# are you a fertility geek?



## duff (May 26, 2006)

Do you take your temperature every morning?  

T thinks I'm obsessed and geeky enough already but I fancy keeping some sort of chart, showing things like cervical mucus and temperature and stuff.  Apparently there are places online where you can record all this information each day.  Does anyone keep one?  Or do you think it's the slippery slope to total fertility geekdom?


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## Mable (Apr 9, 2005)

Have never tried it (inspite of being nurse) but think you can do this kind of thing on http://www.mymonthlycycles.com/
Let us know if that is right.

/links


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## Tonia2 (Oct 30, 2005)

Yes! -About 4 years ago when we were planning it all and discussing things with potential donors I did! For months & months & months. Temp every morning etc!! It was such a drag... Since starting treatment I haven't bothered, because everything is so medicalised and governed by scans and drugs now... but i'm thinking I might start again, because I'm not convinced on the accuracy of the timing of my last FET and I think I'd like to have a better idea of what was going on, for my own peace of mind at least. I'm also open to the idea of a known donor, so if I have a better idea of myself then the chances of getting it right are higher, should the oppourtunity arise again. I think it is more important to do when you're doing DIY type insems... a chart is a great idea! I don't think it's geek-dom!!!      How else are we to know what's going on?!!!

I haven't started yet though and might look up that link *Mable! * 

Tonia


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## mintyfaglady (Aug 25, 2007)

I am a fully signed up member of Fertility Friends http://www.fertilityfriend.com/ and faithfully entered my temps in there for over a year, for the good it did me. Their charting software is pretty sophisticated and you can do lots of fancy things like overlaying charts and working out stats and so on. There are also tick boxes for practically every symptom under the sun

I ditched the temping in the end because it really screwed with my sleep patterns to the point where I was practically insomniac. I would stress out totally over whether I could sleep for the requisite 4 hours uninterrupted, or whether it was more important to aim for the same time each morning. It was also really, really depressing to see the slow temp drop down to another BFN.

Like Tonia said though, it does give you a good idea of what's going on and whether your timings are good if you're DIY. I have been known to temp just until ovulation is confirmed to get that info, then stop.


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## nickster (Jul 6, 2007)

I tried to do temps for about 3 days and realised it was a complete no-goer for me. But I do have to admit that I devised my own excel spreadsheet (how geeky is that! ) showing the timing of my period, CM, OPK results and what my trusty clearblue fertility monitor was saying. 

For us it was obviously crucial to be as accurate as possible with our 'window' - what with the international travelling dimension. So I have to say it was extraordinarily helpful, even though the rest of the 'team' teased me relentlessly. Luckily my timings only varied by 2-3 days between cycles...


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## pem (Jan 10, 2007)

Hey Duff,

Fertility geekiness is no bad thing!! Gives you knowledge of things all us ladies should know about. I too have done the Fertility Freind thing, could never get my temp right anyway, It seemed to shoot up and down unpredictably all the time, prob just me though!! I did use my AOL calendar to record all my vital signs, inc CM, OPK's etc and then I could look back on it all for the next try. I found it helpful !! I could predict when we would need P to come round, gave him a bit of notice.

Emma


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