Pink Sway - Questions about LE Diet and Exercise

Thank you, you really manage to calm me down [emoji4]. Thanks for the information, then I will know better now. I am now a bit optimistic that ovulation will still come. My BBT is also lower again this morning, it's really an up and down. My OPK this morning was a little darker than the last few days, but still clearly negative, but it could indicate a slow increase. We will see. I could imagine that the OPK is almost positive tonight or that both lines are almost equally dark (I often find this difficult to identify correctly) and that tomorrow at noon the test line will be darker than the control line (if it goes as usual in my cycles ). Should we then DTD tonight (when both lines are almost equally dark) or tomorrow evening (at noon the test line is darker than the control line)? Perhaps I should mention that my BBT increases sometimes 2 days and sometimes 3 days after the darkest OPK.

I think I sound a little more panicked and stressed than I really am [emoji1]. Actually, I'm pretty relaxed about the Sway this cycle and not as much of a control freak as last cycle. I only notice that it is difficult for me to carry out the high exercise permanently and it would be really bad for me if a whole month remained unused because ovulation does not take place. My cycles are rather long anyway and if there were still a full cycle without ovulation, that would be too bad. In addition, I only have Femara for 2 cycles and if there was no ovulation in the first cycle, I would be sad too.

The pink effects of the Femara can last a month or even two after you stop it.

If you only have two months of Femara, you may want to just start doing every 4 days in the 72 hour pattern now. (I'll suggest that again below.)

The patterns on the OPK are meaningless. You can have a gradual rise, or go straight to positive, or go back and forth from darker to lighter to darker and finally to positive. I just don't want you to expect any particular pattern on that.

I think you should have intercourse the night the lines are almost dark, and then again 72 hours later to cover your bases. If you have ovulated between the two, the first intercourse will cover it. If you haven't, the other shot will have a chance.

OK thank you [emoji4].

Yesterday the OPK were still clearly negative, so we had no BD. This morning (CD 18) the test line is definitely darker, but not quite as dark as the control line. I guess it will get darker later in the day. My Clearblue Advanced Monitor said "Peak" this morning. We're going to have our BD tonight. To be sure if ovulation comes later, we would like to take your advice and do the e4d method. That means, if we do our BD tonight on CD 18 (Tuesday), the second BD would be on CD 21 (Friday), right? Please wish me luck and lots of pink dust [emoji166][emoji3526].

Yes, please go off the first OPK of any brand that goes positive. Don't wait for them to be in agreement! So today is the day!

Yes that's right, Tuesday, then Friday! You got it!

Good luck and pink dust headed your way!

We had our BD last night.

The OPK yesterday morning was negative but the line was definitely darker than the days before. The OPK yesterday at noon was positive, both lines had the same intensity. The OPK last night was "Peak", the test line was a little bit darker than the control line. I'm not sure about the OPK this morning, I think the test line is a little bit lighter than the control line, but it's really very similar.

I hope ovulation is today. The BBT was low this morning. I hope for an increase tomorrow.

I wish so much that I become pg [emoji120].

Those little variations in darkness on the OPK don't tell us if O has happened, I hope so. That was good timing with one attempt. FXFXFX!

Hello dear users, hello Atomic!

Unfortunately it didn't work. Got my BFN. I think AF comes on Thursday or Friday. I am a little sad and disappointed. It all worked out so well. We had our attempt on positive OPK. We haven't done anything to reduce fertility. No represh or PH control, no FR, no CutOff.

I'm unsure how to start the next cycle. I'll show you a diagram of my last cycle. The blue line is the BBT. The orange line is the OPK. You see, OPK was positive on CD 18, my BBT was rising on CD 21, so I think my ovulation was on CD 19 or 20. I suspect CD 20, I had EWCM until the morning of CD 20. We did our BD on CD 18 with pos. OPK. No other attempt in the fertile window.

Do you think I should do the same thing in the next cycle? Or should I change tactics? Maybe switch to e4D? Do you think this increases the chance of pregnancy? I am a little unsure because there is a risk that we will, for example, DTD on CD 17 and CD 20. If my ovulation is on CD 20, that could mean that the shot of CD 17 is already gone and the shot of CD 20 is too late to catch the egg, as we can only do DTD in the evening (because of work and child). What do you think? Is it better to stick with one attempt at positive OPK or switch to e4d? Or is there another option? I don't know what to do. I want the greatest possible chance of getting pregnant without endangering the Pink Influence.

I want to take Femara again in the next cycle. I still have Femara for one cycle. Should I take it from CD 3-7 just like last cycle, or is it better to start later because my cycles are so long?

Then I have one last question. How much does Alcohol reduce Fertility? I drank 1-2 glasses daily each cycle from AF-O. Sometimes I even feel a little drunk for a short time if I haven't eaten that much before. Is that too much? Should I cut down on alcohol?

By the way, I have my weight under control now. It has remained unchanged for a few weeks at 49.5 to 50 kg. I am neither losing weight nor gaining weight. However, I have eaten quite a lot and unhealthily for the last 2 weekends and therefore have a guilty conscience and fear that I have ruined my pink sway. From Monday to Thursday I had everything under control. I stick to the limits, I was even a little lower. From Friday to Sunday I ate a lot and also a lot of fat. My app says that in the last few weeks I ate an average of 45 grams of protein, 62 grams of fat, the rest are carbs (the two cheat weekends are included in this average). I ate an average of 1,600 calories. Is that still OK or do I have to reduce the fat? And could it be that 2 cheat weekends in a row ruined the Sway?

Greetings from Germany! https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0f4556aeb2.jpg

It's up to you if you do the same thing again next month or go to e4d. E4d does have better chances of conception because you're covered if you ovulate sooner or later than you expect. I would suggest, since you have just one more month of Femara, to absolutely do e4d this next cycle. You need to still take the Femara CD 3-7 and you should not assume how long your cycle will be. It may be different this upcoming month.

Having sex CD 17 and 20 is really not bad chances of conception. You would have the CD 17 to cover CD 18 and 19, even early CD 20, and the CD 20 would cover later on CD 20, 21, 22. You would only have a very few hours, if that even, where your coverage was less than ideal.

It is just as likely, if not far MORE likely, to try for one attempt at positive OPK and then ovulate 3+ days after, or to miss your surge at the beginning and attempt too late.

If you want to boost odds of conception more you can do e4d plus one more attempt at positive OPK, but I think that's more blue friendly.

Your diet is absolutely fine. If you're not gaining weight, you are doing the diet just fine (not eating too much). 62 g fat is still really basically 60 g and that is fine. I do not even consider any of that a cheat. Cheats mean you wildly exceed limits and usually comes with weight gain. You are fine to continue.

Cheats on the LE Diet are not only allowed but encouraged. I take occasional cheats into account in the diet. A day off diet now and then is ok.

Oh and 1-2 drinks of alcohol does not appreciably affect fertility negatively. If you're concerned go to 1 drink but I think this just wasn't the right month.

Sorry, I have another question [emoji1]. I'm now on CD 14. My OPK are positive today, my ovulation actually seems to come earlier in this cycle (I suspect because I increased the calories so as not to lose any more weight). Experience has shown that my BBT increases in 2 to 3 days, so that I suspect ovulation tomorrow or the day after tomorrow (CD 15 or 16). We did this cycle e4D. We had an attempt on CD 10 and CD 13 (yesterday). If I go according to plan, the next attempt would be on Saturday, CD 16. Now I'm wondering whether it might not be better to move the BD from Saturday (CD 16) to Friday (CD 15) in the late evening. It would increase my chance of conception, wouldn't it? But it would also increase my chances of having another boy, wouldn't it? I'm torn whether it's worth it. On the one hand, I want nothing more than a girl (that's what I've always dreamed of and it will definitely be our last child!). On the other hand, my desire for a second child is huge and I don't know how many cycles of exercise and diet I can still manage. I know that nobody can make the decision for me. But I would like to hear an opinion on this [emoji4].

Would it be a compromise if we had the next BD on Saturday morning instead of Saturday evening? Or do you think this would be too late? It's a tough decision. I want to get pregnant quickly, but I also want a girl [emoji2372]. How much does one attempt actually sway? Is it that big of a thing? I've been dieting and exercising 6-7 times week for more than 12 weeks now, drinking alcohol, using Fiber and taking Femara.

But we do not know if you ovulate at that point or if your temp just takes a few days to go up. We just can't know that. We also cannot predict if this is a true positive or a false one.

If you want to stick to e4d then stick with it. Do not move the days around. It is NOT a compromise to move the days. For all you know, you are moving the day to a day that is going to make it LESS likely to conceive with. The e4d must be set in stone because when people start jockeying it all around trying to make it come out on a certain day, they are often outwitting themselves, ending up having attempts at a day they're less likely to conceive on. Trust me, I've seen gobs of people start changing the days around and not only is it super "control freaky" it's also not helpful to conception, since people end up missing days that they should have had an attempt in favor of a day that gains them nothing. Plus, it may be more blue friendly anyway, so in that case, why not just go to e4d plus one more attempt at positive OPK and ensure you're going to boost chances of conception???

If you're ready to boost chances of conception then please add another attempt either CD 14 or CD 15, but keep going with the e4d schedule as you have it. Yes, this might be more blue friendly, but at least you're for sure going to increase your chances of conceiving.

Hello Atomic, thanks again for your last reply. Unfortunately I got another negative this cycle. I did not get pregnant. I'm sad. It was our third month of TTC and I'm not getting pregnant. I had a lot of hope this cycle because we did e4D. We didn't use lubes or anything like that. I got pregnant with my son in the first month trying. With him we only had one attempt in this cycle. I do not understand why I am not getting pregnant now.

AF arrived today. So now I'm starting the new cycle. My motivation is no longer that high. The many exercises are difficult for me. I'm getting sloppy with my diet, have had several cheat days in the past two weeks (but my weight stays the same, I'm not gaining weight). I'm going to pull myself together again, but I don't know how many cycles I can go through with the sway program.

Fortunately, I was able to get Femara again. So that I can now start the third cycle using Femara. I'll take it from CD 3 to 7 again. I will do everything like the last cycles, such as alcohol, diet, skip breakfast, exercises, fiber, Femara. I now also drink a cup of coffee a day. How often should my hubby ride a bicycle? Is it enough if he drives every now and then during the fertile week? Or before the attempt? My husband is now too cold to drive more often.

I think we will try this cycle e4D + one attempt at positive OPK. I need to increase the chances of getting pregnant. And that offers the highest chance, right? Do you have any other tips about what we can use or change?

I am showing a diagram of our last cycle.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...710dcfee18.jpg

Lanini, it takes fully fertile couples doing nothing to sway an average of 3-6 months to get pregnant. If you got pregnant the first month out in the past, that was good luck, not a guarantee that it would always be that way (even without swaying) and WITH swaying, you need to allow for a bit longer to conceive. Though we still have average 3 months to conception even with our pink sways, so it's not by much!

It is normal for people to relax a bit on diet and exercise over time. That STILL gives us good results since these are the people who have success! If you aren't even gaining weight, you are overthinking it anyway as you aren't really even cheating much if at all. You were probably being too strict before, and this is simply changing to a more manageable form of diet in the long term.

However much he's able to bike is fine. It's probably good that he's dialing it back on that, biking can really lower chances of conception so just in case it was harming your chances, less biking may help boost them.

:agree: e4d with one more attempt at positive OPK. I would suggest more attempts than you had, though, in case of late ovulation. At least one more after that would be advisable and many people do the e4d all month long.

Let's go ahead and drop fiber to be sure you can make enough hormones while on the letrozole.

You're not doing shallow release or J and D any more, are you?

Also, when you're laying flat, try to spend part of the time on your tummy. We have seemed to have good results with that.

I actually know that it can take time to get pregnant. Still, it's hard to get a negative every month. The daily exercises are often difficult for me and therefore every month more swaying is a bit stressful for me. So I hope to get pregnant quickly.

From the amount of calories I stick to the diet. But I tend to cheat on the amount of fat (the percentage of fat is higher, but protein and carbs are less). And I sometimes cheat by eating breakfast or having a snack in between. Should I not use fiber even if a meal is very fat?

OK, then my husband can ride a bike if he wants. It's winter in Germany and then cycling isn't that much fun anymore [emoji23].

OK, we will do the e4D over the entire cycle and we will do an extra attempt at pos. OPK.

Wie did no jump and dump and no shallow release and no FR. We only did that in the first cycle. My husband does regular releases every two to three days.

After the attempt, I lay down on the tummy. Before I was pregnant with my son, my gyn told me that I had a uterus tilted backwards ("Retroflexio uteri") and that I should lie on my tummy. I've already done that in the last few cycles. Should I just lie on my tummy or also on my back?

I get that it's hard, but you have to have reasonable expectations going in because otherwise you're going to have a tough time every month if you get BFN and getting overly focused on having success is that sort of "control freak" mindset we want to look out for. Try to be more chill about conceiving every month for the sake of your sway. The more emotionally charged you make this process, the more it can hurt your sway because then you start obsessing over everything, wondering if you should change this thing or that thing, the more swaying and TTC stays on your mind all the time.

How many grams of fat are we talking about here? As a general rule, it's probably best to cheat on carbs vs. fat, but many times people tell me they're "cheating" on fat when they're still in the limits of the day. If you give me specific numbers I may be able to put your mind at ease.

Occasionally having breakfast or a snack now and then is ok. That's all taken into account that sometimes people will need to do that. If your weight stayed the same, it fits into the "cheating now and then is not only allowed, but encouraged" rule.

If you have a huge blowout on diet, like 1000+ calories in a sitting then yes, you can still take a fiber with that sort of meal. But overall I want to be sure you are giving your body the raw materials it needs.

Spend part of the time on your tummy and part on your back.

Hello Atomic!

We're pretty sick right now so I'm not answering until now. Can an illness at the beginning of the cycle affect the sway or the effects of letrozole?

My fat intake varies a lot. On normal days, I stay in the 30-50 grams range, but sometimes, especially on weekends, I have a large, fatty meal, so sometimes I eat 80-90 grams of fat on those days. On average during the week, despite these fatty meals, I am at 50-65 grams of fat a day, as I often have days when I eat less fat. So the daily amount of fat varies a lot. I don't have these fatty cheat meals every week, but I've had several times over the past 3 weeks. My average fat intake per week was still in the described range. Do you think that could ruin the Sway? I always used fiber before those very fatty meals, I think I should keep doing that, right?

Thank you for your answers. You are a great help to me!

We believe that illness may sway somewhat pink. do be aware it can delay ovulation a bit depending on how ill you are and how it affects your body.

Normally I don't like people to use averages (because they often end up inadvertently starving themselves) In your case I think this is fine because you're never going below the minimum cutoff for fat and you're holding steady on weight.

I would still advise dropping fiber to be sure you can respond to the letrozole by making estrogen very quickly when it's needed.

I got another BFN. I'm really sad. We did e4D + one Attempt at positive OPK. We had really good timing. I stayed on my stomach and back for a long time after BD. We didn't use lubes. No FR or something like that. My husband didn't ride a bike. It was now the fourth cycle where it didn't work and the third cycle with Femara. I'm starting to worry whether something is wrong with us in terms of health.

I only have one cycle left on Femara. I'm not sure if I can still get Femara afterwards. But I think after 4 months with Femara I should take a break anyway? Or can I safely take Femara longer?

This cycle my ovulation came very early. Positive OPK on CD 11, BBT was rising on CD 14. We had attempts on CD 7, 10, 11, 13, 16. Everything was perfect. But still BFN. Really worried I won't get pregnant at all. The daily exercises are very hard for me, I don't know how many cycles I can still do that strict sway. I want a girl so much, but I think maybe I should focus on getting pregnant. The age gap to my son is getting bigger and bigger (my son will soon be 4 years old). I'm torn between wanting a girl and the fear that I won't get pregnant and should try everything.

Some months just aren't the month. Even fully fertile couples doing nothing to sway, and everything to optimize fertility, only have a 20% chance any given month. So when you "pull out all the stops" like you did here, you can't expect that then pregnancy is a given, because sometimes it's just not the right egg, not the right sperm, they don't find each other, or something goes wrong very early on and that small ball of cells stops dividing.

Sure, if you'd like a break on Femara I am fine with that. We still see the pink effects lingering in the off month so you can still try that month, and the next month resume the Femara. It's also possible to split the doses so instead of just one dose remaining, you could have two more months of medicine after the month off (and try all three months, plus the 4th month without the Femara)

You need to look at easing off of swaying differently than you are. There is a HUGE gulf of difference between exercising as much as you are and giving up everything just in order to get pregnant. I PROMISE you will come to regret doing that if you end up getting another boy, because of tons of people who have regretted it. So please, here and now, immediately, relax a little. Drop a day of exercise, eat some things you've been craving, give yourself permission to make small changes to make swaying easier rather than putting yourself through the wringer every month. it is ok to do that and is certainly far better for your sway than being completely control freakish sticking to too strict a sway, and then giving everything up all in one fell swoop.

Thanks Atomic. I actually know that it can take a while to get pregnant. It is still a bit frustrating for me and I actually expected that I would be pregnant after 4 cycles at the latest.

I would like to take Femara in the next cycle. After that I took 4 cycles of Femara and would have to organize a new Femara first, where I'm not sure whether it will work. In Germany, as far as I know, it is customary to do a maximum of 3 or 4 cycles with Femara under medical supervision, so I suspected that it would make sense from a health point of view to take a break when my Femara is used up after 4 cycles. Isn't this break necessary? From your point of view, can I safely take Femara more cycles? If so, I would try to get more Femara.

Can you tell me a little more about splitting the doses? That means that it would also be possible to get by for two months with the remaining 5 tablets of Femara? That means I only take 3 tablets of Femara in the one cycle and only 2 tablets in the other cycle? What do you think makes more sense from your point of view: A "normal" cycle with Femara (CD 3-7) or two cycles with Femara with half the dose? From the point of view that I am not sure whether I can organize more Femara for future cycles?

Thanks for your encouragement to continue the sway. That helps me. Yesterday I was just very sad about the BFN that in my first reaction I thought "I'm throwing everything!". I will definitely have another strict sway for the next cycle. With daily exercise and a lot of alcohol. If it still doesn't work in the next cycle, I'll probably reduce the sway a bit. A little less exercise, a little less alcohol. I will probably not give it up completely, and at least I will continue to diet, because this is the part that is actually not difficult for me. Only now in the Christmas week will I pause diet and enjoy life and meals with my family without counting calories.

Can the exercises actually prevent implantation? For example, I jump on the trampoline. Every cycle after ovulation, I ask myself whether I can continue to do this or whether it prevents implantation? What about sport in general, where the pulse can get very high? Is this a problem? Or should I only do light exercises like going for a walk in the 2WW? I prefer to do different exercises, one day on the trampoline, one day walking, one day jogging, one day cycling (OK, not so much in winter now). But I mostly jump on the trampoline. I wonder if that's OK in the 2WW or should I just do the easy exercises there?

Walking is generally okay as exercise, isn't it? I think I'll be walking more and doing hard exercises like trampoline less often because it's easier for me and I don't struggle with daily exercises as much.

Up until a few years ago it was the norm to prescribe Clomid/Femara for 6 months before requiring a break. Then all at once they reduced that to 3-4 months, then a break. I am fine with you guys doing it either way. I think that taking a break after 4 months is great, and at the same time I've seen enough people conceive after 6 months even on the harsher Clomid that I'm ok with that, too. Your call to make, entirely up to you.

To split the dose you would need to halve the medicine and still take it 5 days. Taking the full dose 2 or 3 days would not work as well as taking a half dose 5 days. Because the way the medicine works is by suppressing estrogen, forcing your body to basically have to "rev its engines" in order to produce the estrogen it "thinks" it needs. Then after five days, you stop the medicine while your body is still "revving" and then you make a large surge of estrogen quickly. Only "revving" for 2 or 3 days would not be as effective as somewhat suppressing the estrogen for 5 full days, even at a lower dose of medication.

I generally recommend the half-dose approach instead of fewer months at a higher dose. For starters, the full dose may be too much (especially aftr having been on the medication a few months now) and could be suppressing conception a bit, and secondy, even not at full dose it still has an effect for encouraging ovulation and also swaying pink. But it's up to you, either way can still work.

Keep in mind, about your mood and feeling like chucking it all in, that it is VERY common to be hormonally low at that point of the cycle. It happens all. the. time. that I have someone who is ready to quit at this stage of the cycle and then in a day or two they feel upbeat and normal again. It has to do with hormones and so just keep that in mind, that when making a decision about things like that, you may want to sleep on it a day or two to see if you're feeling more positive once your period arrives, or once it's over with.

If exercise prevented implantation the entire human race would have died out a long time ago. While I'm fine with you choosing to do lighter exercise in the 2WW that is not what is keeping you from conception. People get pregnant while doing heavy, intense exercise for MANY hours a day. I got my 3rd son while I was working at a dog kennel, climbing ladders, throwing around bales of hay and huge sacks of dog food, jumping off and on things, lifting 80 lbs dogs into bathtubs and things and I did it for 4-6 hours a day. The human body is just very good at getting pregnant and we just need to get the sperm to meet the egg and it knows how to do everything else.

Walking is GREAT though. I actually prefer you guys do walking because so many people get injured when doing more intense exercise. I also think that were you to do something that felt a bit more "doable" it might help you stick to it longer.

Enjoy your upcoming Christmas cheat season!! I just had coffee and Merci chocolates for lunch LOL and I regret nothing. :)

Good morning Atomic!

I hope you had a great Christmas. I had a nice Christmas without a diet, I ate a lot and unhealthily the whole last week and now I feel a little guilty that it ruined my Sway. But I just needed it for my mental health. However, I did my daily exercises. I feel better mentally and I am motivated again to continue. Your kind words of encouragement also helped.

OK, I've decided to do the next cycle with half a dose of Femara. That means, I take Femara from CD 3 to 7 as usual, half a tablet a day.

Thank you for your words about exercises and implantation. When I got pregnant with my son, we were building our house, I worked there, was on the move a lot, carried a lot of things, and I still got pregnant. Still, I've been worrying a little now because I am not pregnant even after four cycles. But you are probably right, so I will continue to do exercises as usual in the 2WW. It's great that walking is okay. That really makes things easier for me.

I am waiting for AF now and after arriving I start the next cycle fully motivated. My period is late, it should have come the day before yesterday. I'm 17 DPO today (determined with OPK and BBT) but the tests are absolutely negative so I don't think I'm pregnant. I expect to get AF today as I'm starting to cramp.

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Update: AF has arrived. CD 1 starts, lets go.

Ok. It is VERY unlikely that you are 17 days past ovulation. You all but certainly ovulated later than you think, no matter what the OPK and BBT seemed to be saying. So if you're timing your attempts at the wrong time, it is not surprising you'd not conceive since (at least this month) you likely ovulated at least 3 days later and possibly more days later than you thought you did.

I went back and looked at what you wrote and I have some more thoughts on that. Please continue the e4d longer than you have in the past!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lanini

I got another BFN. I'm really sad. We did e4D + one Attempt at positive OPK. We had really good timing. I stayed on my stomach and back for a long time after BD. We didn't use lubes. No FR or something like that. My husband didn't ride a bike. It was now the fourth cycle where it didn't work and the third cycle with Femara. I'm starting to worry whether something is wrong with us in terms of health.

I only have one cycle left on Femara. I'm not sure if I can still get Femara afterwards. But I think after 4 months with Femara I should take a break anyway? Or can I safely take Femara longer?

This cycle my ovulation came very early. Positive OPK on CD 11, BBT was rising on CD 14. We had attempts on CD 7, 10, 11, 13, 16. Everything was perfect. But still BFN. Really worried I won't get pregnant at all. The daily exercises are very hard for me, I don't know how many cycles I can still do that strict sway. I want a girl so much, but I think maybe I should focus on getting pregnant. The age gap to my son is getting bigger and bigger (my son will soon be 4 years old). I'm torn between wanting a girl and the fear that I won't get pregnant and should try everything.

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Lanini, you MUST continue the attempts longer. Your ovulation came later than you realized it did and by stopping the attempts you may have undermined your ability to conceive.

Thanks for your suggestions. We'll definitely try to do the e4D longer. My husband works in shifts, so it is often difficult to have an attempt because he often comes home late at night. But we'll get it done.

Can you briefly confirm again that I am now taking half a dose of Femara daily from CD 3 to 7? So, do I break the tablets in two and take half a tablet every day? I don't want to get wrong, the language barrier is not that easy for me.

Then we will do e4D + one Attempt at positive OPK again. We'll probably start at CD 7-8 and then continue longer than the last cycle.

Unfortunately I gained a kilogram over the Christmas period. I hope this doesn't ruin my sway [emoji45].

Yes, you can either take the month off and then split the pills the following two months (I had thought this was what you planned to do) OR split the pills this month.

You would take the half-dose for five days, CD 3-7 whichever month you plan on trying.

We have not found that small amounts of weight gain affect sways negatively. I would just regroup from here on in.

It probably didn't work again. BFN at 10 DPO. I'll test again tomorrow but don't think I'll get a BFP. I am very disappointed and sad. It's so hard getting a BFN every month.

I took half the dose of Femara this cycle. Next cycle I will be taking a break from Femara. We did e4D + one Attempt at positive OPK. OPK was positive at CD 11. BBT was rising on CD 12 (quite early I think?). We had our first Attempt at CD 6, then CD 9, then CD 11 at positive OPK, CD 12, CD 15, CD 17 (I know this was one day too early), CD 20.

Is there anything else I can do? Should I drink less alcohol? Take any supplements? Now Sway cycle number 6 begins. I put myself under pressure. The age gap to my son is getting bigger and bigger. I'm discouraged. I'm getting worse with the BFN every month.

I have a suspicion that my uterine lining may be too thin. I haven't really spoken to my doctor about it, but I know that she once told me at a checkup that my uterine lining was very thin. This also fits in with the fact that my periods are always very light. Is there anything that might help build up the uterine lining? Pomegranate juice is always recommended in German fertility groups. Shall I try? Does it hurt the sway because of the vitamins? Or is there something else I can do?

Well, BBT is not always accurate. One day of a higher than expected temp can skew the results. We will know more when your period shows up.

You cannot tell the quality of uterine lining based on having light periods. I always have light periods, in fact the month I conceived my daugher I had one of the lightest periods I've ever had, but still conceived. The lining tells you about what happened LAST month, not the next month. And JUST ONE time of your doctor telling you you had a thin lining is meaningless. Firstly because we do not know where you were in the cycle when they looked at the lining, and secondly because your lining can and does change wildly over time.

If you are concerned, you can always go in and have it checked but since you've been on the medication it may not be an accurate reading of what it normally is.

If you did end up ovulating CD 12, you had simply bad luck this month bcause the CD 9 attempt might have been too early, CD 12 may have possibly been too late, and you were in with only the CD 11 attempt. So my hope would be next month you will have better luck.

Tell me everything you're doing, no matter how minor it feels, and I will see what to tweak. Please do not start any supplements, including pom juice (which yes, likely sways blue - and of course it does not really work anyway!) till we go over everything.

I'm sorry I didn't reply to your last message. The whole Sway thing is getting really hard for me and I just needed a break from all the info.

My desire for a second child is so huge, but the desire for a girl is also huge. I'm not knowing how to continue. I got another BFN today on 11DPO, this was now our cycle number 6. I have the feeling that I have to decide between wanting a second child (regardless of gender) and wanting a girl. The whole sway thing doesn't seem to be working for me unfortunately, I just can't get pregnant and I'm afraid I'll have to focus on getting pregnant instead of girl sway. Because I can't take the BFN every month anymore.

I had this cycle analyzed by my gyno. Blood draw on CD 3, ultrasound on CD 11 and CD 17 and blood draw on CD 27. I don't have the results of the blood draws yet. Ultrasound looked like this: follicle on CD 11 was 16 mm (my uterine lining was at 1 cm at this time). Follicle at CD 17 was 19 mm. So it grew very slowly, ovulation was also rather late. Positive OPK on CD 18 and 19, BBT was rising on CD 21. I didn't use Femara. Sway was like previous cycles: coffee, alcohol, one hour daily exercise, diet, no breakfast, e4D+1. Attempts (I only write the relevant attempts) on CD 15, CD 18, CD 19, CD 21, CD 24.

I don't have the blood results yet, I'll get them in the next few days. However, I know that my vitamin D and iron levels, for example, are still in the normal range but are low and that my doctor says I should supplement them. But I'm afraid that it will sway blue?

My doctor now wants to prescribe Clomid for me (perfect for the sway, haha). But regardless of the Sway, I don't think this will lead to success. After all, I ovulate every cycle (but sometimes very late) and four cycles with Femara didn't bring any success.

Atomic, what should I do? Should I stop exercising, dieting, coffee, alcohol or something? I really want a girl, but I also really want to get pregnant. The BFNs are so hard for me. I'm torn between wanting a second child (gender doesn't matter) and wanting a girl. I don't know how to continue anymore. I really don't know. The desire for a girl has been with me all my life and has always been very big, but right now I'm really at a point where I'm considering stopping the Sway. I would like to go to the fertility clinic, but I'm afraid that I'll no longer have any influence on the gender. I never thought I would get to this point.

Well, rereading your thread it looks to me like at least one of those cycles you had no chance of conception because you ovulated later than you think. Again , I urge you to continue having intercourse longer than just one time after you think you've ovulated regardless of what your temps appear to be saying.

If you did happen to ovulate later than you think, it may be that it's too soon to see a positive yet.

Just to be on the safe side, but I do not think this is why you haven't conceived yet - what is your BMI right now?

By far and away the most likely reason people do not conceive has nothing to do with coffee, alcohol, or even exercise and diet. The most likely reason for not conceiving is that you're doing things (or even just one thing) that is preventing sperm from finding the egg. So please go over for me anything physical that you are doing - jump and dump, shallow release, lubricant jellies, having your husband do frequent release or wear tight underwear or take hot baths - that could be cutting sperm count or making it harder for sperm to survive in your reproductive tract.

If you're not doing any of those things (and even if you are!! I think it's time to add attempts!) then we need to simply have you continue with e4d plus one attempt at first positive OPK while continuing with the e4d method both before and after. I also strongly suggest continuing your e4d longer because if your ovulation is happening later than you think it is, you're missing the egg entirely by stopping too soon. I believe this happened in a previous month so it is definitely possible.

If your Vitamin D and iron are still in normal range I would not take any supplements. You should try instead to eat more iron-rich foods and get some sunlight every day, 10 minutes, on your bare skin, in addition to drinking/eating dairy with added Vit. D.

Also, has your husband ever had a sperm analysis?? Sometimes when people have inexplicably not conceived, it turned out to be male factor infertility so we may want to rule that out. This can happen even if you've had kids already.

Thank you for your reply.

We will definitely do the e4D for longer next cycle. It can't do any harm ;-). But I thought I was really safe this cycle, since our last attempt was on CD 24, I had EWCM on CD 21 last, BBT was rising on CD 21, OPK was positive on CD 18 and 19. The next attempt would then be on CD 27, do you think that would still have been relevant?

My weight fluctuates between 49 kg and 51 kg. That is a BMI between 19.6 and 20.4. I've been keeping the weight within this range for several cycles now. I stick to the limits. I eat about 1600-1700 calories a day. But I also burn a lot through the exercises.

I don't do anything physical, what is cutting sperm count or making it harder for sperm to survive. No jump and dump, no shallow release, no lubricant jellies, no frequent release and no hot baths. We only did it in the first cycle, the last 5 cycles we didn't do any more of it. After the attempt, I lie down for a while, on my stomach and on my back, as you recommended.

My husband doesn't even ride his bike at the moment (because of the winter weather), but he will start again soon because it's his hobby and he loves it.

OK, I'm not going to supplement iron and vitamin D. That's the problem for me right now: I'm torn between taking steps to increase fertility to even get pregnant, which sways blue, and wanting a girl. It's a difficult dilemma.

My husband never had a sperm analysis. But that's what we wanted to do anyway. We will now make an appointment. I'm a bit scared of the result because if it's bad we'll probably need insemination (ICSI or something) and gender selection isn't allowed in Germany and going to another country isn't an option for financial reasons. I should also mention that my husband already has a child from a previous relationship (a girl, of course). However, that was 16 years ago, he was still very young at that time and it wasn't planned, but it happened right away. It was also the first attempt where I was getting pregnant with my son. That was 4.5 years ago. But of course I know that fertility can also decrease over time.

I've been sick with Covid since yesterday and can't do any exercises for the next few days, maybe 1-2 weeks. Do you think this might ruin my sway for the upcoming cycle?

I will let you know if I have any new information from my blood test or my husband's sperm test.

Thank you so much!

It doesn't matter if it would have been relevant last month. It absolutely COULD be relevant in future months. This may just not have been the month. The month I think you missed ovulation was the month where you thought had a 17 day LP (which is very unlikely). I just don't want that to happen in the future and so you need to be sure to continue ovulation even WITH a temp rise because we are seeing temp rises be less of a guarantee than some people hope that it is.

:agree: ok great keep at that level of weight and be sure you're getting at least 40 g fat a day (and more like 50-60 is probably better)

It's ok to take steps to boost fertility (and going to e4d plus one more attempt at positive OPK IS doing that.) But it's important that you don't "take steps to boost fertility" that you do not even need, such as taking supplements when your levels are in normal range!!! Even people in below normal range do not see low iron and Vit. D levels hurting their fertility until they're quite low. It doesn't make any sense that this is the reason you haven't conceived yet, and so I hate to see you treat a problem that is not THE problem.

Yes the next step regardless (even if he had had 10 kids already!) is the sperm analysis. We just need to be sure he's got enough swimmers to get the job done. Don't worry, there are many things we can do naturally without IUI and certainly without doing ICSI!

No, you won't have your sway ruined by a little time off exercise. Just pick it up again when you're able to. Sorry to hear you're sick, and I hope you feel better soon!

So Lanini, I went back and reread your old posts and I just wanted to remind you that at the start, you were taking vitex, saw palmetto, and myoinosotol that you did not need to take. This led to your LP being short in September. You were also taking antihistamine at that point which can cut odds of conception, and baby aspirin, which may harm chances of implantation for some people. So I'm not sure you can count that as a true attempt because your odds of conceptiont hat month were probably pretty low.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lanini

I got another BFN. I'm really sad. We did e4D + one Attempt at positive OPK. We had really good timing. I stayed on my stomach and back for a long time after BD. We didn't use lubes. No FR or something like that. My husband didn't ride a bike. It was now the fourth cycle where it didn't work and the third cycle with Femara. I'm starting to worry whether something is wrong with us in terms of health.

I only have one cycle left on Femara. I'm not sure if I can still get Femara afterwards. But I think after 4 months with Femara I should take a break anyway? Or can I safely take Femara longer?

This cycle my ovulation came very early. Positive OPK on CD 11, BBT was rising on CD 14. We had attempts on CD 7, 10, 11, 13, 16. Everything was perfect. But still BFN. Really worried I won't get pregnant at all. The daily exercises are very hard for me, I don't know how many cycles I can still do that strict sway. I want a girl so much, but I think maybe I should focus on getting pregnant. The age gap to my son is getting bigger and bigger (my son will soon be 4 years old). I'm torn between wanting a girl and the fear that I won't get pregnant and should try everything.

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In this cycle, because you had such a long LP (17 or more days, but that is all but certainly not the case) you ovulated later than you thought and missed ovulation. Again, this month really doesn't "count" against you. I know it feels like it does, but you did not have a chance of conceiving if you didn't have sex when you ovulated.

My point in mentioning those things is that sometimes when we look back and see "ok, there were two months in there where I really did have quite low chances of conceiving" it doesn't feel as scary as looking back and thinking you've tried so many months without success. At least two of those months was very low chances. We should absolutely proceed with the sperm analysis but that's just something you can keep in mind.

Good morning dear Atomic!

Thank you so so much for all your replies. It helps me incredibly much! You are really a great help with your tips and mental support. I am so thankful to you.

AF arrived tonight. Hello cycle number 7. Even though I know I haven't had a good chance of conceiving in some cycles, it's been a long time hoping to conceive and especially a long time doing the sway with exercise and diet and alcohol and so on. That's really tiring. But I will continue. The desire to get pregnant with a girl is so huge. I don't really think that exercise or alcohol or anything like that is the reason why I haven't been pregnant yet. So I'll keep doing these things while I still have some strength left. But I find that it's getting harder for me to stick to all of these things with each cycle. I long to finally be able to live "free" again, to eat as much as I like and without being forced to exercise every day. I hope so much to be pregnant soon and to experience this again!

My husband has an appointment to see the doctor in two weeks. After that, the doctor will hopefully carry out a sperm analysis. I'm a little excited and afraid of the result. I would prefer if I was the cause and not my husband.

Ok!! I hope you guys get good news and it's nothing of concern.

Let me know how I can help - I understand how frustrating it feels even when there may be some reason for it.

Cycle number 7 is now over and of course I didn't get pregnant again. I took half the dose of Femara, my BBT curve was perfect, my doctor saw a beautiful follicle, my uterine lining was perfect, I had a luteal phase of 14 days, but unfortunately I didn't get pregnant.

OPK were positive from the evening of CD 12 to the morning of CD 13. In the ultrasound on CD 14, my doctor saw that I had already ovulated. BBT was rising on CD 15. We had attempts on CD 8, 11, 13, 14, 17.

I now have the values ​​of my hormone analysis. I will upload the analysis as an image. I don't know if it's understandable for non-German speaking people, if you want to know anything feel free to ask me. My doctor didn't say much about it. All she said was that the hormone levels were in the normal range. Not perfect, but okay enough that I can get pregnant with it without any problems. She said we should just keep trying.

My husband has his sperm analysis today. I'm a little afraid of the result. I'll get in touch when we know more.

Now cycle 8 starts. I continue the Sway as usual. Coffee, alcohol, exercise, no breakfast, diet (not so strict for the last 2-3 weeks, I've had a few cheat days, the discipline is slowly fading, but I haven't gained any weight). I will not be using Femara this cycle (I used it in cycle 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 but not in cycle 1, 6 and now cycle 8). I probably won't do any OPK or measure BBT either. I need some rest and distance. Since we are waiting for the sperm analysis anyway and a pregnancy this cycle would be a Christmas baby, we are taking it easy this time. We're going to do e4D without any BBT and OPK and stuff like that. I don't think I'll just get pregnant like that anymore.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...87223645ce.jpg

Your testosterone and Vit. D are a bit low (which is probably from swaying) but other than that it really does look otherwise great. Your iron is low normal.

I would just do exactly what you're suggesting, stay the course, drop the OPK and BBT, don't worry about the cheats. We can go to e4d plus one more attempt at first pos when you want to, but if I were you I'd probably just keep doing e4d for at least another month or two.

Keep me posted on the sperm analysis!