Sinuses, temp spikes, sleeplessness, Oh my!

Ok, I know I've used the ol' "Wizard of Oz" Lions, and Tigers, and Bears, OH MY title before, but how can you resist? Also, this is a super long post, and if you read the whole thing, bless you! : )

Sinus update--fatigue is somewhat less, but cough is way worse, sore throat moderately sore (compared to severe) and ears are itchy. Yuck. I kind of wish I'd asked the Dr at the Walk-in for a z-pack in hopes this would clear soon---I saw online it was pregnancy category B!! So is the amoxicillin he gave me, but I have 10+ days worth!! One cool thing he gave was a list of OTC (over-the-counter) meds that are "safe" for pregnancy. (Expect a post with that later!)

Temp spikes---click the link to my chart at the top--99.1! Now for most people this would be a fever. I suppose it could be. I feel I don't have any reliable fever thermometers. The only one I trust is my BBT. Also, woke at 5AMish to pee and so got slightly less sleep than needed to accurately trust the temp. Here's the thing though---lately, my pre-O temps are hovering between 97.6 and 98.1---98.0 is my coverline and my pre-O temps were more often in the lower half of the 97s. So, now my coverline is about the same, but my pre-O temps seem to hover just underneath that until O. SO, assuming that I COULD be pregnant, and that I MIGHT go triphasic, it makes sense that I would get up to the low 99s, right?? (See me desperately grasping straws)

The sleeplessness thing. This COULD have been since I got the sinus infection (about 1 week pre-O) BUT from what I recorded on FF, the waking regularly around 4AM has been since O....not my usual LP experience, though it has happened a few times, this time it is CONSTANT. Also, the frequent urination thing---I usually overestimate this one, but I timed it the other day and 30 minutes after peeing I need to go again.  I can guarantee I will wake at least once before temping (~7:10AM--I know I'm weird for picking that time) and that time has ranged anywhere from 3:30-5AM. Most of those are early enough that I technically can get enough sleep in to have the required 3 hours sleep before temping. But not always. So, I just went and marked every day that I seemed to wake up early AM.

And, I know this is not the accepted truth, but I SWEAR that I have tested myself by taking temps when I first wake (at an early hour) and then again when I wake at regular testing time---and my temp DROPS. This is exactly opposite effect from what you read about in most charting materials. I suspect it is because I get all snuggly under the heavy covers that it acts as a sort of incubation and the first waking and getting out of covers creates a massive cooling down that the short amount of sleep can't regain the temp.

So, high temp, but this morning the leftover sperm from yesterday was streaked with darkish or bright red blood. This is just about on-cue for me to truly start spotting with my reg cycles. But at the same time I have doubt because, well, not to get to TMI, but let's just say there was a lot of irritation in the vajayjay after yesterday's exercise. Right after there was NOTHING. Today, just flecks in the seminal fluid.

Oh, and I decided to test using my CBEFM test sticks with my Clearblue digi OPK reader---the sticks look ALMOST exactly the same. It sure fit. Please don't laugh, but I was so tired when I first woke to pee at 5AM that I think I compromised the test with overflowing urine. I'm new to the CB OPK digi and I forgot that you put the test in the reader BEFORE peeing on it. I was using it like I would for the CBEFM. The CB OPK digi reader wouldn't work with it. So I tried again at 7Am and it did read it...got nothing though. And it looks like Estrogen is back in dominance, which for the average LP it would be higher than LH at this point. I wish there were a home Progesterone test! Kind of pointless unless it is quantitative and all home tests are qualitative (i.e. first one gives an exact # of the levels and the second is just a Yes/No answer). So if there were a Progesterone pee stick I'd have to take a baseline one right before O and then start testing later...but still, it'd be hard to know just HOW high it is getting.

I know we POAS addicts like to think a darker line means more hormone in the test (OPK, HPT, FSH, whatever) but the truth is that although this is generally true, each batch of the respective tests can have a varying amount of dye in each test---meaning same brand, different batch could yield very different results from the same urine sample in terms of color darkness. So, that's why ladies if you take an HPT one day that is super dark and the next very light followed by another dark one---mostly differences in dye, but then you add in different concentrations of urine (unless you truly used all from the same urine sample within 1 hour). Same thing for OPKs. We all like to think we can line up our OPKs and see a gradual darkening of the test line--and generally we can, but don't be surprised if there are a few in-between that get really darker or really lighter than the previous--it's all down to dye and pee.

Peak Reading Day!

Woohoo! Last night I had this nearly positive OPK

It's so close, I can't be sure it wasn't positive. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take another later that day.  So I just knew when I got up this morning I would see this....

FIRST PEAK READING!!

So, on this Independence Day I set freedom to an egg to travel down the Fallopian tubes and search out a good sperm!

The Clear Blue Easy Fertility Monitor was stressing me though, because you're supposed to wait no more than 15 seconds after wetting the test stick to put it in. Well it was giving me the "Clean Me!" symbol. So I quickly swabbed it with a q-tip, reinserted the stick, and it still wanted to be cleaned! So I wet the q-tip, and this time when I inserted it it started to read. Phew!

As far as BD....we didn't get it done yesterday because we left for Tacoma at 4PM and we didn't get home till 12:30AM :(  We did have a great time with his nieces. We babysat them while his sister and her husband went out for an anniversary dinner. We took the girls to Old Spaghetti Factory. I had an Orange Italian Soda (I'm obsessed with Orange Cream Soda lately), but my entree wasn't so great. The girls are adorable, about 12, 8, and 5 (I think). Then we took them home and played Wii Rock Guitar and the oldest showed me her report on Ohio.

When his sister came home, they tried to convince us for about 10 minutes to stay the night. Normally, I would've tried to convince DH to stay too, but I was thinking that if tonight was shot as far as BD, he'd NEVER want to BD at his sister's and who knows if he'd want to when we got home! So I kept quiet. Then we sat around mostly telling jokes to each other for about 30 minutes...I think they were hoping if they kept us late enough we'd agree to stay. But we went home anyway.

So, either today or tomorrow I should O and then see a temp jump. Then the tww begins! I'll definitely keep you posted...

High Fertility Day!

So, I've been using my Clearblue Easy Monitor and so far had nothing but Low. Today I got my first High reading! And also, I think I have genuine EWCM! It was clear, slippery and stretched at least 1 inch. I wonder if O is around the corner? I sure hope so.
   I got a reasonably dark OPK, but I did the test around 7:45PM. I'm excited and hopeful that I'll have a reasonable length cycle (like under 42 days) and will hopefully O again. If that is the case the CBEFM will definitely help with this. I just need to get another box of test sticks for the next cycle.
   My temps are a little on the high side for pre-O, but still below 98 so that is good. My back started to ache again last night, but almost in a different way and I can't figure out why.
   We went to see The Last Airbender last night, and although I was really excited to see it, I just couldn't keep my eyes open through it. I had to fight sleep off but at the very end I gave in.  It wasn't that bad of a movie, I was just so tired. And I'm not sure why. I think it has a lot to do with a recent med change my doctor made. He wants me to take some meds during lunch, and I haven't done that in soooo long so I forget often. Hopefully I can start to remember next week because I think it is affecting more than my energy. My mood seems to be slightly less stable too, but I'm using coping skills to manage :D

Ovulation anyone?

I honestly do not know what to think. CD31....last few days I have had some cramping. I was kind of hoping AF was on her way...but then my temps started to drop and I seem to be ovulating...I've had all the classic signs. High, soft cervix, what seems like EWCM (might have been seminal fluid), and the one or two times you WANT to see a temp drop (may indicate O).

So today I took an OPK...just to see...




So...it's so darn close to positive, I just cannot tell. I've heard that if half of the test line (like looking at it regular the whole left vertical half) is as dark as the control then it's positive...this one looks positive by THOSE standards.


Otherwise, maybe I will tomorrow, or perhaps I've O'd today and I will see a nice temp rise tomorrow. My evening OPK was definitely negative...although still a nice line.


But I don't really trust OPKs. Last month I had BEAUTIFUL definitely positive OPK....but then AF came 6 days later. I mean I'm grateful not to have 50+ day cycles with no O, but this is just torture. I really have little hope, but just in case if DH EVER gets home we'll DTD...he's rather late and I should be getting to bed. :(


Ah well...keep you posted...

The Silver Lining

So....my fertility signs have been super confusing. After my positive OPK, I have had a continually high cervix and sore nips. CM stayed kind of wet but mostly creamy/sticky.  And my temps have not been cooperating at all.

Today looks like it might be the nail in the coffin....Spotting. When I checked my cervix I had brownish and very red spotting. Also a HUGE temp drop. If I DID O when my OPK said I did, I would only be 6DPO. In desperation I can hope that this is implantation. But my heart tells me this is it...AF is sending her calling card and I will start another cycle.

The silver lining to this is now I get to start using the Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor! It's odd that I was kind of hoping not to be pregnant so I could use a device that will help me get pregnant. But the little bit of hope in me is going to wait for Full Red Flow before I start cycle CD1 on either fertility Friend OR the CBEFM.

The Waiting Game

So, did I O? Did I not O? Only time (and temps) will tell. My temps have been less than cooperative. Any day I keep looking for that spike to confirm the production of progesterone signaling the beginning of the two week wait. This might be worse than the two week wait. I feel like I've been "waiting to O" for over a year now and even with an instrument that predicts O I'm NOT O'ing. *sigh*

If we look at the two teams--O team and Not O team they're fairly evenly matched. On the O team they have a positive OPK while very encouraging is not infallible. Also, I've been having major mood swings (poor DH), and increasingly sore bbs (they also feel heavy). Plus around the day of my positive OPK I just *know* I was having mittleschmerz (O pain) on my left side.

On the Not O team there is basically my temps. I am in a love/hate relationship with temping because I love that I have a tool that can generally tell me whether ovulation has occurred. It's a scientific fact that a rise in progesterone corresponds with a rise in waking temperature. I hate temping because although I know I have this big barrier to my O I still get my hopes raised when I see the random high temp. All temping gives me is a basic anovulatory chart. Boo. since my OPK my temps have more or less stayed the same or gone DOWN. I was hoping yesterdays was an Ovulation Dip, however, today's temp only rose .09 degrees. WTF? That's not even close to the type of rise needed to confirm O.

I just looked up in my fertility bible, Taking Charge of Your Own Fertility by Toni Weschler, that a slow rise is confirmed by a temp that is one-tenth above the previous six low temps and then continues to rise a tenth of a degree. Sadly, my chart is not even that.

My one positive thought is that the day of my positive OPK I had forgotten to take my anti-psychotic the night before. I know it may not necessarily be related to that but if just ONE day without it (at such a low dose) could help the LH to surge then I'm much more confident that when I'm am off the med altogether I will be SURE to achieve ovulation. Also, my psychiatrist felt much more confident that the anti-psychotic was causing elevated levels of prolactin because just two weeks at a half-dose radically changed my sleeping patterns.

*sigh* I think no more of this today. No more forums (for now) instead I think I'll finish The Amazing Race and watch my episode of Biggest Loser!

Don't think O will come this cycle...but who knows?

Well, my OPKs keep getting lighter and I don't believe I ever had a positive one.

Here are the ones from yesterday and today

I don't really know what to think because today's looks slightly darker. I do think I wasn't holding my urine for a complete 4 hours before yesterdays test.

I have gotten very sad today because I let myself get my hopes up that I was really O'ing, on my own. But, I'm running out of OPKs and am not sure I want to order more. This is what I hate about OPKs because regardless of how cheap they are I feel I am just throwing my money down the toilet (literally) because they never work for me. Which is more depressing because the reason they aren't working is because I'm not ovulating.

All the same, I feel like today's OPK gives me a smidgen of hope. I think I might find my local Dollar Tree and see if they have any New Choice OPKs in stock. I heard recently you can get them there and I figured I'd test them out until I decide if I want to get more while I wait for my friend to deliver the fertility monitor she promised.

Just a temporary moment of hopelessness but I think it will pass. Nothing a POAS addiction won't cure ;)

O may be coming!!

So, I was disappointed a few days ago by a dip in my temperatures after a huge temp spike.  I decided to carry on with my Ovulation Test Strips or OPKs.

For most of the time I kept seeing this:

As you can see, the test line (on the left) is barely there.

Last night though, my OPKs started to look like this:

There's a weird marring on the test, but I don't think it's invalid.

And here is this morning's test:

It looks slightly lighter than last nights. Note the test line (on the left) is not the same color as the control so it is not yet positive, but the fact that the test line is getting darker is a good sign!

Also, I am observing my other fertility signs, the primary of which is cervical fluid (or mucus) and the secondary is cervix position. I noticed yesterday and the day before my CM has become increasingly more watery. This is good as this and EWCM (egg-white CM) are the most fertile.

Also, I observe a secondary fertility sign, my cervix position (CP). Today my CP was very high and medium consistency and the opening was about medium open.  So this is also a great sign. When it is high, soft, and open I should be at maximum fertility!

Fertility Friend states that I am at my most fertile right now.  So it's time to get in some BD (baby-dancing ; ) to try and catch the egg.

I'm just so excited that I *might* be O'ing! Will keep you posted with updated pics later.

To OPK or not to OPK

I had bought a bunch of OPK test strips online about 6 months ago but gave up on them as my cycles were outrageously long and even at .99 a strip I didn't feel 20-30 per cycle was a good investment.

However, now that I'm having a decent cycle length (no more than 32 days) I thought I'd give it a whirl. They can be very useful as one of the few things that can predict ovulation rather than confirm it after the fact.

Here are a few of my negative OPKs this cycle. As you can see from the bottom one there is a faint test line, but because it is not as dark as the control line it is still negative.

In reading the instructions for an OPK they instruct to hold your urine at least 4 hours before testing and that the best time to test is around noon. Many of my cohorts on the forums suggest testing twice per day to ensure you don't miss an evening surge, but it is inadvisable to test after 8-10pm.

I knew these things but was only half-heartedly testing. Yesterday, according to my chart, my temp started to rise and today it's a full 3/10ths of a degree higher than the the highest of my last 6 temps. I am hopeful that insh'allah (God-willing) my temps will continue to rise or stay at that level and ovulation will be confirmed.

If that's the case, then did my OPKs fail me? I wasn't making sure that I held my urine a full 4 hours nor attended to the times I took the test...it might have only been the same time two days at most.  Also, I may have taken a few outside the recommended time period.

Taking all of these factors into account I would say that it is user failure, not test failure. But then again, one or two high temps does not guarantee ovulation and it could be that my temps will drop again tomorrow. However, if I have ovulated according to my temps, will I choose to continue using OPKs?

If I have ovulated, this would give me the belief that I CAN and I would attempt to be more diligent in the use of the test strips and follow directions. If I found it too difficult for the luxury of knowing in advance that I am ovulating, then I may not buy anymore, however, as I do have some left, I might as well give it a whirl!

Wacky HPT dream

So, last night I had a dream about being in this huge building and there was some evil dictator trying to take over disguised as an orchestra leader but with a plot to blow up the building.

Somehow this dream morphed into me walking along a path and I thought I would use an OPK. I usually use the green test strips that I get online that are supposed to be dipped. I used it as a midstream and it got soaked and when I looked at it it had the blue strip instead of green. So I had accidentally used an HPT and there were TWO lines! I didn't quite believe it and it was so soaked it started coming off in strips like layers of paper. Each strip had two lines though. I was so surprised and excited.

I think all this OPK testing has me dreaming of doing HPT tests. Dreams are weird, huh?