Charting

[Kaylava34]

Hi, I had a miscarriage a month ago at 6w 3d. Just got AF today. I would really like to start charting ovulation through bbt. Can anyone tell me if they have charts on this site that I can connect to my profile? Also has anyone had success in the past by using this method? Thanks in advance for your responses. 😃

 

[pandi77]

Sorry about your loss hun and it makes ttc a bit more stressful imo A lot of women on here use Fertility Friend and the basic charting app is free. I found charting to be a great help because when I started ttc my cycles were irregular and my luteal phase short. By charting I was better able to time bd'ing and take the necessary actions to fix my luteal phase so my beans could stick! It was also nice to know before AF came if we had a running chance because I usually get a pre-AF dip in bbt but on my pregnancy cycles my bbt stayed up so the anticipation was a bit less crazy and I was so disappointed or surprised by AF. Good luck and baby dust!

 

[Kaylava34]

Thanks Pandi77, congrats on your bfp!!! This past pregnancy was unexpected. I was done having kids. Apparently this loss made me change my mind. This is my second miscarriage since 2011. I am trying to conceive right away so I can get to the dr to have my progesterone levels tested. This charting seems like a huge help, although it is pretty hard to follow. Lol idk what that luteral phase is. Gonna have to google that. 😃😃

 

[mpayne186]

Very sorry to hear about your miscarriages. Here's what I was told last week at my preconception appointment with my OB. I started charting last cycle using Fertility Friend (awesome app!) I was very detailed in it! Temp at exactly 6am, CM, symptoms, etc. Took the printed chart to my appt and my doc immediately said to throw the thermometer away and stop charting... that I was complicating things. He said that trying to interpret the chart, or finding a pattern, can be very confusing and every person looking at your chart will likely interpret it differently and if you have a single "off" temp (I learned the hard way that an electric blanket will cause drastically "wrong" temps!) it throws off the entire chart. His advice was to simply ovulation test on Day 12 and keep testing until I get a high reading, then BD for the next 3 days.

However... my opinion is that his advice is TOO simplistic. I am going to continue charting, but only use it as a supplemental to ovulation test strips. I just finished reading the book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility." Highly recommend! It will tell you everything you need to know about charting!! Good luck!

 

[Kaylava34]

Mpayne186, thanks for your feedback. I use an electric blanket every night. Lol figures. 😳 Maybe I can move it off me 1/2 hr before I temp. I plan on using opk's as well, as I am very determined. 😊

 

[moter98]

I am very sorry for your loss hun.
I chart using FF as well. I've even got the handy iPhone app. I started charting while ttc#2. Had 2 losses during that time and took a year to get my sticky rainbow baby. Charting helped me not to lose my mind during that time because I had clear data showing my ovulation days, so I at least knew I was ovulating. I actually brought my charts into the dr. at the one year mark because i thought there must be something wrong. He looked at my charts and did bloodwork and advised that I try another 6 months as everything looked normal. I got my bfp that very next cycle. It has ended up being a valuable tool for me as after I had my 2nd, I used charting instead of the pill to prevent pregnancy. And now that we are ttc#3 I feel like a charting pro!

 

[Kaylava34]

I am very sorry for your loss hun.
I chart using FF as well. I've even got the handy iPhone app. I started charting while ttc#2. Had 2 losses during that time and took a year to get my sticky rainbow baby. Charting helped me not to lose my mind during that time because I had clear data showing my ovulation days, so I at least knew I was ovulating. I actually brought my charts into the dr. at the one year mark because i thought there must be something wrong. He looked at my charts and did bloodwork and advised that I try another 6 months as everything looked normal. I got my bfp that very next cycle. It has ended up being a valuable tool for me as after I had my 2nd, I used charting instead of the pill to prevent pregnancy. And now that we are ttc#3 I feel like a charting pro!

Congrats on your bfp!! Wonderful news!!!😃

 

[moter98]

I am very sorry for your loss hun.
I chart using FF as well. I've even got the handy iPhone app. I started charting while ttc#2. Had 2 losses during that time and took a year to get my sticky rainbow baby. Charting helped me not to lose my mind during that time because I had clear data showing my ovulation days, so I at least knew I was ovulating. I actually brought my charts into the dr. at the one year mark because i thought there must be something wrong. He looked at my charts and did bloodwork and advised that I try another 6 months as everything looked normal. I got my bfp that very next cycle. It has ended up being a valuable tool for me as after I had my 2nd, I used charting instead of the pill to prevent pregnancy. And now that we are ttc#3 I feel like a charting pro!

Congrats on your bfp!! Wonderful news!!!😃

Thanks. My bfp is one now lol! We are ttc again for #3.

 

[mmMlm]

Charting is awesome! Really helpful to tell when you ovulate.
I agree with moter98, it is saving my sanity and definitely not causing more stress- I know when AF will start within a day or two, if BD was well-timed, etc. As long as you don't fall into the trap of over-analyzing every little change in temperature, and just look at trends, it is useful.

From what I have read, you can temp while using an electric blanket as long as it stays the same every day (ie use it at the same setting for your whole cycle). This way, if it changes your temps, it will change them by the same amount for the whole month and the trend will be the same, IYKWIM?

Sorry about your MC, I went through one late last year and it sucks! Charting during/afterwords let me know when hormones were back to normal and when the first ov occured.

FertilityFriend is great.