[cheesepuff]

Hello,

I have a lot of discharge throughout my whole cycle, but it's almost always creamy. I never notice any EWCM, so I was wondering if there are any lubricants you can use, or any vitamins you can take to help this. I read on the web that some women use real eggwhites, but I'm not sure I can do that. I'm prone to have infections anyway so I think the risk is too great. Please let me know if you have heard anything.

Thank you!

[J9yinyang]

Use Pre-Seed. You can buy it at BabyHopes.com. At least, that's where I bought it.

[Waiting4Godstime]

Yeah Pre-seed is really good....I used it last month and it is safe for sperm......I bought mine at early-pregnancy-tests.com.

[31yrdino]

This may not be the best, but I have heard that olive oil is good. Of course, I am not pregnant yet. KY irritates me, that's why we stopped. Right now we are preparing for an IUI, so the lub doesn't matter. I have heard pre- seed is good, but very expensive.

[Waiting4Godstime]

Pre-seed is the only lub that doesn't kill sperm.

[cheesepuff]

I heard another group talking about using alfalfa? Has anyone heard of this? And if you have where do you find it?

Thanks for the posts!

[slobin]

I just want to comment about your lack of EW CM. Since you don't notice any you should confirm that you are in fact ovulating (if you haven't already). You can use ovulation predictor kits or fertility monitor. If in fact you are ovulating but just not having EW CM then Pre-Seed would be helpful. But lack of it could also indicate low estrogen levels, so just using Pre-Seed might not be enough. Also drinking a lot of water and avoiding dairy around ov can help. Have you confirmed that your are ovulating?

[cheesepuff]

Well, I just started using a Saliva Tester a couple of days ago, and I think today I noticed crystals, that were not there yesterday. As far as OPKs I haven't used any yet, I'm going to try the saliva this month and then if nothing I will try the OPKs next cycle. When I charted my cycles last time around, I did have regular peaks and dips, but that may not mean I am I guess. I will get some and try that thank you for the input.

[slobin]

Chelsea,
Just checking in and wondering what happened with the saliva test? Have you had a full ferning pattern yet? I had mixed results with saliva testing- some cycles I would have perfect ferning and others I wouldn't even though I knew I O'd. Just curious what happened for you this time?

[cheesepuff]

Well, yesterday morning I thought I had a full ferning, but I read on another board that what I thought was ferning, was really crystals. Meaning I had somehow done the test wrong. They say if you use too much or, blow on the glass, etc. It will produce an inaccurate result.

Instructions for Use:

For best results start tracking your saliva on Day 1 of your cycle. Day 1 is the first day of true menstruation, not just spotting.

For an accurate reading, before taking a saliva sampl, ensure that you have not taken anything by mouth for at least one half hour (toothpaste, water, food, etc.). Sugar (in fruit, juice, candy, soft drinks, etc.) caffeine, alcohol and nicotine will cause false positive readins (ferning). Wait at least 2 to 4 hours after consuming these products before testing (some women are more sensitive than others and require a longer withdrawal time).

There is a saliva gland directly behind your lower front teeth. By closing your mouth and gently pulling your tongue back, saliva will collect in the space behind your teeth. Scoop this saliva up with your tongue and gently lick the slide.

Do not apply the saliva with your fingers or any other implement as thi may contaminate or distort your reading. Also avoid touching the sample after your saliva has been applied.

Look at the slide to ensure you have placed an adequate sample on it. The circular area of the slide should have a thin layer of saliva on it. Saliva shrinks as it dries, so if you have not put an adequate sample onto the slide you may find that your results have shrunk into small patches giving an inaccurate reading. Avoid etting bubbles in your sample as well. Bubbles can often be tipped to the side of the sample or gently popped with your tongue Only practice will give you the knowledge of how much saliva is enough, too little or too much.

Let the saliva sample dry completely. Do not use a blow dryer or blow on your slide as it will distort your reading - let it dry naturally. It should take your saliva approximately 10 - 15 minutes to dry. If it takes longer than 15 minutes you have placed too much saliva on the slide - it will dry into layers making interpretation difficult. If your saliva appears very crystallized and looks similiar to broken glass, this may be a result of havin too much saliva on the slide. Try again. Once dry, the slide should appear to be covered by a thin white film. Test in a room where the humidity is stable - if you test in a room where the humidity fluctuates (such as in a bathroom with a humidifier) your results may be affected...temperature may also affect your readings. If you transport your readings/slides into a freezing environment in your purse or other luggage (such as is common in Canada, the U.S. and Northern Europe during the winter months), your slides may gather condensation when returned to a warmer environment. This condensation can cause your readins to change or distort.

Visually identify the portion of the slide that has the highest concentration of saliva dried on it. Place the slide under the clips in the microscope an position the most concentrated area to point just under the lens. It is extremely important to focus only on the most concentrated area. As mentioned previously, saliva shrinks as it dries. As it shrinks it leaves a distorted area behind it than can cause confusion when viewed through the microscope.

When to Test:

Test when you get out of bed, as most women get the best results by testin in the morning before consumption of food, drink, or tobacco. Some women get better results by testing later in the day or evening, especially if they work night shift For your first cycle, you may want to sample twice daily to determine when you get the clearest reading.

Susan, I HTH's. Something else you have likely thought of is what typical non-fertile, typical fertile: pre-ovulatory, typical fertile: ovulatory, and typical post-ovulatory (non-fertile) ferning or lack thereof looks like. My guide has drawings/photos that illustrate these. I would imagine you can find this information on the net. I haven't been but you could check out www.ovu-trac.com to see if the have any examples.

However, I thought I'd add descriptions as follows:

Typical Non-Fertile:

The saliva appears as dots or in small patches dispersed across the viewing area...these patches usually appear transparent and do not show any sins of crystallizations...typically these small crystals do not touch each other...the samples at the beginning of your cycle are considered your "baseline" readins. These baseline readings are very important to establish because they indicate what your individual non-fertile pattern is. Once you have established your non-fertile pattern you will be able to transition to a fertile state more easily.

Typical Fertile: Pre-Ovulatory

Approximately 4 to 6 days before ovulation, the small patches or dots of saliva seen during the non-fertile phase will increase in number, cluster together and sho small signs of crystallization (not true ferns). Soon after this fertile pre-ovulatory transition, these crystals will begin growing brances that will spread and fill the viewing area...typically fertile pre-ovulatory branching is interspersed with patches of non-crystallized saliva. Pre-ovulatory salivary changes such as these indicate a transition to a fertile state - this is when you should begin having intercourse to get pregnant.

Typical Fertile: Ovulatory

Most women notice a significant change in their saliva approx. 2 days before ovulation. Locate the area on your slide that shows the highest concentration of saliva and compare your pre-ovulatory crystallization to the ovulatory ferns/crystallization. Ovulatory ferns should be concentrated together with no aps or patches of uncrystallized saliva between them. They are crisp and do not appear blotchy. Many women are amazed at the difference in their saliva during their ovulatory phase. This is the optimum time to try to acheive pregnancy - you are very fertile.

Typical Post-Ovulatory (Non-Fertile)

Once ovulation has occured, a women's progesterone level increases and almost immediately the levels of biosalts in her body decrease. This causes the concentrated crisp ferns present on the day of ovulation to deteriorate and apear more blobby for approx. 1 1/2 to 2 days after ovulation. In some women, this deterioration progresses to the point where ferns are no loner discernible and appear as blobs across the slide.

Approx. 3 days after ovulation, saliva returns to your non-fertile baseline. It is common to see patches of broken ferns dispersed across the slide until menstruation beins and your cycle starts over aain, UNLESS CONCEPTION HAS OCCURED.

It is not uncommon to see fine crystallization or honeycomb-shaped crystals just prior to the start or during the first 2 - 3 days of menstruation.

IF CONCEPTION HAS OCCURED, th saliva samples usually remain crystallized and appear the same as at the time of ovulation. However, if your baseline samples were crystallized, it would be difficult to determine if your post-ovulatory samples have reverted to your baseline or if they indicate conception.

NOTE: Do not assume you have postively ovulated if you see complete ferning or crystallization. Women with long or irregular cycles commonly eperience luteinizing mini-peaks...Continue to track daily. Using the Ovu-Trac daily gives almost every women a clear understanding of her body and how it chanes throughout her fertile and non-fertile phase.

It's alot of information I know, but it really opened my eyes to some stuff.

Also, you might check out www.ovusoft.com that's another board I use there are alot more posts, and info.

Hope to see you there!!