!! We just came back home from vacation yesterday. JOELLE: Congratulations on your BFP!!!! I was soo happy to come back and read everyone's posts and especially Joelle's posts building up to a BFP. For what it's worth, my first hpt was "invalid" my 2nd one had two very faint lines and the 3rd hpt had one dark and one faint line. Sounds like you are definitely pregnant!! So happy for you! I didn't get any blood testing done until my first prenatal appointment either which was at week 10 I think. They pretty much rely on the hpt. I didn't actually believe I was pregnant until I got my first ultrasound at week 13. I hope you don't have to wait that long but if you do just trust that all is okay. If you have any weird cramping or spotting by all means insist on seeing your ob/gyn asap. But you seem to have all the right symptoms. ASPEN & KRISTIN: YOU TWO ARE NEXT!!!! I can't wait to congratulate you on your BFP's too. Aspen: I like the idea of having a "get stuff done" weekend. Our house is overflowing with stuff that we would need a whole month of "get stuff done" weekends. CALITRISH: It was nice to hear from you and to know that you are doing well. Don't be a stranger, we miss hearing from you. ↑
