Tag Archives: Luteinizing Hormone

How long Do You Have to hold a HPT or OPK in urine?

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So we you’re about to take a HPT (Home Pregnancy Test) or even a OPK (Ovulation Predictor Kit) – usually when you’re reading the instructions that come in the box, there’s a reccomended length of time they specify holding the Dip stick in the urine stream (or same difference if it’s a Midstream Test)! Honestly, I never really gave it much thought. Sometimes whenever I’m making these awesome, fun Videos for you guys, I can get a bit distracted, (say if one of my kiddos starts knocking on the door for example Ha Ha) and it may not be until I actually go back and watch the video that I catch something I hadn’t noticed during filming! When I first got the Equate Brand OPK I tested one with PM urine and being as it was a dreadful Blue Dye Test, I was a bit confused by the results! So maybe 15 mins later I dipped another one (in the SAME urine sample) and held it a few seconds longer. Guess what? The T (Test) line was darker than the C (Control) line! Whereas with the Test before, the 2 Lines were the SAME! Soooooooooo I concluded from that experience that it DOES matter how long you actually hold a Dip stick in the urine and (of course) how CONCENTRATED the urine sample is! I highly recommend holding the dip stick a minimal of 5-10 seconds! Anything less, may yield a much lighter result. Now keep in mind (whether it be a OPK or a HPT) a positive result is a positive result as long as the Tests are taken properly and read within the correct time frame. If you have a High enough concentration of HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin) a HPT will yield a POSITIVE result, much like a OPK will if you have a high enough concentration of LH (Luteinizing Hormone) BUT – the Line opacity can differ! So, I will be conducting more Tests like this in the near future. But for now, I’m using the Blue Dye Tests and I hope you find this helpful! 

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Cervical Position

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Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 
One of the hardest things you may come across in this wonderful journey of yours is this thing called CP (Cervical Position), which goes hand-in-hand with CM (Cervical Mucus). These are both considered to be secondary fertility signs that can help you figure out where you are in your cycle! Your CP changes throughout each part of your cycle which can give clues about when you may be nearing Ovulation, Menstruation, or even possibly Pregnancy. It may take you a while to get to know your body, (and it’s lovely functions), but with that being said it’ll be well worth the time and effort once you start to gain a bit of insight.

A great time to start practicing your personal exams, is right after you’ve gotten out of the shower, or after you have thoroughly washed your hands with antibacterial soap to help avoid infections!

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 
It’s very important to make sure you have clean hands before checking your CP or CM. Another tip is to keep your fingernails trimmed to avoid internal scratches. The cervix is the area on the top of your Vaginal canal, and in-between your uterus. You can start by sitting on the toilet or even squatting, while gently inserting two fingers and reaching until you can feel it. Depending on how High or Low your cervix is at that time determines whether it’s fertile or Infertile. It’s highly recommended to check your CP only once a day, (sitting the same way) due to its variations throughout the day. When dealing with CM though it’s recommended to check several times a day while only recording the most fertile Fluid!

 
DURING MENSTRUATION: Your cervix usually will be low, firm and slightly open to allow your Menses to flow. It would feel firm more like the tip of your nose.

NEARING OVULATION: Your cervix will be a little higher to reach, a bit softer, moist and slightly open in preparation for the sperm to swim through. You may start to notice your CM appears to be a bit more fertile at this time.

TIME OF OVULATION:  Your cervix should be at its highest since you’re at your peak fertility! You may not even be able to reach it, or you may just be able to touch it with the tips of your fingers. The cervix will be open with a good amount of fertile CM and feel very soft, more like your lips. The outer surface may also feel very wet or even slippery.

POST OVULATION:  Your cervix will generally go back to a low, firm and closed Position. It will feel firm again, like the tip of your nose with a dry sensation.

NEARING MENSTRUATION:  Your cervix will continue to feel firm like an unripe fruit perhaps with slight moisture. You may not observe much CM if any at all and it will protrude low.

POSSIBLE PREGNANCY:  Your cervix usually begins to move higher, with a soft, sponge-like feel to it that remains closed to protect the uterus. CM will then start to get thicker, creating what is known as a Mucus Plug. With that being said, the time varies from woman to woman as to when this all takes place. For some it can happen as soon as Conception occurs and for others it may be well into their first trimester.

 
Here is something I’ve put together from photos taken of a woman who was 25, had never given Birth, had a tilted uterus, and allowed this amazing website to document her CP and CM each day throughout her whole cycle! This may be helpful since most of us cannot see inside, we can only feel!

Photos: www.beautifulcervix.com Collage & Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

Photos: www.beautifulcervix.com Collage & Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 
If you go through, you’ll see just how unique our CP really can be! Being a woman, and truly understanding our own anatomy can be quiet empowering.

Something else that sort of helped me further understand this magical, mystical thing we call a cervix – is knowing the best way to actually describe and further illustrate what we are technically “feeling” for?! The specialists who write these amazing articles pertaining to our fertility describe our cervix as being, “Low, Medium, or High,” when going through the different stages in our cycle. I of course, thought that meant my cervix was like a ball that literally lifted itself up, or buried itself down into my Vaginal canal! (Oh silly me) – It took me forever to fully understand what that meant. Take a look at this next illustration here:

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 
As you can see while looking at everything from a frontal point of view, I found that the best way to describe the CP itself wasn’t so much “High,” or “Low,” – but really like, “Coming towards you,” or, “Moving away from you.” If that makes more sense? When you insert your fingers and can very easily reach your cervix, (like it’s coming towards you at a close proximity) – then that would be considered, “Low.” When it’s really hard to reach (like it’s going away from you) – and maybe not even within reach at all, that would be considered, “High.”

If you think about it, the cervix needs to be as far back from the opening of your Vaginal canal so that the sperm will have a shorter journey! Shorter swim means a higher chance for Conception which helps create the perfect (Fertile Window) of opportunity! Makes more sense now, huh? Here’s also another visual aide that can help:

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

Image: www.wikihow.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 
So as you can see, you can only have highly fertile Cervical Fluid such as EWCM (Egg White Cervical Mucus) and get a high volume of it if you have a highly fertile cervix that’s open! That not only allows fertile quality CM to protrude the canal but it also acts as a passageway to keep the sperm nourished and alive until possible Conception can occur!

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Basal Body Temperature

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Image: www.images.1233.tw Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 

Many women can distinguish the changes in their cycle very easily whereas others may have a harder time, which is perfectly normal. No worries! If you’re anything like me, it’ll take some time, research and practice to fully understand your body and your cycle.

One of the essential things you’ll need to know in order to start Charting your cycle is a little thing called BBT (Basal Body Temperature) – which is your temperature at rest. Many women opt to use OPK’s (Ovulation Predictor Kits) in order to detect the most optimal time to try to conceive during their cycle. A OPK essentially works by detecting a LH Surge, which is highly concentrated just a day or two prior to when the follicle releases the egg. But, how do we know once Ovulation has taken place? Many of us Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak’s are eager to know when we can get a reliable result on a HPT (Home Pregnancy Test)!

That my friends, is where temping our BBT comes in handy! There are two phases that complete each cycle; the FP (Follicular Phase) which is day 1 of our Menstrual Period up until we reach Ovulation. Then the second part is known as the LP (Luteal Phase) which is the day after Ovulation until we Test positive with a HPT or our Period arrives.

During the FP our BBT’s are normally low due to a Hormone called Estrogen. A few days prior to Ovulation our body gears up when LH (Luteinizing Hormone) starts surging through our body. LH begins stimulating the follicle which causes it to rupture while  releasing the egg. When that happens you may get some slight cramping pains associated with that commonly known as Ovulation Pains, usually on the right or left side of your hip area where the ovaries are located. Not everyone experiences this though! The only way to know with certainty that Ovulation has occurred is when it is followed by at least 3 days of higher temperatures. Temping your BBT is very important for this very reason alone and is the only way (aside from a scheduled appointment with your Obstetrician) to confirm Ovulation.

It’s important though once you’ve decided to start temping, to make sure you follow a few guidelines so that your temperatures can be as accurate as possible.

– For starters, it’s always best to use a BBT (Basal Body Thermometer) which is a bit more sensitive with slight body fluctuations and can read, record, and essentially store a temp so you can then record it at a later time.

– You can temp one of two ways, orally (which is the most common) and vaginally (which can be a bit more accurate). There are several variables that can influence the outcome of a Temperature such as a lack of sleep, consuming alcoholic beverages, smoking, and sleeping with your mouth open just to name a few. Opting to temp vaginally usually remedies those variables altogether. The most important thing to remember here is consistency. Whichever method you choose, just be sure to temp the same way each day throughout the duration of your cycle.

– It’s also extremely important to take your temp at the same time everyday after a solid block of at least 3 hours of sleep or more. A lack of sleep while temping at different times each day can cause huge fluctuations in your temperatures, therefore making your chart a bit hard to interpret. The idea is to see a pattern of several temperatures that are low during your FP followed by a pattern of higher temperatures during your LP, this of course is known better as a Biphasic Pattern. On some charts when Pregnancy is achieved you’ll see a third shift of higher temps known as a Triphasic Pattern. Don’t be alarmed though if you occasionally see a temperature fluctuate a little higher or lower, the main thing is to see a pattern over time. Many opt to set an alarm for a much earlier time than we would ideally wake up just because there are also outside factors that can influence the outcome and accuracy such as small children, pets, or even shift work for example. Regardless of how or when you choose to temp, the main thing is always consistency!

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What is the Purpose of Charting?

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wpid-screenshot_2014-11-13-03-15-25-1.jpg

Image: www.hubpages.com Graphics: Pee-On-A-Stick-Freak

 

Charting? Why yes once upon a time, (many many years ago) I didn’t even know there was such a thing! I simply kept track of my Menstrual Cycles by counting up 4 weeks from my first day of a regular Flo – (the lovely Period as most would call it) and then circling the day on my Calender. (This was of course BEFORE we had the luxury of smart phones where we could utilize Menstrual Cycle Tracking APPS) Sometimes I would put a frowney face on it, always knowing what it meant. But aside from doing it the old-fashioned way – it wasn’t until I had turned 21 and decided that I wanted to be a mother! This was back in 2004, the Internet had just started to be a huge thing! At that point, most everyone (including myself) had it. Needless to say after a few cycles of (NOT PREVENTING Pregnancy and unfortunately NOT ACHIEVING Pregnancy either) – that’s when I decided to do some research! (Good ol’ trusty Dr. Internet!) Ha Ha

To my surprise, there were all kinds of ways to improve your odds on achieving Pregnancy! Charting, was one of them. (I found this really wonderful FREE Charting website and you can view My Charting Homepage here) I started reading about BBT’s (Basal Body Temperature – your temp after a solid block of  at least 3 hours of sleep upon waking before doing anything else) Essentially I learned that when taking your temp each morning, you just want to open your eyes and immediately insert the Thermometer (orally or vaginally) with as little movement as possible since that can cause your temperature to rise and therefore wouldn’t be as accurate. You will also want to use a special kind of thermometer called a BBT (Basal Body Thermometer which are inexpensive and you can find very easily at a drugstore or even online). So for example instead of reading a temp that may be at 98.6° on a NORMAL FAHRENHEIT Thermometer that only reads (3 digits), it is a bit more sensitive and can read that same temperature at 98.63° (4 digits) and is able to record slight fluctuations. From the first day of your Menstrual Period until Ovulation has occurred, that is considered to be the FP (Follicular Phase). Your temps are generally a lot lower prior to Ovulation due to a Hormone called Estrogen.

I’m sure you’ve heard someone in your family tell you that Ovulation usually occurs on Day 14 of your cycle, about a week after your Period ends, right? Well – that’s ONLY on a 28 day cycle that would be considered practically PERFECT in every way! (Like Mary Poppins Ha Ha) Nope, every woman’s cycle(s) are different. Cycle lengths can vary significantly with each individual during the FP and although the LP (Luteal Phase) tends to be the same from month to month give or take a day or two, the length itself can vary from woman to woman! On average the LP tends to be between 10-16 days.

During your cycle, you can also record your CM (Cervical Mucus) as well as your CP (Cervical Position). The easiest way to check this is by observing the fluid once you’ve wiped while looking at your tissue paper. If you tend not to succeed with that method, (which isn’t uncommon) you can also do it another way! Once you’ve washed your hands with antibacterial soap (to avoid infection) – gently insert two fingers into your vagina, proceeding to scoop a bit of CM on or near your cervix. Once you’ve done that you can then begin to observe it. Feel the texture, is it stretchy by 1-2cm between your index finger and your thumb? Is it only slightly stretchy? Does it break easily? Does it feel smooth? Silky? Watery? Paste-like? Or Does it crumble easily? Also, note the color. Some of the most fertile EWCM appears to be tinged with pink or even with blood. Some can even appear to be brown! (Mid-cycle spotting is also common just prior to Ovulation). CM usually will appear to be dry or sticky following your Period. As Ovulation nears it will be a bit more fertile, watery perhaps, following with the MOST fertile which is EWCM (Egg White Cervical Mucus) the name itself is somewhat self-explanatory. It resembles raw egg whites! It’s very similar to semen so that they can journey from the penis to the Vaginal canal very easily while also being nourished. They can live up to 5 days in fertile CM! Not every woman may get EWCM, so it’s important to note your most firtle which simply could be watery and is very alkaline. Once Ovulation occurs you can expect to have a few days of dry or sticky CM again that will usually increase to a thick, lotion-like consistency which is extremely acidic and not considered fertile.

Onto CP (Cervical Position) it’s much the same as charting & recording your Cervical fluid patterns. (It is recommended to check your CP at the same time everyday as it can change positions throughout the day, and you can also check it at the same time you’ve checked your CM) although with CM you’ll want to check that several times a day while only recording the most fertile! Throughout your cycle the cervix changes. During your most non fertile times it will be low for menstrual flow, and feel a bit like the tip of your nose whereas just days prior to your Ovulation you may notice that it’s a bit higher and softer. You may also observe that it’s slightly open, and that’s to allow the sperm to enter into the cervix. It may feel like your lips and sort of spongy to the touch. Immediately after Ovulation it will usually go back to being a Low, Firm & Closed Position.

So that now brings us to the LP (Luteal Phase) the time from Ovulation until either you achieve Pregnancy OR AF (Aunt Flo) rears her ugly face. Yes, your next Period. You can usually confirm that Ovulation did in fact occur with a Temperature rise. So during your FP if your temperatures (say for example) ranged in the 97.00-97.50’s you could confirm Ovulation by recording 3 days of higher temps say in the 98.00-98.50’s range or even higher. So on the actual chart itself, you’ll see a secondary thermal shift! If you’ve achieved Pregnancy, you’ll usually maintain your higher temps due to Progesterone which is a heat inducing Hormone responsible for the LP. Sometimes between 4-5dpo you can observe a Temperature drop from the Corpus Luteum, sometimes around 7-10dpo (Days Past Ovulation) you can also see another Temperature dip known as an “Implantation Dip,” along with some spotting, (which can be rare) and on some you might see a 3rd shift in higher temperatures which is known as a “Triphasic Pattern.”

So now that you know the basics here are a few example Charts from your Royalties collection herself! Lol

This is an example of a Chart that shows the NORMAL BIPHASIC PATTERN!

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This is an Example of a Chart that resulted in Pregnancy! It had CLIMBING TEMPERATURES and no spotting, and I tested way past 12-13dpo.

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This is an example of another chart that resulted in Pregnancy, except it had a TRIPHASIC PATTERN!

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This is an example of a very PROMISING LOOKING CHART, that had some spotting and a dip 7-10dpo that DID NOT result in Pregnancy!

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Lastly, this is an example of a chart with very ERRATIC TEMPERATURES! Which is WHY it’s important to temp either orally or vaginally throughout your cycle the same way. Also be sure to do it at the same time each day!

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So as you can see, there are many reasons to chart. One of the main would be to TRY AND CONCEIVE A BABY! Another would be to TRY AND PREVENT CONCEPTION, as well as simply the best way to PINPOINT EXACTLY WHEN YOUR PERIOD WILL ARRIVE! Generally if you do not achieve Pregnancy, Estrogen will then kick back in and cause a huge drop in your temps which usually indicates you can expect to start your Period the day of, the following day, or possibly within a couple of days from that point!

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