Here’s what made the list:
Pre-conception OB-GYN appointment- Mr. Luckysaur and I went to this appointment together a few months ago. We needed some questions answered and wanted to get the information first hand rather than off of the internet. Some of the questions we wrote down and took with us to ask were:
When should I stop BCP- As soon as we were ready to start trying for a baby. You don't need to wash out of BCP's.
When should I start taking prenatal vitamins- As soon as I stop taking BCP's
What are the risks of having a baby after 35 (I'm only 32 right now, but we were thinking ahead.)- Risks for birth defects and infertility increases after age 35
Stop BCP- I stopped taking my BCP's on June 14th after I finished my last pack.
Buy Short Term Disability Insurance- This was offered through my work and since it was open enrollment time we went ahead and signed up for a policy through UNUM. I'm hoping to be able to take several months off of work for maternity leave when we have a baby. This will help supplement some of the pay that I will miss out on during that time.
Start taking prenatal vitamins- I chose Rainbow Light Prenatal One because I read that they were easy on the stomach. So far I haven't had any problems with these other than occasionally having a hard time swallowing them. They're HUGE!
Read (and re-read) What to Expect Before Your Expecting and Mayo Clinic Guide to Healthy Pregnancy- Let me just state for the record that I love the library. I picked up both of these books and have several more pregnancy books on reserve for me.
Buy Pre-seed lubricant- I read that regular lubricant is harmful to sperm. When I looked around, Pre-seed seemed to be highly recommend as a sperm-friendly replacement to regular lube. It's not quite as thick as the regular stuff, but it works well. Time will tell if it actually works in helping with TTC.
Buy Pregnancy test strips- I found these pregnancy tests pretty cheap on Amazon. I know it was a bit premature to buy pregnancy tests, but I was already on there buying the Pre-seed so I figured I'd get these at the same time (and get free shipping!).
Buy OPK's- I got these at Dollar Tree. Ok...I bought 10 of them, but can you blame me? They were only $1 each! I've read that people haven't had the greatest luck with reading the cheaper OPK's, but I didn't have a problem. I got a VERY dark test line 2 times.
Start charting- I started charting my temperature on Fertility Friend on day 7 of my cycle. It's been kind of interesting charting every day. I actually look forward to entering in my data and seeing if my chart is following some sort of pattern. So far it's been doing what it's supposed to be doing.
Thermometer- It’s one that I already had, so I’m not positive that it’s a BBT thermometer, but it seems to be working just fine so far.
What did you do to get ready TTC?
If your thermometer reads:
ReplyDelete-98.xx that it is BBT
If your thermometer reads:
-98.x it is NOT a BBT
You will want one that measures in 100ths (.xx) otherwise your thermal shift will not be as clear and you can end up with plateaus.
I'd recommend reading TCOYF and taking the FF tutorials before TTC. GL!
You've got your bases covered! I was going to say the same thing about your thermometer. You want to make sure you get a BBT that measure 100th of degrees. Makes a HUGE difference on your chart.
ReplyDeleteGL! I bet you'll be KU in no time!
I didn't do anything! I was already taking prenatal vitamins because they are more absorbable than other vitamins and I have a gut absorption deficiency. So all we needed to do is pull the goalie and we were off to the races. I am fully aware that I am in the minority when it comes to most women, but it worked for us.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the advise! If we aren't successful this cycle I'll look into getting another thermometer.
ReplyDeleteI don't use a BBT. I don't put as much emphasis on my chart as I do my fertility signs, so for me it wasn't wort the money. My non-BBT works just fine. My ovulations has been accurately detected by FF so, yeah, still not worth the money to me! But I'm frugal!
ReplyDelete