FP using only cycle days and CM (but really more a CM question)

[AndtheStars]

Hi Mamas!

I am 3 cycles into PPAF and I have a question that I'm sure has been asked a million times before but my search terms weren't specific enough (or were too specific) and I can't find what I'm looking for. Prior to having DS, my cycles were very regular and we were able to avoid and conceive DS just by following my cycles and CM. Now my cycles seem to be regulating and I'm noticing changes from pre-partum. My flow lasts at least 8 days and is very heavy days 2-7. I have no spotting before AF, no cramping, no warning really. My CM is also really ambiguous. I have a day or two of what I used to call EWCM. Maybe this is going to be TMI, but I've always assumed my CM that came out in gooey little balls (sorry!) was EWCM. Now I get a couple days of the balls and then 7 days of CM that actually is thick and gooey like egg whites. I never really had that before. So with a 35ish day cycle, when am I O'ing with 9 days of EWCM? For what it's worth, I'm still nursing 4-6 times per day. Will this change with more PP cycles or is this the new norm? What in the world does it mean for EWCM to last 9 days? Thanks for the help guys. I guess I'm just a little confused with my body at the moment. Sorry again if TMI but I'm thinking that if you can't talk about CM on this board, where can you?

[JamieCatheryn]

The CM should begin to dry up just after O. Any CM if present can keep sperm alive 3-7 days to await ovulation and the egg can live up to a day, so assume you may be fertile the whole 9 days of having CM (without temps, I'd guess that's 7-8 days leading up to O and 1-2 following).

The scale and progression of fertile CM, from least to most, is usually:
none->sticky (thick glue-ish)->creamy (lotion-ish)->watery->egg white (slippery/gooey/stretchy)

Then regresses back to nothing in a day give or take after ovulation, but the pattern can vary greatly. Mine actually doesn't go to ewcm so much as being copious watery CM around O. I suppose nursing could alter hormone levels causing ambiguous signs, didn't for me though.

To give you warning for AF, most women have a very fixed timeframe from O to AF, somewhere between 10-16 days but reliable give or take one day for each individual. Count from when you likely O'd to when AF comes and you'll know how long that luteal phase should be every cycle.

This is assuming you are ovulating of course, For the first few you could be having anovulatory ones which are very confusing.