Swobidu Health

Posts Tagged ‘opks’

Today, a themed post! I have tried quite a few in the 14 months that I have been TTC! I have used countless websites and predictors, charted my BBT, used a saliva microscope, and have tried charting my cervical mucus and position. when I first started TTC, I tried the cheaper options, like BBT first. a few dollars bought me the thermometer. I tried for several months, but I’m sort of a light sleeper and my temperature was a little all over the place. I never quite go the hang of charting CM and CP and my saliva microscope never gave me very obvious results. although I still pay attention to these things, I rely most heavily on.

What I like most: the best thing about OPKs is that it truly gives me a date to work from! Since a positive OPK tells you that you will ovulate in the next 24-28 hours, it gives me a pretty good idea that not only is it time to kick up the “baby-dancing”, but it also helps me predict when my period is likely to show! I am a bit (HA!) of a control freak, so I like to know these things! it also gives me a countdown to when I can take a home pregnancy test!

How it helps me: before I started using OPKs, I really had no clue when I ovulated! I didn’t have much confidence when I was tracking my BBT, because I always figured there was a margin for human error!

What it has taught me about my cycle: Once I used OPKs for a few months, I started to really see a pretty good pattern to my cycles. I found out that typically, I ovulated later in the month, somewhere between CD 18 and CD 23. the average woman ovulates around CD 14. I also learned that my luteal phase (the number of days between ovulation and period) was a little shorter than most, around 11-12 days, assuming I actually ovulated the day I got a positive OPK. a LP of at least 10 is very important, because anything shorter may not allow a fertilized egg enough time to implant.

Since I began taking Clomid, my cycle has changed. I got a positive OPK this month on CD 15. last month, my LP was 14 days (which is average). OPKs are essential while I’m on Clomid, because I have to have my progesterone checked about 7 days after my positive OPK. If my progesterone level isn’t high enough, the doctor can give me supplements so that my body can support a pregnancy. So the bottom line for me that OPKs are essential during my cycle!

Tips/Advice:when using OPKs, it can take a few months to figure your cycles out. I usually start taking OPKs on CD 10 and I continue taking them until a few days after the test goes back to negative, just to be sure that my surge is over. most OPKs are not meant to use with first morning urine (FMU). If you want to test twice per day to be sure you don’t have a very short surge, try testing at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. try to avoid drinking much for at least 2 hours before testing. the test line on an OPK must be as dark or darker than the control line. Your test line may get close and then get paler. Keep watching for it to get truly as dark as the control line.

Average cost per cycle:the price of OPK varies depending on the test brand and the number of tests you buy. There are digital OPKs, which are the most expensive, around $20 for a pack of 7. Some store brands sell for about $12 for a pack of 7. I have been buying mine on Amazon.com. the last pack I bought cost about $18 with shipping and included 50 OPKs and 20 HPTs (home pregnancy tests). If I use about 10 OPKs a month, that amounts to about $3.60 in OPKs, not a bad deal. That breaks down to about $.36 per OPK, if you don’t count the HPTs! Pretty nice savings compared to about $2.85 per digital or $1.71 per store brand.