Ovulation Prediction Kits

Using OPKs to predict ovulation is becoming more and more common. OPKs are similar to pregnancy test sticks. They work by detecting a hormone known as Luteinizing Hormone. There is usually an LH surge a couple of hours before ovulation and OPKs work by detecting this surge.

When you get a positive OPK result it means your ovulation is around the corner. Some manufacturers claim ovulation will most likely happen within 36 - 48 hours after you get the positive result.

There are different brands of OPKs in the market but they work basically the same way. 

Before you start testing you have to know the length of your cycle and then based on that, follow the instructions on the attached leaflet. Usually the instructions will let you know what day to start testing based on the length of your cycle.

On your specified day, you test by either placing the chemical coated part of the test stick in your urine stream for a few seconds or collecting some of your your urine in a clean  container and placing the chemical coated part of the test stick in it for a few seconds and then placing it on a flat surface or facing down for a few seconds. After which it gives either a positive or negative result.

The Clear Blue digital OPK is one of the good brands in the market. I have used that before and found the result easy to read. You either have a clear circle to show a negative result or a smiley to show a positive result. See picture below.

                                                

                                                            A negative digital OPK result

                                                

                                                               A positive digital OPK result

A negative OPK result means no LH surge has been detected while a positive OPK result means an LH surge has been detected so ovulation is around the corner.

You may or may not have to test for a few days before you get a positive result. You are usually advised to reduce your liquid intake about 4 hours before you test and when you do get a positive result, you are advised to have intercourse on the day of the positive result and the day after to maximise your chances of conception.

Please be sure to read and follow the attached instructions for accurate results.

These few methods of predicting ovulation i have outlined are just to help maximise your chances at predicting ovulation and not to tell you exactly when you ovulate. No one, as I said earlier can tell you for sure the exact time ovulation occurs but if you keep observing your body and using the necessary tools, you may just get close enough.

Good luck and lots of baby dust to all trying!!!

Using the mucus method to predict ovulation

VAGINAL DISCHARGE/CERVICAL MUCUS

A lot of women don't really understand this cervical mucus thing, some say they don't see anything when they observe, while others find it disgusting. But it is another way that mother nature communicates with us.

Every woman's cervix (the cervix connects the vagina to the womb) produces mucus, which is thick during the infertile time of your cycle, at this stage it prevents the sperm from penetrating but this changes during ovulation. As you approach ovulation the hormone estrogen encourages changes in the quantity and quality of this mucus.

FERTILE MUCUS

As you approach ovulation the appearance of this mucus begins to change. If you observe your underwear closely or observe the tissue when you wipe, immediately after your period, you would hardly see any mucus at all. You will feel dry for the first few days after your period. But if you keep observing you would notice a yogurt like discharge, cream in colour, sticky to the touch and not stretchy at all. As the days go by you notice that the discharge is gradually getting lighter, clearer and a bit stretchy, this shows you are gradually approaching ovulation. When the mucus gets to the point where it is more in quantity, clear, thin and very stretchy then you are around your most fertile period. At this point the mucus looks a lot like egg white and you can actually stretch it a few centimeters between your thumb and fore finger before it breaks. This is the part where a lot of people find disgusting but if you can stomach it see pictures of stretched out mucus.

                                                           fertile mucus looks something like this

Very stretchy right?

The mucus helps to lubricate the vagina and make it friendly for the sperm to swim and fertilize the egg.

Intercourse around this period may result in pregnancy but remember that intercourse up to 6 days before ovulation can lead to pregnancy as sperm can survive for up to 5-7 days in a woman's body and still be able to fertilize an egg if ovulation occurs within that period.

You can use this method to validate the date you get when you count 14 days backwards and if both happen around the same period then you are closer to predicting your ovulation day.

We will talk about OPKs next......

How to know when ovulation is likely to occur

Ovulation occurs every month when an egg is released from one of your ovaries into the Fallopian tube to await fertilization by the sperm.  It is difficult to know which of the ovaries will release an egg and exactly when the egg will be released. This is done purely at random. If you are lucky enough to catch the very moment ovulation occurs and intercourse occurs, you are most likely to conceive as this is the most fertile time of every woman's cycle. But, as i said earlier, unfortunately, it is very difficult to catch that particular moment.

However, nature is kind enough to give us some signs around this period so we can act accordingly, whether we want to conceive or avoid conception. First as with everything to do with our reproductive system we have to know how to track our menstrual cycle because ovulation usually occurs about midway through our cycle and if you don't know the length of your cycle you cannot know when you are midway. I know we were all told while in school and a lot of people still believe ovulation occurs on the 14th day of our cycle, well, I can tell you it is not true for every woman. I for one, do not ovulate on the 14th day. 

women ovulate anywhere from day 10 even up to day 20 depending on the length of their cycle. since the length of all our cycles are not the same, it does not make sense to say we all ovulate on the 14th day. even the same woman may not ovulate on the same day every month. 

CALCULATING AND TRACKING OVULATION.

Different women calculate their ovulation period in different ways some count from the first day of their period to around the middle of their period and some count from the first day of their next period backwards. I prefer the backwards calculation because I have combined it with other methods and found it more reliable. To count backwards.....

As always, first know the lenth of your cycle and you should have tracked your cycle for a couple of months to know when your next period is most likely to begin. Then count 14 days backwards from the first day of your next period.

For instance, using the same table for calculating the length of Jane's cycle, let us try and work out when Jane is most likely to ovulate

MAY
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13 Day 1 Period starts. Cycle starts.	14 Day 2	15 Day 3	16 Day 4 Period ends. Cycle continues	17 Day 5	18 Day 6	19 Day 7	20 Day 8
21 Day 9	22 Day 10	23 Day 11	24 Day 12	25 Day 13	26 Day 14	27 Day 15	28 Day 16	29 Day 17	30 Day 18
JUNE
1 Day 19	2 Day 20	3 Day 21	4 Day 22	5 Day 23	6 Day 24	7 Day 25 Cycle ends	8 Day 1 New Period starts. new Cycle starts	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20

From the table above Jane's next period is to start on June 8, so to find out when she is most likely to ovulate we count 14 days backwards from June 8. Count with me.....what day did you come up with? day 12 right? Jane is most likely to ovulate around day 12. But that's not all, don't stop there, remember I said earlier that no one can pin point ovulation so now that we know around when it is most likely to occur, we also have to play safe and cover all grounds to make sure we don't miss it by a day or two since our cycle lengths may not be the same every month. To do this, I usually add 3 days before the date and 2 days after the date to my crucial fertility days. For Jane her crucial fertility days will be day 10, day 11, day 12, day 13 and day 14. To conceive Jane will have to have intercourse every day or every other day on these days.

Note that these are presumed dates and using this method alone may not give you the exact day of ovulation.

 If you are trying to avoid conception remember that intercourse up to 6 days before ovulation can lead to conception so please discuss it with your doctor to figure out your fertile days.

Breastfeeding can also make your cycle irregular so also discuss with your doctor if you are breastfeeding. 

As we move on I will talk about other methods I use

Dealing with menstrual discomfort

A lot of us experience a certain kind of discomfort before or during our period every month. These discomfort are normal and usually subside on their own or with over the counter pain reliever.
Every woman experiences this discomfort in a different way and can range from minor to severe for some women.

women have complained of headaches, swollen and/or painful breasts, abdominal cramps, nausea, fatigue etc. and different women respond in different ways to the discomfort they experience around this period.

The menstrual discomfort experienced by a lot of women, my self included is abdominal cramps. These cramps are normal but can also signal some health issues when severe. If you experience severe abdominal cramps for more than 3 days and very heavy bleeding during your periods, you should contact your doctor to get checked out as this may be a symptom of uterine fibroid or endometriosis, but then again it could be nothing to worry about, you just have to be sure so contact your doctor.

Dealing with menstrual discomfort, I have come to understand is different for every woman. I will tell you a bit about mine and how I deal with it. 

I started experiencing abdominal cramps on the first day of my period about 4 years after I started having my periods and have had it almost every month since then. At first, I decided not to take any drugs for it but to let it subside on its own. Overtime, I discovered that if I could get myself to sleep then it would be gone by the time I wake up so I started using that trick. I also discovered that the more sugar I took around this period  the more painful the cramps so I started reducing my sugar intake a day before and on the first day of my period and it has worked so well that sometimes I don't even have cramps at all when I stay off sugar for those 2 days.

These days I take a pain reliever once my period starts so I'm ready when the cramps eventually hit as I may not be able to take a nap.

 Other women have also noticed that some of the following have helped them get relief from their cramps.

Using a hot water bottle to apply some heat on the abdomen

Avoiding alcohol, fitzy drinks and foods with sugar or salt

Adjusting their diet by including lots of fibre

Exercising.

Taking a hot cup of tea.

So how do you get relief from your discomfort this time of the month?

 Yummy!

Made this spinach vegetable sauce tonight. Remember I posted the recipe on Wednesday.

Another Natural Conception Tip

Track your menstrual cycle

Okay, so this is a huge part of natural conception. Tracking your cycle is extremely important if you want to conceive naturally but that's not all, it is important for every woman to know how to track her cycle because that is a window into the female reproductive system. Think about it, almost every time you visit a doctor, one of the questions the usually ask is, when was your last period? this is because your period tells a lot of stories about your health in general and your reproductive health in particular. you will understand it better as we go on....

Do you know the length of your cycle?

This is the first thing you should learn as you begin tracking your cycle. The average number of days used in most cases is 28 days but i want you to understand that not every woman has a cycle length of 28. our cycles vary, some are as short as 21 days while some others are up to 36 days and to know yours you have to observe your body and note the dates.

To calculate the length of your cycle correctly always count the first day of blood flow or period as day 1, it doesn’t matter how heavy or light the flow is as long as you see blood it is to be counted as day 1, then the next is day 2, then day 3 and so on, you should continue counting until you get to the first day of your next period. When you have counted until the first day of your next period, then you have completed a cycle.

The length of your cycle is different from the length of your blood flow or period. Your blood flow on average can stop anywhere from day 2 – day 7 depending on your body but your cycle continues, so even when the blood flow stops to get your correct cycle length you should continue counting until the first day of your next period. In other words your cycle length is from day 1 of your period to day 1 of your next period.

For instance

Jane just got home from work on Friday May 13 and went to ease herself, she noticed some blood on her underwear and so she put a pad knowing that her period just started. Three days later on May 16, there was no longer any blood so she stopped putting any pad on her underwear and she went on living her normal life until Thursday June 8, she woke up to get ready for work and noticed some blood again on her underwear so she knew her period had started again and had to put in a pad for the day. 

To calculate Jane’s cycle length we will make a chart and count from day 1 of her period to day 1 of her next period

MAY
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13 Day 1 Period starts. Cycle starts.	14 Day 2	15 Day 3	16 Day 4 Period ends. Cycle continues	17 Day 5	18 Day 6	19 Day 7	20 Day 8
21 Day 9	22 Day 10	23 Day 11	24 Day 12	25 Day 13	26 Day 14	27 Day 15	28 Day 16	29 Day 17	30 Day 18
JUNE
1 Day 19	2 Day 20	3 Day 21	4 Day 22	5 Day 23	6 Day 24	7 Day 25 Cycle ends	8 Day 1 New Period starts. new Cycle starts	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20

From the table above Jane's period lasted for 4 days while the length of her cycle is 25 days.

I hope the table above helps to explain further. You can actually note your dates on your phone, diary, calender, anything at all you are comfortable with to remind you of your start and end dates. By the time you do this for a couple of months, you will begin to have a general idea of the length of your cycle and be able to predict your next period. I say general because you will also find out that you may not have your period on the say day every month, the dates will change from time to time but the change will not be drastic and you will get used to the changes as you continue to track.