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new to this... cerix position ?

post #1 of 7
Thread Starter 

DH and I are ttc our 2nd...we got pregnant 1st month last time, so not sure about a lot of trying techniques, so anyway, the first thing that I have been doing is checking my cervix position and firmness and am very confused...I thought I might be pregnant this past month but I now have my period and my cervix is very soft and low??? Is cervix position and "consistency" different for every woman or does this seem strange?  I spotted for about 4 days before I got my full on period- could this be a hormone issue?  TIA

also, not pregnant- took a couple of test already...

 


Edited by nelson - 7/7/11 at 5:22pm
post #2 of 7

You're on your period right now?  your cervix will drop and open slightly in order to let the blood flow out. I don't believe texture matters much at this point in time.

 

How long was you LP?  Including those days of spotting.  There are many reasons for spotting just before AF, if your LP is 10+ days NOT including those days of spotting, there shouldn't be anything to be too worried about.  Although, if this continues every month you should see your OB to rule out fibroids, endometriosis, and other things that could be causing this spotting.   If your LP (not including spotting days) is under 10 days, low progesterone may be the most likely culprit, but you could still have the issues listed above.  So, bottom line, if this continues every month you should get things checked out to be safe.  HTH and GOOD LUCK!!

post #3 of 7
Thread Starter 

okay, VERY new to this...how do you figure out how long your LP is?  I do know my entire cycle is a little short, about 26 days and I do bleed for a while, 8 days probably.  Also, I do tend to spot before most AF's, but this is a new thing within the last year, and this cycle, 4 days, did seem a bit long even for me.  gosh, reading over my response and quickly looking up "fibroids" I think I should make an OB apt...I seem to have some of the other symptoms as well.

 

post #4 of 7

to know how long your LP is you need to know the day you ovulate. there are 2 ways to do this a blood/hormone test, and basal body temperature. 

 

check out fertilityfriend.com and set up an account and start keeping track of your first mornign temperature. when you see a temp shift, you know you've ovulated. 

 

good luck!

 

post #5 of 7

Hi Nelson... how old is your little one?  Are you still breastfeeding?  How many postpartum periods have you had?  After my first child I got AF back around 8-9 months pp and it took over a year after that for my cycles to regulate.  I would have long cycles, short cycles, normal length LP's, short LP's, spotting, etc.  After dd nightweaned things started to regulate and I ended up getting pregnant shortly after.

 

I would  highly recommend reading Taking Charge of Your Fertility and starting to chart your temperatures and cervical fluid.  These are much easier symptoms to track than cervical position.  You could run out to your local drug store and get a basal body thermometer and start temping tomorrow morning!  Just try and take your temperature first thing when you wake up (don't get out of bed, don't drink any water, don't sit up), after a decent block of sleep (3 hours or more is recommended), and around the same time each day (within half an hour).   Also mark down what your cervical fluid is like: dry, sticky, creamy, eggwhite, wet.   You can log your data on a free site like www.fertilityfriend.com so that you can share you charts with us and we can give you tips and help you decipher anything that is confusing.  Charting your temp and cervical fluid will tell you when you are fertile, when you ovulated, how long your luteal phase is, when to expect AF, if you're pregnant, and if there is anything of concern happening with your cycle (like the spotting you mentioned).  My LP is 10 days on average (with no spotting), but as a pp mentioned this is about the shortest it can be to achieve pregnancy or else the egg may not have time to implant and start producing hCG.  Spotting often indicates low progesterone or at least fluctuating progesterone, which could get in the way of TTC.  Charting will help you to see better what is going on and there may be simple tweaks to your diet and/or lifestyle that could help strengthen your LP.

 

Charting cervical position is a nice addition to temp and CF, but like you've noticed it can be a bit confusing at first.  I would highly recommend continuing to check your CP and see how your observations line up with your temp and CF.  This will help you understand better what you're feeling.  In general start checking your CP when you notice fertile cervical fluid (creamy or eggwhite).  Your cervix starts off firm, low, and closed.  It will feel like the tip of your nose and the cervical os will feel like a dimple.  As you approach ovulation it will start to soften, rise up, and open.  On your peak day it should be mushy like your lips, high up- maybe even difficult to reach, and the os should be open.  After ovulation it will firm up,  lower, and close again.  But you don't need to keep checking it during your entire LP as it can also change off and on and it's easy to read into it and drive yourself a bit crazy. But as you approach AF it will open again to allow the blood to pass through whereas a pregnant cervix will remain closed.  Check your CP at the same time each day to remain consistent.  Many women choose to check it in the shower since you're already clean.

 

Good luck!

post #6 of 7
Thread Starter 

I'm not sure if I should keep responding to this post or start another one, but everyone has been so helpful, so a couple more questions, if anyone is still reading- I signed up for fertilityfriend.com and when I went to chart my cycle, it seemed to count spotting as the first day of menses, is this right?  I had recently heard that it isn't until you get into a heavier flow that your AF should be counted- what do you think?  I guess this is when the temping would be helpful...another side note is that I do have hypothyroid issues, I take synthroid everyday, and I wonder if that would have a connection with progesterone, does anyone have any info on that?  Is there any foods that have naturally occurring progesterone in them that you could recommend?  Also to answer Jamiee- I have just stopped nursing about a month ago, but DS is 3 yrs old.  so I have had my AF back for well over a 1.5 years.  But maybe stopping nursing completely has interfered with a reg. cycle-  thanks

 

post #7 of 7

You are correct about CD 1 being the day of first real flow (not spotting)  FF may have put your spotting in this cycle's chart because it is your first with them?  Sometimes there are little gliches, though, too.  (One of my long cycles was inexplicably split in to 3 parts (no mid cycle bleeding/spotting)).

 

I did a quick search for progesterone in food and found this: http://www.progesteronetherapy.com/foods-containing-progesterone.html

 

On the topic of your recent weaning/wacky cycles...  Are you saying that your cycles were fine while nursing and that they got weird just after weaning?

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