Day 24 (CD13)

It's another amazing Lunaception day! That makes my third-in-a-row 97.4!

No cervical mucus again, which -- from looking at my past charts -- seems to be a normal pattern of mine... a few days of creamy mucus, then a dry-up, then more mucus later on with ovulation. It must be due to some sort of hormonal surge, though I'm not really certain what. My cervix was noticeably softer today than yesterday, however, which means I'm definitely on the right track!

Day 23 (CD12)

Not much new to report today.

Compared with yesterday:
- same basal body temperature (YAY!)
- same cervix position/feel
- NO cervical mucus

Day 22 (CD11)

Today was my first fertile day (as determined by the Doering Rule + creamy cervical mucus), so I now officially have a coverline, a bit lower than normal, but still well within my range.

Current coverline: 97.5
Average coverline: 97.7
Coverline range: 97.4-98.1

Cervical mucus is again creamy internally only, and cervix position is the same as well: firm, low, and partially open. I suppose consistency in these fertility indicators is a good sign as well.

Day 21 (CD10)

My temperature this morning was quite a bit lower than my temps have been so far. It's been awhile since I've had any temps below 97.0. Normally I probably wouldn't have even noticed a 0.2-0.4 degree fluctuation like I had today, but since my other temps have been so even, it's hard not to notice such a dip. I've always insisted that environment (using a heavier blanket, sleeping with windows open, etc) really didn't make that much of a difference in basal body temperatures, and up until this point it really hasn't seemed to make a difference. But then I have a temp like this morning's and I know for a fact that the windows were left open last night and when I woke up I felt physically cold, and it makes me wonder how much of a difference it really does make. 0.2-0.4 really isn't very much -- enough that I may not have noticed a real difference before, but it would be enough to make a difference in interpretation right around the time of ovulation.

Noting my other signs, I did have quite a bit of internal, creamy cervical mucus this morning, but nothing externally. My cervix felt firm, low, and partially open. I'm finding more and more that "partially open" for me is quite normal and not necessarily "fertile." They say that after a vaginal birth, a woman's cervix only closes as much as "partially open," but I find very rarely does mine ever fit the description of "closed." But that's just a side note, I guess.

So, I guess we wait to see what tomorrow brings.

Day 20 (CD9)

I had another nice, normal temp this morning. No cervical mucus yet, either.

I've decided that with charting cervical position, I'm going to use the Doering Rule to determine when to start checking this secondary fertility sign. The Doering Rule counts the beginning of the fertile phase as "the day of the earliest previous temperature shift (which for me would be CD17) minus seven." Since for me that would work out to be CD10, that is when I start checking the cervical position, and I continue until after ovulation has been determined. So, tomorrow starts cervical position check -- stay tuned!

Day 19 (CD8)

More adjustments. That's what I get for staying out late and sleeping in till 7 -- sad that we consider 7am "sleeping in," isn't it? I usually have found that my normal waking time +/- one hour doesn't need to be adjusted at all, but today it makes more sense at 97.3 (adjusted) than at 97.5 (unadjusted)... perhaps it just seems like a big difference now because the rest of my chart (minus my other adjusted day) has been fairly steady and even?

At any rate, no cervical mucus yet. It's been a busy past few days... hopefully by the end of the week things will be back to a semblance of normalcy so I can get back to more consistent charting.

Day 18 (CD7)

I'm now at six temps at 97.1 +/- 0.2 degrees. No discernible cervical mucus yet; I'm figuring I'll still have at least another week before the earliest I'd possibly ovulate, considering my very earliest ovulation at this point has been CD16.

Day 17 (CD6)

*sigh* This morning was a let-down. I missed the alarm and slept in till 8am, totally messing up my temps, giving me a 97.9 (silly thermometer, that's a post-ovulation temp!) Even adjusted, it would be 97.5 which is more likely but still not in line with all my nice little 97.1s. *sigh*

So, may this be a reminder to everyone that if you are charting your basal body temperature in order to determine ovulation, you NEED to take your temperature at the SAME TIME every morning. Without that consistency, your temps really have no meaning at all. Or, you're stuck like me not having any idea what the temp means and having to throw it out entirely. *sigh*

Day 16 (CD5)

Well, will you look at that? Another 97.1. That makes three out of my last five days. I wracked my brain trying to think of some reason why yesterday's would have been off. I did sleep in a half-hour later, but in the past I've found that a half-hour doesn't really effect my temperatures at all. Oh, well, at least it's still fairly consistent.

We haven't been doing a good job actually getting up at 6am anymore, though. I think we hit the alarm six times this morning. It could be because of added stresses; it could be because we've been staying up later. So, we're going to try to get to bed earlier and hopefully we'll be able to be bright and cheery and wide awake at 6am again.


Also, you might notice I added another article to the Luna-Links on the right side of the page. I ran across "Dr. Winnifred Cutler's 1980 study of the lunar cycle's influence on menstrual cycles published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology" (it's a mouthful, I know) and found some of their findings to be very interesting, such as:

• Despite what we have been told about "normal" cycles, the average menstrual cycle is not actually 28 days; it's actually about 29.5 -- the exact same length as one cycle of the moon.

It seems unlikely that this would be a coincidence. The question that follows, though, is whether all women are intended to menstruate and ovulate in accordance with moon cycles, or if there are women who with the elimination of all night-lighting would still naturally have cycles that stretch out to 34+ days (like mine do now). Is the age-old over-generalization that "all women ovulate on CD14 and have 28-day (or, 29.5-day) cycles" really closer that we'd like to admit to what nature intended? Should us late ovulators who have always insisted "my body just doesn't work like that; I've always ovulated later than CD14" take a second-look at our cycles and consider that perhaps our bodies don't just naturally work like that? It's an interesting thought, and one which I hope to discover the answer to.

Day 15 (CD4)

So, I'll admit to perhaps having a bit unrealistic expectations when it came to this process. I really had hoped that my pre-ovulatory temps would all be the same exact temperature, just like my luteal phase temperatures had been last cycle. That way, I could point to it and be like -- wow! -- take a look at that awesome chart! So, I have a bit of an obsession with steady, even temperatures, can you blame me?

So, that's why I was actually a bit disappointed today when my temperature went up by one whole, giant, whopping 0.2 degree. All-in-all, it's a lot less crazy so far than my normal pre-ovulatory temperatures (check out last cycle if you want to compare), and really, it makes sense. After all, in the pre-ovulatory phase, a lot is going on with the hormones of your body. FSH (Follicle Stimulating Hormones) are causing eggs in the follicles of the ovaries to mature, causing estrogen to be released and increase up until the point of ovulation, when the estrogen triggers a surge in LH (Lutenizing Hormones) and ovulation occurs. Long story short, there's a lot going on!


I spent quite a bit of time yesterday thinking and planning what exactly I wanted to accomplish through this experiment. Just think of the possibilities if one truly could determine by something as simple as night-lighting when one would ovulate... and since ovulation determines when menstruation takes place, that opens up a whole new world of possibilities. After all, I don't know about you, but my first day of menstruation tends not to be very pleasant, and I try to avoid having to do pretty much anything on those days. So, I took a look at the next seven months (June-December) and picked out some "target days" for each month. These are days that I wouldn't mind so much having as my first day of menstruation -- days that I have off work, days that aren't holidays or weddings or other major events -- but would fit in with my target 29-33 day cycles. (Keep in mind, my cycles are currently an average of 33.4 days, so they would be slightly shorter.) They would also cause my cycle lengths to gradually decrease over time so that by January I would not only be in line with the moon cycles (ovulating during the full moon, menstruating during the new moon) but would also have developed a pattern of ovulation around CD16 -- almost a week earlier than my current ovulation. From there, I could take a look at it again and determine on a month-to-month basis which would probably be based more on scheduling my fertile days around our schedules so we could try to conceive.

So... (drumroll, please) These are the dates on which I am going to attempt to menstruate through Lunaception:

- (June 21?)
- July 23
- August 25
- September 27
- October 28 (new moon!)
- November 27 (new moon!)
- December 27 (new moon!)

Obviously, this schedule may need more manipulation over time, and since I will be going with total darkness all throughout this cycle, I have no idea how close I am going to be to the first date of June 21. But, as long as I'm trying to tweak my cycle, I might as well make it work out to my benefit, right?

Day 14 (CD3)

I'm psyched. This chart is out to a great start, with another 97.1 this morning, just like yesterday. It's a bit lower than my usual pre-ovulatory temps (which usually hover right around 97.4), but it doesn't really matter to me as long as they're consistent.

I've been falling asleep so much more quickly, and I only remember waking up once last night with my eye mask slid up over my forehead. Other than that, I had a really restful sleep until the alarm went off.

I've also requested a separate Lunaception cycle gallery on the Ovusoft website. I'm hoping to help encourage others using Lunaception to post their charts there as well so that there will be one place where people can go to see what difference it has made in others' cycles. Perhaps it will encourage people who have cycle issues (such as short luteal phases, erratic temperatures, anovulatory cycles etc) to at least try out Lunaception before resorting to other solutions that may actually mess up their cycles more. For instance:

• hormonal birth control pills to "regulate" cycles -- often take awhile for body to regulate afterwards and have many various side effects depending on type and dosage
  
• Clomid to encourage ovulation -- can cause a lack of cervical mucus, as well as minor side effects like mood swings, insomnia, nausea, depression, or weight gain
• B6 supplements for longer luteal phases -- can delay ovulation, as well as cause fatigue or loss of appetite

Just something to think about if you're considering one of those (or many other options) to aid fertility.

Day 13 (CD2)

So today's temp was a quite low 97.1. However, since it was much closer to yesterday's 6am temp than its 9am temp, I did go back and adjust my chart likewise (though still keeping the whole novel of what happened in my notes).

I'm totally psyched about that 14 day LP, and am totally hooked on the natural "magic" of Lunaception... after less than two weeks! The steady temps, the longer LP... I could definitely get used to this. Especially considering I've only had one other LP that long in my 35 cycles of charting (c16) and I happen to know that three of those nights of that LP we were sleeping in a cabin in the woods (as in, total darkness!) Coincidence?

So now I'm just excited to see what'll happen to my ovulation this month. It's a bit nerve-wracking, since now I'm back at the drawing board and have no idea when I'm going to ovulate, but the suspense makes it kind of fun, too.

I also received a PM asking if I was planning on trying to get in line with the moon cycles; I'm going to copy/paste my response here -- it kind of outlines my general plan of action:

I had taken a look at the calendar this past week since I knew AF was going to be due, and saw that I'm actually functioning on opposite the cycle of the moon -- the full moon was May 19th, the day AF arrived for me. So... for me to get "caught up" this cycle and ovulate on the next full moon, that would mean ovulation on CD31, which is a rather late, even for me!

So, what I think I'm going to do is just try to simulate darkness with my eye mask throughout the entire cycle this time around just to see where it ends up placing ovulation on its own.

Then, next cycle I think I may start introducing light for three nights, depending on where it places ovulation this month. My average ovulation is CD21, and I'd ideally like to get it earlier to avoid the long wait each month when we switch over to TTC in January, so I'll probably try introducing light a few days earlier each month to eventually try to get it down to somewhere around CD15 or 16.

Day 12 (CD1 of cycle #36)

I totally messed up the good consistency I had going.

From 12-6am, DH & I were asleep on the couch with NO eye mask. When I woke up I was shivering, since we had left the patio door open. Waking temp: 97.0

From 6-9am, DH & I went back to bed and I used my eye mask to fall asleep for another three hours. Waking temp: 97.7

I had lots of brown and red in my Diva this morning, so I'm assuming AF is here, and I'm just now (10:30a) starting to feel cramps coming on. We're going out to a movie, so I'm going to make myself some Raspberry Leaf tea to take with on the drive, and some Midol just in case.

All in all, though, I'm excited to start a fresh new cycle!

ETA:
Well, AF definitely hit full force, in the middle of our Chinese buffet... should have known today wouldn't have been a great day to go out to eat, but DH's been craving Chinese for awhile now and we figured it'd be a good date -- along with our movie.

Day 11 (14dpo)

I'm hoping AF will show up later today. I had quite a bit of creamy CM in my Diva Cup this morning, so that's probably a good sign. Waiting for AF is just annoying, even if you do know there's no way you're pg. And I haven't had a 13 day LP (like it would be if it comes today) since July; and I've only had one 14-day LP EVER. I need to learn more patience I guess.

Oh, and, yes, I had another 97.9 temp this morning. I even checked my temp again later after I had been up for awhile just to make sure that my thermometer wasn't wonky... and it gave me a different temp, so at least I know the thermometer's not just stuck on 97.9 or something.

ETA:
Still no AF. We went on a long walk this afternoon and when we got back my lower back was somewhat sore, as if cramps were starting, but now I'm thinking it was probably just sore from our walk. So... looks like my LP this month is at least 14 days. Pretty amazing.

Day 10 (13dpo)

My period didn't arrive this morning. If it waits until tomorrow, that would put my LP at 13 days, longer than it has been in the 10 months that we've been living here. Could Lunaception really have effected my LP that much in a mere 10 days?

And this is amazing...

Day 9 (12dpo)

Well, today I got my SIXTH 97.9 in nine days! I'm so psyched for my next cycle to start so I can see what it'll do for me over an entire cycle! And I thought I had fairly steady temps before!

I don't recall waking up at all between when we went to bed and when the alarm went off, which is definitely good. Even if the only benefit would be to give me a better night's sleep, it would be worth it!

Day 8 (11dpo)

Guess what my temp was this morning? Yet another 97.9. If it weren't for those two mornings waking up late where I had higher temps, I think I'd probably start wondering if something was wrong with my thermometer!

Last night I slept well, but woke up one time when it was still dark out with my eye mask slipped up over my forehead. This morning when the alarm went off at 6:15, I felt incredibly awake... and that's coming from someone who up until a week or so ago was used to sleeping in until 8am!


Some more observations...

I made up this chart awhile ago, but it doesn't exactly follow in line with the "less light = shorter cycle" theory (which is what they say should happen for Lunaception), because according to that, Nov/Dec are the longest.
But when you look at what actually happened those months, it's rather interesting...

We moved to our new, MUCH lighter apartment in August, so cycle 28 (Sept) was my first in this apartment.

OVULATION DATES -
Previous September average : CD18
Cycle 28 in lighter apartment : CD22

October seemed normal.

Previous November average : CD21
Cycle 30 in lighter apartment : CD31
Previous November LPs: 13 days
Cycle 30 LP: 12 days

Previous December average : CD22
Cycle 31 in lighter apartment : CD27
Previous December LPs: 13 days
Cycle 31 LP: 12 days

January had a slightly later than normal.
February seemed normal.
March & April had shorter LPs than normal.

Obviously, that wouldn't explain why June would have my shortest cycles ( s on CD18, 19, 18), but I did think it was interesting.

Day 7 (10dpo)

Another 97.9 this morning! How about that! That makes four out of six and every single undisturbed temp so far while using my eye mask. To be honest, I'm a bit surprised... I didn't really expect it to make a difference right away -- and honestly, it could be a fluke... I have had fairly steady temps before.

I've been having less issues with dry eyes using my eye mask, too, which is good. I started waking up once during the night, and then after I temped at 6am I had a hard time getting back to sleep, but we did go to bed early, so maybe that was just as much sleep as my body needed.

Day 6 (9dpo)

I had yet another 97.9 this morning... that's the third one over the past three days and the other two were "disturbed" temps anyways. Could be a good sign! And I slept VERY well (which might have had something to do with staying up late last night!) The only times I felt myself waking up this morning were when the alarm went off to temp and a few hours later when DH actually woke me up. Yay!

Day 5 (8dpo)

I noticed my eyes being less dry this morning, which is a good thing... perhaps just "getting used to" the eyemask?

We woke up late this AM, so my temp was way higher... adjusted, though it would now be:

CD25 97.7
CD26 97.9
CD27 98.0 (adj)
CD28 97.9
CD29 97.8 (adj)

I only found myself half-waking up once this morning, which considering we slept so late was good.

Day 4 (7dpo)

About my temps...

Three of these past days I temped within a half hour of my normal temping time, so those should be fine without adjustment, but yesterday I slept in and it was higher... with that adjusted, my last four temps would be:

97.7
97.9
98.0 (adjusted)
97.9

So, fairly consistent. It'll be interesting to see over time if it helps to give me more steady temps.


Also, another thing I noticed about my eye mask but failed to mention...
Over the past few days when I've woken up I've noticed my eyes have felt VERY dry... to the point where when I put my glasses on, my vision is still kind of blurry. Once I put my contacts in, they're fine. So perhaps the extra moisture from the contact solution helps them from being so dried out?

I'm not entirely sure why this is happening, and I'm thinking of washing my eye mask by hand with mild soap to get rid of any possible chemical irritants. Otherwise, I'm wondering if it's possible that somehow the pressure of the fabric against my eyes (it does have an extra pillowy "pad" that goes across the eyes) prevents my eyes from closing tightly enough to prevent them from getting dried out during the night? Perhaps that's a bit far-fetched, but since it's only happened recently, I definitely think that my dry eyes are somehow associated with my eye mask.

Day 3 (6dpo)

Just a quick note on how my eye mask has been working for me...

I've been putting it on every night with the strap adjusted tightly, but at least once a night I wake up with it off. One night it had just slipped up on my forehead; one night it was on my pillow; and last night it had somehow made its way to the floor. I think it's trying to escape.

As far as my sleep... I've found that I do fall asleep a lot more quickly and have been waking up less often in the mornings before the alarm goes off, but thus far haven't felt especially more well-rested.

And as far as my cycle goes... well, it's still too early to tell at this point, especially since I'm in my LP already and just started using it at what looks to be 4dpo. So... we wait and see.

Lunaception

Here's the thing... I have long cycles. I always have. My average ovulation is on cycle day 21, and overall, the cycle lasts about 34 days. And when we're TTA, I don't mind at all! But once we TTC, I'm going to go nuts waiting three weeks for ovulation every cycle... I just know it. So, why not try to encourage an earlier ovulation through Lunaception!?

Lunaception is the regulation of light and darkness while sleeping in order to naturally encourage changes in the menstrual cycle. In general, women have found that decreasing the amount of light while sleeping does a number of things:
1. Women with early or late ovulation notice it conforming more with the average ovulation on cycle day 14
2. Women with short luteal phases find that they are lengthened
3. Women with erratic or scant cervical mucus find that it is increased and becomes of greater quality
4. Women find that their basal body temperatures become more even and hormones more steady
5. People find that they get a better night's sleep and are more awake and alert throughout the day.

Right now our lighting situation is less than ideal. And now that I think about it... that could be why I haven't been sleeping well lately (like... for the past month or so... right when it would be getting lighter earlier). With a studio apartment with lots of windows, we get lots of natural light and blacking it out with heavier curtains would be impractical, expensive, and probably not very effective, either. So, plan B... eye mask. Now to find one that I like.

The last two cycles, my mucus pattern has been driving me nuts (too little... only distinguishable by internal checks), and over the past year I've gone from consistently 13-day LPs to consistently 12-day LPs with a 10-day one thrown in there... too much light?

Another note about our sleeping arrangements... last year our bedroom was in a loft apartment which was QUITE dark (esp. at night)... and from cycle 16-26 (the time that we lived there) I had consistently longer LPs and consistently earlier ovulation... coincidence?

So, my plan right now is to start wearing an eye mask as soon as AF arrives (around 5/17). Cycles 36-38 (May-Aug) I'll wear it consistently throughout my cycle. Then, from cycles 39 if they are still long (with ovulation after CD20), I'm going to try removing it for CD12-14 to try to encourage an earlier ovulation.