Sorry, lots of questions ...

(Edited when finished typing to say – be warned this has ended up as rather a long post…)

For those of you who don’t know me (as I’m a bit of a lurker and I don’t post much), a brief(ish) history:

- Age 37
- TTC#1 6 months
- Doctor initially said she couldn’t do anything until TTC 12 months, but because cycles irregular would do blood test.
- At that time I had had two 25 day cycles in a row so doctor suggested my “CD21” blood test was done on CD18.
- Results = “not enough of the right hormone”
- Now booked to have more bloods done on CD14, 21 and 28 (although now had 3 in a row 25 day cycles so will actually be done CD11, 18 and 25)

Is anyone still with me?

Firstly, I’m fairly sure they are testing for progesterone does this seem likely?

Secondly, does anyone know if I don’t have enough progesterone what if anything can be done?

I have only just started charting with BBT (3rd day of silly o’clock alarm to take my BBT) so I can’t tell you any more about my cycle. I’m hoping chart will show when/if I’m ovulating, although I’m not a good sleeper so not sure how accurate this will be.

Should I be doing anything else (e.g.OPKs)? My difficulty with that is being at work 9 ‘til 5 I can’t really be doing with peeing in a cup and I’ve read that it’s best done between 12 and 2pm, plus I've also heard you should leave it in the cup to reach room temperature before dipping the stick and I think my colleagues would have a fit. Any ideas?

I started Googling but it’s a dangerous place to go! So thought I would ask you ladies instead of sitting here worrying about it.

Thank you and sorry for such a long post.
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Hi, I'm no expert but i'm having my blood tested on cd21 for progesterone as i think this is why my Luteal Phase isn't long enough and i have around 5 days of spotting before AF.
They could be testing your levels at various stages in your cycle to see the difference. After OV your progesterone should rise and if pg continue to rise. It is needed to sustain the pg/the lining of your uterus. They could also be testing you for FSH - Follicle-stimulating hormone :
stimulates ovary to produce steroids
surge at midcycle, with LH, triggers ovulation

Hope this helps!

Firstly, I’m fairly sure they are testing for progesterone does this seem likely? Yes, it will be for progesterone

Secondly, does anyone know if I don’t have enough progesterone what if anything can be done? They can put you on medication, like Clomid, to stimulate your ovaries. Few girls on here who are on it if you do a search.

Should I be doing anything else (e.g.OPKs)? If you're temping, I imagine that's enough. But if you wanna use OV sticks, you can POAS after work (as long as it's before 8).

Good luck hon. x

I cant comment on what they are testing for, im sorry. Ive just had all my bloods done and they all came back normal and im oving so i didint have to get into the realms of what else they can show. Sorry not much help on that count.
As for doing opk's, i use them every month and find them great but have had to really as my cycles got so messed up after coming off pill this time last year. Anyways I sometimes pee on a stick sometimes pee straight on the stick but i always do mine first thing in the morning, you can do them any time of day but youre not meant to have had loads to drink before you do them is all. The main thing is whatever time you decided to do them just do them the same sort of time of day, every time. Thats the main rule. The only reason i do them in mornings is i stick them on top of the loo the night beofre so that way i dont forget, and just pee on them every morning until i get my +. They have really helped me perosnally as ive known ive been oving since ive been using them and it just helps to have an idea of where you are in your cycle. My bloods came back normal so i know definitely now that i ov but to be honest i was sure of it anyway just through using the opk's. If you need any help with using them just ask, you know where I am. xxx

I use the Clearblue Fertility Monitor with the test sticks and swear by it. The other POAS are so hard to read exactly (I find anyhow) so this does it all for you. Definitely worth the money. It shows your low days, high days and then when youre actually ovulating. This is a quote from them:

"Home ovulation tests only identify the 2 most fertile days during the cycle, by detecting the surge in luteinizing hormone (LH) that causes ovulation. The Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor not only shows these 2 Peak Fertility days, but also identifies additional days when you can conceive. By detecting a rise in estrogen levels, it can inform most women of an extra 1-5 days of High Fertility prior to their Peak Fertility. This means that you know all of the days when intercourse is most likely to lead to conception, helping to reduce the time it takes to conceive"

I keep a note of the readings each month on a spreadsheet so I can compare my cycles. SOOOO easy and I would highly recommend it.

I should say I got pregnant the first month of using the CBFM and it made me realise I ovulated much earlier in the month than I had thought. Good luck

Aaah, I'd seen references to Clomid and wondered what it was for. I will go on a search.

Thank you.
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I've been looking at CBFM on Ebay and that's almost decided it - I'm off to have another look and check out the bank account! CD6 today so should be able to get one in plenty of time to start using next month.

Thank you.
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