These days, many women use ovulation predictor kits to determine when they ovulate while trying to conceive. These kits can run from $17 for a 7-test kit that you can only use once, to $150 or more for a fertility monitor you use over and over with disposable test sticks. Fortunately there is a tried and true method that doesn’t involve expensive test strips. All you need is a basal body temperature (BBT) thermometer and graph paper (or a computer).
About Your Fertility Signs:
Your monthly cycle is comprised of your monthly period, the follicular phase, ovulation and the luteal phase. The follicular phase lasts from the beginning up until ovulation and can very in length. The luteal phase tends to be consistent and lasts from ovulation to the next menstrual flow. There are two main signs you are looking for when charting your ovulation:
- A sustained temperature rise, which happens after ovulation, and
- Fertile cervical mucous, or CM, which happens during ovulation.
Your BBT will remain low until the day after ovulation and then it will rise during the luteal phase until your next menstrual period. If you become pregnant, your BBT will remain high. I often experienced a steep drop in my BBT on the morning of my period.
In the days leading up to ovulation, your cervical mucous or fluid will become increasingly watery and stretchy. These are your most fertile days.
How to Chart:
Each day, at the same time, before you get out of bed, record your BBT. Also record the status of your CM. You can do this by checking the toilet paper after you use the restroom, but it’s easier to discern if you insert two fingers into your vagina and “swipe” the inside of your vagina. Remove your fingers and pull them apart to observe how stretchy the fluid is.
How to Analyze the Data:
Ovulation tends to occur on the last day fertile cervical mucous is observed. Your best bet is to have intercourse at least once a day while fertile cervical mucous is present. Once you record three higher temperatures in a row, you can assume that ovulation occurred on the day before the temperature rise. Typically the rise will look fairly drastic on your chart. It’s hard to see the pattern until you have several days charted around ovulation.
Here is my chart from the month I conceived my son:
The red horizontal line is drawn as a baseline to help you see the difference between the “low” temperatures and the “high” temperatures. The red vertical line is drawn where ovulation supposedly occurred. As you can see, I have fairly long cycles, so charting was an ideal method for me to detect ovulation. Ovulation does occur in the middle of your cycle if you have a regular 28 day cycle, but if your cycle is long like mine, ovulation occurs much later. Charting is an easy way to see the pattern in your cycle.
If analyzing your data seems too complicated, there are online services that will do the work for you. All you have to do is enter your data and the software will make your chart and detect your ovulation date based on the data. When I was trying to conceive, I used FertilityFriend.com. Fertility Friend has great training and easy to use tools. I will probably use it again when we start trying for #2!
So here is a quick overview:
- 1. Record your BBT every morning at the same exact time, before you get out of bed and start moving.
- 2. Pay attention to your cervical fluid/mucous.
- 3. Do the baby dance at least once a day when your CM becomes watery and stretchy.
- 4. Watch for a steep and sustained temperature rise. The day before the rise is the day you ovulated.
- 5. If your temperature stays high around the time you expect your period, you might be pregnant!
Related Articles:
Conception With Irregular Cycles
What is a Luteal Phase Defect?