Charting

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Chelsea on January 18, 2010 at 11:36am

Hi Jessica,
Great idea to start this group. I use FAM as well, but use the TCOYF software. I've had a question for awhile about ovulation and which fertility sign trumps the others when determining when you've ovulated?

For example, this month, my thermal shift occurred on Day 12, but I had wet and even slippery CM for two more days. The software did not know exactly what to do with this information and made my peak day Day 13, i think and marked my first high temp day with the 'rule of thumb' and discredited it.

I am currently ttc and this has been a bit confusing in terms of timing babymaking.

Any thoughts would be most welcome!

Happy charting,
chelsea

Permalink Reply by Cherylyn on January 18, 2010 at 12:29pm

I'm not ttc right now, but I'm trying FAM for the first time. My baby is 6 months old and I've had one cycle so far and it's a bit confusing. If my observations are right, I've just had a 21 day cycle, with only 1 week between ovulation and my period. I'm using a very basic charting method of making notations on my calendar and mainly focusing on CM changes to get an idea of what my body's doing. I'm hoping to figure this all out to be able to avoid and later achieve pregnancy when the time is right.

Permalink Reply by Jessica Majors on January 18, 2010 at 4:23pm

I'm glad there are at least a few of us out in the world. I suppose I should clarify my position by saying I hope OTHER people will step in as resident experts, since this is exactly my second cycle charting :P

Chelsea, I will at least give my thoughts based on my very limited experience and memory of TCOYF. Someone, please, PLEASE correct me if I have misinformation. I recall that CM is the key indicator of ovulation, so while you have EWCM, you should keep trying. I also recall, like you, that O is supposed to take place the day before the thermal shift, so I don't know what the software's idea was :P Not sure what that is about!

Jenn and Cherylyn, welcome and thanks for responding :D

Permalink Reply by Cherylyn on January 18, 2010 at 5:57pm

fertilityfriend looks like a great tool, but in their signup form they specify that the service is only for people who are trying to conceive. Do any of you know of a free charting site for anyone interested (including those hoping to avoid pregnancy)?

Permalink Reply by Marci For Birth Choice on January 22, 2010 at 4:21am

I chart, but use the Creighton method/Na Pro Technology, as it is the most thoroughly researched/scientifically studied form of fertility awareness available to date. (Yes, far more precise than fertility friend and TCOYF).

@Chelsea: Go with the mucous - if you have slippery CM, you're still fertile. Also, remember that your thermal shift might indicate the release of one egg, but you can ovulate again up to 24 hours after that first release, so the slippery CM makes sense in that context too. It doesn't mean for sure you'd have twins (we don't know which egg will be fertilized or if both will), but it's definitely a strong case for keeping up the baby dance :) Also - your comment indicates that you're charting temperatures. Are you drawing a coverline and taking your temperature at the same time every morning? I ask because this is the one area TCOYF does a terrible job of explaining (as in, someone who used her method of temps to avoid pregnancy could unexpectedly become pregnant. It's not precise. _The Garden of Fertility_ by Katie singer does a far better job of explaining temps and charting) Unless you are taking your temps at the same time every morning after 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep and charting a coverline from this info, the thermal shift might not be "the" ovulation shift. If you're doing all this, though, you're good to go :)

@Cheryln: If you are trying to avoid pregnancy, I would avoid fertility friend. Many months after having a child your cycles can be irregular, and fertility friend play interesting guessing games with this kind of info. I am strongly against fertility friend because it generalizes when you must've ovulated, and women who've been temping and charting properly often find that they actually ovulate *outside* the time fertility friend suggests. So it's not good for someone TTC who wants precision...but also not good for someone trying to avoid pregnancy who desperately needs precision!

Also, remember that you *can* get pregnant before you've had your first period (because you can ovulate). Are you positive that you had a period and that it wasn't implantation bleeding?

Baby dust to you all! Hopefully you'll all be preggers by Valentines:)