OPK: not sure if this is the place to ask....

[cstull1217]

Little bsckstory: I have had 1 successful pregnancy that resulted in my awesome 7 yo ds. I had an ectopic pregnancy in Dec of 2010 that resulted in having the pregnancy surgically removed. I have had wacky periods since. We have been ttc since Nov of 2012 with no success. In the past year I have had 2 minor surgeries Including a hystrocospy and d&c to remove scar tissue and check for abnormalities. All well. I have done 3 rounds of clomid wirh no success. I have started opk this month. There days ago I did the test and got a faint second line, which the pkg says means neg. The past two days I have just one line. Did I miss my ovulation and the line on the first one just an indication of the end of my window?

 

[kwynia]

Mine tend to vary from light to no line until just before I ovulate, so it's not a long slow gradual increase, but more sudden. I would keep checking and monitor other signs of ovulation like increased cervical mucous, that's how I know to start opks.

 

[WhiteOrchid24]

Hi cstull!

What day of your cycle did you start using OPKs? For an OPK to be considered positive the 2nd line should be as dark as the test strip or darker. From what you say the test you did with the 2nd line was definitely negative but I'm not sure why you have had 2 blank tests since.... My only thoughts would be either you did miss it and the first test was the tale-end of the surge; you are too early or you didn't do the tests properly for the blank ones...

I'm not sure if that helps or not!! The instructions in the kits should tell you when to start testing based on your cycle length so that you don't miss the surge. It's also important that you don't use FMU to test for ovulation... the best time to test is roughly between 10am and 4pm and obviously you need to limit your fluid intake before. For me I generally try to wait 3 hours between going to the loo (and taking the test) with nothing to drink in that time!

Hope it helps and that you get your BFP soon! I am so sorry for what you have all been through....

 

[cstull1217]

I started doing the opk on day 13 of my cycle with a 30 day cycle. This is my first month doing opk And third day of testing. I have been doing my tests in the evening, so I may switch to mornings if that won't affect anything? I did all three tests the same so I know they are done right.

 

[WhiteOrchid24]

To be honest if you have a 30 day cycle I would have thought day 13 was the right time to start testing so I would be surprised if you had missed it..... Definitely try testing earlier (when doing IUI this month the Dr. told me to test around 12noon) and see if that makes a difference. Do you get any other ovulation symptoms?

I know it's a pain to start with but you will soon get used to using the OPKs...it just takes a bit of time

 

[cstull1217]

Besides a slight increase in mucus I have zero symptoms of ovulation which is the reason I started doing these tests.
the real pain is remembering to do it the same time every day, I am so scatter brained I am surprised my family survives sometimes lol.

 

[WhiteOrchid24]

LOL!

 

[kwynia]

To be honest if you have a 30 day cycle I would have thought day 13 was the right time to start testing so I would be surprised if you had missed it..... Definitely try testing earlier (when doing IUI this month the Dr. told me to test around 12noon) and see if that makes a difference. Do you get any other ovulation symptoms?

I know it's a pain to start with but you will soon get used to using the OPKs...it just takes a bit of time

I also get best results in the afternoon, between 11 and 2 usually.

 

[cstull1217]

To be honest if you have a 30 day cycle I would have thought day 13 was the right time to start testing so I would be surprised if you had missed it..... Definitely try testing earlier (when doing IUI this month the Dr. told me to test around 12noon) and see if that makes a difference. Do you get any other ovulation symptoms?

I know it's a pain to start with but you will soon get used to using the OPKs...it just takes a bit of time

I also get best results in the afternoon, between 11 and 2 usually.

I did the opk at 1215 today and still the one line. So we are just gonna keep testing and see what happens

 

[WhiteOrchid24]

What brand of tests are you using? And what day are you on now?

 

[cstull1217]

What brand of tests are you using? And what day are you on now?

I am using clinical guard bc they are cheap to buy in bulk on amazon. I am on day 4 of my first testing cycle. Sadly 2 1/2 years in to ttc I am still learning so much And my ob was doing all sorts of other tests and my dh didn't want to do anything beyond before now and this is secondary infertility so it is a whole new ballpark to me.

 

[WhiteOrchid24]

Oh ok! I am totally confused though as I thought you said you were on day 13 the other day?! Was that when you tested last cycle? Sorry - I keep asking you so many questions!! If you are on day 4 then your tests would totally be negative.... In fact I wouldn't even start testing til about day 11.....

I know how you feel - it's continuous learning... I'm just over 3 years of TTC #2 and it is so hard

 

[kwynia]

I think she means she started testing on cd 13 but is on the 4th day of testing, so probably cd 16 today.

@cstull1217: I would say keep using opks a few more days at least. If you have a 30 day cycle, on average, you might be having a longer one this month. And really it can pop up positive out of nowhere, could be totally negative today and positive 2 days from now. It's a little different for everyone, but if you keep using opks you will probably notice your own pattern.

I feel your pain on the secondary infertility, I've been pregnant three times in the past year just to miscarry all of them. My hubby also doesn't want to do more than BD, so I guess we just keep at it.

 

[cstull1217]

I think she means she started testing on cd 13 but is on the 4th day of testing, so probably cd 16 today.

@cstull1217: I would say keep using opks a few more days at least. If you have a 30 day cycle, on average, you might be having a longer one this month. And really it can pop up positive out of nowhere, could be totally negative today and positive 2 days from now. It's a little different for everyone, but if you keep using opks you will probably notice your own pattern.

I feel your pain on the secondary infertility, I've been pregnant three times in the past year just to miscarry all of them. My hubby also doesn't want to do more than BD, so I guess we just keep at it.

Yes that's what I meant thank you. I plan on doing them until the start of my next cycle simply bc I have never had to do these in the past and I'm afraid if I stop doing them before thenand haven't had a positive yet that I'll miss my window. I'm just a little nervous I guess, ttc is so emotionally exhausting!