Wonky Period + Early O = Baby?!

[BabyMae09]

So, my period this month was longer than normal, about 6 days instead of 4, and the last two were just spotting. Last night DH and I DTD, without any method, because I was assuming I was 'safe'. My period had only been over for 2-3 days, much less than the 5 day rule in TCOYF.

The today I went to enter my period data in My Monthly Cycles, and it said I was due to O today!! This was after I entered my period info. I know that my LP is about 10-11 days, though, so when I adjusted for that, my chart said I'm beginning to be fertile today, and should ovulate on Friday. I *know* I am not fertile, I don't even have the creamy cervical fluid yet, let alone the watery stuff.

But I don't get it. How can my chart think that I'm be beginning to be fertile only 3 days after my period is over? I haven't been temping, so it seems like the charting software is making huge assumptions. Or does charting software not account for 'spotting' days?

Not a great time to get pregnant for us...

[texaspeach]

if your period was 6 days, and you dtd 3 days after that you are on cd9. if the program is assuming you ovulate on day 14 then that might be why it says you are entering the fertile phase. just going on the calendar isn't very reliable.

btw, the first 5 days rule is the first 5 days of your cycle. you start counting the first day you start bleeding, not after your period is over. for most people the first 5 days rule is during their period. there's another part to the rule that says you are safe if you had a thermal shift 10-16 days before your period.

[Smokering]

If you don't have fertile cervical fluid, you can't get pregnant. But please, reread TCOYF or some other good fertility textbook. Relying on a program that predicts ovulation is highly dodgy - I assume it's doing it based on past cycles? A "reputable" program will not give you an O date until after you've ovulated, because you simply can't predict when it will happen. A woman could ovulate on Day 11 for ten years and then have a totally wonky cycle - jet lag, stress, whatever - and end up ovulating on Day 20 or Day 44. There are plenty of MDC stories of babies conceived because "I've never Oed this early in my cycle!".

Also, as texaspeach says, the first 5 days rule is NOT the first 5 days after your period! That's asking for disaster. It means days 1-5 of your cycle, Day 1 being the first day of red bleeding (not spotting or pinkish-tinged CM, proper bleeding). Plenty of people bleed for 5 days and plenty abstain during their periods anyway, but if you don't (either), you should be safe for those days. Not the next five. Look at it this way: with a 6-day period, if you had sex 5 days after that you'd be on Day 11, and assuming a textbook Day 14 ovulation the sperm would only have to live for 3 days... which they can, quite happily, if the right CM is present. So - yipes.

[Steady101]

You can get pregnant without fertile cervical fluid. Some people are dry because of taking clomid or other meds and some change the ph of their cervical fluid to make it dry up on purpose for a certain gender. You can still get pregnat, it is just harder for the sperm to swim.