ovulation!

so i did my bbt* this morning at my usual wake-up time and it read 97.66. this is much higher than my reading yesterday, 97.13. thus, OVULATION! hehe:) my ovulens also was half full of ferns, big ones at that. so most likely, i ovulated yesterday.

i've read a bit more about the ovulens because i wanted to know exactly what it was showing me. during the first half of your cycle (cd-cycle day, starts with your period), also called the follicular phase, your estrogen level is rising. when this happens the salinity (concentration of dissolved salts) in your saliva is increasing. so when i spit on the little ovulens and let it dry, what i'm really seeing is crystallized salt. when progesterone kicks in, after ovulation, this salinity drops away.

also, your temperature is lower when your estrogen is pumping, and higher with progesterone. the second half of the cycle is called the luteal phase.


it is sooo interesting what your body does. i had no idea about all of this till a month ago. i mean i read about it in 'the new essential guide to lesbian conception, pregnancy, and birth', but to see it is very different.

some the info i put in here today came from this website: http://www.americanpregnancy.org/gettingpregnant/understandingovulation.html

*basal body temperature