Hello! :D

[fushigi_na_chou]

Hello everyone! My name is Andrea, but you can feel free to refer to me however you like. I'm new to the community (literally just joined like, ten minutes ago), and I've read through the FAQs to get started. I guess it'll help if I go ahead and use the question guide thinger to get things started:

1) Are you new to FAM or an experienced FAM user?

Comments

[nightsinger]

Welcome. :)

I definitely do recommend doing some reading before trying to use FAM as a primary birth control method -- if you can't buy Taking Charge of Your Fertility even from a used bookstore (where I got mine!), you might still be able to check it out from your local library. (And if they don't have it, they might be able to get it -- it's worth asking a librarian!) ... Personally, I'd love it if there were other books to point you at as well, but, frankly, it's not a field with a lot of competition in it.

To address your question about how to take your temperature with a basal thermometer -- you have two options to choose from, but once you make a choice, you really need to stick with it, at least for the entirety of that cycle. One is the way you've (probably!) always taken your temperature -- put the thermometer probe under your tongue and keep it there with your mouth closed until it beeps (electronic version) or until the owner's manual says it's done (analogue version). The other way is to insert it into your vagina and keep it there until it beeps/the owner's manual says it's done. The latter will produce a higher temperature than the former, even if tested at the same time, which is why it's important to pick one location and stick with it.

The better question is when to take your temperature -- the textbook method is to take it at the same time, every morning, after getting at least 3 solid hours of sleep. If you have gotten up (e.g. to go to the bathroom), taken a drink of water, talked, etc, in the last three hours, your temperature isn't going to be reliable. Once you've gotten a couple of cycles under your belt, you can start seeing what you can afford to be lenient on and what you can't -- e.g., for me, as long as I've had ~3hrs of sleep (even if I wake up and roll over or something), I can temp reliably, but saying even three words will screw it up.

If you like spreadsheets (I do!), then doing it manually that way is fine -- I like doing a lot of analysis, so I have:
Cycle Day
Date
Weekday
Temp
Coverline
'Smooth Temp'
Aberration (a yes/no flag that excludes temps from the Smooth Temp)
Intercourse ("C" for "condom", "Y" for sans condom, "W" for "withdrawal")
Cervical Mucus
Cervical Position
Ovulation (to mark the Ovulation Date)
Comments (for things like mood, commenting why something might be an aberration (such as drinking alcohol the night before, not sleeping well, etc), when I expect to start my period, etc)

If you'd prefer someone else to do the analysis for you, there're several websites which do this. One of the common favourites around here is Fertility Friend.

With regard to Cervical mucus, which you asked about, there are several kinds. In order of increasing fertility:

Menses (i.e. menstrual fluid, safe for the first 5 days, presuming you've had an observable temp shift in the previous cycle)
Dry (no CM at all, safe under the same presumption as above)
Sticky (not safe for trying to avoid/TTA)
Creamy/Watery (not safe for trying to avoid/TTA)
Eggwhite/Clear & stretchy (EXTREMELY fertile -- NOT safe for TTA)

You can test this by skimming your fingertip over your vaginal entrance, or by reaching in to your cervix. Feel it between your fingers for consistency, and note the colours. The book has some sample photos of what they look like.

Again, I definitely recommend reading the book yourself and getting a good feel for everything that's involved, including the things that can cause your temps and CM to be less reliable, so you know to be more careful, etc.

HTH...

ETA: Disclaimer: Obviously, I am not a doctor, cannot provide medical advice, etc etc etc. YMMV, caveat lector, CYA, etc.

[fushigi_na_chou]

Oh! Why didn't I think of used bookstore. There's one right by my house, and I have so much credit for turning in my own books I could get it for free. Yay! :D

Now, you said basal thermometer. Is that different from a regular thermometer that you buy from the pharmacy/pharmacy section?

[nightsinger]

Yes, a basal thermometer's a different animal from a regular fever thermometer -- it's much more accurate. Fever thermometers typically have an error margin of ±0.3°F, whereas a basal thermometer is usually accurate ±0.01°F. Since you're looking at relatively fine variations in your basal temperature to tell whether or not Ovulation has passed, 0.3°F more or less could make you think you've ovulated when you haven't, haven't when you have, or make it unclear whether or not you have.

As an example, my average post-ovulatory "jump" is about 0.56°F... So an error margin of ±0.3°F, being over half of that amount, could easily obscure the change.

E.G.: if my temps on a more accurate thermometer are (ovulation-date bolded):
96.85   96.43   96.85   97.19   97.32

An unfavourable 0.3° shift could make those same temps look like:

97.0   96.7   97.1   96.9   97.0

Which makes it really hard to tell where the ovulation is, since there's no distinct shift.

You can often buy basal thermometers in the drugstore, too -- check in the 'family planning' section with the pregnancy tests, or ask the pharmacist.

[fushigi_na_chou]

Oh, okay, thanks for clearing that up. Once I get some extra cash, I'll have to invest in a basal thermometer. :)

[finding_helena]

I don't agree with the previous comment. TCOYF says that all that is necessary is a thermometer accurate to within 0.1°, and when I started using FAM we already had a digital that did this. One accurate to with 0.2° or 0.3° won't do the trick, but you don't need one that's accurate to within 0.01°.

[fushigi_na_chou]

Oh, okay. But obviously, the more accurate, the better I assume?

[finding_helena]

I'd just go for one that's accurate to within 0.1° and any additional accuracy doesn't really add to your experience and may just be confusing. I think the 'buy a basal thermometer' thing originated before such widespread use of more accurate digital ones, since it really does matter with a mercury thermometer. Your temperature shift will be of 0.3° or more, so the ability to detect a difference between 97.63 and 97.64 is really not necessary.

[fushigi_na_chou]

Oh, okay. Good to know. Thanks for the clarification. :)

[fushigi_na_chou]

Haha, of course. ^-^ I'll be looking for the book at the used bookstore near my house. :3

[clothmother]

Why "Y" for sans condom? Just curious! I use the null sign. :)

Heh, your spreadsheet sounds about as thorough as mine.

[nightsinger]

Y for "yes", I guess? XD Like, if I had a pregnancy scare (no legitimate ones yet, though every time I'm on the longer end of my LP I get nervous, haha), I'd know that that time might be responsible for it? "Yes, it's this one here!" I dunno, tbh; I picked it semi-instinctively and didn't really examine it because it was unique.

Ø would work, too, yeah, and possibly makes more sense. XD I started charting on a PC, though, and typing it was more difficult than it is on a Mac. :)

[clothmother]

Hee, sounds intuitive to me! :) I keep a bunch of personal data in a spreadsheet on my PC, but I found it easier to sketch out the graphs by hand, so drawing the null sign was no biggie. When we were TTC, the first few instances of unprotected sex were marked "!" as in OMG YAY!