Agnus Castus (Vitex) ladies - Lets see how successful it can be (2 BFP's so far!!)

[thisisme]

im not charting. i dont think id be very good at the temping i sleepy very irratically at night and not sure i would get an acurate temp in the morning.

i used to be able to tell when i ov'd i had fantastic EWCM (why is that always the case when you arent trying you can tell when you are trying it seems impossible)
when i got PG with ds2 i did warn OH that i was OV'ing lol. we werent really trying and we werent protecting..funnily enough at that time we had decided to wait a few years to try so that we could get money in order...he was a fab surprise

 

[lisaf]

I wanted to see your chart Mrs. Ping! I'm a chart perv.

My temp went up today, which is a bit of a load off my mind. I was kind of holding my breath. Getting my blood drawn tomorrow to see what my 7dpo progesterone is at.
My acupuncturist told me that the vitex is supposed to help boost progesterone... but it takes 2-3 months for it to have full effect.
Wouldn't it be a big joke on me if I had super great progesterone even with these rather low temps?

 

[jwelmel]

Hi..can i join u girls too...Just started vitex this cycle from CD6- around 1600mg/d.The problem is ive been doing IC opks since CD9 and now im on CD 16 and still no sign of ovulation.

I had 2 regular 31 day cycles after stopping bcp but last cycle was 56 days.So hoping AG works for me.Since i dont know when my ovulation is ,can u girls suggest when i should stop AG in my cycle.

Thanks so much and GL !!

 

[lisaf]

jwelmel - looks like you chart your BBT. That should be a great way to know when to stop. As soon as FF puts up the crosshairs on your chart indicating ovulation, you should stop.
Also your CM should clue you in when ovulation has happened.
Its ok to take it after O, you just don't want to take it if you are pregnant. So if you go over a few days past O its ok.

 

[jwelmel]

Thank u so much.This is one big dilemma i had when i started taking AC.Since its my first month of charting was not very sure what to look for.And i seriously suspect i ovulated very late last month...around CD 30s.Well hoping AC makes a diff.

Well..now il look out for cross hairs.Not +ve opk yet.

 

[dandybrush]

welcome jwelmel hoping AC brings on O for you

thisisme- i used to be able to tell with my EWCM to...but i just cant decipher anything these days

 

[dandybrush]

my temps are soo erratic

 

[lisaf]

dandy- I sympathize! My temps were all over the place when I wasn't ovulating. Then when I was on Clomid they got a lot better. On my first cycle off Clomid, my temps were all up and down before O... had me very worried.
The more data you give FF the better it can detect ovulation. Even if a temp or two is off, the OPK, CM and even CP can help them figure it out.

jwelmel - keep in mind that not all brands of OPKs work the same. They all have slightly different thresholds they are looking for to count as a 'surge' and turn positive. I had trouble finding the right brand for me.
If you get OPKs that turn very dark but not positive yet, then they fade off and everything else (temp, CM) look like you ovulated, you probably did. That happened to a friend of mine this month (she had her blood checked at cd21 and it showed she'd ovulated). It happened to me on my first clomid cycle too.

 

[jwelmel]

I Know,i ve had faint positives all month with OPK ICs ,but its not +ve until its dark right.As far as i know,i dont have PCOS,as they sometimes suspect thats the case.I had an ultrasound internal last month and was given a clean bill.BC screwed up my cycle majorly,believe me or not,i took it only for 18 days in nov.And my periods are still not regulated.

I thought if i get slightly darker line will try with a branded opk.But WTH!!!!So still waiting to ovulate officially.

 

[lisaf]

If you have PCOS it can make your OPKs positive when you aren't surging (high LH is one method of diagnosing PCOS).
I've passed just about every test there is for PCOS so I don't have it either.
I used Answer brand OPKs one month... I got tons of positives (the test was just as dark as the control line). But I was definitely not ovulating (bottom chart on my link).

Next cycle, on Clomid, I decided to go with a name brand OPK also (First Response). I never got a positive (where the line is equal in color or darker than the control line). However, my chart, CM and period/LP show that I clearly ovulated. In hindsight, I had 2 OPKs that were darker than the previous very faint ones right around that time.

Next cycle, on Clomid, I went with the cheap internet brand that I use for pregnancy tests (mostly because they sell them individually wrapped unlike the 20 pack of First Response that were all in one big ziplock bag). I got a VERY VERY VERY dark line on that OPK... like 5X darker than the control, lol! I kept thinking I was looking at it the wrong way.
I've gotten clear positives on that internet brand every cycle since.
I'm not saying they'd work best for everyone... just that more expensive does not always mean better for you.

Also... on one of those cycles, I dipped one of my leftover First Responses in the same pee as the IC. The IC gave me a super dark positive... and First Response was still not quite as dark as the control line.

 

[lisaf]

oh.. and with your more fertile CM and your temp dropping, I'd say you're heading towards ovulation in the next 2-7 days or so.

 

[dandybrush]

thanx lisa...so hoping i Ov this month

 

[jwelmel]

If you have PCOS it can make your OPKs positive when you aren't surging (high LH is one method of diagnosing PCOS).
I've passed just about every test there is for PCOS so I don't have it either.
I used Answer brand OPKs one month... I got tons of positives (the test was just as dark as the control line). But I was definitely not ovulating (bottom chart on my link).

Next cycle, on Clomid, I decided to go with a name brand OPK also (First Response). I never got a positive (where the line is equal in color or darker than the control line). However, my chart, CM and period/LP show that I clearly ovulated. In hindsight, I had 2 OPKs that were darker than the previous very faint ones right around that time.

Next cycle, on Clomid, I went with the cheap internet brand that I use for pregnancy tests (mostly because they sell them individually wrapped unlike the 20 pack of First Response that were all in one big ziplock bag). I got a VERY VERY VERY dark line on that OPK... like 5X darker than the control, lol! I kept thinking I was looking at it the wrong way.
I've gotten clear positives on that internet brand every cycle since.
I'm not saying they'd work best for everyone... just that more expensive does not always mean better for you.

Also... on one of those cycles, I dipped one of my leftover First Responses in the same pee as the IC. The IC gave me a super dark positive... and First Response was still not quite as dark as the control line.

Wow...i guess ill have to keep looking.

 

[dandybrush]

morning all im going away for the weekend, hope everyone has a great one ill have to catch up next week

 

[maxie07]

Hey can i join?
this is the only forum that i can find that has ladies that know what agnus castus is

I started taking mine 4 days ago...400mg twice a day...im on b6 aswell,
i was told i may possibly have pcos but hormone levels are all over the place

so taking it into my own hands, i am currently on CD41....the cycle before that was 186 days!!

so fingers crossed this really works...

BABY DUST TO ALL

 

[dandybrush]

hi maxie im sorta new to this vitex thing too...I hadnt had AF for almost 4 months and 1 week after being on it according to FF i had oved so i stoped the vitex and 2 weeks later AF showed up and now this is my second month on it and according to FF i have again Oved (not positive though) but it seems to so far have given me a cycle the next month instead of every 2 months so fxed maxie it works for you

 

[Mrs.Ping]

ok so I ovulate on cd 37 and now it seems that my lp temps are acting pretty screwy compared to my previous temps. they are a lot lower then normal. hope this works it self out in the long run!

 

[dandybrush]

your chart is looking pretty normal to me mrs ping
i am no expert though...

 

[ACCmummyof2]

Hey can i join?
this is the only forum that i can find that has ladies that know what agnus castus is

I started taking mine 4 days ago...400mg twice a day...im on b6 aswell,
i was told i may possibly have pcos but hormone levels are all over the place

so taking it into my own hands, i am currently on CD41....the cycle before that was 186 days!!

so fingers crossed this really works...

BABY DUST TO ALL

yay im not alone!!! you said you had a cycle of 186 days!! im on CD154 at the mo!! i started vitex on the 2 of june so hope to see af next week fingers x!!
im sending you lots of

 

[maxie07]

hi maxie im sorta new to this vitex thing too...I hadnt had AF for almost 4 months and 1 week after being on it according to FF i had oved so i stoped the vitex and 2 weeks later AF showed up and now this is my second month on it and according to FF i have again Oved (not positive though) but it seems to so far have given me a cycle the next month instead of every 2 months so fxed maxie it works for you

Wow...only a week...what dose where you taking....??
the only prob i have with it is its giving me major headaches ....
I am not charting atm...i have just come back from spain...and my sleep pattern is all messed up...
I will start doing my temp 2 morro....
Do you have to stop taking it after ov....i am a little worried now as it worked so quick for you .....i have just taken it waiting for af to turn up Hmmmm!! so i may have already o'd???
all this ttc stuff is so confusing!
Oh well......i am getting very hopeful that this could work now

BABY DUST TO YOU