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JennGM
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| Posted: Jan 01 2007 at 6:52pm | IP Logged
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Does anyone use the computer fertility monitors, such as Ovacue, ClearBlue Easy Fertility Monitor?
I'd love to hear pros and cons of either. If you're not comfortable posting, can you PM your opinions, please?
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Jennifer G. Miller
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Family in Feast and Feria
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momwats8
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| Posted: Jan 01 2007 at 6:59pm | IP Logged
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I have used Persona and loved it. the only problem is they do not sell them or the testing sticks in the US so you pay quite a bit as they are coming from the UK. I really liked the monitor and it is for avoiding. it is what I like to call NFP for dummies. I say this because the monitor does the work for you. all you do is go to the bathroom on the testing stick in the morning. It worked very well. the only other thing about them is you need to be regular and not breastfeeding for it to be useful for you so you do have to use NFP at times also.
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JennGM
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| Posted: Jan 01 2007 at 7:12pm | IP Logged
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Persona! I couldn't remember the name. There are a few couples that use it. But because I'm using it for the opposite reason, to conceive, I was wondering if I should try another one.
I read this comparison of ClearBlue vs Persona (I do NOT recommend this blog, BTW).
I have a friend who used ClearBlue. Basically both ClearBlue and Persona are sophisticated Ovulation Predictor Tests, with computers to interpret the results.
I also have heard great things about the OvaCue which costs more up front, getting both oral and v*g*nal sensors, but no sticks to buy, so the cost is final. It measures electrolytes, which makes me wonder is it really effective?
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Jennifer G. Miller
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Family in Feast and Feria
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doris
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| Posted: Jan 02 2007 at 4:54pm | IP Logged
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Jenn, I've emailed you separately, but I just wanted to add that so many of my (non-Catholic) friends have conceived while using Persona for family planning that they have nicknamed it 'persona non grata'!
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Home educating in London, UK with dd (2000) ds (2002), dd (2004), ds (2008) and dd (2011).
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JennGM
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Thanks for the advice and help, on and offline. I'm so touched by your charity and thoughtfulness.
A friend of mine who has carried the cross of infertility recommended a monitor. In both our cases, trying to conceive can become too analytical and worrisome -- checking temps and other factors, charting -- all that was making it very burdensome. What worked for her was a simple monitor so to take the navel gazing out. So we're giving it a try.
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Jennifer G. Miller
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Family in Feast and Feria
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momwats8
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Prayers coming your way - I hope it works out quickly!!
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Mary- Wife to Mike and Mother to Austin(92), Mikey(95), R.J.(97), Benedict(98), Kolbe(00), Ignatius(02), Christian(03), Margaret(05),&4 angels in heaven
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SaraP
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| Posted: Jan 03 2007 at 5:39pm | IP Logged
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Jenn-
I've been trying to post this for a couple of days, but haven't been able to get enough free time to get it together.
I've done a fair bit of research into fertility monitoring gadgets because people ask about them so often and have personally tested out several. You can read the long, clinical (dry, boring  ) result of this research here (scroll down to get past the info on different methods of NFP), but here's the short version for someone who is trying to achieve pregnancy:
Persona/ClearBlue are reasonably good at identifying days of fertility for women who have fairly regular cycles and typical hormonal patterns. But if you are interested in using a fertility monitor as an aid to conceiving most probably you either don't have typical hormonal patterns or an inability to identify which days to use is not the reason you haven't conceived. In other words, these devices work best for people who need them the least and won't work at all for people who need them the most.
So OvaCue would be a better option and, as far as I can tell, the science behind it is sound and it does work. BUT - and I think this is a big, 'but' - I imagine that the v*g*nal sensor would seem too invasive to a lot of women (rather like the internal checks that some methods of NFP recommend), so if that's the case for you, you might consider using just the oral sensor.
I'm also wondering whether you have considered just trying a simpler method of NFP before dropping the money for a fertility monitor. Temperatures and charting and especially internal checks are largely irrelevent when you are trying to conceive unless you are also concerned about knowing exactly when you conceived. The simplest approach (which will also work for almost everyone although using this approach it would be possible to conceive and not realize it for several weeks) would be this: Pay attention to what you feel in the 'reproductive region' as you walk around during the day doing normal activities. If you notice a wet or a slippery sensation use that day and the day or two after.
I hope that helps and please know that you will be in my prayers. Infertility is a heavy, lonely cross.
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JennGM
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Sara, Thanks for your very thorough answer and suggestions. You're right, it might not work, but we aren't doing any kind of charting or monitoring...I got burned out. My cycle is regular, but changing, due to premenopause? who knows. I have long periods of seemingly fertile mucus (but now I have seemingly none). My temps are erratic, mainly because my sleep patterns aren't regular. We had trouble charting and interpreting results, so we stopped. It was too hard. I've been doing your suggested way for some months now, because I thought it was basic and simple -- but having so many days with wet days that made it hard.
Anyway...not to bore or share too much. We have been seeing a doctor, who can't really go further, and is not sure what our problem is. We have decided to not pursue other fertility specialists unless it is someone who works clearly with the Church's teaching, like Paul VI. Since we're saving so much money dh suggested trying this route. Our main reason is to give us a smaller window, and also to see if I'm ovulating, as that is coming into question lately.
We're trying a different hands-off attitude, focusing on renewing our marriage vows, and if God sends a baby, what a blessing. We just want to try a hands-off approach to interpreting the cycle to bring more love into our union.
Short answer, we don't have anything to lose except a few dollars trying this. And I'm not really expecting it to be the ANSWER for our infertility.
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Jennifer G. Miller
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Family in Feast and Feria
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SaraP
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| Posted: Jan 03 2007 at 7:45pm | IP Logged
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Have you considered using an Ovarian Monitor? Or has anyone even told you about the Ovarian Monitor? It's an Australian gadget and not used much in this country.
It's not going to help at all in the burnout department because it's not quick or simple to use, but it will give you actual quantitative data on how much estrogen and progesterone are in your system each day and that, when interpretted by a decent OB, gives a very complete picture of your cycle and goes a long way towards determining what isn't working the way it should be.
Based on your post I don't *think* this is really what you want to do, but I would feel negligent if I didn't mention it as an option and you are welcome to PM me if you want more info.
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JennGM
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| Posted: Jan 03 2007 at 8:02pm | IP Logged
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If one is showing Luteal phase defect, or at shorter luteal phases, will the first mentioned monitors work correctly?
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Jennifer G. Miller
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SaraP
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| Posted: Jan 03 2007 at 8:40pm | IP Logged
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Quote:
| If one is showing Luteal phase defect, or at shorter luteal phases, will the first mentioned monitors work correctly? |
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In most cases, yes.
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Topic: Fertility Monitors
