My husband and I are trying to conceive but my periods are very irregular. I just went 50 days between the beginning of my last period and my current period (which just started)! The mucus thing mentioned in the other fertility thread seems so hard to monitor. I've heard about monitoring body temperature to tell when you're ovulating - is that accurate? How can a girl with irregular cycles have any hope?! My husband I have talked about systematically having sex every day - which would thrill him I'm sure :0 - just to cover all our bases!
Another Q. about Fertility
- Thread starter sln
- Start date
Temps, well, yes and no.
Monitoring the basal body temperature ( the temperature at the same waking time daily ) can tell you whether or not you are ovulating. The problem with using that sign to achieve pregnancy is that the temp goes up AFTER ovulation, as a result of the progesterone produced by the corpus luteum ( the former follicle where the egg developed. ). Given the relatively short egg life, by the time you have an indication in the temps, the egg may be past the time when it can be fertilized. There is sometimes a dip in the temps right before ovulation, but that isn't always the case, and sometimes there are dips that appear to have no correlation with ovulation at all.
The plus side of temps in trying to conceive, especially if you're very irregular, is that you're not left guessing whether you're late because you're pregnant or because you haven't ovulated yet and are going to have a really long cycle this time around. It also helps reduce the period of time in which relations may start feeling rather mechanical ( a common problem for those who have been trying to conceive for a long time ), because you will know that ovulation HAS passed. Therefore neither of you will feel pressured to do something you're really not in the mood for "just in case."
Also, a temp that remains elevated for 21 days is one of the earliest indicators that pregnancy has, in fact, been achieved. The mucus, while it sounds complicated and perhaps a little bit icky at first, really isn't hard to use once you get a handle on it.
If you want to learn more about using natural methods to improve your chances of conceiving, I would highly recommend that you take a class. We often teach couples who are trying to conceive. If you go to the web site ccli.org, you can get info on the particular method we teach, and how to find teachers in your area. The reason I recommend classes over just getting a book is that it can be very helpful to have someone to ask your questions, as well as someone to look at your charts and tell you if you're interpreting things correctly. By and large I get more counseling calls from people trying to learn just from the book ( The Art of Natural Family Planning is what we recommend. We believe it is the most complete text out there on this subject. ) than from those who took the classes. The organization we work with teaches from a Catholic viewpoint. In the book, however, all religious topics are separate from the scientific use of the method. We did research into the other groups' teaching materials and methods, and thought that Couple to Couple League's method was the most systematic and their materials the most complete. I'm not trying to push anything here. I'm just trying to point you in the direction of a resource that you might find helpful. If you decide you just want to read the book, Amazon.com sells it, as well as Barnes and Noble, I believe. I would be more than happy to answer any of your questions that came up. Feel free to email me if you would like to. Good luck!
Erin
Monitoring the basal body temperature ( the temperature at the same waking time daily ) can tell you whether or not you are ovulating. The problem with using that sign to achieve pregnancy is that the temp goes up AFTER ovulation, as a result of the progesterone produced by the corpus luteum ( the former follicle where the egg developed. ). Given the relatively short egg life, by the time you have an indication in the temps, the egg may be past the time when it can be fertilized. There is sometimes a dip in the temps right before ovulation, but that isn't always the case, and sometimes there are dips that appear to have no correlation with ovulation at all.
The plus side of temps in trying to conceive, especially if you're very irregular, is that you're not left guessing whether you're late because you're pregnant or because you haven't ovulated yet and are going to have a really long cycle this time around. It also helps reduce the period of time in which relations may start feeling rather mechanical ( a common problem for those who have been trying to conceive for a long time ), because you will know that ovulation HAS passed. Therefore neither of you will feel pressured to do something you're really not in the mood for "just in case."
If you want to learn more about using natural methods to improve your chances of conceiving, I would highly recommend that you take a class. We often teach couples who are trying to conceive. If you go to the web site ccli.org, you can get info on the particular method we teach, and how to find teachers in your area. The reason I recommend classes over just getting a book is that it can be very helpful to have someone to ask your questions, as well as someone to look at your charts and tell you if you're interpreting things correctly. By and large I get more counseling calls from people trying to learn just from the book ( The Art of Natural Family Planning is what we recommend. We believe it is the most complete text out there on this subject. ) than from those who took the classes. The organization we work with teaches from a Catholic viewpoint. In the book, however, all religious topics are separate from the scientific use of the method. We did research into the other groups' teaching materials and methods, and thought that Couple to Couple League's method was the most systematic and their materials the most complete. I'm not trying to push anything here. I'm just trying to point you in the direction of a resource that you might find helpful. If you decide you just want to read the book, Amazon.com sells it, as well as Barnes and Noble, I believe. I would be more than happy to answer any of your questions that came up. Feel free to email me if you would like to. Good luck!
Erin
thanks for your info.
I appreciate you taking the time to answer me. This whole process is so mysterious to me when I'm so irregular. Very frustrating! I will check into the natural methods & books you've mentioned. Ovulation is so mysterious to me & I'm very insecure about how to tell when I'm ovulating. Thanks again.
I appreciate you taking the time to answer me. This whole process is so mysterious to me when I'm so irregular. Very frustrating! I will check into the natural methods & books you've mentioned. Ovulation is so mysterious to me & I'm very insecure about how to tell when I'm ovulating. Thanks again.
Over the counter fertility tests
I used the over-the-counter fertility tests a lot when my husband and I were trying to conceive. The downside is that they are expensive, so if your cycle is long and unpredictable, you might end up going through more than one kit.
On the plus side, I found it easier to interpret than my morning temperature or checking my underwear to interpret my cervical mucous.
We had a tough time conceiving #1 (3 years trying, we started trying when I was 32), but #2 happened as soon as my husband and I agreed that we would start trying again in a month's time. No fertility kits that time around! They are 20 months apart.
Good luck. It can be a stressful experience.
I used the over-the-counter fertility tests a lot when my husband and I were trying to conceive. The downside is that they are expensive, so if your cycle is long and unpredictable, you might end up going through more than one kit.
On the plus side, I found it easier to interpret than my morning temperature or checking my underwear to interpret my cervical mucous.
We had a tough time conceiving #1 (3 years trying, we started trying when I was 32), but #2 happened as soon as my husband and I agreed that we would start trying again in a month's time. No fertility kits that time around! They are 20 months apart.
Good luck. It can be a stressful experience.
Thanks!
Thanks for the suggestion about the ovulation predictor kits. I've wondered about those - like you say, though, with a cycle as crazy as mine I could spend a mint on those kits! I appreciate your input. We're going to keep trying - I'm turning 30 in a few months and I just feel like I'm getting older by the second when every month goes by without getting pregnant! People keep scaring me with the "After you're 35 it's a high risk pregnancy" stuff. Tick tock!
Thanks for the suggestion about the ovulation predictor kits. I've wondered about those - like you say, though, with a cycle as crazy as mine I could spend a mint on those kits! I appreciate your input. We're going to keep trying - I'm turning 30 in a few months and I just feel like I'm getting older by the second when every month goes by without getting pregnant! People keep scaring me with the "After you're 35 it's a high risk pregnancy" stuff. Tick tock!
Kristin Aziz
Cathlete
A suggestion
I was lucky--we were able to conceive each time we tried very easily. I did opt to use the ovulation kits, though, which may have helped. What I was planning to do was to use the kits in tandem with the cervical mucous method, and that way I would be able to gauge how the mucous changed and see what it was like on "pre-O day." I'd get some practice checking the mucous, and I'd also get the objective results of the kit. As soon as you're comfortable checking the mucous with the help of the kit, you probably wouldn't need the kit anymore. This may sound kind of jumbled, but I hope it helps! Good luck!
Oh, and so many women have their first babies at 30 and beyond. It's so commonplace, and so many women are very healthy past the age of 35, that for most it really isn't a high risk pregnancy. And you have 5 years until then! That's a long time!
Kristin (who now is feeling really old because she's turning 35 this year)
I was lucky--we were able to conceive each time we tried very easily. I did opt to use the ovulation kits, though, which may have helped. What I was planning to do was to use the kits in tandem with the cervical mucous method, and that way I would be able to gauge how the mucous changed and see what it was like on "pre-O day." I'd get some practice checking the mucous, and I'd also get the objective results of the kit. As soon as you're comfortable checking the mucous with the help of the kit, you probably wouldn't need the kit anymore. This may sound kind of jumbled, but I hope it helps! Good luck!
Oh, and so many women have their first babies at 30 and beyond. It's so commonplace, and so many women are very healthy past the age of 35, that for most it really isn't a high risk pregnancy. And you have 5 years until then! That's a long time!
Kristin (who now is feeling really old because she's turning 35 this year)
Thanks for the encouragement
I appreciate your info about using the kits in conjunction with the mucus checking. I think I will definitely pick up one (or more) of these. Also, I didn't mean to make anyone feel old by saying I felt old by turning thirty
! You are lucky that you found it so easy to get pregnant. All those years of birth control make me chuckle now, when occasionally I was worried about being pregnant even WITH birth control. Isn't that always the way, though?
I appreciate your info about using the kits in conjunction with the mucus checking. I think I will definitely pick up one (or more) of these. Also, I didn't mean to make anyone feel old by saying I felt old by turning thirty
35 and pregnancy is NOT high risk! 
There are many factors that contribute to high risk. being 35 is not a stand-alone factor. I'm going to be 35 when my next child is born (assuming my current 3 weekso f being pregnant lasts this time - mis-c'd last time I got pregnant).
My sis is about to turn 36 and is at the end of her first pregnancy, my MIL was born when my grandma-inlaw was 38, and my own grandma had kids from when she was 19 - 38.
The reality is - the risks increase gradually over time. The number 35 is thrown out there because they feel that the risk oflosing a child through amnio is LESS than the risk of having a downs baby. But even then you need to look at other risk factors (i.e. family history).
My aunt had a baby at 42 recently.
I'm not offended by your post, being that i'm almost 35.. but i'm just trying to let you know that 30 isn't "old" and 35 isn't "over the hill" reproductively speaking. Estrogen levels do start dropping around 35. One way to keep them going? EXERCISE!
Taking Charge of your fertility is an amazingly empowering book. It really teaches you to learn your body. Cervical mucus is not really that difficult to check for and it only takes seconds. Charting temps is also not so hard, unless, like me, you sleep with your curious toddler who demands the thermometer
. Once you get the hang of it, you can do temp charting on alternate days, and start discovering your patterns and the qualityi of your fertile mucus.
Anyways - hope it works out for you!
Leela
There are many factors that contribute to high risk. being 35 is not a stand-alone factor. I'm going to be 35 when my next child is born (assuming my current 3 weekso f being pregnant lasts this time - mis-c'd last time I got pregnant).
My sis is about to turn 36 and is at the end of her first pregnancy, my MIL was born when my grandma-inlaw was 38, and my own grandma had kids from when she was 19 - 38.
The reality is - the risks increase gradually over time. The number 35 is thrown out there because they feel that the risk oflosing a child through amnio is LESS than the risk of having a downs baby. But even then you need to look at other risk factors (i.e. family history).
My aunt had a baby at 42 recently.
I'm not offended by your post, being that i'm almost 35.. but i'm just trying to let you know that 30 isn't "old" and 35 isn't "over the hill" reproductively speaking. Estrogen levels do start dropping around 35. One way to keep them going? EXERCISE!
Taking Charge of your fertility is an amazingly empowering book. It really teaches you to learn your body. Cervical mucus is not really that difficult to check for and it only takes seconds. Charting temps is also not so hard, unless, like me, you sleep with your curious toddler who demands the thermometer
Anyways - hope it works out for you!
Leela