Help with OPKs

[KrissyB]

Hi Ladies!
So this is my first month ever using OPKs, and I am full of questions! Hoping some of you can share your experience/habits.
When (CD) do you normally start testing?
How often do you test?
What time(s) of day do you test?
Does drinking a lot/not enough affect the results?
How fast do OPKs get darker? Or is it different per person?
Does a light line mean tomorrow could be full positive? Or could O still be a week away?
LOL I'll probably just keep editing this post while I think of more questions. TIA!

 

[Myshelsong]

Okay I'm going to try to answer some questions.
Depending on the strips you purchase you will want to take this in the afternoon early evening after holding your bladder for a few hours. Do not drink a lot of water prior to taking this test or at least that's what my test say.
For me I find that I will almost always get some line but it will naturally progress darker and darker until I get the positive. Remember it is not a positive until it is darker than the test.
Normally after a positive you O anywhere between 28 to 32 hours later, however it is best to keep taking your temperature in the morning once you get the temp shift you know that you ovulated. It's me take a few months to be able to decipher your own cycle.

Good luck and happy babymaking

 

[Tigerlilies]

When I was TTC, I used the digi, less confusing that way. If you don't know when you O, start on CD8, test once a day, if it starts getting darker, test twice a day, once in the morning (but not first morning pee), and once in the afternoon to help narrow in on when the surge started. O can actually start as early as 12hrs after the surge, so if I got a pos OPK in the AM, we would BP that evening, then the next day, once in the AM, and once in the PM. If I got a pos OPK in the PM, then the next morning we would BP, and again that evening, and then one more time the following AM since the egg is viable for 24hrs after O. Too many ppl make the mistake of only BPing the day of the pos OPK. But that leaves sperm swimming around in the uterus, getting lost or misdirected for 12-36hrs before that egg even makes it into the fallopian tube. You want to maximize the amount of sperm as close as possible to the actual time of release! Also, no regular lube, they usually have spermicide in them, conception lube or o'naturale! Good luck!!!!

 

[KrissyB]

I'm just using cheapies, and so far I've just been getting very light lines. They MIGHT be getting slightly darker from day to day, but it's very subtle if anything. I know it's still a bit early (CD 9) but I also have shorter cycles (26 days) - so I'm not really sure what to expect.

Is it possible that they won't get darker from day to day, and it'll be positive at some point without warning?

 

[BeachyFeelin]

It's possible they may never get darker, my last cycle using OPK's I never got a positive (but confirmed O through temping). I just wasn't testing enough. So i'm not a fan of OPK's and don't waste my money on them anymore. But I'll answer your questions:

When (CD) do you normally start testing? I started CD10, because I know through months of temping that I don't O until CD12 or CD13.
How often do you test? In the beginning I was testing once a day at 2PM, then my last cycle using them I was testing twice a day, 2PM and 9PM.
What time(s) of day do you test? (see above )
Does drinking a lot/not enough affect the results? Yes, drinking too much water can dilute your pee.
How fast do OPKs get darker? Or is it different per person? Different per person.
Does a light line mean tomorrow could be full positive? Or could O still be a week away? A light line generally means nothing. I think I read somewhere that you always have a little LH in your system. Some women take an OPK around AF time and get lines.