My Chart in case you wanted a peek

http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/jorasims

In case you wanted a peek. Click on the link for a bigger picture of it!

Appointments and Lavatory Visits

I saw this pic and man let me tell you...it's God's honest truth! We are currently in our 5th week and while last week I was in shock and on a pregnancy high....this week I have been snapped back into reality and am experiences all the little joys of trying to grow a lima bean into a human being.

I had my first appointment with my family doctor on October 19th so that they could confirm the pregnancy. Since we all know insurance won't pay unless they have some concrete proof. So I POAS again and not even 30 seconds later two lines...again. So the nurse puts my pretty little test in a nice baggie marked Specimen/Biohazard and give me about 5 hugs in the span of 10 minutes. I thought maybe she was my mom and I had missed something. So I proceed to meet with the doctor who advises me of my due date, what I can and can not eat, what I can and can not do and refers me to a an OB. Our official first OB appointment is November 2nd which was are psyched about. I hope we can hear the little one's heartbeat although it may be too early at the end of 6 weeks.

Now the cartoon above is the honest truth. I have never in my life felt so vomitous. (<-new word here). The morning sickness hit me like a freight truck and while I can deal with some stuff...this is an entirely new beast that I was NOT ready for. Nothing really helps....saltines, salty soup, dry cereal, applesauce (although it looks like what I am trying to keep down), crystallized ginger, ginger candy, Preggie Pop Drops...all temporary fixes. The doctor says its completely normal and would not give me Phenegran or Zofran for it. If I have to rip someones head off to get some meds I will do it! Anyone who has been pregnant knows that morning sickness will knock you on your behind. "Its a good sign," Dr. N. says..."the hormones are increasing as they should....Maybe its twins!!!" At this point I was ready to barf on her pretty white coat and tell her I'll take the twins...the morning sickness she can have.

The hubby has been really cute. He is pushing hard for a little boy although the date between the spermie and the eggie decided that 5 weeks ago. My gut instinct tell me that it must be a boy....only hard headed little boys can cause this much morning sickness right? My mom and MIL are convinced it's a girl which would be good too. Poor baby won't have any aunts...just uncles.

Its getting harder and harder to keep the secret especially since my principal saw me almost hurl chunks in the bathroom. I just told her my IBS was acting up....However I don't think she brought it because she gave me the Congratulations! I know you are pregnant even if you haven't told me yet Look. For some reasons mothers can since when another woman is pregnant.

So I had this wonderful Saturday planned but my stomach feels like a roller coaster that is stuck going back and forth on the longest drop on the track. Looks like today is another day of confinement and whining. And yes I am allowed to whine....so there!

Say What?????

Well people...I am....PREGNANT! Oh yes....we are having a little one and so excited! We were going to wait until today, Friday to test, but I just couldn't hold out and tested on Wednesday. And much to my shock I got two lines on the test. A faint line but a line no less. Between Wednesday and today I have taken a total of 6 pregnancy tests. It all seems so unreal!

I have to say that I was obsessed with getting pregnant. Completly. Sex had become a job...a good A+ job, but a job. I remember early this cycle getting a call from my younger brother who said, "Stop Stressing...it will happen when it does" My mom said the same thing...BFF said the same thing....So I gave it to God. I knew in my heart that God would bless us with a little one in His time. I remember a song my auntie used to sing that said "He may not come when you want Him, but he'll be there right on time." So I stopped thinking about it....started enjoying spontaneous babydancing with the hubby and here we are. We got our BFP on CD24 at 10 DPO.

Now for symptoms....I had a killer backache and an acne breakout which I NEVER get. I had to break out the Proactiv which is rare! And if you remember on my last post I was super tired and hungry. No implanatation dip on my chart or implanatation bleeding.

So as of right now I am 4 weeks along with an expected due date of June 27, 2010...two weeks before our 4 year anniversary! Other than nausea I feel great! So enjoy the journey from now to the delivery of the little one!

Cycle Day 21.....Where did the month go?

Hola! Hello! Greetings!



Well...we made it past the ovulation hump and are now in the 2WW. I am 7 days past ovulation which means if the warrior spermies made it to the eggie then there is a baby in there just a brewing and dividing and implanting and all that good stuff! Of course this is what we are hoping for.

Currently I feel...tired. I am not sure if this has something to do with not getting enough sleep on Friday....yes Friday and yes I know its Sunday....or there is a little on in there brewing. Other than that I am super gassy! Hold your nose. ROFLMAO. And hungry..totally hungry.

I have an appointment tomorrow with the Naturopathic Doctor which I am stoked about. I hope to talk to them about some issues not related to fertility and see if they have any pointers in case we don't get our BFP this month. We plan not to test until Friday or Saturday that is if AF doesn't show by then! Wish us luck!

OPK Results....For your viewing pleasure....

Well....It is presently CD17 for those of you that have been following. Ovulation happened a few days ago and now I am in the 2WW aka Two Week Wait....the time period between ovulation and when AF arrives or a we get our BFP!

I started using the Answer OPK's on CD9. The insert inside the package usually tells a woman when to start using OPK's based on their cycle length. You do not want to use them too early in your cycle and you do not want to use them too late as you might miss your LH surge. It is recommended that you do not use your first morning urine (FMU) but rather optimal testing time between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. Try not to urinate for four hours before testing so that your urine is concentrated. Urinate in a clean up, dip, and lay on the counter and wait.

So below you can see what mine look like starting on CD9. You can see the progression of the second line from CD9 to CD14, with a positive OPK on CD14. I stopped testing after receiving my positive. Some women continue to test with OPK's even after they get their surge. I prefer not to. It can sort of confuse you and make you obsess over things that you really shouldn't.


Side ways view~~~You can see on the last one (to the left) CD14, the result and control line are the same which indicates a surge.

Pixxie Numero Dos...

If you need a closer look at the progression of OPK's check out http://www.peeonastick.com/.

Symptoms Update~~~ For all of you who want to compare the symptoms....

I am currently 3 DPO and I feel ok for the most part. Dealing with some sore nips and gas...cute huh? And actually rather crampy. Other than those things...I feel great.....

How fast can the spermies swim???

Such a hilarious picture of the spermie! Much cuter than the actual thing that is for sure. As of today I am on CD13 and ovulation is coming up! All of the signs of fertility are present. Today was the 5th day testing with an OPK and I recieved my first positive. Remember this means that my LH surge has been detected. Because I have been charting for awhile, I am pretty sure ovulation will occur either tomorrow or the next day.

One of the major issues that couples TTC face, is the lack of cervical fluid. The best way to descirbe this is what most women see as discharge. In a woman who is not on hormonal birth control, she will notice this fluid changes throughout the month. Most women only generate a limited supply of cervical fluid and need additional lubrication to make the TTC experience better. While there are many lubes out there to help out the process, many of them kill sperm within 30 minutes of contact and create a barrier to their traveling to the promised land. If the spermies do not have a conducive environment to survive then they can not reach the egg. No sperm meeting the egg means no chance for conception.

Of course there is a sperm friendly lube out on the market that so many women swear by. Hubby and I have used it for all of our cycles trying. While so many women love it....I have to be honest in my judgement of it....we don't like it. There I said it. But at this point, whatever gets the ball rolling we are up to trying it. The lube is called PreSeed...not to be confused with PreConcieve Plus which is another sperm friendly lubricant. To date PreConcieve Plus has been pulled from the market due to lawsuit against PreSeed. You can find all of the information regarding PreSeed at http://www.preseed.com/.

The lubricant comes in both multiuse application and prefilled applicators. The usual price is around $16.50. Depending on how much you use it could last a few months. Just a word of advice...it's really only needed during your fertile time, other than that you can use regular lube.

Ovulation Predictor Kits!!!!

OPK's.....A woman's best friend! I had heard alot of internet buzz about using OPK's to help predict when you will ovulate. I must admit that I was a little skeptical because my cycle is pretty much like timework, but finally relented after our third cycle with no luck. For the most part OPK's are fairly easy to use. You POAS (pee on a stick) and read the results....sound familiar?

OPK's work differently than charting your cycle in that OPK's will tell you of your upcoming ovulation while charting will confirm for you after you have ovulated, most likely missing your fertile window unless you just know your body. Right before you ovulate your body releases LH or lutenizing hormone in a surge. OPK's will pick up on this surge. Once it has been detected, you will most likely ovulate within the next 24 to 48 hours. When you get the positive on the OPK its time to get to the business of making a baby!

If you visit your local Walgreens, CVS, Walmart, Target, RiteAid...you will see so many brands you won't know wha to do with yourself. There are two main types...digital and non-digital. I'll explain the difference between the two.

1. NonDigital - These are your traditional sticks which you dip into a clean cup of urine for 5-15 seconds depending on the brand you use. You lay them flat on a nonabsorbant surface (not a paper towel or toilet paper) and wait for the lines to appear. There is a control line and a results line. When your body is not LH surging, you may have two lines with the result line lighter than the control line. When an LH surge is detected your result line will be the same or darker color intensity of the control line. When this happens...VOILA!!! Your LH surge has been detected and ovulation is coming up in the next 24-48 hours. **** Just a preface.....the first month I used OPK's I got a positive on Monday and Tuesday and confirmed ovulation on Tuesday **** Which means O can happen the same day.


2. Digital - These work the same way as the nondigital ones except you do not have to read the results. Usually you get a yes or a smiley face when the LH surge is present or a no or sad face when it's not. As simple as that. The digital version of course is much more expensive and can run into some major dinero if you have long or irregular cycles where you O at very different times during the month.

****A word of Caution****

While OPK's are highly effective in determing your LH surge, if you are using the nondigital version, you have to interpret the results for yourself. This of course can lead to a margin of error on your part. Some women never get a postitive, from what they can see, but clearly ovulate based on their charts. Others swear they got a positive but have annovulatory charts, where no ovulation is present. I highly recommend checking out the site http://www.peeonastick.com/ so that you can see how the progression from a negative LH surge to a positive LH surge looks like.

I will be posting my OPK's over the next several days up until I recieve a positive and a few days after so that you can see the progression of the lines.

Til the next time!

Jorasims!

Charting your cycle....

Today marks cycle day 6 of our fourth cycle TTC. (Remember the acronyms people!!!) I have to insert the wonderful information regarding charting. While I firmly believe that the use, or lack thereof, of birth control is a decision that a woman makes on her own, I have to plug in my shout out for the NFP/FAM method. So more acronyms you say?? Let me explain....


NFP/FAM stands for Natural Family Planning/Fertility Awareness Method...NOT to be confused with the Rhythm Method from the 70's and 80's which resulted in many of our mothers being pregnant with those of us in our 20's and 30's! After many years on hormonal birth control which started and ended with the Birth Control Pill, the hubby and I agreed that it was time to put that stuff aside. I just could not remember to take it and well...the side effects were less than pleasant. So with that said we started following the principles of NFP/FAM which can be found here http://www.nfpandmore.org/ .



To give you a brief synopsis, the method utilizes a woman's knowledge of her body. It takes into account her basal body temperature, the position of her cervix (CP) and her cervical mucus (CM) which changes throughout the month. When a woman stops taking hormonal birth control, it is an amazing thing to see and observe what your body does to prepare you for a pregnancy. Things that I thought were gross when I was much younger, was just my body doing it's thing.



In a nutshell, a woman buys a special thermometer like this one http://www.fun-kids-stuff.com/images/basal3.jpg and takes her temperature BEFORE moving out of bed. Yes this means before your morning potty trip or teeth brushing! A woman has to have had at least three hours of uninterrupted sleep AND temp the same time each morning. Cervical position and mucus are checked at the same time each day, usually in the evening so that the results are consistent. This information is put into a database aka your chart. Once a woman has a sustained thermal shift, ovulation can be noted on the chart.


Now the above is just a brief rundown of how this works. In order to be successful at charting, a woman needs to do her homework. Just don't take my notes and think you will be successful at it. A website which is a godsend to us NFP/FAMer's is http://www.fertilityfriend.com/ . It has tutorials as well as the interface to record your data is awesome. http://www.tcoyf.com/ also offers a software to use as well but its not free.


You can follow the link to see what my charts look like. I am a lucky one in that I ovulate every month and have every single month since stopping hormonal birth control in November 2007!!! Yea!!!!

http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/15372d


So there you have it....A brief overview and plug for FAM/NFP! I do not recommend this method of birth control if you are not in a monogamous relationship and if a surprise baby would not be something you are up for. Remember no birth control is 100% effective....

Til next time...
Jorasims

Where are we now on this journey????

Today is CD (cycle day) 4 which means AF (aunt flo) is on her way out for this month.

Many women wonder, "what day is cycle day 1 of my cycle?" Many women experience a day or two of spotting before they actually begin their period. A great way to tell if this is spotting or your actual period is to note the color of the fluid. If it's more on the brown side and extremely light, its spotting. If it is full red flow, that is your period. Congratulations! Remember that spotting is not your period and should not be noted as the first day of your cycle. For those of you charting your cycles, is very imporant to know the difference between the two. If you note this incorrectly it can throw off our entire chart. I will explain charting later on in this post for those who are interested.

First Response has developed a new test that seemed to be calling my name every single time I went into Walgreens which comes in this pretty pink and green box.

So I was lured in by that wonderful question at the top of the test....see it? "Are you able to get pregnant?" If I can pay a cool $25 to find out if I am able to get pregnant and skip the fertility doctors then hell yea! I'll POAS to find out. This test looks stikingly similar to a traditional two line pregnancy test and the results come out the same way, but the way the results are read are very different.

So just a few tidbits on the test.

• Test with your first morning urine AKA FMU


• You must test on the third day of your menstral period


• It takes at least 30 minutes for your results to show up


• MOST IMPORTANT -> the test only measures FSH which is a hormone that the female body excretes that helps to determine your ovarian reserve

I have posted the link to the information that is actually contained in the box. This gives you a more complete idea of how it works.... http://www.firstresponse.com/fertilityTestInsert.asp

From my own personal experience...it was just as easy as using a pregnancy test and put my mind at ease..for now at least.

My results were good...It showed a normal level of FSH which is an indicator of normal ovarian reserve and good quality! Yea!!!!! That means my eggs are as good as when they come outta the chickies hatch!

Here's a pic of it...

If you notice the test only has one noticeable line which is a good thing! As long as you have one line or two lines where the left one is much much lighter than the right one you are are good to go. I would definitely recommend taking the test BUT don't rest your entire fertility on the outcome of just one test. There are many factors attributed to fertility and this test considers just one factor.

What does BD, AF, and all those other two letter words mean?

In the beginning of this journey I was thoroughly confused with all of the lingo that my fellow TTCers were using on the message boards. What in the world was AF...what was BDing and how did it all relate to trying to make a baby. When we started this journey we assumed that making a baby would be as easy as turning on some mood music and doing what it is that married people do. But oh no! If it was that easy then there would be no need for TTC blog right? So to ease up the confusion, here's a whole list of what all the two and three letter words that you are most definitely going to see. Its much easier to type acronyms than it is to type out the entire word.

So see below!

• 2WW: Two-week wait (until you can take a pregnancy test)


• AF: Aunt Flo(w), your period (menses)


• BBT: Basal Body Temperature


• BD: Baby dance, sex


• BFN: Big Fat Negative (test result)


• BFP: Big Fat Positive (test result)


• BMS: Baby-making sex


• CD: Cycle day


• CF: Cervical fluid


• CM: Cervical mucus


• CP: Cervical position


• DPO: Days past ovulation


• DTD: Doing the dance, sex


• EW: Eggwhite (re: consistency of cervical mucus)


• FMU: First morning urine


• hCG: Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (pregnancy hormone)


• HPT: Home Pregnancy Test


• LH: luteinizing hormone


• LMP: Last Menstrual Period


• LP: Luteal phase


• O: Ovulation


• OPK: Ovulation predictor kit


• TTC: Trying to conceive

Now there are LOTS more acronyms but I won't list them just yet unless they start to apply to our particular situation.

For a little comical relief....I saw this shirt online and it tells the truth! Anyone on this journey knows that TTC sucks....BUT....the outcome in the end is what we all want which is a healthy, bouncy, and most definitely cute little one.