OPK darkness questions?

[Skywalker]

Sorry in advance if these questions have been asked and answered a million times - I haven't seen this particular question on here and am hoping someone can help.

Soooo obviously as you can prob tell I'm very new to testing with OPk's and I have the annoying cheapie kind where you have to judge the darkness of the line to see when it looks like the same darkness as the control line.

I don't know when I ovulate since this is really technically the first cycle I'm paying attention to figuring that out, so I started taking ovulation tests once a day every day since my period stopped and am confused bc the test line seems to vary from day to day and is darker on some days and then lighter other days (haven't had a positive OPK yet though, that I know!)

I'm on CD 10 and I think based on my cycle length that I'm due to ovulate on CD 18 or CD 19, so I guess my question is, does the test line get darker and darker as you near ovulation, or is it going to continue to vary in darkness right up until I get a positive? I'm thinking maybe the LH levels fluctuate right up until the time you actually get a surge? But I'm not sure if that's how it works.

Please help this OPK newbie! I have no reason to suspect that I have early ovulation but just wanted to test every day to make sure we didn't miss it.

 

[darkriver]

It depends on the amount of LH in your urine. For example my test was darker this morning them it was this afternoon. I missed my ovulation (yesterday)

 

[Joybell]

It seems to vary from person to person. For me I get no line at all on OPKs until around CD14-15 it then gets progressively darker til going positive on CD17 and I ovulate on CD18. After that I get a very light line for a day or so then back to nothing.
I do know some people get lines throughout the month of varying darkness. It's so random.

Try not to panic, keep testing and keep a log somewhere of your lines if possible do you can see any pattern

 

[Skywalker]

It seems to vary from person to person. For me I get no line at all on OPKs until around CD14-15 it then gets progressively darker til going positive on CD17 and I ovulate on CD18. After that I get a very light line for a day or so then back to nothing.
I do know some people get lines throughout the month of varying darkness. It's so random.

Try not to panic, keep testing and keep a log somewhere of your lines if possible do you can see any pattern

Thank you! That makes sense and answers my question I'm still not supposed to ovulate for another 8 days or so but I will definitely keep an eye on it so see if it's earlier than what Google says should be my ovulation date based on my cycle length! Thanks again!

 

[cherrylips100]

It can be confusing, I have what looks like a pos opk for a few days so just try to bd alot incase! Also, try checking your cm.

 

[LoraLoo]

Mine varies in colour, can be like one day, dark the next, no line at a some days, then bang out of the blue positive!

 

[campn]

It varies a little, but usually with most women it'll gradually get darker the closer you get to ovulation then start fading after.. I'd start testing twice a day, usually 2 pm and 10 pm are the magic numbers. Make sure to hold your pee!

Egg white CM usually goes hand in hand, so if you notice that, keep testing!

 

[Angel5000]

It really depends on the person. When I first came off bcp for the first 3 cycles or so I would have stark white tests until about a week before O and then mine would slowly darken as I got nearer until I got a +OPK. However, lately (the last several cycles) I've noticed my line varies a lot and it'll be dark and then light and then almost non-existant and then one day BAM positive.

The big thing is to be consistent about the time you test, as much as possible, and make sure to try and get a 3-4 hour hold before each test. That makes a big difference.