**Cycle: 12, Month 11

**26 + 39

**Typical cycle length: 27-29 days

**Ovulation cycle day: 13 this time which is slightly  earlier than usual for me 

**CD/DPO of positive test(s):** vvfl pregmate 12 DPO, slightly darker on 13 DPO &  much darker line FRER 15 DPO

**CD/DPO of any negative test(s) before positive: N/A

**Tracking methods and app(s) used: Femometer for retrieving BBT, OvaGraph for charting, & used Premom for ovulation tests 

**Relevant days of sperminating and/or method (SMEP, TI, IUI, FET, etc.): only BD'd  on O-1 

**Health conditions/medical tests: none/got blood work/internal ultrasound to check ovaries on 7th month of TTC. everything came back normal including hubby's SA

**Supplements and medications (yours and/or your partner’s): mine- started off my cycle with OvaBoost,  Evening Primrose Oil, extra B complex and Vit D,  and finished a bottle of FertileAid, then started a bottle of whole food prenatals. (After ovulation I stopped OvaBoost and the EPO). Also drank a raspberry leaf tea blend but wasn't super consistent so i can't say if that helped or not. Hubby has been taking Conception Men by EU natural, before that took FertileAid for Men by fairhaven but stopped a couple cycles ago because they made him sick.

**Birth control history (if relevant): was on the pill for 2 years 2017-2019. Stopped in June 2019 and prevented using condoms and charting.

**Symptom spotting: this cycle I really tried not to do this because I've driven myself crazy before thinking I was pregnant and was just having PMS symptoms. At 8 DPO I had nausea and some motion sickness/hot flashes. Period like cramping started on 10 or 11 DPO and continued quite intensely until 13 DPO. I felt a sharp sensation on one part of my uterus and a weird warm/burning sensation during that time as well. Cramps had me convinced my period was coming, they felt like period cramps but then tapered off into a consistent sharp/shooting pain in one place in my uterus. Some creamy CM was also seen but it wasn't a ton so I didn't think it was a symptom. This is also weird, but I had a weird burst of energy a couple days before and the day of that I got my first vvfl. No idea what that was about..

**Other (advice/tip(s), freaking out, miscellaneous): I was so hesitant to even believe it was real and to let myself be excited but it's slowly sinking in. I had a CP in January and possibly another in the spring, we've been trying for what felt like ages and I was so scared of the line not darkening and AF showing up. So far so good and I have a feeling this one is a sticky one. I think I'm still in so much shock and disbelief that's its real that I can't even feel many emotions. I'm so grateful and SO relieved that our dream is finally coming true after almost a year, many negative tests, tears and heartbreak. It feels surreal but I'M FREAKING PREGNANT.

Advice- this was the first cycle I was starting to really let go emotionally of the process. I was tempted not to chart this cycle but I went ahead thinking if this wasn't it I would stop the next cycle. I was getting tired of being so stressed by my chart and the emotions that come with seeing that BBT drop before AF arrives. We only BD'd once in my fertile window which is funny because it's the only cycle since TTC in almost a year that we only BD'd once. Constantly BD'ing was so stressful for me before that this cycle we just decided to try once - and I think being more relaxed and less stressed in that way helped to contribute to succeeding this time. I can't say for sure what "worked", if anything it was a combination of things. But something I can put my finger on is I was way less stressed this cycle both physically and mentally. I was blessed to have had an unexpected two weeks off of my normal schedule and work which fell before and during TWW, and I took that time for some much needed rest and self care. I can't help but wonder if that was what did it. I hate it when they say to relax and some people really do have difficulty decreasing stress in their life due to their schedule ect, but if you can find little ways to relax your body more and take some pressure and stress off yourself (example BD'ing once on O or O-1) it might set you on the right path. At the very least you will feel better overall so you don't have anything to lose.