Below is the comparison from the first SA to the one done last week and also what the normal range is:
Volume: 3.0ml
Volume: 2.0ml
Normal Range > 1.5ml
(this number changes per ejaculation so the decrease doesn't mean a thing as long as it's in normal range)
Motility: 20%
Motility: 62%
Normal Range >=40%
Morphology: 16%
Morphology: 20%
Abnormal Range: less than 4%
Progression: 2
Progression: 3
Grade: 1=Poor 2=Moderate 3=Good 4=Rapid
Total Motile Sperm: 36 million
Total Motile Sperm: 70.06 million
Normal Range: Greater than 9 million
Viscosity: Abnormal
Viscosity: Normal
We're so pleased with these numbers!
I had to do a little research on the CBE Monitor today because this morning I got another "peak" reading and I felt fairly certain that wasn't accurate.
It turns out that the monitor is programmed to automatically give you another day of a "peak" reading, then a day of "high" before going back to low after it detects the first "peak" reading. In other words, the test stick means nothing at all.
So ladies using this product suggest you just stop testing after you get a "peak" reading to save yourself some test sticks.
My next concern was whether or not it was going to make me start testing every month on CD6 which, for me, is a waste.
It turns out that it makes everyone test on CD 6-9. As it gets to know your cycle it will move to 9 if that's the best course of action for your normal cycle.
There were two suggestion to circumvent the "ten test sticks" requirement:
1. Save one used test stick and repeatedly use that until you are closer to the days you normally ovulate
2. Refuse to test until you are closer to the days you normally ovulate.
In both cases, you take a chance of potentially missing your ovulation date if you happen to ovulate early that month.
Also, in my view, that could skew the pattern the monitor is trying to get to know.
And, the thing that annoys me the most about this monitor is that it will ask for test sticks in sets of ten even after you reach your peak. I got my first peak day on my 11the test day. Which means that it will ask me for 9 more test sticks after that. Not going to happen! So the suggestion was the same as above, just insert a used test stick for the rest of the required days.
All in all, I think the OPK system is probably better because you can use as few test sticks as you want. However, I say this about the CBE Advanced OPK only.
But, I own the monitor now so will continue to use it
And speaking of OPK's...
Out of curiosity I took another OPK this morning. Remember, with the CEB Advanced OPK's you get a blinking smiley when you have a "high" reading, a solid smiley at "peak" and a open circle for a "low" reading.
You might recall from my post yesterday that I got a "low" reading when I came home from work.
This morning I got this:
Since I got another blinking smiley here, we'll add another day of BD to cover all bases.
My thought is that when you're taking these CBE (OPK and Monitor) tests, you're supposed to use first morning urine. Obviously, that's not what I used when I got home so maybe that's why I had the "low" reading.
I don't think I'll have much to talk about tomorrow so there may not be a post.
Have a great Friday!
