Possibly a very stupid question about BBT

[Niniel]

this might be a very dumb question but....

how much is BBT effected by the environment? If you were in the middle of a heatwave could it make a big difference to your chart? or conversely if it was unusually cold would you see an appreciable difference? 

I'm just asking because last week my temp was quite high for me (I thought that I had possibly ovulated). This week the weather here has been much cooler and my temps have been a lot lower. We're waiting to get our heating system fixed so there is no heating on in my house overnight. Could something like that effect my chart? 

thanks

[Jaimee]

Love the title!    But it's not a stupid question at all and the answer is YES environment can affect your temps.  Some women are much more sensitive to this than others.  So if you're snuggled under the covers one morning, all toasty, and the next you're out of the covers and chilly, your temps could be quite different.  Likewise if you're AC is out and it's quite hot and then the weather cools off and you're back to normal, this could affect things, too.  Mark it all on your chart so you can reference it later when trying to decipher your pattern.  This is when CF observations are key.  If your temps are elevated, but you never had fertile CF and then they go back down, that's an indication to me that you have not O'd.  O should be preceded by fertile CF and followed by drier or completely dry CF. 

For me, the environment doesn't matter much.  Other things will affect me (like poor sleep, earlier/later temping time, etc.), but not usually more than 0.5 degrees vs. an O spike for me is usually more than that.  I also find that once I O, my LP temps are much less affected by things.  I can get up way earlier or later and my LP temps remain pretty consistent (this is not true of my pre-O temps).

[Niniel]

thank you Jaimee, you're my charting guru! To be honest I don't think I have ov'd yet, having lots of EWCM today so I'm hoping that is a good sign, OPKs are still negative but I haven't had this much fertile CM in a very long time, like since before my last pregnancy, but it's good to know this is something to take note of if my temps are seeming a bit strange. 

thanks again

[Jaimee]

Charting guru... I'm honored.     Lots of EW CF is a great sign!  FX for O in the next few days then!  Time to DTD!

[Niniel]

I think i finally got a proper positive OPK today! 

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m134/geobacillus/DSCF7223.jpg

thank you again for all the advice

Edited by Niniel - 9/2/11 at 11:35am

[Jaimee]

The album is private, so I can't see your OPK, but that's great!  Now you can really look out for that O spike within the next 24-36 hours!  Get on that BDing!!

[calpurnia7]

Jaimee, I was kind of wondering the same thing, because it's extraordinarily hot where I live, and I'm very athletic.  I have a feeling my body runs warm a lot of the time, and when I'm rested, cooler than normal.

[Niniel]

updated the link so hopefully the picture should work now

[Jaimee]

Originally Posted by calpurnia7 

Jaimee, I was kind of wondering the same thing, because it's extraordinarily hot where I live, and I'm very athletic.  I have a feeling my body runs warm a lot of the time, and when I'm rested, cooler than normal.

I lived in Austin, TX for two years and did not notice a difference in my overall temp ranges.  Previously I had been in Tucson, AZ where it's even hotter and then lived in Baltimore, MD and still all about the same.  But if the AC were to go out in the summer, that certainly could affect things.  And since you mention you're an athlete that can absolutely have an affect.  The morning after a strenuous work out or competition you might notice a spike in temp and it can delay O if your body was particularly taxed.  Make note of these things so that you can decipher anything confusing.
 

[Jaimee]

Originally Posted by Niniel 

updated the link so hopefully the picture should work now

Yep, that looks positive to me, too!