Oct/Nov 2008 mommies!

Yes. You can also have a progesterone test done about 7 days after expected ovulation if you have a regular cycle. I think you have the right attitude which is to see how things go for a couple months. You have a few issues too so ideally you should see an fs after a about 6 months of ttc.

Julz how will I know if I am not ovulating? By taking my temperature?

Julz thanks for all the info! I think seeing as its only month 1 i'll go with the flow so long. My last 1st day of AF was 1 October. Before that was about 6 - 8 weeks prior to that. I cant tell you exactly. If I cant pick up a pattern after 3 months I'll try this temperature taking thing. Thanks for the link as well...will go and check it out. I'd like to be as informed as I can be. I dont want to draw this TTC thing out longer than it needs to be if I can conceive within ideally 2-6 months.

Mandy can I get that over the counter? Maybe I'll just get normal supplements if I cant get those over the counter.

Endocrinologist put me on metformin as he says is can assist fertility and other symptoms of the pcos. I didnt tell him we are actively trying yet as I want to lose about 10-15kgs before I conceive...but if it happens before I am sure I can still continue to lose weight.

Wow mandy...you just had a long cycle like that and nothing was wrong healthwise? You're so lucky it all worked out like that! 6w??? That is awesome!

I want 3 kids...so really...the sooner i fall pregnant the better. Then I can take a break and have a bit of a 'laatlammetjie' around 32-34 when we're ready again.

Oh and to answer your question, no you can have af every month but still have annovulatory cycles. The flow may be lighter. I didn't ovulate and had af.

Simone, I also had a cycle of between 38 and 42 days long before i managed to fall pregnant and my gynae did a range of tests and said there was nothing wrong with me. I tried an actupuncturist who said it sounded like by body was needing the blood for myself and therefore it was holding on to it and making my cycle longer. He prescribed iron and magnesium in very pure forms and within a month my cycle went down to 30 days. I fell pregnant 6 weeks after I first saw him!

Im holding thumbs that you are preggers already!

Simone the ovultaion kits are great but ideally you need to know more or less when you ovulate to use them or it will be a costly process. You buy the kit which gives you x number of tests and you start testing about 4/5 days prior to estimated ovulation.

I personally think you should go with the flow (or lack of it ) for a month or two and see how it goes.

Can you give me a bit more info. When was the first day of your last bleed and how long do you think your cycle is more or less.

Spotting can occur with ovulation even without pain and it also occurs with implantation some times.

If you seriously need to know what is going on with your cycle you should ideally chart. This means taking your temp at the same time each morning when you wake. It is really important to do this or the temps will not be accurate and so you will not get a clear interpretation of your fertility. You would take the temp the minute you wake up before sitting up or talking or drinking anything --- or Kissing your man. Record the temp daily and then you can plot it on a graph. Your cycle is make up of two cycles which are divided by ovulation. (if it occurs that is). the first phase is the follicular phase where the follicle containing your egg develops for ovulation. then you ovulate which brings the second phase the luteal phase. This is where that follicle that released the egg becomes corpus luteum which produces progesterone to support the early pregnancy. If no fertilisation or implantation takes place this breaks down, progesterone drops which causes your period to come.

So why take your temp. well the first phase causes lower temps then the temp dips (normally) at ovulation and rises sharply after ovulation. the temp then remains higher than all previous temps in the follicular phase for at least 10 days. this is a good, normal cycle.

Here is a chart to use to plot your temps.
www.babyhopes.com/articles/bbt-chart.html

the chart will not tell you when you are going to ovulate but it will give you an indication of what your cycle looks like and if you are ovlating.

Shout if you need help or email me.

Oh my love Vix, Im sorry I irked you in anyway, I was really genuinely asking why you did say the two opposing things and I knew that you always think things through and that there were reasons for your decisions. As the gals so correctly said, I was asking out of care and concern and NOTHING more. I genuinely have grown to love you to bits and I was asking a direct question like you and i have become comfortable with with each other, but I upset you...

Regardless of my intentions, I have upset you and for that I am quite sorry! it was my LAST intention.

As a mom that had a birth at 29 weeks, I had not even considered you driving back and forth for a prem baby!!! really ! and I agree that practicality is completely an important consideration! I know that you will keep your babies in as long as you can caring for both the safety of all of you - mom babies etc!!! and moms safety with your gynae is also hugely important, I agree.

Vix - really , I 100% was not judgeing you, I was asking you why.. I can promise you that!

I should not have posed the questions the way i did, but it was just a question.

I hope you can understand this as I have no reason whatsoever to upset you at this time and I did.

Will you forgive me for being thoughless but sincere none the less?