Mid-cycle bleeding that follows a pattern

[elettaria]

I've been charting for a year now, and noticed that my cycles form rather an odd pattern. I get lots of eggwhite, often all the way through my cycle, which I've been told here is normal with a copper IUD. I also get mid-cycle spotting (though today, CD15 which is far too early for a period, it was more like light bleeding - it it had occurred a

Comments

[elettaria]

I'm not really keeping track of it, I just went back and counted the numbers above and below the red line. I don't have CF for backup because of the IUD (though by now it seems that spotting is functioning as eggwhite normally would, which helps a bit), but I have clear enough thermal shifts that I'm not too bothered about that, it's not as if I'm using this for contraception. Anyway, I'm interested to hear that you think there's a pattern, could you explain more? In particular, what do you make of that long cycle? I don't have paid membership of FAM so I can only show two charts at once, but if you want to look at any I'm happy to show you them, it can be any two.

Certainly user error is a point I'm worried about with FAM. There's still a lot of misinformation about (it's funny, IUDs and FAM seem to be the worst hit by myths, I wonder why?), and while I trust myself to read a book carefully and seek advice if necessary, I can't guarantee that all users will do that. Remember a while back when we got a woman who was basically determined not to make any effort, snarling at anyone who suggested that she read a book or go to a class, and resentful of the very idea? The more idiot-proof you make the method, the better, although that's moving away from the liberate-women-through-education model. Still, I'd prefer less education and a lower pregnancy rate, if push came to shove.

Assuming that there is indeed some sort of temp pattern pre-ovulation, I wonder how factors which can delay ovulation affect that?

[cheyinka]

Hopping in to suggest that the reason why IUDs and FAM have the most myths about them might be because anything that doesn't involve chemicals or devices can't possibly do anything for real, and since the Dalkon Shield was poorly designed and caused lots of problems, surely all IUDs must be equally dangerous, or at least equally suspect. Meanwhile, if a doctor prescribes them, pills, implants, and patches must be safe, since they come from a doctor!

:rolleyes: