Reliability of OPKs??

[Jaxie086]

I normally have very regular, predictable cycles. Knowing that, how reliable are OPKs to determine when I am ovulating? I don't temp but if the OPKs aren't as accurate as I thought, maybe I will start temping next cycle as well. If I don't get pregnant this time around, that is
Based on my tests it looks pretty clear to me that I ovulated on cd 13, but how reliable is that if I'm not temping along with it?

 

[Holliems]

Ive been wondering the same thing. I just started temping this cycle...Mainly because I wanted to see if I was ovulating. Ive been looking over other ladies charts and I have noticed that some will get a +OPK but their temps say they ovulate later in the cycle? I always thought that once you get a +OPK you O a day or two later...some girls (going by temps) will O the day of their +OPK.

 

[babydustcass]

Opks only predict a surge before potential ovulation, they don't actually confirm you ovulated for sure so temping in my opinion is always best hand in hand with opks to ensure you have the right temp rise around the same time as your surge. A surge is your body gearing up to ovulate, if for what ever reason, an egg was not released your body could try again at another point in that same cycle.

 

[babydustcass]

You mention you ovulated on cd 13 but as far as I am aware you ovulate anywhere between 12 and 36 hours after your first positive opk

 

[lilmisscaviar]

In my personal experience (I've been pregnant 5 times so far with 4 cycles of using opks) when my opk was considered "positive", as in the test line was exactly as dark as the control, I was a few hours away from ovulation. When it was blazing positive, as in the test line was darker than the control line, I would ovulate within an hour or two because it would immediately go back to negative shortly after that blazing positive. My assumption is that on CD13 you were very, very close to ovulation because that opk is beautiful, so I would say they're accurate for you. They always were for me, each and every time, as long as I did ovulate. When I didn't ovulate, my opks never got as dark as the control line. Close, but not quite. Good luck!

 

[Jaxie086]

Thank you ladies!! If it doesn't happen this cycle, I'll definitely do the temping next cycle I want to make sure I hit this right on the money!

 

[Powell130]

OPKs only tell you that your having an LH surge. This does not guarantee ovulation. You can gear up to ovulate and not. and if you do ovulate, it will happen around 36-72 (on average) hours after your LH surge begins.
Temping is the only way to confirm ovulation and pinpoint it down to a day, OPKs can not do that

 

[Angel5000]

As the previous ladies have said, OPKs will tell you that you are gearing up to O and are very close, but cannot confirm. Once you get a +OPK, you are set to ovulate anywhere from a few hours to 48 hours later. The only way to fully confirm ovulation is through temping (temp shift). Typically I ovulate the same day or day after my +OPK, but there was one month were, according to my temp shift, I ovulated 3 days after my +OPK.

Also, a +OPK doesn't mean you will ovulate. It's possible to have a +OPK without actually ovulating, as if your body geared up but didn't release an egg.

I would recommend trying temping. For me at least it makes things much more clear and "for sure"