Trying to conceive and have no one to help with my questions

[Mikkimom]

Hi, I've been trying to conceive since November of 2016. I've been using ovulation tests. I used one after my last period almost 3 weeks Ago. Since then I've grown a cup size and have been super irritable. I'm not sure what this means and all Google says is "pregnant". I used a at home pregnancy test last week (give or take a days or two) and it was negative. Please help with some friendly advice. This will be my first, but I have to step kids so we are adding to our little family!

 

[BunInTheBelly]

So lemme see if I understand. You ovulated 3 weeks ago. You took a pregnancy test about a week ago - so about two weeks after ovulation, and probably around when your period was due. Your period still hasn't shown up, but you also haven't tested in a week?

You should take another test. Plenty of women have a negative test at 14 DPO (days past ovulation) and then get a positive later. If the test shows nothing and you are really a week late, maybe call your doctor about a blood test.

 

[MindUtopia]

If your last period was 3 weeks ago, it would likely be too early for a pregnancy test to show anything, but if you're saying you used one 3 weeks ago, which was several weeks after your last period, and it confirmed ovulation and you've developed symptoms since then, then it's possible you could be pregnant if your period hasn't show up again yet (it's late). If it isn't late, it's possible it's too early to know. If you take a an opk now, what does it show? Is it positive (as in, test line as dark as or darker than the control line)? Luteinizing hormone and hcg are very molecularly similar, so often an opk can pick up pregnancy if you are around the time of your missed period or after. But you have to read it the same way you'd read an opk, as in the test like has to be as dark or darker than the control line, not just a faint second line. They often aren't as sensitive though as the early pregnancy tests, so if you've used a decent brand of pregnancy test (not one of these cheap ones), it should pick up pregnancy before an opk would.

With this pregnancy, I did take an opk at the same time I took a pregnancy test (16 dpo) just because I was curious. It was very positive, but so were my pregnancy tests. Do you know how many days post ovulation you are? That might give a better idea if you should take another test or if it's likely something other than pregnancy that's causing you to feeling like this.

 

[Holliems]

Test again!

 

[Mikkimom]

I don't understand how to track the ovulation tests but the pregnancy test came up negative this morning, but it was a cheap one and I don't have much faith in them, but my significant other does. I think you pay for what you get. And I'm pretty bad at tracking my period dates too as it fluctuates. But the last few months have been the same. I've noticed some other symptoms but I believe I need to wait till after the 4-5 weeks mark or missed period. The most difficult thing of all is I really have no one to talk to about symptoms or trying to or how to go about stuff. Google just says pregnant. I get very disappointed with the negative test results so I try not to believe too much that I may be so I don't get overly upset if I'm not. But I take prenatal vitamins to help

 

[MindUtopia]

If you aren't tracking your ovulation, it's possible the positive opk is simply telling you you're ovulating, even if you think you got a positive several weeks ago (you can get a surge without ovulating sometimes and then get another later and then ovulate, particularly if your cycles are irregular). I think an opk would be unlikely to pick up pregnancy when a pregnancy test doesn't, just in my personal experience. But I would wait until you know your period is late and test again. If you are pregnant and experiencing symptoms, then you would get a positive test by that point. Good luck!

 

[BunInTheBelly]

If you're a week late, most tests (cheap or not) will agree. If you're not even late yet, there are some differences between cheap and otherwise, but cheapies aren't necessarily bad. I'm afraid I still don't understand what cycle day you're on. When did your last period start? And how long is your average cycle?

 

[happycupcake]

I would wait until the latest my period has ever arrived, and if it still didn't show and I didn't have a positive test I would see my doctor. Lots of things can cause a period to be late or missed other than pregnancy.
What MindUtopia said about OPKs is right. You can see them start to darken but that doesn't mean you ovulated. They don't tell you that, they only let you know your body is trying to ovulate. You can ovulate much later in your cycle and see positives then. A positive OPK has to be as dark, or darker than the control line.
Did you mean you had your period three weeks ago or you used an OPK three weeks ago? If you had your period three weeks ago with an average ovulation date then you would only be about a week past ovulation which is probably too early for any pregnancy test to detect. It isn't impossible, but it's more likely you would see a positive pregnancy test in another week or so. If you ovulate early, then there's still not a huge chance you would see a positive at the moment. But if you tend to ovulate later in your cycle then there isn't any way you would see a positive yet.
But if you meant you saw a positive OPK three weeks ago, and you definitely ovulated (which is hard to know unless you temp as well), then that would mean you are late your period, if you definitely ovulated three ish weeks ago. You should see a positive pregnancy test if you are pregnant, but there are some who don't see a positive urine test so they would have to have a blood test to find out for sure.

If you have irregular cycles then I would suggest you start temping as well as using OPKs as you are much more likely to be able to determine ovulation that way, as a persistent increase in body temperature will confirm ovulation

 

[Mikkimom]

I think I started my period today. But it's too light for me to understand. It jumps from between the 20th to the first of the month and usually lasts 3 days. I took the opk test the days after my period ended. And opk line was darker than the test line. But this period is weird. It's super light, no cramps, and a lighter color than normAl.