Erratic sleep and temping

[TTCmama]

I have not been temping this time (I did with DD) because I often wake up in the middle of the night plus wake at different times during the week since my schedule is not consistent.  But I really want to use more than just my CBEFM since obviously it detects the possibility of O but not the definite O.  I got burned by that this cycle (either my LP is 17 days today, after consistently being 9-10, with no BFP or there was no O when my CBEFM gave me those peak days).

Anyway, how many of you still temp when your sleep patterns aren't "perfect"?  Any tips on how to deal with this?

TIA!

[Jaimee]

My kiddos are not at all great sleepers.  I was waking every 90 minutes to 2 hours for years with my first.  My second isn't much better of a sleeper.  Despite numerous night wakings I have always been able to get a biphasic pattern with my temps.  I would recommend focusing on getting your temps around the same time each day and not worry so much about how much sleep you had the block before it.  Is there a time of the morning you can reliably take you temp despite changes in your work schedule?  You could also consider temping vaginally.  Some women find their temps more consistent that way.  Other things to look out for are ambient temp (are you waking up hot one morning and cold the next?) and making sure you aren't mouth breathing prior to temping or falling back asleep while temping (these latter two things would not be issues with vaginal temping).  Honestly I would just go for it and see what you get.  Even if your pre-O temps are pretty erratic you might still be getting a clear spike to line up with your monitor observations.  With crazy sleep you sort of have to throw that whole "0.2 degree jump over the last 6 temps" rule out the window.  Just look for an overall pattern of low and high temps.  Log your data on www.fertilityfriend.com so  we can help you decipher what's happening.  Good luck!

[TTCmama]

Thanks for the response.  OK, I'll try to focus more on the time of morning vs. the 3 hour block of sleep.  Thanks!