Inquiry on ovulation

[jaydensmum]

Hi everybody, I have a question for you and it probably seems stupid. Im wondering what are the typical signs of ovulation? What temperature says that you are ovulating? Im just curious by these questions and Im wondering if anyone can tell me what there typical signs are. Thanks. :)

jaydensmum.

[cosmic]

Hi Naomi.

I would highly recommend you have a look at www.fertilityfriend.com.au for answers to all your questions. Also, a great book is 'Taking Charge of Your Fertility' by Toni Weschler. I never bought the book.. because it turned out I was pregnant before I got around to it! I know it is very good but you might find FF answers all your questions.

The kinds of changes you are looking for are watery or egg-white cervical mucus (CM) and your temperature increasing by about half a degree or thereabouts, and staying up. There's no fixed temperature that says you have ovulated, the idea is you take it every day (at the same time and before eating, drinking, moving, talking, anything!) and record it so that over the month you see a pattern forming. Basically you will see lower temps before ovulation and higher temps after ovulation and at the point of ovulation you will see a marked rise. That's because the release of the egg causes your body to produce progesterone and it raises your body temp. Your temp will come down again when AF arrives and so begins the whole process again (if you haven't conceived).

Some people couldn't be bothered with temperatures so just check their CM. It's a highly individual thing. After coming off the pill, I never really had enough CM to do that (though you can check inside if there's not enough to check on the outside), and some people get fertile CM at different times throughout the month so they do say that the temperature is the only definitive way to know you have ovulated. The problem is that the temperature only shows you have ovulated after the event - ie. by the time you see the temp go up, you've usually missed the boat! So you need to be checking other things as well. Cervical position is another one. It is usually high and soft at ovulation - you need to be checking it regularly to be able to tell the difference and it is a secondary sign so don't rely on it! My CP was NOT high and soft when I ovulated and conceived.

Um... does that help? Or have I confused you even more??! :o Do go to FF and have a look. They offer a free charting service where you can record anything and everything and also compare your charts month to month. I highly recommend it and many of us on this site have had success using it.

good luck!!

C.

[cosmic]

P.S. I mentioned all the 'official' signs up there but there are lots of other individual ones we have such as skin break-out, sore boobs, high sex drive. As you get to know your own body you will get a feel for what your own signs are - and they can help you to back up the info you get with your CM or temps etc...

C.

[brideofjabba]

cosmic gave you a great rundown on signs but can i just add that instead of buying 'taking charge of your fertility' i borrowed it from the library, which is a great option if you don't want to fork out the money, ttc costs enough as it is!. It is a great book and i learned alot of things about my body that i didn't know.

Andrea

[H&B'sMum]

If you want to learn about cm you can have a look at the book "The Billings method" It goes through all your fertility signs in relation to your cm. Or try their website www.billingsmethod.com
Good luck

[Liam's Mum]

Hi

I am new to this so I hope I am doing it right.

Fertility friend is great website. I am trying to monitor my cycle at the moment. I got some ovulation tests, they seem to work well. They were pretty cheap, I got them over the net. They take care of the guess work.

xx Liam's Mum.

[jaydensmum]

Thanks everyone for your input. I felt so stupid when I put this thread in. I should of known by now how my body works, I just dont think I ever had the time to notice anything. Thanks once again and hopefully I'll get pg this month.

jaydensmum. :)