General chatter while we wait (and commentary on the "pull out method")

[DobbyForever]

In other news I’m gonna try home chef. I’m at 148 now, so being back at work has helped a little. Forbes had them listed as a good service for weight loss/meal kits, and I decided why not since the first box is 50% off and then recurring 10% off for teachers. It feels expensive but I feel like I’m spending just as much every week on junk so oh well. I tried some grocery store frozen foods and I gained weight not lost it. I know it’s more about exercising but I can’t find motivation atm. Though the 64 days til Bahamas is slightly motivational lol

 

[shaescott]

Dobs it’s great that they’re so understanding and accommodating at the horse place!

I don’t think I’ve tried home chef. We try to go cheap on groceries cuz they’re so expensive these days, so I think it’d be significantly more expensive for us.

Ironic moment for me today…
Me: hm I haven’t started spotting yet and I’m 5dpo
Me:*looks down into toilet and sees small amount of blood*
Me: nevermind

it was indeed spotting, my CM is now tinted. But hey, it waited until 5dpo, not as bad lol

 

[shaescott]

Me this morning: I’m not getting my hopes up
Me now: my hopes are up

 

[shaescott]

Aaaaaand my temp dropped back down. I think my body enjoys stressing me out. It wants to feed on my cortisol.



The overall pattern is still elevated but this temp is quite low for post-o for me, so idk.

Tbh at this point this is becoming comedic to me I’ll check my progesterone on 7dpo, and if it’s not at least 10, I’ll know that the chance of pregnancy is near zero.

 

[gigglebox]

yes but your 6dpo........isn't there some sort of implantation dip that happens?

Dobby that sounds lovely and is a good amount of time. Did I ever tell you I tried this with ds1? But the barn wasn't really specialized in sped kids. They said they could accommodate, and they did, but he didn't get to ride or anything, just groom. They evidently stress learning how to care for the animal above riding it...which I get, but like, not for a sped kid who you're trying to keep interested. He wasn't into it. And it was too expensive for us anyway.

 

[shaescott]

Gigs I did think about that. Or alternatively, there’s often an estrogen surge around now. I guess we’ll see with the next few temps.

 

[shaescott]

I put in example temps for pre-ovulation based on past cycles so I could see if I would get crosshairs, which I did. Idk. Agh.

 

[gigglebox]

very exciting to see what the next couple of days hold!!

I forgot to tell y'all...we went on a hike yesterday as a family, and it was so lovely! We went to this little spot in the mountains with a rocky path down to a beautiful waterfall. We sat at the bottom of the falls for a snack and everything was just so beautiful and it just felt like the right time to tell the kids about the pregnancy. I just started crying and looked at my husband and said, "Can we tell them?" and he was like, "If you want to.....you're crying?! Why?" and I just said, "I don't know, hormones probably..." I mean I was really fighting back tears, lol! So I told my kiddos; I said I "might" have a baby in my tummy, but we'll know for sure in a couple of weeks. They are all very excited! DS2 especially. He says he is going to teach the baby how to count and teach him/her words

I am really, really happy they know. I hated keeping it from them so it feels like a big relief, and now that they're excited, it helps me feel more excited.
I'll share a pic in a little bit off the falls

 

[gigglebox]

Kids & hubby climbing on the rocks.
Now I am wondering if anyone has every proposed here? It would be a perfect spot for it!

 

[shaescott]

Gigs awwww that’s so adorable. Seems like a smart way of telling them this early, saying there might be a baby and we’ll find out in a few weeks. You get to share your excitement without having to worry about the risk of having to tell them the baby passed away, God forbid.

 

[DobbyForever]

Love that you got to share that with them! Both the gorgeous hike and pregnancy news!

Shae I got no insight just sending baby dust

Gigs right?! Like I get it and people should have horsemanship but the degree to which some stables really demand it before riding is yikes. I especially don’t get it for stables who want to accommodate or are specifically geared towards neurodivergents. So thankful this stable is understanding. A can go a few lessons here and there totally on ground, but no more than 1-2 in a row and only if he’s medicated.

 

[shaescott]

So my progesterone is still only 6.9 this evening… but then I did some research and saw that some people found that they were getting very low levels on Inito and normal blood levels, which can be due to how progesterone fluctuates in the body and releases in bursts. So now I’m like AHHHHHHHH I don’t know what is happeningggggg. Inito says 6+ in urine confirms ovulation so per Inito I did ovulate. If there was a quest lab near me I’d be getting my 7dpo progesterone drawn tomorrow… but the nearest one is almost 1.5 hours away. This state sucks lmao. Everywhere else I’ve lived has had one max 30 minutes away.

 

[gigglebox]

Good morning all!
Shae can you get labs drawn as a lab tech appointment through your obgyn? Sometimes they’ll oblige if you’ve been seen within the past year.

Otherwise I know of quest but there’s also a lab corp, do you have one of those?

 

[shaescott]

Gigs I checked Labcorp as well, the nearest one is even further. I only have a gyn, not OB, so I’m not entirely sure what they’re willing to do as it gets closer to the pregnancy realm.

My temp did rebound today, not quite all the way but it’s up 0.3 degrees.

 

[shaescott]

I was waiting to test my progesterone with Inito this morning to post the chart today. I didn’t want to get my hopes up either, but…

MY PROGESTERONE IS 15!!!! LETS GOOOOO!!!!

This means I don’t need to bother getting a blood progesterone, because today it is indeed high enough (>10). I’ve been testing in the evening after work because I haven’t had time in the morning before work, and turns out that due to the nature of progesterone releasing in pulses, the longer the hold the better, because you can capture the average level over several hours. I was doing like a 2-3 hour hold cuz I thought as long as I didn’t drink fluids and dilute it, it would be fine. Silly me.


Here’s the chart with the progesterone level overlayed in orange.

 

[gigglebox]

woohoo!! Well that's reassuring! Looks like between this and your good tsh results, you have nothing to worry about, health-wise ^_^

Soooo when are you testing? Are you symptom spotting?

 

[shaescott]

Gigs I’ve honestly got no symptoms (unless you count waking up at 7 am for no reason when I normally sleep in), which doesn’t give me much hope, but we’ll see over the next few days. I know some people have no symptoms as their symptom, so who knows? I want to hold off until 10dpo but realistically I’ll probably start testing at 8dpo tomorrow, “for science” I’ve got a new unopened pack of 10mIU wondfos waiting for me.

I still don’t love the change in BBT pattern, especially since sub-98 post-o temps have been shown to severely decrease pregnancy rates in studies, but… I’m trying to stay calm about that, considering the normal level at 7dpo, which is the important day to check levels.

 

[shaescott]

Hmmm tiny bit of cramping in the lower abdomen, possibly uterine… hmmmm. But then again it just could be my intestines being mad about me eating an entire package of tomatoes this morning I always regret doing that, but I love those little tomatoes on the vine so much
Also felt a tingle in my boobs this morning but nothing else. Possibly the start of getting sore boobs, but that’s also a PMS symptom so it really doesn’t mean anything lol. Agh.

I’m out on the way to do errands with DH (and he drives) so I can’t keep myself occupied with tasks. When I get back I’m planning to do some chores to keep me busy. Though none of them really require critical thinking, so not sure how much it’ll actually help lol

 

[shaescott]

Dude. AI just solved my luteal phase spotting. I asked Snapchat’s AI about the spotting again with the context of knowing that my 7dpo progesterone level was normal as well as my thyroid levels. The AI friggin figured it out. It brought up cervical issues and I asked for elaboration and it listed a few things, including cervical ectropion. In June my gyno told me I had a small cervical ectropion. Turns out, THOSE ARE ASSOCIATED WITH LUTEAL PHASE SPOTTING. Which means that most likely, there is nothing wrong with me. The spotting is totally benign. I’m losing my mind right now. I was so stressed out and Google gave me no helpful information, and a few minutes with an AI solved it. Reddit is full of stories of women who have cervical ectropion and luteal phase spotting and were told by their provider the ectropion was the cause if everything else normal.

 

[DobbyForever]

Brother is back in the hospital. Raining and pouring over here