I've been obsessing over all kinds of internet forums, especially on this site, for a few weeks now, since we first decided to start trying about 3 weeks ago! We got married in July but originally thought we would wait at least 2 years before TTC since I’m still in pretty intensive school (dental school), but decided about 3 weeks ago that we would just see how it all goes. I was on the pill for about 8 years and just stopped at the end of August for other health reasons, and my cycles have been all over the place since, so we figured it would take a while. Starting in September they were 36 days, 53 days, 35 days, 37 days, and 38 days. I figured my fertile week was March 20-26 (according to my period tracker app) but on March 24th I decided to buy an OPK just to be sure I was guessing ovulation around the correct week, and that day I got a flashing smiley on the clearblue digital. I also got a flashing smiley on the 25th in the morning and a solid smiley that night around 7:30 pm, so, I’m guessing I O’d the next day some time, on the 26th. BD’d on 19th, 21st, 22nd, 24th, 25th, and 26th. I have had absolutely no symptoms since then (although I don’t usually have any pre-period symptoms) and was getting prepared to try again next cycle since after reading these forum it seems like everyone has all these crazy symptoms before BFP! Anyways, I woke up this morning and just felt like I should just take an HPT, even though I’m not expecting my period for 7 days. Totally not expecting to see anything since everyone seems to say they don’t see much until AT LEAST 9 dpo, most even later than that. But lo and behold, got a faint line, but definitely visible. Tested again this afternoon and an even more visible line…only 7 dpo! I’m nervous since it’s so early that it’s a fluke or something? Especially since I did not expect anything the first month trying! What does everyone think??

Hi everyone!

So I've been trying for exactly one year with long irregular cycles. I tried 3 failed rounds of clomid, took a break, and met with a fertility acupuncture specialist. It worked RIGHT AWAY! I still can't believe it. I didn't even feel pregnant, I only took a test because I was on my way to see an RE for the first time and wanted to be sure. No symptoms at all until after bfp!

1-7 DPO - Nada
8 DPO - Very gassy, otherwise nada
9 DPO - Surprise BFP on FRER!
10-11 DPO - Af-like cramps (implantation), if I hadn't already had a BFP I would have thought it was AF coming for sure.
12 DPO gassy, crampy
13-16 DPO - Not much at all, just a little boob tenderness!

Not very many symptoms at all. CM from ovulation onwards was and is still dry as the sahara desert, so don't count on that as a pregnancy symptom! (That's weird for me, I usually have loads of CM).

I'll start by saying that I have been stalking this thread collectively over a 4 year period, from the very first month I was ttc. DH and I stopped trying after we hit the 1 year mark (not ONE bfp), and decided to focus on our careers. Fast forward to now, cycle #0 of tcc and we did it! It was cycle #0 because we planned to start trying next month. Last period was March 7th, 28/29 day cycles. This is to debunk all of the myths that you can't conceive by dtd on O day only! I was out of town up until O day (March 22nd), when I returned home DH was anxiously awaiting. We dtd MIDNIGHT of March 23, so I hadn't even considered getting pregnant this month.

Up until 14 dpo, all of my symptoms were off and on, save for the constant burping:

earache (4-10dpo) Never had experienced an earache, so I became suspicious, and started seeing if I noticed additional symptoms
insomnia (8-13dpo) slept VERY well night of 13dpo
hot (constant)
headaches (0-14dpo)
boobs - montgomery's tubercles (thought it was SO GROSS), sore from 7dpo-14dpo
rash on cheeks, chin, shoulders, chest - 14dpo-
I didn’t care for chocolate when at any given moment I'm usually craving it
burping / heartburn THE ENTIRE TIME. I NEVER BURP.
armpit ache 12dpo-

14dpo- af cramps. Boobs STOPPED hurting 14dpo, which is when AF is due; this happens every cycle immediately before I start to bleed (tmi!)
So I rushed to the bathroom to check, and, lo and behold, bright red dots of blood.
I did think it was interesting that they were so bright and so small, but I chalked it up to just being "weird" and nothing more. Went to sleep, put pad on and waited for af to arrive.

15dpo - Expecting to have af as I wake up and go for morning pee, but ... nothing. Literally, n o t h i n g. This shocked me, 1. because I have never spotted, (it usually makes a grand entrance) and 2. because a full 8 hours had passed. I went to school and decided that this was too strange and warranted the purchase of a pregnancy test. POAS and, BFP! This was literally 2 hours ago, DH is still at work.

All of this to say that my symptoms were NOTHING like those I've read over the years, and to NEVER give up hope until your ACTUAL AF arrives. Blessings and Baby Dust!

0-4 DPO No symptoms but usual breast tenderness from ovulation.
5 DPO Super hungry in the morning and increased breast tenderness. While at work I felt stabbing pains in my lower abdomen that only lasted a few seconds.
6 DPO Super hungry all day and increased breast tenderness. Nipples and all sides of the breasts were sore. Sore throat. Bad headache.
7 DPO Super hungry and now super thirsty all day. Sore throat and bad nasal allergies. Bad all day headache and fatigue. Came home from work and passed out on the couch for a half hour. Sore breasts. Temp increase.
8 DPO Sore breasts, sore throat, runny itchy nose and eyes, excessive thirst, fatigue. Temp increase.
9 DPO Sore breast, runny nose, excessive thirst, fatigue
10 DPO Sore breast, AF like cramps (I was so sad thinking that I was out for the month), CM was lotiony and scant. I’ve never been that dry before. I was so tired that I fell asleep at my desk and when I got home I took a 7 hour nap.
11 DPO Sore breast, AF like cramps, bloating, lotiony CM and dry overall. I took a test that night and thought that I saw a small line but couldn’t be sure.
12 DPO I took a pregnancy test first thing in the morning and got a faint BFP.

The biggest differences for me were sore breasts all over not just on the sides or nipples. The soreness was in between the breasts as well on the inside. I also had an unquenchable thirst and was tired. Also the AF like cramps came and went quickly. I would cramp and say damn AF is here then the cramping was gone. Also the weird dry scant creamy CM was another indicator.

Good luck everyone!!! This cycle was a success for me I think because I had a ton of EWCM and my donor took vitamins every day. Also I switched donors to a local guy who met me in person. I had been TTC for over a year.

I’m so glad to share my story with you guys. Your stories have kept me sane through this whole process as well.

I'll try to make this short and quick because Im at work but I wanted to post my DPO story since you ladies got me through my terrible TWW! I have a DD (turns 5 next month) and a 2 year old DS. We decided to start trying in December so I stopped BC. I know I haven't really been trying that long (only 3 cycles) but it felt like the longest and most frustrating 3 months ever. My first two were conceived on our first month trying so I wasn't mentally or emotionally prepared for anything like this. Anyways to the good stuff:

1-3 DPO..nothing to speak of really. Felt completely normal
4 DPO..cramping
5 DPO..cramping and my chest & shoulders broke out
6 DPO..mild cramping. Otherwise felt completely normal.
7 DPO..nothing. No cramps, no sore bb, absolutely nothing. I was pretty convinced we had missed this month.
8 DPO..same as day before...started to wonder why my bbs weren't sore though because they typically were around this time before AF.
9 DPO.. Cramping, tender bb's, and a little nausea. BFN with fmu
10 DPO.. Constipated (ew I know), tender bb's, and lots of AF cramps. Just waiting for her to show up. BFN with fmu.
11 DPO.. Again lots of cramping. AF due today so I wasn't shocked to get a BFN. I was def disappointed tho and felt completely defeated and out for the month.
12 DPO.. I was up and down all night with stomach cramps. I went to the bathroom like 5 times just to see if AF had showed. My bb's were very very sore at this point. Got the FAINTEST SECOND LINE EVERRRR on hpt. Like, I had to look at it in 12 different directions in 3 different lightings. I was convinced it was a fluke. Got to work and too another. Got the same exact faint line. Decided to go to the health department for a test. She ran 2 urine tests and both were negative. AF is never ever late so I decided to try a digital. BFP!!!! 1-2 WEEKS!!! I danced around the house like a crazy person.
13 DPO..two more BFP! they're still light but definitely there now! I'm so excited and feel so blessed. We are having pictures done on sunday and Im telling my husband during that time so the photographer can catch his reaction lol

Like I said, I was completely sure I was out this month. It's still so surreal. Still having some slight cramping and very sore bb's. Aside from that, I feel completely normal. Also I have a short luteal phase. Like 9-10 days if Im lucky. I didn't know that was an issue until I started reading about it.

We used preseed, baby aspirin, and I laid in bed for about 20 minutes after every BD during my ovulation window.

Hello all I'm so excited to share my story. This site has been my obsession for the last 2 weeks. I have been ttc for the last 8 months. I had 2 pregnancies that ended the same week I found out. I'm hoping this little one sticks around. I found out that my miscarriages could have been caused by a blood pressure medication I was taking. I changed medication last month. I just started bbt during this cycle and opk. We only did the baby dance 2 times, so I was pretty sure I missed ovulation. Now for the magic.
Each day I tested LH and HCG. LH showed lines each day, going from dark to light. And started getting darker. H
1-8 dpo frequently urinating, Vivid dreams,
1-3 dpo nipples were extremely sore. Breast were noticeably larger and vainy. Ewcm, soft cervix.
4 dpo creamy white cm. Breast feeling a little better, still sore.
5 dpo cramps, exhausted. Naps becoming frequent.
6 cramps cravingso
7 dpo really bad reflux cramps, breast feeling larger. Husband wanted to do baby dance but the cramps were a little intense.
8 dpo cramps, acid, in stomach. Decided to take 1 dollor store test. After an hour it showed 2 lines. I took a 1st response test and positive showed within 2 minutes. I took 2 more test each, showing light lines. I will continue to check daily until the lines are dark. Good luck to everyone. I hope this was helpful.

Hello!

My DH and I have been TTC for 5 cycles. I went off BC (again, 5 cycles ago) and didn't have a positive ovulation test until 3.29 + 3.30. My cycles after being off BC were only about 20 days long with a short luteal phase; started taking Vitex and it extended to 26 days after 2 months of the supplement.

I actually felt more preggo with cycles that didn't end in pregnancy, so don't psyche yourself out if you aren't seeing symptoms! DTD for 7 of 9 days around my fertile window, 5 of which being leading up to O and on day of O.

Here were the symptoms:
O -- mild cramping
1-4 DPO -- nothing
5-6 DPO -- heightened sense of smell (garlic in an elevator, tires/rubber smell in parking lot); oily skin (very unusual for me); backache
6-7 DPO -- hot flashes; backache; mild cramping
7-8 DPO -- headache ALL day; fatigue; felt like I was getting sick
8-9 DPO -- R sided pelvic pain; backache; heart palpitations; faint BFP x2!

I've had creamy, thicker than usual cervical mucous since day after O. My temp dropped the day before ovulation and has stayed mildly elevated (mid-98s instead of mid-97s like usual).

Used TTC lubricant, took Vitex, prenatals, stayed laying down for 20 min after each DTD.

Praying for a sticky bean! Will try to upload the faint positive tests :)

Hello everyone! I was hoping to share some hope and joy, as I have been reading these stories and they have helped me stay positive along the way. Here are my pregnancy experiences!

Summer-fall of 2013 my husband and I were using a ladycomp fertility computer as a means for natural family planning. We were not ready to conceive and we were in fact trying to use it as birth control. We were following the ladycomp’s prompts of red, yellow or green days of when to or not to make love (I wasn’t tracking any other ovulation signs). After using it for 6 months with fairly normal cycles. I randomly ovulated late and we created our son! My first sign was a missed period. Took a cheap pregnancy test, and it was negative. After 15 dpo of high temps and no period, the ladycomp started flashing telling me I was pregnant. Got excited and tested with another cheap test. Big ol’ negative! Finally at 18dpo the ladycomp was still flashing at me every morning. I did a little googling about false negatives and went into town to buy a first response test. After 2 minutes of squeezing and praying, I opened my eyes and was blown away by seeing my first faint positive!! I actually rubbed my eyes and gazed down at it a second time. Had to wait for my husband to get out of camp to tell him and he was over the moon!
Then half a week later, I had a major bleed and went for an emergency ultra sound and blood work. Based on my period the doctors thought I was 8 weeks along. Based on the findings of the tests, they assumed our son was 4 weeks along. So naturally they sent the crying, bleeding, pregnant woman home alone and told her she must have miscarried at 4 weeks. I was told to go home and rest and let nature take it’s course. This heavy, red, and textured bleed only lasted half a day. A couple days later I kept seeing darker and darker lines on the home HGC tests. I went in for more blood work, and oh hey sorry! The doctors were wrong, we don’t know why you were bleeding but you and your baby are growing, healthy and fine! Yeeash! What a scare. Needless to say, I then started with community midwifery care instead. At 12 weeks, we had another huge bleed, which turned out to be placental abruption. Terrifying. I literally got up from my chair in the emergency room and dumped bright red blood on the floor. They did an internal exam and an ultrasound and didn’t feel the baby was at risk. The abruption was small and healed itself. We then went on to have a full term pregnancy with a natural, home birth. Our son is now 21 months, still nursing and honestly one of the coolest people I know.

Which brings me to my next tale! Our son is an avid boob goblin; so my cycle did not return until he was 19 months old. We nurse on demand, practiced baby led weaning and co-sleep. After his first birthday my husband and I started dreaming of expanding our family. With no period and no ovulation… We had lots of fun practicing ;) but sort of both knew we were not ready to make a baby. I talked with my former doula, who is also a herbalist, about what my options where for getting my cycle back. She suggested Shatavari root. It regulates your cycle, encourages healthy eggs and ovulation AND increases breast milk! Hallelujah! After 3 weeks of taking it in my tea, I ovulated! One week later, I got my first postpartum period. I had three irregular cycles with short, 7 day luteal phases. This 3rd cycle of actively trying and tracking EVERYTHING... I was like f*ck it! I am ready to garden. I detected ovulation, and we made love a couple days in and around it. I didn’t take it easy in the two week wait AT ALL! I went hard planting trees, grubbing trenches, carrying water and giant flag stones. I wonder if all the strenuous exercise helped! Ha! I also did not orgasm at ovulation when we made love. My husband did, I put my legs in the air for 10 minutes, then I orgasmed after, while laying on my back. This cycle I ovulated pretty normally (CD 17) and by CD 26 I got a positive pregnancy test!!! What?! 9dpo?! That is like half as many days post ovulation than with my son! I had no signs or symptoms other than no pms symptoms. I was expecting my period at 7dpo, so I took an internet easy@home pregnancy strip. Came back negative. Then I had a little temp dip on 8dpo. On 9dpo while my son was napping, I thought what the heck, I will try another strip. I went and did some chores and when I picked it back up I was thinking ‘ wouldn’t it be neat if I saw a faint line’ I was frozen with shock! The test line was fainter than the control line but definitely undeniable and easily seen in an instant! I tested again that night and the next morning and the lines are getting darker! I took a first response, still a positive but it is actually more faint than the internet cheapies. I wrote my husband a little card and taped a poppyseed inside (the size of a 4wk unborn baby). It said something like ‘Hi Dad, can’t wait to meet you in December of 2016! Love- your second child” He was so excited! I am 3 weeks and a couple days right now and have contacted the midwife for an appointment! I will attach my chart below. Wheeew!

I hope these experience make you feel hopefully and help fill the two week wait. I know your pain of wanting to be fertile but having to wait for your body to be ready. Please know your family's day will come! Just enjoy the journey of loving your partner and the baby magic will do the rest! <3

I could not be more surprised to be writing this!

Background - TTC for our first for 20mths, recently got a diagnosis of endometriosis and was told I have low egg reserve. We were advised to start treatment as soon as possible - treatment being 3mths of lupron to try to shrink my endometriosis (for me, the main problem is cysts on my ovaries - one ovary appeared to be working fine but the other was not), followed by IVF. As lupron stops you ovulating and you have to take precautions against conceiving, this was literally our last shot of conceiving naturally.... against all odds, we managed it!

This month, we felt disheartened, we didn't even try that hard (just twice in the fertile period), and I was away over ovulation so we definitely didn't BD around the time I would have liked. I thought there was NO chance.

After trying for so long, I admit that I don't bother recording my potential pregnancy symptoms anywhere near as much as I did in the early days! And having endometriosis means I can get extreme PMS which can seem like pregnancy symptoms anyway - there have been months in the past that I've been nauseous or even physically sick in the lead up to my period, so I just didn't think anything of it this time.

Possible symptoms:
Sore boobs - yes, but extremely sore boobs is fairly normal for me pre-AF anyway
Nausea - once on 12dpo, which I put down to travel sickness and being hungry, once on 13dpo when I saw something particularly gruesome on The Walking Dead!
Nighttime waking - a few times (from 7dpo to 12dpo), this was unusual for me and I put it down to feeling anxious about work, house renovations and impending treatment
Bloating - yes but again this is normal for me pre-AF
Fatigue - yes, again so normal for me before AF! I workout and found my workouts this week (11dpo, 13dpo) particularly tough. I've noticed I've been breathless running up the stairs (where I'm usually pretty fit)
Cramps - yes, I'm still feel small cramps as if my body is starting a period
Spotting - yes, once on 11/12dpo - I often get spotting before AF so the only thing that made me think I might be pregnant was the fact that it stopped

I have been waiting for my period to start so that I can call the hospital and get the Lupron injection. I ignored the potential symptoms as they have been SO similar to my usual PMS, so my first real sign was a missed period. In all my time of tracking my cycle, I have never once had a period longer than 28 days, so in the evening of day 29 when I had no spotting, I bought a decent quality test and waited till this morning, day 30 (16dpo). Tested with a cheapy and a digital - both came up really clear straight away, the digital says 2-3 weeks, which is spot on.

I'm very pleased, I know we have a way to go to see whether this will stick, but we have NEVER reached this stage before, I want to celebrate where we're at. My OH said that it feels like a film - we managed it in the nick of time!!

I have found it useful to read about other people's experiences, particularly when people have had the same issues we were facing. I really hope that writing this can help someone else feel that they are not alone.

Best of luck to all of you reading this xxx

My husband and I are trying for our second baby, and I had the mirena removed 5 months ago. With our first, we tried unsuccessfully for a year, and then got pregnant our first month on clomid.

I've been pretty convinced that I wouldn't see a bfp without the help of clomid, but the plan was to try for 6 months before taking it again. (I'm 35 now). This month we decided to skip trying, since i have a big trip coming up that I didn't want to be 6 weeks pregnant for (i had pretty bad morning sickness), so we weren't going to bd around ovulation.

cd6- bd
cd8- pos opk (early for me)- so realized we cut it close
5 dpo- bright red blood- only lasted a few hours
10 dpo- brown spotting & very moody
11 dpo - light brown spotting
12 dpo- light brown spotting, gassy
13 dpo- BFP

I'm very nervous. I didn't have any spotting during my first pregnancy. Also, my initial reaction to bleeding so close to ovulation was that it could it be an ectopic pregnancy. 5 DPO seems to be to close for implantion bleeding.

Has anyone had a similar experience?

I'm so excited to finally be able to share our story. This site helped me stay sane & I loved reading others' stories while on my own TTC journey, I hope mine encourages some of you too!

So i ovulated on 3/26 according to OPKs, my hubby & I BD'd the day before & day after ovulation. Here are my symptoms:
1-6 DPO: some cramps occasionally, noticed my temps were higher than normal (hovering somewhere between 98.6 & 100, normally I have a low body temp around 97.6)
7 DPO: very crampy, temp went down to about 98. was out eating dinner & suddenly felt sharp stabbing pain behind/slightly below my belly button. Pain lasted about 30 seconds & then went away. I'm thinking this was implantation.
8 DPO: felt very under the weather, tired, temp shot way up to 100!
9 DPO: tired, irritable, temp around 99. BFN on hpt (I knew it was too early but couldn't resist)
10 DPO: temp still up (99.5), AF cramps so thought maybe I wasn't pregnant after all. Tested again, BFN.
11 DPO: still very crampy, still high temps. Take clearblue hpt, see VERY faint line (so faint I'm squinting to see it) so think it must be an evap & throw it out
12 DPO: really awful AF-like cramps but lots of energy, take frer test & get another squinter. Still don't want to get my hopes up & vow not to test for another 2 days
13 DPO: lots of energy, happy, feel better than I have in days! Snot-looking CM when I wipe. Caved & took an equate hpt in afternoon, faint BFP!!
14 DPO: test w/ clearblue hpt using FMU, another faint bfp (not a squinter anymore though!)
15 DPO: test with clearblue advanced digital in afternoon, BFP 1-2 weeks!

Got my blood drawn today at doc for confirmation, will results tomorrow! My EDD is 12/17/16, which is the same date I had my MC last December. I take it as a good sign, God works in mysterious ways sometimes :)
Some things I did to help me conceive: took nature-made prenatals w/DHA daily, took 2-3 GNC fertility blend pills daily, ate raw pineapple from 1 DPO to 8 DPO (supposed to help w/implantation), and prayed a lot!!

Good luck to all you ladies & thank you for your support!!

Hello,

My husband and I have been TTC for three month, NTNP for about 8. Our son is 20 months old. I have PCOS so I spend a lot of time worrying that any moment my body will attempt to kick out the little one whose currently growing inside. But, I try to remain positive, and think about how well my first pregnancy went. There was a moment in week 8 of my first pregnancy when I got a subchorionic bleed, and I bled for a few days, but I took it easy, cut the stress and all turned out well. Hoping the bleed will not repeat with this pregnancy!

But, that is not what you are here for. You are here for all those lovely symptoms.

1-5 DPO I didn't really feel anything. Some gas, definite cervical mucus present, but nothing abnormal.
6 DPO Mild cramping starts. I don't get AF cramps, so I knew something was up.
7 DPO More cramps. A bit irritable. Went off on a request from a co-worker, which is not unlike me, but this was totally irrational. I don't get PMS either so after the episode I was like, hmmmmm...
8 DPO Not much cramping, but the dreams I started having were insane! I never remember my dreams, and I was waking up with some ideas for weird, but decent movies. Mild boob tingles. Shortness of breath when trying to sing my toddler his nighttime songs.
9 DPO More dreams, some not so pleasant. I was determined to wait until further along to test, but I couldn't finish my mid-morning apple due to nausea, and I a---never leave food unfinished. Especially an apple. And b---the only time I get nauseous is when I'm really sick, or when I was pregnant the first time. So, I went to Target at lunch and got a 3 pack of 6 days sooner tests. Took one, and it was a very faint, but obvious in person BFP! I was so surprised it came up within thirty seconds.
10-12 DPO Yep,more dreams. Took a test with FMU both days each one darker. Boob tingles just slightly. No milk ever came in the first time around, so I never got bigger breasts anyway so I don't expect much from that area!
13 DPO Took test with FMU, and freaked out that it was a bit lighter, but forced myself to contribute it to maybe my urine being more diluted than usual. I always wake up in the middle of the night to pee, and that night I'd woken up twice for a dog emergency pee, and my own bladder. Luckily, my son didn't add in an extra trip!
14 DPO FMU again, and darker, which made me happy. Went to doctor to get blood work, and they confirmed. Shortness of breath during workouts now as well.
15 DPO to today(20 DPO)Since then it's been a lot of hip pains, more dreams---one was truly awful where I miscarried. I kept going, 'wake up, wake up, wake up.' Luckily, I finally did. I took a digital that day just to make me feel better, and to see the word show up with the weeks indicator. I have one more left, which I'm hoping will pop up with a 2-3 weeks instead of 1-2!
I go back in tomorrow to recheck levels. Fingers are crossed that everything is doubling nicely. Congrats to everyone who got their BFP, and lots of fertile thoughts to those still awaiting their own. I am thrilled to be having another bundle, and can't wait to see my son being an older brother!

So I got a positive opk on 3/27. We BD three times that day and once the next day. I should have gotten AF on 4/11 but nothing. Took digital and said negative. The afternoon of 4/12 saw faint line. Took 2 more and faint lines. Took 2 more morning of 4/13 and more faint lines I think. What do you guys think?

Hey ladies! Ive been stalking this site for a few weeks now! I wanted to share my symptoms with you in hopes that it will calm your nerves. I used opk so i know when i ovulated. I was sure i was out this month as i ovulated a few days after hubby was deployed.... but he left me a little something the morning of deployment and what do ya know... it worked! It was our first month trying so i really didnt expect this! We BD on sat morning and my opk was positive Monday morning. I knew i was preg about a week before it showed up on the test. So here were my symptoms
1-3 DPO Nada
4 DPO unquenchable thirst! I drank SOOO much water and couldnt get enough. Creamy cm, lots of it. Cp low and soft
5DPO tired, sore bb (usually goes away after O) so thirsty
6DPO sore bb, super thirsty, tired napped (unusual for me)
7DPO BFN,stabbing pain on right side of uterus comes and goes all day gets worse at night (implantation?) Napped again, sore bb, thirsty, crazy dreams
8DPO BFN, crampy, tired, thirsty, sore bb, very congested thought it was bad allergies but no allergy meds helped, super gassy both ends (sorry tmi) but it was unusual for me
9DPO BFN, slept like a rock went to bed early like 830 (not norm for me), sore bb, thirsty soooo thirsty, bfp dreams, gassy still, lots of lotiony cm, napped again
10 DPO BFP super light on ept so got first response and it was super positive! Also bfp frer digital. Super nautious and alllll the smells i can smell.... so weird!
Blood test this afternoon! So excited!
Baby dust to all!!!!! Praying for all of you to see your bfp!!!!!

These stories helped me so thought I would share. I came off the pill four months ago and had regular 28 day cycles straight away. The first few months we weren't 'trying' very hard but this cycle we had sex every other day from CD8 to CD16. I had no EWCM at all this month, just watery from CD11 to 15. I didn't use OPKs so not sure when I ovulated but if I assume CD14 then I had the following:

1dpo - nothing
2dpo - nothing
3dpo - nothing
4po - sharp pains low down on right hand side, stabbing pains, on and off for a couple of hours
5dpo - odd sharp pains in side and boobs, infrequent
6dpo - 9dpo - diarrhea in am but had started new vitamins so put it down to that
10dpo - tired but didn't sleep well, BFN on one step in eve
11dpo - nothing, BFN on one step in eve
12dpo - nothing much, tired and bit of a headache but long day at work, was sure I was out this month
13dpo - sore boobs all day, not to the touch but just felt heavy and I noticed them being there, noticed they were aching in a meeting but had ran out of tests!
14dpo - no AF, I'm never late, started to suspect!
15dpo - BFN on one step with FMU but had a few beers the night before as was sure I was out (typical!). Very very very faint line on Tesco hpt in afternoon after holding urine for few hours
16dpo - still no AF. Very weird. Another faint line on Tesco test with FMU. BFP with clear blue digital, pregnant and 1-2 weeks at 11:30am after holding urine for approx 2 hours.

Delighted and anxious in equal measures! Baby dust to all...

***WARNING*** THIS IS A LONG ONE!

Hi, ladies! DH and I have been actively TTC for 4 cycles (including this one) and NTNP for 1 cycle (for a total of 5 cycles). Just as everyone else always says, I stalked this site quite often over the last 4 months. I loved learning little TTC tricks from the seasoned veterans and reading all of the hopeful and inspiring BFP stories. I told myself that I would share my story when my time comes and..well.. this morning at 6:00am, my time came! ...so first, a brief back-story;

I am 27 years old and hubby is 37. we have a 6 year old son who was conceived after 4 months of trying and a 3-soon-to-be-4 year old daughter who was conceived on our first try! when we were discussing our family plans after our wedding back in 2008, we decided that we wanted 3 children and I wanted to do my best to have all 3 before I turned 30. Our first cycle of "trying" was around christmas time and we were NTNP. we thought that it would be fun to "play russian roulette" and just see where the ebb and flow of the universe took us. well, the universe decided to bless me with more "flo" than ebb! lol. I was mildly disappointed and with that disappointment came the full blown TTC itch. for our first cycle of actively trying, in january, i was only lightly obsessed. i tracked ovulation via CM, CP and sex drive. that cycle was a BFN. in february i decided to start temping but never saw a clear ovulation pattern. it was an unusual cycle of only 24 days (always very regular, 26-29 days), i believe it was annovulatory. obviously BFN. in march, i started prenatal vitamins and cleaned up my diet. BFN. this month, april, i decided to break out the "big guns" supplement-wise and took evening primrose oil cd1-ovulation, as well as vitamin C, fish oil, vitamin b6 & b complex, zinc and my prenatal. i also used the clearblue advanced digital OPK. that concoction, in addition to more water, less stress and more fruits and veggies did the trick for us! alrighty, onto the good stuff!

cd15-18; flashing smileys on digi OPK, indicating high fertility. lots of awesome EWCM, which i attribute to the EPO. the previous 3 cycles i had 1-2 days TOPS. i highly recommend it to any ladies who are on the fence about whether they should take it or not.

cd18 (evening); solid smiley, ovulation cramps that felt oddly similar to pre-AF cramps. they lasted for about 2 mins.

cd19; ovulation day confirmed via temp rise on cd20. CM dried up. tender nipples. pms-type cramps

-1-3dpo; very tender nipples. pms-type cramps. dry CM

-4dpo; nipples so sore i could hardly stand it. raised and swollen montgomery tubercles. pms-type cramps. dry CM

-5dpo; tender nipples typical pre-af acne. dry CM. start to feel out this month because i'm always dry leading up to AF. stronger cramping. feel like af is gonna make an early appearance.

-6dpo; strong cramps. not as bad as af but definitely noticeable. i wonder if this could be implantation? nipples only slightly tender. small amount of creamy CM.

-7dpo; nipples no longer sore. scant amount of creamy CM. very strong cramps in the evening.. so strong that i had to take tylenol! thought FOR SURE that this cycle was another bust and that AF would show any second. i thought "there's no way that this is implantation, these cramps are too strong." (i didn't notice any cramping until 8-10ish weeks with my other two pregnancies.) i actually cried, tears and all, to my DH saying "i don't know why i'm not getting pregnant!" (this should have been a major indicator though, as i'm NEVER weepy.)

-8dpo; major temp spike and no AF. how can this be? after the cramps experienced the previous night, i was certain i'd wake up to a temp dip and spotting just like previous months. now the cramps are very sporadic and not even a 1 on a scale of 1-10. boobs start to feel slightly heavy but not sore. CM is starting to pick up just a tad. had band practice and couldn't hold back the tears when playing and singing a murder ballad that i recently wrote. had to cut that song short and save it for a later practice. ok, now something has got to be up ... maybe this could be it?

-9dpo; caved and tested with FMU. i dipped a First Response and walmart cheapie blue dye into my pee and watched them for 3 minutes. nothing really. but after about 4-5 mins i began to see what looked like shadow lines, the walmart cheapie being much darker than the FR. DH couldn't see anything but we all know how blind men are when it comes to very faint lines on HPT's... only crazy TTC women can see super faint positives! lol. anyway, i decided that they were much too shadowy and faint to be positive and the FR was most likely the antibody strip being wet and the walmart cheapie was an evap cuz blue dyes are evil and break the hearts of women everywhere. duh. --went to my bff's bbq, made my famous from-scratch margaritas and felt completely drunk off of just one! my face was extremely flushed and i felt quite dizzy. my appetite was completely gone and the thought of dessert (which there were plenty of desserts there) made my stomach turn. this is very unusual for me because it's a known fact in my household that if AF is soon to be visiting, there isn't a morsel of chocolate around because mommy ATE IT! --cramps are more pinchy, warm, tingly and focused more to the left side of my pubic bone.

-10dpo (today); woke up to a temp dip but still above cover-line, full boobs, lots of creamy CM and no cramps. decide to test with my 2nd and last FR. dipped the stick and waited.... after about a minute and a half i see a very faint line appearing. after 3-4 mins, DEFINITELY PINK BFP!!!!! dipped my 2nd walmart cheapo blue dye and BFP!!! i know that blue dyes are evil and leave mean evaps but the cheapo picked up this BFP before FR and with a stronger concentration of test-line dye. this evening, CM was tinged very light pink, which i got with my other two pregnancies so i feel confident that this is it!!! cramps were very sporadic this afternoon and evening and the same as 9dpo, warm, pinchy and focused to the left. boobs are becoming noticeably tender on sides. heartburn.

i will be confirming with a digi on 14dpo, as i doubt that my hcg is high enough right now to register a positive. DH, the kiddos and i are super excited though and we'll be ringing up the ol' OB in the morning :D

things i did differently this cycle were opks, EPO, extra supplements, and baby dancing everyday cd12-18 and cd20. i stayed off of google (but not TWW, of course!) & tried to stay busy by cooking, brewing a seasonal beer with hubby and writing music.

and ladies, as you read, i cramped my ENTIRE TWW so DON'T COUNT YOURSELF OUT IF YOU START PMS'ing and aren't noticing obvious symptoms early on!! between 1-8 dpo, i would have bet my last dollar that AF was going to show based on the cramps, acne, loss of boob tenderness and lack of CM! also, my temps are lower this month than my previous two months so don't let temps dictate your sanity! (i've put away my thermometer and will not be temping anymore. ovulation was confirmed and pregnancy was achieved so it is no longer needed.) oh, and my luteal phase is only 9-10 days so don't let a short luteal phase scare you into unnecessary worry and/or hormonal supplementation. it's absolutely possible to get pregnant as i've done it twice before, now being the third time!

***loads of sticky, sparkly baby dust to all you soon-to-be mommies out there! i love you all!***

I've been dreaming of this blog post!! Woo!!

I hope my story can help anyone who is as symptom spotting and POAS obsessed as me!

DH is 31, I will be during 30 in 2 weeks. This is our second child, we have 1 son who is a year and a half. We conceived him with zero aids, first month trying. This time around we have been TTC for 4-5 cycles. No temping, but we do use OPks (internet cheapie- MediTesti). We tried preseed and softcups for the first time this month and voila - a BFP!

My cycles are pretty consistent, around 27 days but recently I have been spotting leading up to AF. According to my OPks I O around CD15-17 (short luteal phase, which I was concerned about).

Mar 20 - light spotting
Mar 21 - CD1 - Full on AF
Mar 26- CD6 - End of AF

No BD for the next week. DH was leaving for a business trip abroad and nervous which caused some performance anxiety issues that we incur from time to time

Apr 2- CD13 - BD. After BD, I put some preseed in a softcup and inserted it for about 8 hours. It was my first time using one, it was so comfortable I completely didn't notice it. Getting it out was tricky, but not impossible

Apr 4- CD15 - BD. Pretty Dark LH Surge. Used preseed & softcup again
Apr5 - CD16 - BD. DARK LH Surge. Used preseed & softcup again, pretty sure I O'd that day due to cramps (I don't temp)

DH left that day for 9 days, so no BD'ing during the TWW. It was just me home with the baby and the dog, which left my lots of time to SS, POAS & Google

Apr 8 - 3DPO - Bloated. The band of my leggings was cutting into my stomach. I checked my calendar and realized AF was due on the 16th, not the 18th as I had previously thought. This changed my entire plan. We were going to California for my cousin's wedding the day AF was due. Earlier, I thought I wouldn't test until we came back. But then when I realized I miscalculated, i threw out my entire plan and just tested everyday. I was hoping to get a BFP to surprise DH with when he got home from his business trip. I didn't get one.

Apr 11- 6DPO - Tested on an IC - BFN - Lots of creamy white CM, both on my panties & when wiping

Apr 12 - 7DPO - Tested on an IC - BFN - cramping in the evening. I thought this might be my implantation day.

Apr 13 - 8DPO - Tested using a FRER - BFN - creamy white CM
Apr 14 - 9DPO - Testing on an IC - BFN - creamy white CM

At this point I was thoroughly discouraged. With my son, I got a faint BFP around 9DPO. This time - nothin. Stark White. No "squinter" - nothing. And I'm VERY good at finding squinters!

We left for vacation that day and I packed tampons, pads, and pregnancy tests. I didn't end up using any of it!

Apr 15 - 10DPO - Cramps in the evening. I assumed AF was on her way, as she was due the next day. I had some wine with friends.

Apr 16 - 11DPO - Cramps gone, enjoyed the day with my family and didn't think about anything. No sign of AF. I was VERY irritable and moody, but chalked it up to the stress of traveling.

Apr 17 - 12DPO - No sign of AF, ran to the bathroom every chance I could to check for spotting. Zero spotting this cycle. I was very tired but assumed that was due to the time change. I had significant back aches, just a dull pain in my lower back similar to when i have AF.

Apr 18 - 13DPO - Officially 2 days late. My cycles are VERY consistent but I was still nervous to get my hopes up. DH told me to go buy another FRER and we took the test together in the evening. It only took about 30 seconds for a faint line to show up, which quickly developed into a blazing BFP!!

I'm still in shock I can't believe it!! I'm still having some cramping and back aches but Im hoping that's just my uterus preparing for baby #2!

Fingers crossed & God Willing our EDD is Christmas Day!!!!

I've loved this website! Over the last 6 months I have spent the second half of my cycle symptom checking and comparing. About me...I'm a married and mother of 5 already... Was hoping for one last baby but knowing my age 41 and high bmi were working against me. I began 6 months ago tracking cm. Here's my symptoms..
1-6 dpo normal... Felt like I was symptomless
7dpo lower back ache/cramping...it was annoying and way too early for period cramps..took ibuprofen, increased creamy cvm
8dpo morning back ache/cramping took ibuprofen, sore boobs, ewcm....this was very weird and hasn't happened outside of ovulation
9dpo VERY sore boobs, stomach feeling off, emotional, tired all day
10dpo VERY sore boobs, no appetite and feeling full quickly after I do eat, just feeling blah, very tired...couldn't resist took equate 5 day early blue dye test very very faint blue line bfp
11dpo sore boobs, tired, full feeling in lower pelvic area, took another equate test with fmu..another faint blue line bfp, went to the store and bought frer 6 day early test....took it about 7 hours after the fmu test...a faint but clear pink line!!!! I'm thinking it's early still and that's why the results are faint...but 2 different brands, 3 tests taken so far and all with faint lines I'm embracing the bfps! I'll continue to test again in a couple days.

I told myself that if I ever get a bfp I would post my story so that it could help those going through their TWW and TCC journey. I never knew how frustrating and disappointing this process could be until I started. Trust me, if your anything like me you research things online 120123898 times a day and drive yourself crazy. But one thing to remember, is have faith, it will happen in due time.

I have been TTC for 7 mnths now, and I honestly am so used to seeing BFNs that i was completely shocked when this BFP showed up. For months, I would search the internet on every single possible early pregnancy symptom and somehow convince myself that I had each and every one of them every month. I think my mind literally played tricks on me constantly!

The funny thing is... this month I actually did the day 3 and day 21 blood tests that check for ovulation and the doctor called me last week saying that my progesterone was at a 5 when it should have been at a 10 (very low)!!!!! It was so low that she said I most likely didn't even ovulate. I told her my cycles were normally 30-35 days so isn't it possible i ovulated later? She hesitated and said well its possible but not likely. LOL guess it was a strong one! Since she told me my progesterone was low, i started looking into VITEX which is supposed to help with low progesterone, ovulation etc. I went to the store last night, bought it and decided to take a pregnancy test before taking it since I had read that it could cause miscarriages. I took a pregnancy test from a couple months ago, and was SHOCKED when it showed up right away with a bfp!!!!! (at 1030pm). I went and bought a ton more tests and all came back positive. I will be calling my dr today and getting a blood test.

Now to the good stuff...

Things i did differently this month:

1.Held my legs up for a few mins after BD and slept one night without washing down there or standing up (prob only BD twice around ovulation week, not a whole lot this month in general)

2. Been taking one a day womens multivitamin for past 4 months

3. Drank a lot of water, barely any caffeine

Since I didnt use an OPK and i dont chart, here are my symptoms that now looking back could have been pregnancy symptoms. They are not by DPO since I have no idea exactly when I even ovulated.

1. Had mild AF like cramping middle of cycle for 2 minutes, then nothing.
2. Went to bed one night, woke up a few times and felt like i was drugged, hot flashes.(week after ovulation)
3. This one REALLY stood out to me because it was weird. For two days, whole body felt itchy!! no rash, and didnt change detergents or anything.
4. One nipple had a burning sensation for like 5 seconds.
5. A little more emotional than usual, teared up at a lot of things on tv that most people probably wouldnt LOL

I had read so many things where women said they just "knew" or "felt pregnant". This was not me at all, no sore boobs, no implantation spotting, not really any cramping either except the past couple days which is when AF is suppose to be due so i thought it was just that. All my regular pre-af symptoms were here.

I have learned so much from reading everyones posts that I hope this helps someone out there. Do not give up faith or hope, and try not to drive yourself crazy symptom spotting because in my case, i thought i was pregnant every single other month EXCEPT this one! The one month your relaxed and not thinking about it as much, it will happen :-)

We've been TTC for one year, this will be my first pregnancy. I really didn't know what to expect and tricked myself many times into thinking I was preggo. This month I am!

So. What was different? Last month I had a ten day regimen of progesterone to bring on period after a hemoraghing cyst threw my cycle for a loop.

28 day cycle. O was cd15 (opk lh surge CD 14,15, neg 16)

O'Day: nstr
1dpo: bb sore. Nipples on fire. Not unusual. I have perpetually sore bb allbthe way till AF typically.
2dpo: same same, tired
4dpo: cranky, moody. Sore bb. Ewcm, which is odd. Backaches and headaches. Lots of gas!
6dpo: hungry hungry hippo. Tender aching boobs. Tingly almost. Thought I felt some weird boob shivering. Tired. More headaches. Creamy cf.
9dpo: neg preg test. One of the Amazon cheepies. Feel really sick. Flu like, aches and pains and dizzy. Sore throat. And no more bb pain. Or very little. This was my first clue!
10dpo: I know I'm sure preggo. But waiting. No bb pain, intermittent heart burn. Achy joints and weird energy.
11dpo: positive hpt! Fmu on cheepies. Confirmed with clear blue digital that puts me at two weeks from ovulation and blood test at doc with hcg at 25mlU. Nipples tender but bb not sore. Slight tugging poking feeling in left pelvis. Keep burrowing little chia seed! Metallic sort of taste way back in mouth. Almost as if it's coming from my gums. No facial acne, which I always get before AF, but I have a couple randoms on back. Creamy yogurt looking cf, distinct smell. Not fishy, just more.

I hope it sticks. Will post updates!