Ovulens accuracy?

[Mommiska]

Hi all - I've never really been at this forum, but thought this would be a good place to ask this question...

I've just bought an Ovulens and have been using it. So far, after 4 weeks, I've had NO ferning at all. I actually had one before my last pregnancy but a friend lost it (long story)...I only had one period between dd1's birth and conceiving dd2, but I did have ferning on the ovulens (although it was a bit erratic, if I remember correctly).

The pamphlet that came with it says it isn't recommended if you are breast-feeding...and I'm tandem nursing my two girls, although the 3 year old doesn't nurse very often (once or twice a day). Anyone know anything about this?

Any thoughts on what is up ? I'm a bit confused (and also a bit sad if I'm not ovulating...)

[karenpl]

I have been using the ovulens on my last ttc cycle and I am tandem nursing too and it worked just fine for me. I think you either didn't get any ferning, or you ended up with the saliva smudged too much, or things like that. I found it pretty picky about where exactly I put my saliva and how I handled it.

I also used a microscope at the same time (my old one from when I was a kid) and that worked much much easier for me, and I think there were days that I saw clear ferning on microscope and dubious or no ferning via ovulens.

Baby dust your way!

Karen

[Mommiska]

Thanks Karen - it's nice to know that maybe I've just missed the ferning (although not so nice to know that it can be so difficult to see!). I guess we'll see how next month goes.

My cycle still isn't very regular (it came back when dd2 was 13 months old, and she's 19 months now), so maybe that has something to do with it...

Baby dust to you as well. Are you planning to nurse all three if that comes up? I've wondered if maybe the oldest would wean if I got pregnant again...

[EnviroBecca]

I'm also a little frustrated w/Ovulens. Karen, I hope you can help me figure out whether to be optimistic now or not!

I've had it for about 7 weeks. I have infrequent cycles due to being Differently Hormonalized (my latest attempt at a PC term for what is definitely not PCO) so it's not unusual for me to go this long without O'ing. There were a couple of times when I thought I might've O'd because the saliva looked "complicated" and different from the "not ovulating" pix included w/Ovulens, but 2 weeks after each I was neither pregnant nor bleeding, and then Karen posted a link to her own photos including a "not ovulating" one that looked similar enough to my complicated ones to convince me it was just wishful thinking. I decided that the complicated look just means the saliva is more concentrated.

Okay, so on Christmas Eve (O holy night!) I saw one nice distinct fern at the edge of the complicated stuff. Same the next day. This puzzled me, because all pix of "transition" show ferns intermingled w/dots. Back to just complicated after that. Then, Saturday I tried to look at the sample before it was dry--I could see it rolling down the lens--so I put it horizontal again and came back for another look to see if it was totally ruined or what...and it was SOLID LOVELY LITTLE FERNS!!! So yesterday, I tried putting my saliva on one edge of the lens and immediately tilting it to make it spread over the whole surface. When that was dry, solid ferns again!!! At this point I did an experiment: went an hour w/nil by mouth to get another good sample and DIDN'T spread it around. This resulted in the complicated look w/no visible ferns.

My hypothesis is that I need to spread out the sample to get a good look, and if I don't I may miss ferns! Am I right? or is spreading it out the wrong thing to do because it creates some kind of fake ferns??? I'd hate to get my hopes up for nothing!

[Mommiska]

Hey - I might try what you suggested! Anything to see that ferning (although I've missed it this cycle, if I was just somehow using the Ovulens wrong ).

When I used it before, I saw ferning without doing anything special with putting the saliva on. But I can't imagine that you could make yourself get 'fake' ferning...so it sounds like maybe it's your time!

Hope so!