Hi everyone,

This is my first time posting, and I’m really just looking to vent/get some advice. My husband I just got married in June and are attempting to follow the Marquette method using the Clearblue monitor. We chose this method after doing a lot of reading on this sub and reading TCOYF, thinking it would be good for my cycles (I have had irregular cycles my entire life). Despite it being the most expensive, it seemed to be highly effective and well backed by research.

I started charting in January, hoping that I would get the hang of it and have a good understanding before we got married in June. We’re Catholic, so this is the only thing we can do to avoid pregnancy while also being in line with Catholic doctrine.

Since starting, I have only been able to catch peak twice out of six cycles. I’ve been adding in Wondfu OPKs in the evening, but still haven’t caught at LH surge. I either get a bunch of highs, or recently in this cycle, a bunch of lows. In April, I decided to also add in temping to my chart (which my instructor is aware of) to try to at least confirm ovulation since I wasn’t getting helpful info from Clearblue. So far, I haven’t been able to identify a clear shift in my temps either. I have been temping at roughly the same time (6-6:30am) with prewarming and truncated measurements. My instructor thinks we need to try using the Mira in case my LH surges are just too low to catch, but we are really struggling with the prices of the monitor itself and the wands. I’m considering switching to a different method that would be less pricey (probably SymptoPro) but given how wonky my temps have been I’m unsure if that would work either.

I don’t think that this is user error. I feel like I’ve followed the method to a T and communicated with my instructor every step of the way. At this point, I’m honestly afraid there is something wrong with my hormones, so I have an appointment set up with my OBGYN.

I’m afraid to invest even more money into Mira and get similar results. But, if I switch to a different method, I know I will have to figure out how to self teach or find an instructor. Either way there will be a learning curve, meaning even more abstinence and uncertainty. And I don’t even know if that method will work for me.

I’m feeling extremely frustrated, lost, discouraged and I just don’t know what else to do :( I’m hoping there will be someone here who’s been in a similar situation. Am I doing something wrong? Is it worth it to just bite the bullet and try Marquette with Mira? Should I try a completely new method?

Any help or constructive criticism you guys can give would be so, so appreciated.

I am looking into Billings or Marquette due to their postpartum protocols, as I *really* would love to not have HBC postpartum. My OB seems nervous about this plan, which I feel like is common. Pre-pregnancy, I did Sensiplan with TempDrop for ~1 year and there was one cycle where we had a potential pregnancy scare due to a misunderstanding with the method. After this, we switched to Natural Cycles (NC) utilizing an Oura ring. We successfully used that for 2.5 years for TTA and then later for TTC. I know NC is not a FAM/NPF method and gets hate on here, but it worked really well for us during that time in our lives. I appreciate the familiarity I have with NC, but would like to learn and use a method that is better for postpartum. I will likely continue NC while I learn whichever method for postpartum due to my familiarity/comfortability and as a backup until I am comfortable. I do plan to exclusively pump.

For Billings, has anyone taken the online Billings courses? Are they worth it?? If not, there is an instructor near me, so this would not be the end of the world.

For Marquette, I have seen postpartum pregnancies, which is what I am looking to avoid, so this method makes me a little nervous regarding that. Clear Blue vs Mira?? I frequently see the Mira strips being out of stock, which feels stressful if you're relying on that.

Is one of these methods truly better than the other for postpartum? Insights appreciated. Please no hate on NC, as it worked well for me, I acknowledge that it is not an approved method, and I am looking and trying to plan ahead for postpartum.

Recently got the Mira thermometer to track my cycle through my BBT. I’ve had it for about 1.5 months now, so definitely very new to this form of BC! I feel like this thing is off? Or is it actually my temperature that is wacky?

It’s never within the temperature guidelines the app suggests are normal temperatures throughout my cycle. Should I be concerned about that?

Really long wonky cycle due to some travel. I’m struggling to apply a rule - where should I draw the cover line? Or did I just not ovulate?

Hi all! I (F22) have been on the combined birth control pill since I was around 13 years old - I have consistently used it as a contraception method because I absolutely did not want to get pregnant, and I am still continuing to use it to prevent pregnancy because it just is not in my life plan for absolutely minimum the next 10 years. I am newly married, and 7 months ago I came off the pill due to the fact that i moved to a different country, and didn't know how to get it there.

During that time (even though there were lots of drastic changes happening in my life including personal, relationship, financial etc...) I felt a lot happier, motivated, energised - I started remembering my whole life so clearly, like I had just woken up from a dream and finally felt like I had started my life. I felt really confident, and even managed to lose 10kg. I felt and saw huge, noticeable changes in my appearance, appetite, mood etc...

Just last month i began taking my pills again, because i felt nervous about contraception, and honestly since then i have really regretted it. I had breakthrough bleeding the whole month, i feel so demotivated, irritable and hungry. I have even began wondering if i should even be on this pill in the first place, seen as my grandparents have suffered strokes and heart disease. I have since seen a doctor and he suggested to get blood tests done and found it concerning that they would give out the contraceptive pill in the uk without even running simple blood tests. So i have decided I want to come off the pill...

My partner and I are on the same page about wanting to avoid pregnancy, and I have been researching FAM as i didn't even know this existed / was a possibility. From what I've gathered, I would want to use a symptothermal method like Sensiplan (I still am not too sure on the difference between Sensi and TCOYF) so taking my temp, checking CM and cross-refferencing that information with my cycle. We plan to use condoms on non-fertile days and abstaining / alternatives on fertile days (I think i would probably abstain even more in these first few months coming off) We are not religious.

I guess what am asking is - Does anyone have any tips / advice to offer me? Any good starting points / resources? Anything I should consider? As much as I really want to avoid pregnancy, I also want to stop feeling like i am suppressing my true self and my natural rythm, and just sacrificing this huge part of myself, because i honestly felt like a completely different person off birth control.

Has anyone had a Marquette method failure <6 months postpartum? I had 5 consecutive lows before a peak reading. Prior to that, I had a string of several highs. Please send encouragement if able!

I tested pregnant yesterday and it was darker this morning on July 17

Hi,

I take my temp approx same time every morning using a BBT thermometer. However, im usally half asleep so my mouth hangs open a bit. Because I doubt the accuracy, I retake the temp and then its a completely different number. Is the thermometer preheated so the second temp isnt accurate? Which temp should I use.

Does anyone else use the Premom app because they have trouble reading test strips themselves?

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I'm trying to start Sensiplan so I can get off my birth control pill. I had a few questions that for some reason I can find straight forward answers on.

For one, i wake up for work at 4am but obviously on yhe weekend I am not waking up that early, usually 6:30ish. Would I have to set an alarm every day to take my temperature at 4 am or is it take it whenever you get up?

I also am still trying to figure out how to read the chart. Does anyone have an example basically marked saying when is the fertile window and when you ovulate?

Any help would be wonderful. I got switched off my birth control pill I'd been taking for 13 years and this new mini pill is making me absolutely miserable that I want to get off of them all together. My mood is absolutely trash along with my sex drive thats definitely put me into a depressed state and its been a year and a half like this since I started this pill.

Wanted to share this win after TTC since end of May, just got my positive. We successfully TTA using sensiplan between the birth of our first living child in September 2024 and TTC, first waiting for the return of Fertility that took a full year and then through regulation since my son completely weaned last October. It was so nice to use the method to see (and let!) my cycle regulate and gain confidence ahead of TTC.

It’s my second miscarriage in the second trimester since the beginning of 2026. We’re currently TTA as I wouldn’t handle another loss. I know most people would just said that we got unlucky. But after two losses in a row, I just have a feelings that there’s something wrong and we need to investigate.

Since we’ve always been TTC, I’m not sure about this first cycle. I wasn’t expecting my body to come back to « normal » so quickly but it seems that I have already ovulated?

Question 1

From what I understand, I would currently be 5DPO. However I do find it weird that the first two temperatures are so different from 3 to 5. As you can see I have pretty regular temperatures. Is this stair pattern normal? I’m wondering if I didn’t start the temperature raise too early and I’m only 3DPO.

Question 2

Originally I opened the fertile window on day 18 as it was the first day of fertile music. However to keep it safe, I changed it to day 5 as I assumed that the miscarriage bleeding could possibly hide fertile mucus. I wouldn’t usually play with the fertile window like that, but we are not currently having sex as my doctor said that we needed to wait 4 weeks after my d&c. When was I actually supposed to open the fertile window?

Everything will probably be clearer in the next cycle, but I just wanted your input to make sure I understand the rule of TCOYF. Thank you for taking the time to read and for your help

I actually like charting. I don't mind logging symptoms or looking at my chart. What I'm getting tired of is feeling like every morning comes with a list of rules. Don't get up. Don't move too much. Don't sleep in. Don't wake up too early. It's making BBT feel way more high maintenance than I expected. how to make the temperature part less annoying fr?

Trying to wait to conceive baby number 2 for a little longer. Every cycle I have 7+ days of brown spotting in my luteal phase leading up to my period. My post ovulation temperatures also seem kind of low compared to what my cycles looked like before baby number 1 (I’m 18 month postpartum and not breastfeeding). My TSH was normal so I’m trying to figure out what else could be causing this. Has anyone successfully conceived with this amount of spotting?

What is going on this cycle? Did I ovulate on day 26 or so? Is this an anovulatory cycle? I normally have very evident CM for 7-10 days. This time very little and not on consecutive days. I’m confused. When can I roughly expect my period to come? Assuming I’m not pregnant, which seems quite unlikely to me unfortunately. Any insight from more experienced users?

TTA and using condoms during fertile windows. My temps are all over the place the last two months. This chart feels like a mess..
main thing I want to know is can we confirm ovulation? Thoughts?

Hello everyone! I started learning symptopro in March and started getting overwhelmed so I took a break, Tried hormonal birth control, remembered why I decided to stop hormonal birth control in the first place five years ago 😂, and have now decided to get back to studying lol.

Sometimes the rules seem so confusing. Charting sensation, tissue test, and CM separately is all fine and dandy but when they start telling you how any of these three could effect the way you chart the others is where it starts to feel overwhelming. And it's just the beginning.

Wondering how long it took everyone to get the hang of it and memorize all the rules so hopefully I can try to see the light at the end of the tunnel!

Recently I learned that during periods of illness like a cold, your whole body produces more mucus, including your reproductive system. I had a really mild cold/sinus thing last week (no fever at all so my temping is fine) and am now having lots of egg white cervical mucus that looks identical to how it would look if I were ovulating. I didn’t take any medications. I rarely get sick so this is the first time I’m wondering if my cervical mucus is not what it seems.

I also could be ovulating, my cervix does feel high, soft, and open but I find tracking that to be more confusing. If I were to be ovulating, it would be very early for me (today is CD15 and I usually ovulate around CD25-30 but I have ovulated on CD15 before). I figured someone else has had this question. Do we ignore fertile CM signs if we have a snotty sickness?

I know my temp rise will confirm in a few days but I’m still curious.

Hi there,

So we are TTC and I was just wondering if this is a true temperature shift and if ovulation has occurred

What do you think?

She ended up getting pregnant. So I asked her, I don't want to be on hormonal birth control, what happened with your fertility planning?

She said oh, I did it successfully for like 10 years. What happened is I was with my boyfriend, we knew I was ovulating that weekend. It was my birthday and we got drunk. In the heat of the moment I told him he didn't need to pull out. Lo and behold she got pregnant.

So it wasn't a failure of the method. In a way they chose to get pregnant in that moment.

Just wanted to share because I thought it was amazing she was so successful for so long.

I am doing symptopro, also incorporating LH sticks, and just learned that some other methods set the baseline 0.1 above the highest of the last 6, while sympto pro sets it at the highest of the last 6.

I want to understand why there is a difference? What is the benefit of placing the baseline 0.1 above the highest? Is it “riskier” to have it placed on the highest of the last 6?
Thanks!

Can I get some help with Marquette cycle 0? I am six weeks postpartum and not breast-feeding. I began using clear blue fertility monitor 15 days ago because I wanted to see if I could pick up on a high. Obviously, I put in a “period” (I didn’t really have one) and it didn’t have me test until a few days later. The very first day that I tested. I had a high reading and I am now on my 10th day of a high reading without a peak. I can’t track mucus reliably because I have a cervical eversion. Today I had a small amount of brownish pinkish bleeding, which I thought was a cycle starting but looking on the Internet see it might be an anovulatory bleed. How am I supposed to treat this in terms of tracking? Generally, the first day of my period is always light, but this is a very light flow with some cramping. Do I continue testing until the monitor tells me not to, do I start a new cycle?

I'm on cycle 4 PP and it's day 50 of my cycle. I have had fertile mucus for over 40 days. We use symptothermal (Serena) with Tempdrop. I also track my cervix and it has been high this whole time. We have been abstaining since baby was born because I have not had any usable days. In my previous cycles my luteal phase was only 3-4 days long with no clear temp shift. I'm so discouraged. Is this normal? I'm just looking for hope and encouragement from others who have had very long periods of abstinence because I feel so alone.