Considering at-home insemination with donor sperm...?

[babydust4u]

Hi all
I'm on to another cycle and will try the grapefruit
I think my endometrial lining is very thin as I have very very light periods, anybody have any ideas on how to help this?
One week till insem. Just trying to think ahead on anything that can help this cycle.

Thanks everyone

 

[Juniperjules]

Is there any concern with the grapefruit juice changing the PH and making your CM too acidic? I know you have to be carful when using pineapple core for that reason.

Leah- glad you're okay, I saw the fire on the news and thought about you guys.

No apparently not, although the juice itself is acidic, apparently once absorbed by the body it's byproducts become alkalised hence alkalising the CM.. So yes it changes the pH but in a positive way. & sperm need an alkaline environment to survive... Have a read of this link

https://www.livestrong.com/article/550900-grapefruit-juice-concentrate-and-cervical-mucus/

 

[Nimyra]

Thanks Juniper! That makes sense. Yay grapefruit juice!

Babydust4u -- I think I may have a thin lining as well since my mmc. I think acupuncture can help with directing extra blood flow to the uterus, particular acupuncture in that period of time between when your period ends and ovulation begins. I haven't any other ideas, but am interested to see what others think.

 

[c.30]

Hi all
I'm on to another cycle and will try the grapefruit
I think my endometrial lining is very thin as I have very very light periods, anybody have any ideas on how to help this?
One week till insem. Just trying to think ahead on anything that can help this cycle.

Thanks everyone

Found this article, might be of some use
https://natural-fertility-info.com/thin-lining-of-the-uterus-build-the-uterine-lining-naturally.html

 

[Juniperjules]

Got a question for anyone that uses the clearblue smiley face OPKs. I know ur not supposed to pay attention to the lines on the stick.. But has anyone watched them to see if the change much??

I did my first OPK very late (like 11.50pm on cd 13), no smiley. Again cd 14 6am (usually I'd get a smiley here- I did last month).. No smiley. Again about 12pm cd 14, no smiley. Cd 15 & 16 still no smileys????? Very unusual for me!!!!

Only thing I can think of it that this month I had a fair bit of spotting and cramping one day, but didn't get full flow till the next day- so counted that as cd1. Now I'm wondering if technically the day before DID count. Bcos that would mean I Ov on cd 14.. So would possibly have gotten a smiley early on cd 13.

I've been looking at the OPK sticks for the last 4 days, & they all have a faint second blue line. Does that mean its detecting LH?? So Ov could still be coming? Or do they all do that anyway even if there's no LH??

Hope I'm making sense??? I'm kind of hoping I did Ov on cd 14, bcos we did AI on cd 11, 12, 13 & 14. And I'm hoping I haven't had an anovulatory month.. That would suck big time.

 

[Nimyra]

Juniper,

[edit]-- sorry, i didn't understand what I read the first time -- you may have missed the surge. It's hard to say. I personally would keep testing until your cm turns creamy/sticky and your cervix closes up. Are you still having any fertile cm? Last month I expected my surge on CD 14 and got it on Cd 19 instead!

How the lines work is proprietary, but based on my experiments and observations, I believe that the first line ( usually the darker one, closer to the handle) is showing estrogen and the second line (usually fainter, closer to the wick) is showing LH. My guess is that the clearblue company only bothers to make one kind of stick and that they can be used in the fertility monitor as well as the ovulation tester - hence showing 2 different hormones.

Sometimes I have had smileys when my LH line wasn't as dark as the (alleged) estrogen line, but it was significantly darker than it had been when I tested last (so surge was starting). In those cases, my next test always showed an increasingly dark lh line.

Long story short, I trust the clearblue digis so long as the window isn't smeared ( i do think smearing can lead to false results). And if you are showing a faint line, that doesn't mean you've surged, it should still be fairly dark.

Good luck, hope you get your smiley soon!!!!

 

[jury3]

I agree with Nimyra, I trust the smilies and have had really good results with them. I believe the line is picking up some lh, but we basically have some in our system all cycle long. I have done one closer to AF though and it wasn't as dark as it usually is around O time. Your temp still looks like it's below what your coverline was last month, so I would say you haven't O'd yet. I'm sure it will be a smiley in the next few days. My O time varies every month, so that common for me. I would still count the full flow as CD1, not the spotting. How long have you been tracking cycles?

 

[Juniperjules]

I agree with Nimyra, I trust the smilies and have had really good results with them. I believe the line is picking up some lh, but we basically have some in our system all cycle long. I have done one closer to AF though and it wasn't as dark as it usually is around O time. Your temp still looks like it's below what your coverline was last month, so I would say you haven't O'd yet. I'm sure it will be a smiley in the next few days. My O time varies every month, so that common for me. I would still count the full flow as CD1, not the spotting. How long have you been tracking cycles?

Jury, that's an old chart from last year unfortunately! I trust the smileys too, I always get one- but almost without fail usually on cd 14. So it's unusual that I haven't had one yet. Ill keep testing for the next few days just to see what happens.. But I have to say I have an instinct that I might've Ov on cd 14 & hence missed the smiley on cd 13. That'll teach me to be so sure of myself! Next month ill start POAS earlier!

 

[Juniperjules]

Juniper,

[edit]-- sorry, i didn't understand what I read the first time -- you may have missed the surge. It's hard to say. I personally would keep testing until your cm turns creamy/sticky and your cervix closes up. Are you still having any fertile cm? Last month I expected my surge on CD 14 and got it on Cd 19 instead!

How the lines work is proprietary, but based on my experiments and observations, I believe that the first line ( usually the darker one, closer to the handle) is showing estrogen and the second line (usually fainter, closer to the wick) is showing LH. My guess is that the clearblue company only bothers to make one kind of stick and that they can be used in the fertility monitor as well as the ovulation tester - hence showing 2 different hormones.

Sometimes I have had smileys when my LH line wasn't as dark as the (alleged) estrogen line, but it was significantly darker than it had been when I tested last (so surge was starting). In those cases, my next test always showed an increasingly dark lh line.

Long story short, I trust the clearblue digis so long as the window isn't smeared ( i do think smearing can lead to false results). And if you are showing a faint line, that doesn't mean you've surged, it should still be fairly dark.

Good luck, hope you get your smiley soon!!!!

Thanks Nimyra, I'm feeling like I did Ov on cd & therefore missed the surge on cd 13.

I had LOADS of watery CM on cd 11 & 12, & I just checked my app I use, & on cd 13 I put in that I had EWCM. I vaguely remember I was at work & was thinking 'whoa that grapefruit juice is working a treat!' Yesterday cd 15 my CM was more the white-ish type (sorry TMI!), And so far today (cd16) I've got barely any CM to speak of.

Ill keep doing the OPKs for a couple of days just incase though... Even just to test those little blue lines for next time! I'm REALLY hoping Ov WAS cd 14 bcos our AI would've been perfect timings..

Watch this space..

 

[babydust4u]

Thanks for the advice everyone, I think I will try and see an acupuncturists as well see if that helps

 

[babydust4u]

Quick question, where can you buy syringes from? I think I will be doing AI this month as going to donor with my little girl this time. Just not sure where to get syringes from, oh and size lol!

 

[Juniperjules]

You should be able to get some from a chemist. I'm a nurse so I get them from work, but pretty sure you could get them from a chemist. I use the 10ml ones, 5ml was a bit small & the 20ml's are huge!

 

[oldnavygirl]

Quick question, where can you buy syringes from? I think I will be doing AI this month as going to donor with my little girl this time. Just not sure where to get syringes from, oh and size lol!

We ordered ours from Amazon -- we ended up getting a box of 100 because it worked out cheaper LOL Our donor said he needed 4 and it would've been more expensive to order 4 single ones than a box of 100! Really hoping that we don't NEED them all!

 

[babydust4u]

Thanks Juniperjules and oldnavygirl
I went to the pharmacy and they gave me ONE lol, So need to just go to 3 more pharmacies and I'll have 4 lol. I half thought about telling them what I really need it for and asking for the 4.
Anyways I'll keep my eyes open for a couple more. Juniperjules I hope you don't need 100 either!! lol

On to the 10 hour drive tomorrow down to Vancouver, still we are staying a few nights and hoping to go to the Zoo I think I'm more excited then the kiddy ha ha
Usually I just fly down (donor lives in Vancouver) for a couple of nights but going to take DD and make it a little vacation

 

[jury3]

Go to a pharmacy and ask for one! They give them out for free! We got our's at Walgreens. We had paid for one previously, from Amazon, and lost it in the drain at our donor's house lol At least our new one is free so it won't be a big deal if it falls down the drain too!

 

[Juniperjules]

Thanks Juniperjules and oldnavygirl
I went to the pharmacy and they gave me ONE lol, So need to just go to 3 more pharmacies and I'll have 4 lol. I half thought about telling them what I really need it for and asking for the 4.
Anyways I'll keep my eyes open for a couple more. Juniperjules I hope you don't need 100 either!! lol

On to the 10 hour drive tomorrow down to Vancouver, still we are staying a few nights and hoping to go to the Zoo I think I'm more excited then the kiddy ha ha
Usually I just fly down (donor lives in Vancouver) for a couple of nights but going to take DD and make it a little vacation

: ) a little vacation sounds great!

I rinse my syringe in hot water & re-use them. I guess that might b a bit grosse for some, but it doesn't bother me. Some months ill use one from a previous month & other months ill use a new one. But I'm using my OH sperm so hanging on to the syringe might be less grosse for that reason?

 

[oldnavygirl]

Thanks Juniperjules and oldnavygirl
I went to the pharmacy and they gave me ONE lol, So need to just go to 3 more pharmacies and I'll have 4 lol. I half thought about telling them what I really need it for and asking for the 4.
Anyways I'll keep my eyes open for a couple more. Juniperjules I hope you don't need 100 either!! lol

On to the 10 hour drive tomorrow down to Vancouver, still we are staying a few nights and hoping to go to the Zoo I think I'm more excited then the kiddy ha ha
Usually I just fly down (donor lives in Vancouver) for a couple of nights but going to take DD and make it a little vacation

: ) a little vacation sounds great!

I rinse my syringe in hot water & re-use them. I guess that might b a bit grosse for some, but it doesn't bother me. Some months ill use one from a previous month & other months ill use a new one. But I'm using my OH sperm so hanging on to the syringe might be less grosse for that reason?

I don't think it's gross, but what would concern me is that plastic is porous, so there could be a chance of contamination. I suppose, for me, I'd rather use a new one each time, hence the case full LOL!

 

[Juniperjules]

Thanks Juniperjules and oldnavygirl
I went to the pharmacy and they gave me ONE lol, So need to just go to 3 more pharmacies and I'll have 4 lol. I half thought about telling them what I really need it for and asking for the 4.
Anyways I'll keep my eyes open for a couple more. Juniperjules I hope you don't need 100 either!! lol

On to the 10 hour drive tomorrow down to Vancouver, still we are staying a few nights and hoping to go to the Zoo I think I'm more excited then the kiddy ha ha
Usually I just fly down (donor lives in Vancouver) for a couple of nights but going to take DD and make it a little vacation

: ) a little vacation sounds great!

I rinse my syringe in hot water & re-use them. I guess that might b a bit grosse for some, but it doesn't bother me. Some months ill use one from a previous month & other months ill use a new one. But I'm using my OH sperm so hanging on to the syringe might be less grosse for that reason?

I don't think it's gross, but what would concern me is that plastic is porous, so there could be a chance of contamination. I suppose, for me, I'd rather use a new one each time, hence the case full LOL!

Good point oldnavygirl.. I've previously looked up the safety of re-using & went with this statement in The lancet:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(83)92812-X/abstract

But I get that some folk might be uncomfortable with the idea of it. If u have a stack of them then I'd def just use a new one each time.

 

[day_dreamer]

I don't bother with new ones, just rinse and re-use. After all, people don't ensure their other halfs are fully disinfected before sex do they?!

 

[LeahMSta]

CD1....again.