52 day cycle.... Is there a prize :-)

Hi. I am fairly new to the TTC business and have learnt heaps from this site however I have couple of questions. I am going to my doctor next week however would love a bit of knowledge before I see him.

My first cycle was 52 days and I am now 45 days through my second cycle. I had been on depo for about 5 years therefore I had no idea about my cycle length so I can't say if this is normal for me. I also did an endurance event in March and I wonder if this may have affected my cycle.

Anyway cycle length obviously affects when you ovulate and when you should be bding for best results... So....when do women ovulate 'in theory' ???? Is it 14 days after the start of AF or 14 days before your next AF?

If you have a 28 day cycle this is obviously the same day and the theory really doesn't matter. If however you have a longer cycle like me it could make a huge difference. Ie day 14 Vs day 38 if in fact I am even ovulating at all.

I have brought some OPK sticks but don't want to use them all on my next 52 (?) day cycle :-) so I know everyone is different but it would be good to get some idea about what is 'normal' if there is such a thing so I can start my testing at the right time

So I have a number of questions
1. Ovulation? 14 days after AF or 14 days before next AF?
2. Has anyone found their cycle affected by endurance sports and how soon did it "come back into line" afterwards?
3. Finally, has anyone ever taken anything to regulate their cycle length? I have heard you can take hormones (not sure if this is pills? injections? other?) and I would really love to hear what the options are or even if there are options or if people have had success regulating their cycle?

Wow... there is a lot to learn about this TTCing business :-)

As melnel says 14 days before AF is the average o' day, but it varies from person to person - mine was only 8 days, but that's really short and so I'm taking vitamins to lengthen it. I'm taking vitex (or chasteberry) which is meant to be good for balancing things and another one I've heard of is macca - I'm not sure what's in that one though and haven't taken it yet.

It's worth joining up to fertilityfriend.com as there are a few ways that you can track your ovulation and they give you some helpful hints and if you want to do it through charting your temperatures that's a good way to do it too.

Some people use this saliva microscope thing called maybe baby (think you can get them on trademe for a good price) but I couldn't ever figure them out, but if you can they're a good way to track ovulation too.

I haven't ever done any endurance sports sorry, so can't help ya with that one.

Another way to track would be looking at your CM or your cervix position? For example when you start to see fertile CM, maybe you could use your OPKs then, and then those two things in conjunction with your temps will probably give you a good idea.

I ovulate about 12 days before AF. Typically a luteal phase is 10-18 days (i.e. time from ovulation to AF). There can be some variation on that, but it's rare.

My cycle was 56 days before I got pregnant, and while I think I ovulated about 21 days into it (from watching CM), my dates from the scans have me conceiving at about 16 days post start of the cycle.

Hey all.

I saw my GP today and he was pretty cool. He looks about 22 but I guess at least he hasn't been out of med school too long so probably remembers most of it still.

Anyway DH has to give a sample of his swimmers and I have two blood tests scheduled for day 2 and day 25 (this one is later due to long cycle) to test for level of progesterone (sp)

He also said not to chart, temp or do the OPK tests and just chill and go with the flow. DH almost fell off the chair thinking that I could actually chill about something when I am the type of person who always jumps in boots and all. He also said to check out the pre-requirements for fertility associates in Hamilton who give the first appointment fee. I will check this out but suspect that as it is still early days for us it won't be a goer for a while. I will keep on charting, temping and start the OPK's 'cause I want to see if I ovulate.

Finally it appears that 52 days doesn't win you a prize here.....EMZ congrats on the 78 days and Noodle 100!!!! Think of the savings on girlie products :-)

Day 53 and counting....

T