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This is a discussion on TTC Info within the 2WW forums, part of the Trying to Conceive - General Discussion category; I just want to share the following info I found while browsing for TTC tips and answer to my questions, ...
A woman gets pregnant when an egg released from her ovaries is fertilized by a sperm that has met it in the fallopian tubes. After the initial fertilization of an egg it must travel down the fallopian tubes and implant into the uterus. This is about a six day journey. When the fertilized egg implants in the uterine lining your body starts sending out HCG (the pregnancy hormone) to let your body know that you are pregnant.
Phases of a Cycle:
Ovulation
It is a common misconception that a woman can get pregnant at any time of the month, this is not true. A woman can only get pregnant when there is an egg in her fallopian tubes to be implanted. An egg is only released during ovulation, and therefore the day of ovulation is the only day you can conceive.
During ovulation an egg is released from an ovary and it enters the fallopian tubes awaiting fertilization. Once an egg has been released it will live 12-24 hours. However it may live as little as six hours, or as long as 48.
Now, as I said before you can only conceive during the day of ovulation, however you are considered fertile for about one week out of your cycle and here is why: The egg will only live for around 12-24 hours, but sperm can survive in your fallopian tubes for up to five days. There for lets say you bd on Monday, and then ovulate on Thursday. You can get pregnant on Thursday from the sex you had on Monday because the sperm were inside you waiting for the egg.
It is a common misconception that ovulation occurs on cd 14, or in the middle of your cycle. This is only true if you have a 28 day cycle. If your cycle is any longer or shorter than 28 days than you are going to ovulate sooner or later than day 14.
In most women ovulation occurs 14 days before your period arrives. So for example, lets say you have a 21 day cycle. Chances are you ovulate on day 7. If you have a 40 day cycle than chances are you ovulate on cd 26.
Luteal Phase
Your luteal phase is the time frame after ovulation and before your period. Your luteal phase is when the egg is given a chance to implant in the uterine lining. This is called implantation. Implantation occurs anywhere from 7-10 days after ovulation occurs.
Generally your luteal phase is 14 days long, however it could be as short as 11. If your luteal phase is any shorter than 11 days than you have what is known as a luteal phase defect. If your luteal phase is any shorter than 11 days chances are you will not be able to sustain a pregnancy because your body does not have sufficient time to allow for implantation to occur. If your luteal phase is shorter than 11 days call your doctor.
Also your luteal phase should not vary dramatically from month to month. It should remain relatively constant (give or take a day or two). If your luteal phase fluctuates dramatically you should get in contact with your doctor because it could indicate that you have a hormonal imbalance.
Your Period
This is the time when your body flushes out the lining of the Uterine Wall. Many people think that it is just blood, however your period is actually a mixture of cervical mucus, uterine lining and blood. It only appears to be red because it is stained by the blood coming out with it.
Methods for Detecting Ovulation
Since ovulation is the only time in the month that you can get pregnant it is important to have sex during the days leading up to ovulation. There are several ways to detect the approach of ovulation: Ovulation Predictor Kits, Charting your cervical mucus, and charting your basal body temperature.
Cervical Mucus:
This is one of the most effective and important methods of checking to see if ovulation is approaching. As your cycle progressing through its various phases you have different cervical mucus. When ovulation is approaching you will notice that your cervical mucus becomes watery and then as it comes even closer egg white. Egg White cervical mucus is what you are looking for. It is the most fertile quality cervical mucus you have, and sperm can live inside your body in its presence for up to five days. Egg White Cervical Mucus lets you know that ovulation is emanate, and therefore it is important to baby dance every day that you see ewcm (egg white cervical mucus). The amount of time you have ewcm varies from woman to woman. Some women have it for five days before they ovulate, some only have it for one. You will also probably notice that you will have ewcm for a few days, and then the day before ovulation occurs it will revert back to watery. This is perfectly normal.
Now you may be wondering what exactly ewcm looks like, and I will tell you. Just as the name suggests ewcm looks like egg whites. It is clear and very elastic. You should be able to stretch it several times between your thumb and forefinger without it breaking. It is very close in resemblance to ejaculate, however ejaculate will not stretch between your thumb and forefinger without breaking. So if you aren't sure which it is try stretching it. Another test you can perform is to take it and drop it into a glass of water. If it is ewcm and not ejaculate than it will "bead" up, or turn into a ball.
You may be wondering how you check your cervical mucus. In many women ewcm will be so abundant that they will notice it without having to actually look for it. But there are two ways in which you can check:
1) Take two fingers and stick them up inside you. Press them on either side of your cervix. Your cervix feels like a round bump that is sort of soft, much like the tip of your nose. As ovulation approaches it will start to feel softer like your lips. Now then, once you have gently applied pressure to either side of your cervix remove your fingers, and feel. Is the cm stick, creamy, watery or egg white? If it is sticky or creamy chances are you are not fertile. If it is watery you may be fertile, and if it is egg white you are most definitely fertile.
2) The second way of detecting your cm is much easier. Simply swipe your finger down along the base of your vagina and chart what the cm, if any, you find on your fingers.
Charting Your Basal Body Temperature
Charting Your BBT is the only way that ovulation can be confirmed. It is good for looking back to make sure ovulation did indeed occur, however you need to be warned that it can not tell you when ovulation is approaching, only that it occurred. This is why it is important to chart your cm and your bbt. This way not only are you warned that ovulation is approaching, but you also know that it actually happened and you can pinpoint the exact day.
To Chart Your Basal Body Temperature You will need a basal body thermometer. You can find these at most drug stores and they are usually around ten dollars. I would suggest using the website Ovulation Calendar and Ovulation Chart - FertilityFriend.com for charting purposes, or you can chart yourself on graph paper.
To chart your basal body temperature uses your bbt thermometer to take your temperature each morning before getting out of bed. You need at least three hours of sleep in order to get your bbt, and it is also important to take it at the same time each morning. This is because as the day wears on hormones cause your bbt to increase. Generally for every hour you sleep in your bbt increases by .2 degrees. You should start charting your bbt on cd 1. This is the first day of your period. Your period is considered actual red flow, not spotting.
As you chart you will notice that most likely your temperatures do not fluctuate too much. This is completely normal. At the beginning of your cycle you will also notice that your temperatures are fairly low. Then, after ovulation they will appear to be relatively high.
To confirm ovulation here is what you are looking for:
A temperature that is at least .2 higher than the previous days and it also must be higher than the previous six days temperatures. To confirm ovulation it must be followed by three days of high temperatures.
Here is an example of ovulation. This person has a 28 day cycle.
You may be thinking "Why was ovulation confirmed on cd 14 when the temperature drop and then increase clearly occurred on cd 13? This is because that while there was a temperature increase of at least .2 degrees on cd 13, it wasn't higher than the previous six days temperatures. On cd 10 there was a temperature of 97.6, so there for ovulation did not occur until cd 14 because that was the first day that this persons temps were higher than the previous six days. Keep in mind that ovulation can not be confirmed until you have three days of high temperatures.
OPKs
Ovulation Predictor Kits are good for letting you know that ovulation may be approaching. They work by detecting the lh surge that occurs before a woman ovulates. When using opks it is important to remember to trust your body. If you have ewcm, but a negative opk, don't assume that just because the opk is negative you are not about to ovulate.
To use an opk keep in mind that you do not want to use fmu to test. This is because your hormones are so concentrated after sleeping for 6-8 hours that you may get a false + on your opk. For best results you need to test between 8 am and 10pm. Do not drink anything for two hours before you test, and do not pee for three. It is important to try to use an opk at the same time every day.
When using opks in conjunction with charting both your bbt and cm they can be quite effective. You will probably notice that you receive a ++ opk 2-3 days before you ovulate and than a - opk on the day ovulation actually occurs. This is completely normal.
From Signs of Pregnancy to Peeing On a Stick. Some Frequently Asked Questions
[b hCG levels throughout pregnancy
in singleton pregnancy
(DPO) hCG in mIU/mL
7 days 0 - 5
14 days 3 - 426
21 days 18 - 7,340
28 days 1,080 - 56,500
35-42 days 7,650 - 229,000
43-64 days 25,700 - 288,000
57-78 days 13,300 - 253,000
17-24 weeks 4,060 - 65,400
25+ weeks 3,640 - 117,000
Note that generally levels will double every 2-3 days. It should also be noted that the body does not start producing hCG until after implantation has occurred. Also, when looking at hCG it is not so important what your levels are early on, what is important is that they are doubling.
Signs of Pregnancy
Each woman is different, as well as each pregnancy. So aside from a + hpt it is hard to define the symptoms of pregnancy. So I am going to use broad strokes here and tell you what the most common signs of pregnancy are and when they can be felt.
As a rule of thumb you will not get pregnancy symptoms until after implantation occurs. This is simply because before this time your body does not hormonally know that it is pregnant. However some women are lucky enough to just know when they are pregnant. For the rest of us here are some signs!:
(The bellow list has been taken from an article from babyhopes.com here is the full link: Pregnancy Symptoms)
* Missed period
* Backaches
* Constipation
This symptom is caused by hormone changes, and the growing uterus pressing against the bowel.
* Darkening of areola (breast nipple)
This can be one of the first symptoms which can appear as early as one week after conception and then throughout pregnancy.
* Excessive salivation
* Exhaustion or feeling sleepy
Can occur one to six weeks after conception and last your entire pregnancy.
* Food cravings
* Frequent urination
You may see this symptom six to eight weeks after conception and it will be with you for your entire pregnancy. This is caused by hormone changes and growing pressure on the bladder.
* Headaches
* Increased sense of smell
* Lower abdominal cramps
* Nausea and vomiting---->This symptom usually shows up two to ten weeks after conception (that is 14 dpo and beyond). The degree in which you feel sick varies from none to full fledged vomiting. The terminology for this nausea is "morning sickness" by can happen at any time of the day. Hormone changes in your body cause this symptom.
* Tender or swollen breasts
This symptom is one that can appear rather quickly after fertilization - one to two weeks after conception and will most likely be with you your entire pregnancy.
Signs of Pregnancy in your bbt chart:
Some women will notice a single isolated temperature drop on 7-10 dpo. This could be what is referred to as an implantation dip. However, be warned that just because you have a dip on 7-10 dpo does NOT necessarily mean you are pregnant. Many many women notice such drops and turn out to not be pregnant, and the converse is true. Many women do not get them and are pregnant.
Another sign of pregnancy is a triphase shift. This is when your temperatures sustain another thermal shift somewhere 7-10 dpo (after implantation has occurred) this is because your rising hormone levels may cause a temperature increase. For a triphase thermal shift to be confirmed you again need three days of temperatures higher than the previous six.
Also, high temperatures in general can be a sign of pregnancy. Typically a woman who has 18 straight days of high temperatures after she has ovulated, and has not gotten her period yet, can be pretty confident that she is pregnant.
When Should I test?
It is best to wait until the first day of a missed period. Your are much less likely to get false negatives. Depending on the test however (and when you implanted) you can test as early as 10 dpo.
If you are going to test this early you need to make sure that you have a sensitive test. The more sensitive tests can detect the pregnancy hormone (hCG) at 20 mIUs. I personally recommend using First Response Early Answers. They are accurate and reliable.
How to pee on a stick
When testing (especially early on) it is important to use fmu (first morning urine). FMU has the highest concentrate of hCG and is more likely to give accurate results. If testing with fmu simply cannot be done for whatever reason, it is best to try to old your pee for three hours, and abstain from drinking for two before testing.
It is also equally important to make sure that you follow ALL directions given to you by the manufacturer of your test. Never under ANY circumstances read a test past the amount of time the instructions tell you (usually ten minutes).
I read the test after the time limit had expired...and the test was positive. What does this mean?
Unfortunately it is probably an evaporation line. An evaporation line is a faint (or sometimes pretty darn dark) line that appears exactly where a ++ would. An evaporation line happens when your urine begins to evaporate over the chemical strip on the test. It often causes a line to form that looks like a ++ result. This is what is known as an evaporation line, and unfortunately many of us have been fooled by them. If you are unsure about your results test again in the morning using fmu.
Can I use an OPK as an HPT?
See link below for article
If you go there she even has a cute little illustration, not to mention a bunch of useful and interesting hpt facts and information.
I used the digital read out test. It said "not pregnant" but when I ejected the strip there were two lines there. Does this mean I have a bfp?
Unfortunately no. If the digital read out was "not pregnant" than it is a bfn, no matter what the test strip inside looks like.
The digital test has caused much confusions with people because of the way it is designed. Other types of hpts are pretty straight forward. The strip is designed to test for hCG (the pregnancy hormone) one strip is a "control" that turns blue in the presence of moisture. The other strip is a "test" strip that changes color ONLY in the presence of hCG. Two lines means the test has detected hCG in you system and you are pregnant. One line means no hCG was detected and you are not.
The Digital test just does not work the same way. Much like a regular hpt, on the inside of the digital is a test strip with two lines. A control line and a test line. HOWEVER the test line is not ONLY testing for hCG, it is also testing for LH (the lutenizing hormone). Now hCG is only in the system when you are pregnant, however LH can be found in a woman's system in different concentrations at ALL times. The test strip will turn blue in the presence of lh...so in other words you can get a second line at virtually any time of the month using the digital test.
What makes the digital unique is the way that it interprets the results. It is not looking for two lines when it reads the stick. It has a microchip in it, that has an "eye". The eye detects the blue pigment of the test strip. When there is hCG in the test the blue dye becomes a certain shade that the test "eye" can detect. Therefore the test is not looking for the blue itself..it is looking for a certain "hue" or shade of blue made up of the correct lh/hcg combination.
Now it should be noted that the Digital is not a very sensitive test. It detects at around 50 mIUs, as opposed to some of the more sensitive brands out there (like Answer or First Response Early Results) which detect at 20 mIU. Therefore just because you did not get a positive digital test does not mean that you are not pregnant, especially if you tested before your period was due to start.
If the test was negative, and you still think you may be pregnant I suggest waiting 2-3 days and retesting using a sensitive test. Be sure to use first morning Urine.
Things to Keep in mind while ttc
It is important to go ahead and act as though you are pregnant during your luteal phase. You may be pregnant, even if you do not know it. This means that you should be abstaining from any behavior or activity that could be harmful to your little peanut
SO then you should try to stay away from caffeine. It dehydrates you, which can hinder the development of a healthy egg thus hindering your chances of conception. Caffeine has also been linked to possible birth defects. Also, if you smoke STOP. There is a link between smoking and infertility, and it can be extremely harmful to your baby, even early on in pregnancy. You should also stay away from alcohol during the luteal phase.
There are some healthy habits that you should trying to adopt now. This includes drinking at least 80 oz of water a day. In order to develop healthy eggs your body needs to be well hydrated. You should also be taking those prenatal vitamins now! It is extremely important that you be getting enough folic acid. It is crucial for preventing neural tube defects. If you are not taking a prenatal vitamin (which you really should be doing ) you should be taking 1000mcg of folic acid (or 1 mg).
TTC Info
Briar Belisario Miller s/b @ 39w4d (08/03/07)
LittleBean m/c @ 7wks (07/2008)
