AboutBrigid Kowalczyk Expertise Natural Family Planning is a risk-free, safe, and economical alternative to chemical and barrier contraceptives. NFP is easy to understand, aids in fertility awareness for spacing children as well as increasing communication and assisting couples to conceive. I do not answer questions about other forms of birth control.
Experience I like being able to help people find alternatives to artificial birth control. I am not a doctor or a medical person. I cannot answer medical questions.
Organizations National Association of Legal Professionals, (NALS). Couple to Couple League (www.ccli.org - national organization for NFP)
Education/Credentials Medical Assisting diploma, Bachelor of Arts, Associate of Applied Science in Legal Studies.
Awards and Honors College graduate with high honors; high school graduate with highest honors;
Expert: Brigid Kowalczyk Date: 8/9/2007 Subject: charting and opk's
Question QUESTION: Hi, im nursing my 1 year old daughter about 1-3 times in the days and 2-4 times at night. Im ttc another baby. Im charting and using opk's. My chart address is below. I have a few questions..... Is it normal to have very low temps or could something be wrong? What would it mean to have 2 days of positive opk's and another 2 days of what either are almost + or they actually are. I did take soy this month which is like clomid if used on days 3-7. Also is a 10 day LP ok or do I need to take something to make it longer? With vit b-6 work? If so how nuch is needed?
ANSWER: Low temperatures can be a sign of thyroid problems. I don't think soy is a good thing to be taking if you have thyroid issues. I'd stop that.
10 days LP is borderline and might be too short to sustain a pregnancy. Increase your VB6 and don't even worry about how much. I took 1000 mg for over a year with no problems and it got rid of the PMS I had had for 15 years!
It could also be that your nursing daughter is still lowering your fertiliy below the optimal level. I'd suggest you wait a few more months, nurse her as long as she's interested and let a little more time go by before attempting another baby. She's still young and needs you and the nursing, too.
I nursed my babies for over 4 years each (I had three kids, so there was some tandem nursing going on). My periods naturally returned after about 14-15 months but I didn't get pregnant right away. My kids are 2 1/2 and 3 1/4 years apart and I was happy with that and the babies were happy, too.
Be patient, I don't think there is any reason to be alarmed at this time. Just relax and enjoy the baby you have and wait for another baby to come at the right time. If you haven't gotten pregnant in a year, then you might want to start charting seriously again. But stop the soy, that's really not good right now.
If the health claims surrounding soy sound too good to be true, it's because they are. This important issue is the premise behind Dr. Kaayla Daniel's groundbreaking book, The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favorite Health Food. This powerful exposé reveals the truth about the soy myths that have infiltrated our culture. In it, you'll learn that:
Soy is not a health food
Soy is not the answer to world hunger
Soy is not a disease-preventive panacea
Soy has not even been proven safe
It's ironic that soy has become so accepted as a health food when, as Dr. Daniel states, thousands of studies link soy to malnutrition, digestive distress, immune-system breakdown, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline, reproductive disorders and infertility--even cancer and heart disease. But by the end of Chapter 3, The Ploy of Soy, you'll understand why the soy marketing campaign worked so well.
QUESTION: So are low temperatures always sign of a thyroid problem? Or can some people just have low temps? Or can it be caused from breastfeeding?
Answer Yes, low temperatures are a definite sign of thyroid problems, but, of course, it could be indicative of something else, too. I usually ran low temps but I also do have some thyroid problems. Breastfeeding and low temps is something I'll have to research but I don't think it's a serious concern. I'll let you know if I find out anything. I'd eliminate the soy and see what happens.
