OPK is positive no matter when I test

jennh75b

So I mentioned this in my intro thread but just wanted to see if anyone else has experienced this.  I did make an appointment for OB in a couple of weeks and this will be my number one question to ask him.  I tried two different brands of OPK and each time I used them they were automatically positive, and kept being positive (I kept using them day after day because they kept being positive for one cycle), then another month I bought another more expensive/sophisticated brand and they were positive so I kept trying them at different times of the month to test this out and every time I got a smiley face.  I've searched all over for others who have experienced this and can't seem to find anyone who has this issue.  I know that increased LH appears to be a symptom for PCOS, but I have never had issues with AF or cysts or any of the other issues associated with PCOS.  I also read that increased LH is also a sign of menopause.  Again, I am always regular, predictable cycels, no issues, etc.  I know there are always exceptions to what the majority experience, but I'm at a loss for what this could mean.  Any insight is much appreciated!

lickastick

Can you tell us exactly which products you have used?

jennh75b

That's tough, as I did this in the spring and have since thrown them all away.  One was a generic brand one I bought at Rite Aid - their generic one.  Then I tried a brand that gives the smiley faces - possibly a Clearblue digital one.  I don't think it was sophisticated as the Advanced one, however the actual product of the Advanced version looks more familiar to me than the regular digital Clearblue one.  

lickastick

I can't say with certainty about what is true for you, but the opk's with the smileys are measuring both estrogen and LH and lots of women report problems and false positives or smilys for days. You should search the boards for other people's experiences. Some women just have problems with opk's, never turning them or false positives. Again I would suggest searching the boards like TTGP for more information. Other ladies on here might be able to give you more insight. I use wandfos and I test 2-3x a day in the fertile window and i am able to see my surge. For the wandfos and non-clearblue remember it isn't actually positive until the line is as dark as test line.

thistle8677

@jennh75b have you tried clearblue digital?
The wondfo test strips can be harder to read because you have to determine if the second line is as dark or darker than the test line, as @createillumination has said.

The clearblue digital will give you either an open circle (negative), flashing smiley (high fertility) and a solid smiley (peak reading).

Hope you get some answers. If you do have PCOS, these opk's could all be misleading for you. If you suspect this may be the case for you, I recommend a visit with your dr.

Best of luck to you!

jennh75b

Thanks all for your feedback.  @thistle8677  I am pretty sure I used the Clearblue digital - just can't recall if was the advanced or the regular one.  I guess I will see what insight my doc can give on this subject.  

@createillumination - I have tried finding similar threads on this subject but have had no luck thus far.  I'll keep looking, though.

I guess the good thing is I did have spikes in BBT- I only started doing BBT when the OPK were not proving to be an option for me.  I never did them at the same time.  

lickastick

A lot of people who say they have problems with the OPK's have PCOS. I can't remember if that is something you have considered/or are diagnosed with. 

Let me see if I can get you some links-
https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/12214989/opk-and-pcos-whats-your-experience

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/12652829/wandfo-vs-clearblue-easy-digital-ovulation-tests

I believe BBT plus OPK plus CM is covering every basis! But lots of women get by with just one or the other. I hope that helps a little.

jennh75b

I guess I could be rather clueless when it comes to all of the ways to help you predict O, but after I gave up on OPK, I tracked BBT for about 4 months - in those 4 months I always had a spike between 16 and 18 days.  So that is what I have been planning around...that three day time frame.  One perceived problem is that I was starting to initiate BD on day 10 or so, thinking we would be BD'ing every other day all week.  That never seemed to work out, as I would initiate one or two times and then it was like we weren't trying at all.  So my new approach since we are only BD'ing one or two times a month is to wait until day 14.

*Edit* Thank you @createillumination for those links.  I did read through them and it seems that most seem to be frustrated that the tests never test positive for them, rather than the opposite like me.  But I'm just going to not put too much stock into these tests and hope that the BBT are signs enough that I do O each month.

dmndsr4eva

jennh75b said:

I guess I could be rather clueless when it comes to all of the ways to help you predict O, but after I gave up on OPK, I tracked BBT for about 4 months - in those 4 months I always had a spike between 16 and 18 days.  So that is what I have been planning around...that three day time frame.  One perceived problem is that I was starting to initiate BD on day 10 or so, thinking we would be BD'ing every other day all week.  That never seemed to work out, as I would initiate one or two times and then it was like we weren't trying at all.  So my new approach since we are only BD'ing one or two times a month is to wait until day 14.

*Edit* Thank you @createillumination for those links.  I did read through them and it seems that most seem to be frustrated that the tests never test positive for them, rather than the opposite like me.  But I'm just going to not put too much stock into these tests and hope that the BBT are signs enough that I do O each month.

Hi, Just chiming in.  Since sperm can live up to 5 days I would suggest cd 13 to start bd?  Seems like you could miss O if you start BD too late?