| Pregnant (Expecting) Chat Happy BnB Member
Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,426 | The appearance and texture of cervical fluids will change as you move through your menstrual cycle. Also, the quantity of cervical mucus present is also a key sign: When you are most fertile, CM should be quite abundant. Texture: During your cycle, cervical mucus may be absent or profuse, dryish or wet, thick or thin, sticky or slippery. It may "hold its shape" or it may stretch between your fingers like raw egg-white. Appearance: The look of cervical fluids will also change during your cycle and CM may be white, creamy, yellowish, translucent, or transparent.
When It Happens: During the first part of your menstrual cycle, CM may not be present or it will be dry and thickish. The color may appear white. As you enter the follicular (pre-ovulatory) phase of your cycle, estrogen increases and you may experience "transitional" cervical mucus, marked by increased moisture, increased volume, a more stretchy texture, and a thinner feel. Transitional mucus will still be a bit tacky and hold its form to some degree. The color of transitional cervical mucus may be white, creamy, or yellowish, though it will still be mostly opaque.
Directly prior to ovulation, cervical mucus should be abundant. Fertile cervical mucus is characterized by a transparent appearance - and it may look and feel like raw egg white and stretch between your fingers without breaking (see fig 1). This stretchiness is called Spinnbarkeit and indicates that ovulation is likely imminent. Fertile CM will be thin, slippery (like lubricant), stretchy and translucent. Typically, fertile-quality cervical fluids will appear a few days prior to and during ovulation. Following ovulation, the quality of CM will change again due to sudden decrease in estrogen and increase of progesterone. You may experience transitional mucus, followed abruptly by an increasing dryness (non-fertile CM) through the rest of your luteal phase. Below is a table that provides an overview describing CM changes, what the changes mean, and when they occur.
Texture & Appearance of CM What it Means When it Happens Cervical Mucus Chart
Dry, Sticky, Scant, Thick, White, Holds Shape Non-Fertile CM Directly following AF, Most of luteal phase.
Moist, Neither thick nor thin, Cloudy, Opaque, Yellow, Slightly Stretchy Transitional Mucus Pre-Ovulatory (increasing estrogen), Post-Ovulatory (increasing progesterone).
Slippery, Abundant, Thin, Transparent, Stretchy (egg-white CM) Fertile Cervical Mucus Directly Prior to & During Ovulation
As noted above, there are many variables that can affect how cervical mucus is produced - and women may have different experiences charting changes in CM. Notably, popular fertility drugs like clomid can cause dryness or a decrease in CM. In addressing the problem of dryness, Pre-Seed is a great product - the only intimate moisturizer of its kind to not act as a barrier to sperm. Pre-Seed was formulated to provide a fertility-friendly medium for sperm and Pre-Seed may actually increase the odds of conceiving for many women. |