symptoms and when should I test?

[Brunetta]

This is our first cycle TTC and bless DBF's heart, he's convinced this is our cycle. I've heard that it can take a while, so I'm trying not to keep my hope's up. I've had a few odd symptoms, which I probably shouldn't of mentioned to him ... because now he's really convinced. I've had extreme exhaustion (sleeping 12-14 hours a night and still taking a nap, sore nipples, pressure in lower abdomen, headaches, very strange dreams, etc). This morning, I went grocery shopping and it seemed like everything smelled so intense ... a few times I felt sick to my stomach. The friend i was with actually noticed the repulsed look on my face.

But anyway, I'm only 5dpo, so I have a bit of a wait. I was thinking of testing on Friday (8dpo). Should I go ahead, or wait until next week?

[karmab]

whatever makes you happy. if you get a pos on 8 dpo, that's like hitting the jackpot. not impossible at all, but very unlikely. if you can hold out till 11 or 12 dpo, you've got a better chance statistically. if you can stand the disappointment of staring at a few negatives, especially knowing that they might turn into a pos, go ahead and test. you might be one of the lucky ones that tests pos early, and that would be cool.

when to test is a huge question for a lot of us around here. it sort of depends on your fortitude. when it drags on a few months, and you see a lot of negatives, it gets hard. buuut.. a heck of a lot of women breeze through here and get their bfps no sooner than they arrive, so my fingers are crossed for you. if you've got a lot of tests and you want to test early, go for it. good luck.

[MaerynPearl]

if you start on 8dpo i HIGHLY recommend using dollar tree tests or internet cheapies and not FRER.... they are good, awesomely sensitive... but extremely expensive and should only be used to confirm an early positive rather than in an attempt to get one.

(I am a hypocrite for saying this, I suppose. Or maybe I am cautioning you from past experience)

At NO point before AF shows are you allowed to look at a BFN and think... oh, Im not pregnant. K? You could still be pregnant. For example:

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...y/P1060770.jpg 10dpo (snow white negative right?)
http://s235.photobucket.com/albums/e...h.jpg&newest=1 11dpo may be an extremely faint positive but also may just be a dent in the test where the bfp would be. I couldnt tell. I called it a promising negative.
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...ampy/12dpo.jpg 12dpo yeah... pretty sure that meant my 11dpo was just the dent huh?
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...mpy/13dpo1.jpg 13dpo looks like an evap right? but this is the reason I finally did another FRER
(at which point we switch from photobucket to canyouseealine)
http://canyouseealine.com/hpts/5152.jpg 13dpo FRER holy goodness thats a LINE (okay if you look REALLY closely its there and its not gray!)
http://canyouseealine.com/hpts/5166.jpg here is my 13dpo above (bottom) 13dpo evening (top) and 14dpo FMU (middle) sorry they are out of order I was just so excited I didnt think to put them in order.
http://canyouseealine.com/hpts/5182.jpg and 15dpo undeniable!

and this was after having gotten a bfp with my DD at 6dpo!

So yeah... sometimes we just test positive REALLY late... so feel free to test before then but keep the hope!

[Brunetta]

wow 6dpo? Don't tempt me!

Yeah, I have a bunch of cheapies right now, so it wouldn't really be a big deal. I was just hoping for an early positive.

[HulaJenn]

I would wait until at least 10 dpo - that would be an early BFP. 6-8dpo would be a rare BFP so you'd just be likely disappointed. I also think symptoms would be rare at only 5 dpo and probably more because you are paying attention with it being the first TTC cycle. That isn't to say you aren't pg!
Good luck!

[Brunetta]

Originally Posted by HulaJenn

I would wait until at least 10 dpo - that would be an early BFP. 6-8dpo would be a rare BFP so you'd just be likely disappointed. I also think symptoms would be rare at only 5 dpo and probably more because you are paying attention with it being the first TTC cycle. That isn't to say you aren't pg!
Good luck!

Yeah, I wasn't sure about the symptoms with it being so early so I thought I'd ask.

[karmab]

agree with hulajenn too about symptoms. not saying it's impossible, but since there isnt really any hcg going on until after the baby implants, and that's likely to be around 7-8 dpo, and even then only miniscule amounts for a while, it's most likely the hyperawareness that's leading to that.

2 of my 3 pregnancies i didnt know i was pg until after 7 weeks, and only then did i just barely notice symptoms that made me say, hmmm. and one of those was my twins. fainting was a tipoff, but other than that, i wasnt paying attention to it, because i wasnt trying.