First ever crosshairs.... help!

[Julieee]

Wow, Super bummed........... FF just gave me my very first crosshairs. But could it be wrong? Here's some info on my chart: http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/2dea34

CD3 I was actually at 98.04 but it didn't mark it
CD7 & CD12 I forgot :/
CD21 I was camping at 11,000 feet (Brr)
CD25 I was camping at 10,000 feet

I temp orally every morning at 3:30 am immediately when my alarm goes off. I do get 3 hours of sleep or more.

Here's why I'm bummed! I had originally thought I ovulated on CD18 but didn't have the temps to prove it. Then I started spotting for a few days then days later got fertile CM again (perhaps??) and now FF says I ovulated. It only takes 1 little guy to conceive, but we just BD for fun that night... thinking I had already ovulated. I've been trying to figure out this temp thing at high altitude..... I googled it and found that BBT can be affected by altitude, but I don't know what pattern would be normal for me since I frequently backpack and camp out.

If I truly did just ovulate--I am wondering what the spotting was on CD21-23. It was brown.

Also, What should I expect to see in my temps? Only since beginning to TTC have I had longer than 30 day periods (must be mental!), so last month's was 32 days..... that means my luteal phase would be super short.... no bueno, right?

Any insight would be much appreciated. I'm super bummed if I seriously JUST ovulated and didn't actually ovulate around CD18 like I thought.

Thank you in advance!!!

[Julieee]

Oh yeah, I also had cramping last night.... not nearly as bad as AF cramping, but still, it was odd and only on the right side of my abdomen.

[karmab]

oh, no problem, we have ladies ttc at 11000 ft all the time- NOT! ha! that's cool, and i have no idea how it affects your temp, other than if you were really cold just for that reason alone, so it's going to be off. putting the altitude thang aside, it doesnt look like you've o'd yet, if you ask me, unless you just o'd like yesterday or today. the traditional way of picking out an o is a jump of a minimum of .2 or higher (preferably .4 or higher) (and sustained) above the previous 6 temps. that's not how ff does it with all their "advanced" methods and "research," but it's a good guideline. of course, i do not have any idea about the altitude red herring here. but i will say, it would also be unusual to have 2 days of fertile cm after o. some ladies see it i know, but it is usually a strange thing that happens along with a temp dip as part of a mid-luteal estrogen surge, or else in the day or so before af comes.

if it were me, i would assume at this point i had not o'd yet, and would keep bd'ing on a regular basis, increasing bds with signs of fertile cm, and if you check cp (and you should if you can,) also do it with good cp. if it were me too, i would throw in some opks anytime i had fertile cm at this point.

the spotting, im not sure. sometimes we spot for no reason though, it does happen, even in the follicular phase. and dont worry about a missing temp or two, it almost never makes a difference (unless it's one of the few critical days!) you absolutely do not need to temp during your af- it doesnt tell you anything useful, so do it only if you want to.

overall, your timing is not bad for an o at any time this cycle so far really. if you o'd on day 25, that's probably the worst case scenario, you still would have a 15% chance going by ff's chart gallery with just one bd on o+1.

good luck and be safe up there on those mountains, girl!

[Julieee]

Thank you for the reply. I still don't quite get how to check my CP, but I'll figure it out. I've got the book TCOYF rented from the library.

So FF changed my ovulation date this morning. If I truly think I O'd 2 days prior to what it's saying, is there a way to change it back? I won't mess with it if others think I just O'd a couple of days ago. Any input?

http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/2dea34

It's too late now, no matter what, but I'm wondering if any of you women have to change your O date manually?

[karmab]

you can manually override ff if you really want to. scroll down below your chart and where it has the "ovulation detection" box, click on tuning/override. it looks like they are doing this because of your cm. it would be rare to have 2 days of fertile cm after o. maaaaybe 1 day, but not two. your timing is probably better if your o really was on cd28. the other possibility would be cd26, bd'ing on o day has a smaller chance of successful conception, mostly because charts are at best only accurate to within 24 hours, so depending on when the egg actually popped, it can be disintegrated before you ever get to do the deed that day, if it lives 12 hours, which is just a guess on anybody's part, but probably is in the ballpark of an egg's lifespan. in either case there is a chance. ff puts o-2 at 30% and o day at 15%.

re: cp- it is easy easy, but it might take 1 cycle practice, only because the positions are relative to each other, so it's hard to say it's "high" until you've felt it when it was "low" and "medium," "hard" vs. "soft" kwim? here's how i do it- wash hands and sit on the pot- for me, this is the easiest position. take my first and middle fingers, and stick em on up there until i hit my cervix. you cant miss it, since this is a dead end, you've got to run into it. assuming you are after o now, it could be in any postition or texture, so it's a good time to practice. it will be unique to you, but as a guideline, i would say if you put your fingers in and woops, there it is, it's low. if you reach in to the middle of your finger length or a little more, it's probably medium. if you have to reach aaaalll the way up to your knuckle, it's high. for texture, if it feels like your nose, it's firm. if it feels like your bottom lip or squishy, it's soft. if it feels like your earlobe maybe, it's medium. if you can feel the opening, great. if not, dont worry about it, but it will either be closed tight, or open where the end of your finger feels like it can slip into it. i've had 4 kids, so mine always feels open, and i cant always reach it because of the way my cervix/uterus is tipped, but that's no biggie. the main thing is the position. this is most important in your follicular phase, between the time your period ends and you o. as you start to come into a fertile window, your cervix will rise up higher and get softer and more open. it's like magic, and it is really helpful to know what is coming. likewise, if you can check your cm everyday from the end of af to o, it is immensely helpful. high cervix and good cm, maybe throw in a few opks, but that's optional.

does that help at all?

[InWaiting]

Originally Posted by karmab

you can manually override ff if you really want to. scroll down below your chart and where it has the "ovulation detection" box, click on tuning/override. it looks like they are doing this because of your cm. it would be rare to have 2 days of fertile cm after o. maaaaybe 1 day, but not two. your timing is probably better if your o really was on cd28. the other possibility would be cd26, bd'ing on o day has a smaller chance of successful conception, mostly because charts are at best only accurate to within 24 hours, so depending on when the egg actually popped, it can be disintegrated before you ever get to do the deed that day, if it lives 12 hours, which is just a guess on anybody's part, but probably is in the ballpark of an egg's lifespan. in either case there is a chance. ff puts o-2 at 30% and o day at 15%.

re: cp- it is easy easy, but it might take 1 cycle practice, only because the positions are relative to each other, so it's hard to say it's "high" until you've felt it when it was "low" and "medium," "hard" vs. "soft" kwim? here's how i do it- wash hands and sit on the pot- for me, this is the easiest position. take my first and middle fingers, and stick em on up there until i hit my cervix. you cant miss it, since this is a dead end, you've got to run into it. assuming you are after o now, it could be in any postition or texture, so it's a good time to practice. it will be unique to you, but as a guideline, i would say if you put your fingers in and woops, there it is, it's low. if you reach in to the middle of your finger length or a little more, it's probably medium. if you have to reach aaaalll the way up to your knuckle, it's high. for texture, if it feels like your nose, it's firm. if it feels like your bottom lip or squishy, it's soft. if it feels like your earlobe maybe, it's medium. if you can feel the opening, great. if not, dont worry about it, but it will either be closed tight, or open where the end of your finger feels like it can slip into it. i've had 4 kids, so mine always feels open, and i cant always reach it because of the way my cervix/uterus is tipped, but that's no biggie. the main thing is the position. this is most important in your follicular phase, between the time your period ends and you o. as you start to come into a fertile window, your cervix will rise up higher and get softer and more open. it's like magic, and it is really helpful to know what is coming. likewise, if you can check your cm everyday from the end of af to o, it is immensely helpful. high cervix and good cm, maybe throw in a few opks, but that's optional.

does that help at all?

This is the most helpful description of how to monitor cp that I've read yet! Thank you for posting this!!

[karmab]

awesome! and like i said, it may be different for you, but it wont take you long to figure that out, and it will all make sense.