What is the best way to apply the salvia to the microscope? Do I just lick/spit on it, use a finger, or what? Also, I've got fertile CM, but no ferns or partial ferns... Does that matter?

[Coley]

Sorry it took me a bit to get to this... I just got out of the tub.

I usually tend to bite down slightly on the side of my tongue to make my mouth water a bit so there is plenty of saliva. Then I'll touch the lens to the underside of my tongue.

As far as the ferns vs. CM goes... I'd say if you've got fertile CM, definitely BD (which you already know!) and keep using your scope because if your CM is just starting to turn fertile, the ferns may not have had a chance to catch up yet.

Hope that helps!

we are avoiding pregnancy for now but thank I will try that. I didn't read my scope this morning but I slobbered on it... LOL i'll read it tonight when I get home from work.

[Coley]

Oh right! Duh, I forgot you guys are preventing! I'm so used to everyone "trying"!

Okay!! When you see ferning, is it obvious? I think I might have partial ferning. It looks different then what I've seen before, but it's all over the slide. I'm not sure if I just didn't get enough saliva or if they are the start to crystals. I need to wait a few hours and see if I can get a better sample. Shoot I wish I could take a pic and post it! LOL Will full ferns be blatantly obvious?

[Coley]

LOL! I can't tell you how many times I've wished I could take pics of my ferns too!

When you've got full ferning, yes, they will be blatantly obvious. It will literally look like a forest of ferns!

If there's not enough saliva on there it will make a difference. I've had them be kinda sparse and then put on another sample and have them be much fuller.

OMGosh, this is so exciting, lol! I definately think I saw partial ferns. I did another sample and it looked like possibly full ferns, but they were scattered so I'm wondering if I didn't get a good sample, SO I licked it again. Just wait to see if this specimen is any better.

[Coley]

C'mon ferns!!!

[Arya]

Ok, so after hearing you guys talk about ferns and I went and ordered a microscope on amazon, it will be here by next week. What exactly is a fern? LOL I'm hoping it will come with instructions and pictures so I can see what I'm looking for!

Darn it!! Now I can't see ANYTHING. Maybe I licked it too early... lol Guess I will have to wait till morning cause I keep drinking and snacking. Do you ever check more then once a day or do you find that inaccurate?

Oh, do you ever think that the light is too bright? I've been looking to the side more where it's shaded, kwim? It seems like I can see better where the light isn't as bright.

Daniela, it comes with instructions, but they aren't really that great. Doesn't tell you exactly HOW you should apply the saliva, nor home much spit to apply. I guess in that instance it's just trial and error. It does have pics to show you what you are looking for though.

BTW Nikki, your chart looks awesome!! Looks like you are going triphasic.

[Coley]

Thanks! I think it looks triphasic too, but FF won't tell me it is. Which is stupid. It told me last cycle's chart was triphasic, and that one doesn't look nearly as triphasic as this one. This chart seems to have a more clear distinction between my first week's temps of the TWW and this second week's temps, ya know?

Back to the ferning... I always made sure I tested with a clear mouth, so to speak. No drinking, eating, smoking (back when I used to). I never tested after doing one of those things... so I'm not sure how it would affect the sample.

But if you saw at least partial ferns before the blank sample, I'd say the drinking & snacking more than likely had something to do with it. They don't tend to disappear that fast.

It says to wait like two hours or something after drinking and eating and I thought I did. What I think I am noticing though is I need to let it sit a lot longer then 5 min before I am seeing anything. I checked this AM and I saw nothing again so I did it again and went back to bed. An hour or so later I thought I saw a few ferns but still not much. The one I saw ferns on had been sitting there several hours. Soooo, I tried it again and will go back and look around lunchtime maybe.

[Coley]

Right on... Yeah, you see the best results when it gets really bone dry.

omgosh! I just got full ferns this afternoon. I had partial ferns this am and redid it and got full ferns just a few min ago! How exciting! It doesn't seem to match my cm though. Maybe i'll get some more ewcm tonight or tomorrow?

how long do you usually see full ferns?

[Coley]

I've had full ferns for as much as 4-5 days.

oh. Wow that's longer then I expected. I guess I was thinking 2 days.. Guess my cm has time to catch up then!

[Coley]

Yep, you've definitely got time!

okay so since wed i've been charting creamy cm, but i've had full ferns th/f not sure yet about today. When I check internally though I do get stretch to my cm, should I consider it ewcm? I can't upload my chart right now but i'll see if I can get my beta chart's link. Anyway with the creamy cm it says I oed on cd 16 but i've been known to o as late as today... What do you think? My temps are really low for what they've been doing too.