Charting to Avoid / Fertility Awareness - January

[TrishWSU]

Welcome to a new month, new year, and new thread keeper (I hope I don't mess this up!)

 JANUARY 2011 

Last Month's Thread

Welcome to the January 2011 charting to avoid and fertility awareness thread. We are all at different stages in family planning and our own fertility. Some of us are very ardently Charting to Avoid (CTA); some are CTA but would be thrilled with a BFP; and we even have a few who are "whatevering" or pregnant and continue to hang out here.

If you did not post in December, you may have been deleted from the list. If you have joined recently, please double check I have your chart linked correctly. If you were mistakenly deleted, you would like to be added/removed, or you spot anything you would like me to change, please post or PM me to let me know. Remember, you must post in January if you want to be on the February list!

To those who are new, welcome! 

    Who We Are

Angelorum

angelxxrose(CTA 13 months)

badgerbaby

Barefoot Girl

Braan

Eresh (currently LAM)  

fnpmama 

goinggreengirl  (CTA 2 months) 
HulaJenn  (CTA since May 2009)
justKate  (CTA since November 2010) 
knittinanny 

lactatinggirl

librarygirl 

miss_honeyb   (CTA 24 cycles)

Mom2SammyJoe(CTA 8 months)

mommy2two babes

phathui5

RavaAvis

starsprouts
theboysmama 
Toolip 

TrishWSU  (CTA 26 months)

Graduates

Pregnant! 

wholewheatchick (Dec. 2010)
OSUvet (Feb. 2011)
echospiritwarrior (Feb. 2011)
lyterae (Feb. 2011)
dex_millie (Feb. 2011)
annie2186 (April 2011)
katiedidbug (May 2011)
BarefootScientist (June 2011)
Smokering (June 2011)

AnnieA (July 2011)

shells_n_cheese (July 2011)
Baby_Cakes
MovingMomma
 

No Longer TTA

capretta

jeninejessica 

LionessMom 

Mummoth 

Good luck to those now TTC! 


 

 Summary of FAM Rules

(sympto-thermal)

Pre-ovulation rules:

1) First 5 Days Rule: You are safe the first 5 days of your menstrual cycle if you had an obvious temp shift 12-16 days before.

2) Dry Day Rule: You are safe to DTD after 6PM if you have been dry all day.


Post ovulation rules:

1) Peak Day Rule: The last day of fertile mucus is called the peak day (the day before your mucus begins to dry up). You are safe to DTD on the fourth consecutive day after the peak day. If another patch of more fertile mucus appears, start your count over.

2) Temperature Shift Rule: You are safe the evening of the third consecutive day your temp is above your coverline. If your temp falls at or below the coverline during the 3 day count, begin your count again.

BOTH rules must be satisfied to be considered in your infertile phase.


How to set a coverline:

When you see a temperature shift of at least 0.2° F above the highest of the previous 6 temps, draw a line 0.1° F above that highest temp.


 

 Resources

Books

Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler
Garden of Fertility by Katie Singer
Honoring Our Cycles (workbook) by Katie Singer
The Art of Natural Family Planning by John and Sheila Kippley
Breastfeeding and Natural Child Spacing by Sheila Kippley
Fertility, Cycles and Nutrition by Marilyn Shannon


Websites

TCOYF (Ovusoft) charting software, and brief fertility library
Fertility Friend charting software, and ttc charting guide
myfertilitycharts.com free software for ttc or tta
Garden of Fertility author Katie Singer's website
Mothering Magazine article by Katie Singer
Billings Ovulation Method info
Billings Ovulation Method Association, USA
Billings Centre, CA
Couple to Couple League (find an NFP instructor)
Creighton Model


Abbreviations

AF: Aunt Flo, menses, your period
BBT: basal body temperature
BC: birth control
BIP: basic infertile pattern
CD: cycle day
CF: cervical fluid (same as CM)
CHs: crosshairs (intersection of coverline and ovulation)
CL: coverline
CM: cervical mucus (same as CF)
CO: cervical opening
CP: cervical position
CTA: charting to avoid
CTW: charting to "whatever" (not avoiding, not preventing)
DPO: days past ovulation
DTD: do the dead (sex)
EWCM: eggwhite cervical mucus/fluid
FAM: fertility awareness method
FF: Fertility Friend (website, see above)
HBC: hormonal birth control
HTL: high temp level (0.4°F above LTL, temp rise needed to indicate O)
LAM: lactational amenorrhea method (breastfeeding as birth control)
LP: luteal phase (between ovulation and menses, average 10-16 days)
LTL: low temp level (highest of the 6 temps immediately before temp rise)
NFP: natural family planning
O: ovulation
SHOW: soft, high, open, wet (characteristics of the cervix near ovulation)
SR: seminal residue
TCOYF: Taking Charge of Your Fertility (book and website, see above)
TTA: trying to avoid
TTW: trying to whatever
other common abbreviations


 

 Happy Charting Everyone! 

Edited by TrishWSU - 1/21/11 at 4:00pm

[TrishWSU]

Ok, so this is my first time being the thread keeper-please make sure your chart links are correct. If there is anything you need changes or updated please pm me or post changes in bold so I don't miss them

Mummoth-you're listed under both CTA and No Longer TTA...which one is it?

[Toolip]

Ooohhh!  Thank you for the new thread!  Happy New Year!

CD one, maybe 2, for me... terrible cramps. what a way to start 2011

The reason I'm not sure about the CD is that I definitely had spotting last night and maybe around 10:30 is was regular flo but it was so late I don't know if I should count it...

Anyway    here's to a successful year of CTA in 2011!!!

[capretta]

Thanks for taking over! Looks good!

Originally Posted by TrishWSU 

Mummoth-you're listed under both CTA and No Longer TTA...which one is it?

Oops, that was my mistake. She is no longer TTA.

[theboysmama]

Thanks for the new thread. Can't link my chart right now as I am on my I pad. Yesterday at 10dpo I had an obvious temp drop and am waiting for af. It spiked way up again this morning at 11 dpo. What does that mean? This is my first ppaf after an 8 wk mc. Typically my lp is9-10 days for my first ppaf.

[goinggreengirl]

Here's my chart link. And this is only our second month CTA. Before that we were using condoms.

[theboysmama]

Here is my chart link.

Would love to know what's going on!

[TrishWSU]

Nicole~did you drink any alcohol and/or stay up later than usual on NYE or was it warmer in your house than usual? Or was there anything different than usual on the morning of the 31st (was the house cold or you were already awake before you temped?) I've noticed that for me my temp will jump up and down depending on how alseep I am when my alarm goes off-most of the time I will already be mostly awake by the time it goes off and my temps are fairly stable, but sometime I'll be full on dead to the world and for some reason my temp jumps up .3-.4 degrees. I guess I sleep hot or something?!

Toolip~what a great start to the New Year, indeed! I'm kind of OCD enough that since it's so close I'd go with whatever CD would make it match the calendar date, lol! My AF has been starting like that too and it's really annoying.

capretta~Are you now actively TTC or just whatevering? Either way you have to let us know when you get a BFP!! Good luck and, um, have fun! :)

I switched over to night shift now, but luckily I'm like 5 DPO, so the time difference won't mess up my chart, lol! I ovulated on cd 15 which is really weird for me. Normally I O on cd 22, except the cycles I took this supplement that was a combination of vitex and B6, then I would O cd 14-16. I'm now completely vegetarian (no dairy or eggs in addition to no meat) and I make sure to drink an Emgeren-C packet every day to get plenty of B12, which veg*ns can be lacking. Between the Emergen-C and my multi-vit I end up taking 35 mg of B6 every day. So I guess it's actually the B6 that helped before, and not so much the vitex. I think I'm still a little funky post-mirena as I had no EWCM to speak of and my temp was slow to rise, so I'm definitley interested in what the next few cycles look like.

[capretta]

Originally Posted by TrishWSU 

capretta~Are you now actively TTC or just whatevering? Either way you have to let us know when you get a BFP!! Good luck and, um, have fun! :)

Heh. I'm not sure.  Since I've always been diligently avoiding pregnancy, any sort of not-TTA seems like TTC to me! Maybe that'll change after we've been at it for a while - I don't know, this is all uncharted  territory for me! 

[theboysmama]

Originally Posted by TrishWSU 

Nicole~did you drink any alcohol and/or stay up later than usual on NYE or was it warmer in your house than usual? Or was there anything different than usual on the morning of the 31st (was the house cold or you were already awake before you temped?) I've noticed that for me my temp will jump up and down depending on how alseep I am when my alarm goes off-most of the time I will already be mostly awake by the time it goes off and my temps are fairly stable, but sometime I'll be full on dead to the world and for some reason my temp jumps up .3-.4 degrees. I guess I sleep hot or something?!

 I was in a hotel on the night of the 30th and 31st. The temp was about the same time both nights and I was in my jammies. Didn't drink alcohol or anything. I temped after 3 hrs strait of sleep. I temp at random times and it doesn't typically affect my chart but I temped at the exact same time on the 31st and 1st. I did not get up before temping and temped right away before I was awake. My temp has stayed up, I took a hpt this morning and it is neg. My lp has not ever been this long for  a pp chart. (actually it has never been this long bcs I have a pp chart and then a pg chart then a pp chart...... etc.lol) Dh used condoms during my fertile phase (it is marked as an X on my chart) so I really think I am just waiting for af but that low temp thing was just weird.

[TrishWSU]

Yeah, I get some random temps some time that just leave me scratching my head. It'd be nice to have a little window to see exactly what's going on in there!

[theboysmama]

I was expecting af at about 10-11 dpo so when my temp dropped I was sure she was coming then nothing. Only time will tell, right. Those little windows would sure be handy for fertility, pregnancy, etc.

[miss_honeyb]

Is there any possible connection between having a cold and having lots of EWCM? As in...your body is making lots of other mucus, so it makes lots of CM too? Or is that just not possible? Last 2 cycles I've had crazy colds right around O time and have had TONS of EWCM...it felt like I just had mucus coming out of me everywhere! And sorry for the mental image.

[TrishWSU]

I suppose it's possible. Are you taking anything for your cold? Some women take Mucinex or Robetussin to increase their CM.

[librarygirl]

Happy new year, everyone! And guess who arrived with the new year? Yep, AF! About damn time, too. 48 day cycle, which is crazy-long for me. So definitely not pregnant. Never did get a clear O date last cycle, though. Too much going on, I guess. And I got frustrated so the week before Christmas, I didn't temp. I was a bit disappointed (because I do love babies) but it's good. Boyfriend and I had a long talk about it and we are definitely on the same page- the timing wouldn't be great but if I did get pregnant, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. :)

As for the bad timing- I got the job I was hoping to get! Which means a 45 min one-way commute until my lease is up in May. It is also my dream job- Head of the Children's Department in a public library. Big job, lots of responsibility. And moving. The job happens to be in my boyfriend's hometown and he is tired of where he lives now and is ready to go home. When I got the job, he said he was going with me. Now he's trying to buy a restaurant there. So, we have waaaay too much going on over the next few months!

Back to temping and charting and hopefully I'll have a prettier chart this month.

And Trish- a little window would be cool! :)

[miss_honeyb]

Wow, congrats on the job!!! I LOVE our library! We live 2 blocks away from it and there's nothing my kids love more than walking to the library and having a picnic lunch on the lawn outside afterwards while we peruse our books. What a cool job. I don't know how much authority you'll have... but I really wanted to make one big suggestion at our old (much bigger) library, and that was to remove all the computers from the kid's area! My kids ALWAYS wanted to just sit on the computers and play video games instead of looking at books. The library that's by our new house is tiny and has no computers in the kids area, but I love it because now the kids just curl up in a bean bag with some books and READ. Isn't that what the library is about??  Anyway, just my thoughts. =]

Sounds like you and your SO have lots of big changes and decisions coming up! I'm sure throwing a baby in there would be chaos, although maybe you could argue that one more piece of "chaos" wouldn't matter! =]  

We're back to our normal schedule now that DD has started school again, which means temping an hour earlier. I'm pretty close to O so I hope I can get a clear reading. Thought my temp had shifted yesterday but it was low again today. Do any of the rest of you have a certain temp that you're always below pre-O and above after O? Like I always know that before O I'll be under 97.7, but once I hit 97.7 I've usually O'd. Just wondering if you have that "magic number."

[HulaJenn]

Opinions needed for obsessive reasons! LOL
Did I O on cd13 or 14? I had like zero EWCM this month so it was tough to tell. On advanced and FAM it has cd13 and it make my chart overlay look very similar to my preggo chart! Only on research does it give me cd14. I have also been having crazy pg symptoms - really sore boobs, Dh even commented on how different DTD feels - similar to awesome pregnancy sex! LOL A little nauseous today. I took a test figuring if it was early enough for these types of symptoms then should be for a potential BFP, but nothing. We only use withdrawal prior to O and while DH is very efficient and we follow the rules to a Tee, there is always a failure rate.
Thanks for weighing in with your opinions!
Here is on Advanced

with the chart overlay (the 2 greens being current and preggo 2008 chart)





 

[theboysmama]

ok af showed up this morning at 13 dpo BUT my temp is still high. above 98.0 is post o temps for me typicall and definately the case this cycle. Shouldn't my temp drop BEFORE af arrives? This cycle has been so weird! http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/ttc3again

[TrishWSU]

Nicole~usually my temp drops right before AF but this cycle it stayed high until cd 3, although it dropped a little each day.

Jenn~Looking at your past charts it looks like that dip today could mean af is coming (although that looks like it's a bit early for you, no?) Or it could be an implantation dip. If it jumps up again tomorrow I'd test again in two days; you should have enough hcg in your urine for a hpt by then. I hope it works out whichever way you want it to.

librarygirl~YAY for the new job!! I hope everything works out well with moving and your boyfriend getting a new restaurant. It does dound like it will be a little crazy for a few months, but at least you have 9 before a baby comes, lol!

Um, so I guess the shift change did mess me up a bit...my temp today at 3 pm (vs 3 am) was 99.0! Of course it could be due to the fact that I had my heat turned up way higher than usual and I went to bed in sweat pants, a long sleeve shirt, AND socks (it was cold!) and usually I sleep in a sports bra and boy shorts. I'm just going to ignore that temp and see what it'slike tomorrow. At least I've already O'd.

[HulaJenn]

check out the temp rise today!!!   EEP! BFN on a cheapie though.