[cocosmumNco]

lets help each other post any questions you have see if someone can answer them for you.

i have 2.

1. has anyone just expressed (pumped) was it really time consuming, did you get enough milk?

2. i need to learn to chart again but i sleep terriable and get woke up in night, will it still work?

[Irish_Wristwatch]

1. has anyone just expressed (pumped) was it really time consuming, did you get enough milk? I did for Ross, its more time consuming then nursing a baby but IMO its worth it and yes you will likely make enough, you would just need to pump or nurse a lot for the first few weeks to establish a good supply

2. i need to learn to chart again but i sleep terriable and get woke up in night, will it still work? As long as you temp at the same time every day and get atleast 3 hours of uninterrupted sleep before you temp its fine

[Memi]

Here's my big question:

Do you ovulate the same cycle day each cycle/month??

I've never gotten to really know my cycles since the only time I charted was the month I got pg w DS. I need to know if your O day is consistent or different each cycle since were trying to sway this time.

[Irish_Wristwatch]

Originally Posted by Memi

Here's my big question:

Do you ovulate the same cycle day each cycle/month??

I've never gotten to really know my cycles since the only time I charted was the month I got pg w DS. I need to know if your O day is consistent or different each cycle since were trying to sway this time.

No, atleast i dont, its usually around the same time though (give or take a day or two), your LP is generally always the same length though (the time between O and AF) but if youre planning to chart you will probably be able to tell when your body is gearing up to O based on CM or even your temps (mine always drop a few days before Ovulation - but that doesnt happen for everyone)

[HappyHippy]

I don't ovulate the same day for each cycle. My cycle length is 26 days for the most part, but sometimes it can be longer or shorter. I've had a 32 day cycle before.

[Memi]

Well shoot...then if a lot of people do not ovulate the same cycle day each cycle then how do they sway or do FAM when you consider that with charting you don't know that you ovulated until you already have ovulated? KWIM??

[HappyHippy]

Originally Posted by Memi

Well shoot...then if a lot of people do not ovulate the same cycle day each cycle then how do they sway or do FAM when you consider that with charting you don't know that you ovulated until you already have ovulated? KWIM??

We do FAM and there are signs of ovulation. For me my cervical mucous gets more white and I have an abundance of it. If I take a ovulation test during that time it will be positive (so I don't take ovulation tests anymore since I know that is a major sign). That usually lasts 3-5 days, so probably a day before I actually ovulate, then the day I ovulate and a few afterwords. I will also get a small pain on the ovary that I ovulate from. That didn't start happening until I had my first child. I'm not sure if that has always been there or not, I'm thinking that maybe I became more intuned after the first baby. Some people also spot when they ovulate (small amount of blood when they wipe), and other signs. You can also check your cervix for ovulation. In the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility there is a section on how to do that. I personally can't because I have a long birth canal, but I know others succesfully can.

[plan4fate]

Originally Posted by coco and icklepiggle-mummy

lets help each other post any questions you have see if someone can answer them for you.

i have 2.

1. has anyone just expressed (pumped) was it really time consuming, did you get enough milk?

2. i need to learn to chart again but i sleep terriable and get woke up in night, will it still work?

1-No but my mom did, with a manual pump, and at the end of two years, despite using her expressed milk ALL THE TIME, had over 400oz in the freezer (she always used the oldest dated) and my brother would not touch it (he grew to dislike the taste, even of the older stuff). So for some women, you definitely get enough. lol. (for those curious, she donated it to a local mom whose babies weren't doing well on formula).


2- you just described me. the girls from the FAM board told me to just ensure I'm in my bed for 3 hours prior to when I need to temp. You don't have to be asleep, just laying still and snuggled in. My chart can adjust the temp if I need to temp a little early, or a little late, based off what it should be (my temp rises about .1 degrees every 20 minutes while in bed, so if I get up 40 min early to pee, it'll add .2 degrees to the temp, if I sleep in 40 min late it will take off .2)

CM helps too... but unless you're either very good with knowing what it should look like, and what yours actually does, it can be difficult if you're not using a barrier. We're struggling with this.. and since I have a seminal protein sensitivities, all it takes is a few drops of strong precum and my body starts producing this thick awful stuff... it takes almost a full 24 hours for me to find CM after that.

Like HappyHippy I can't check my cervix. Though I have been told I have a short canal, I can just rarely reach it... needless to say when I was able to find the cervical os the other day I was shocked. As of today I can just reach the very bottom lip of the cervix.

[plan4fate]

Originally Posted by Memi

Well shoot...then if a lot of people do not ovulate the same cycle day each cycle then how do they sway or do FAM when you consider that with charting you don't know that you ovulated until you already have ovulated? KWIM??

lol I've got two CD 13 ovulation and a CD30 since I started charting.

If you're using condoms it's not that hard to check your CM to check for ovulation. everyone should have a BIP (basic infertile pattern), and once you stray from that, you're considered fertile.

And there's more to CM than just what you see/can touch. You also have to think of how you "feel" but not by touching yourself. Do you often feel wet, so you go check if there's something wrong? Do you feel dry? or stick? When you're getting close to O most women will feel warm, lubricative/slippery. It's pretty facinating really.

And each woman is different. I never feel dry. I might be dry as a bone if I stick my fingers down there, but I always have a wet sensation... even on dry days I have to check several times to make sure I'm not leaking something. I always thought it was paranoia while waiting for AF, but apparently it's just how my body works.

We haven't perfected the process. DH isn't really willing to go a few cycles with no nookie prior to ovulation, which is the only true way to find what your BIP is. I'm hoping to time both my flight home with my cycle and our trip to Canada with my cycle.. because we'll be gone for 3 weeks each time.. and I'm not anticipating any nookie out of him (since my grandmother's in the next room LOL). Will give me some time to get the BIP. I'm pretty sure it's Stick/Wet or Creamy/Wet since I tend to get multiple days of ewcm rather than creamy cm prior to ovulation (this cycle excluded of course.. it was really whacky)

[cocosmumNco]

thank you all.
i don't ov same day every month but i'm very good at spotting my ewcm if your af is the same lengh hun each month the chances are you might ov on same day but if you want a cut of hun you are going to need to know so you need to be watching that cm and see how it changes on lead up to ov plus temping is gonna help. if it does turn out over the next 4 months you ov on same day i'd use that that as your date for ov then do your cut off.

[Memi]

Thanks girls. I'm going to start temping my next cycle (which will hopefully start next week) and will be able to temp purely to get to know my cycles better for at least 3 months. I unfortunately never got to know my cycles since this is the first time I've been off BCP, with the exception of the 1 cycle we conceived DS.

[HappyHippy]

Once you start getting to know your cycles better it should, hopefully, be easier to tell when you're fertile. But remember that all women are different, so even if the book says one thing, it may be different for you. I've been using FAM for almost 5 years now so we've been any other form of birth control free for about the same time. I actually no longer have to temp anymore because I have clear ovulation signs just by the way my body feels and cm. But that has taken time to get that intuned with my body to know, and I made sure I was correct before I stopped temping or charting (I no longer use a chart either).
I should add, we do use condoms when I'm fertile, but that is the only time we use condoms and I don't use hormonal BC or any other barrier method.

[bellabri287]

Originally Posted by ~Tithen~

2- you just described me. the girls from the FAM board told me to just ensure I'm in my bed for 3 hours prior to when I need to temp. You don't have to be asleep, just laying still and snuggled in. My chart can adjust the temp if I need to temp a little early, or a little late, based off what it should be (my temp rises about .1 degrees every 20 minutes while in bed, so if I get up 40 min early to pee, it'll add .2 degrees to the temp, if I sleep in 40 min late it will take off .2).

are you kidding me!?!? i did not know this!!!! i often wake up at like 4:30 and i temp at 5:15, i always just lay there and fall back asleep but since i wasn't sure if that was considered waking up i temped and then went back to sleep. of course if i have to pee that requires temping early and adjusting. but good to know!

[midnight.train]

Originally Posted by coco and icklepiggle-mummy

1. has anyone just expressed (pumped) was it really time consuming, did you get enough milk?

I pump so DS can have my milk while I'm at school, I haven't found it too terribly time consuming, but it's not like I have other kids to watch after either, nor have I tried not pumping, so there you go. I did find the one thing that really helped me get more milk out was to pump while DS nursed. And yeah, I have more then enough milk. My mom is DS usual sitter, she's well stocked on my milk and has yet to run short while she's had DS.

[cocosmumNco]

i really just wanted to just pump i love nursing and will try again but for a few reasons it doesn't work for me. zac lost alot of weight in his first week and i don't want that to happen again cause zac never really caught up.

[plan4fate]

Originally Posted by bellabri287

are you kidding me!?!? i did not know this!!!! i often wake up at like 4:30 and i temp at 5:15, i always just lay there and fall back asleep but since i wasn't sure if that was considered waking up i temped and then went back to sleep. of course if i have to pee that requires temping early and adjusting. but good to know!

Yup, I was told as long as I don't sit up or uncover it's ok to wait and temp. I only adjust if the temp prior to pee, and the temp at the alarm aren't different. For me, if it's more than 60 minutes my temp will catch back up no problem. If it's less than 60, I will need to adjust.

For me it's not "lack of sleep" to be awake too late, cause I make up for it during the day. It's just me not being tired enough (I have no natural sleep hormone) to go to sleep.


grrrr... I just discovered that the med I take to sleep (meletonin) isn't safe during pregnancy AND can cause ovulation problems. Swear to god I'm not meant to sleep, ever. *sigh*

[Shades of Grey]

Originally Posted by ~Tithen~

grrrr... I just discovered that the med I take to sleep (meletonin) isn't safe during pregnancy AND can cause ovulation problems. Swear to god I'm not meant to sleep, ever. *sigh*

REALLY?? I was told it was alright to take meletonin when I was pregnant with Greyson....