Community post

It could be either! The frustrating waiting game for you beings!

The depo injection is notorious for playing havoc with your returning menstrual cycle. Some women do not even get a return to their normal cycle for up to a year. How long were you on the depo for? The longer you were on it, the longer the wait can be. It may be helpful to aim to track signs of ovulation - such as shifting temperature, so you have a possible idea when to take a pregnancy test.

Yup, unfortunately I only read after having my last shot of the depo regarding dodgy cycles :-( it seems like a lot of people aren’t prewarned by drs so not just me!

I only took two shots. I have never tracked temp before so only have an estimated ovulation date based on average which was the 2nd, but I think it may have been more around the 6th as I had a stronger line on an OPK then, though it wasn’t as dark as the control line.

So frustrating when it could go either way! If you have any tips for charting temps please let me know, I’m a bit uneducated with this

Yes health professionals should make women aware that the depo affects menstrual cycles. Hopefully as you only had two shots, you'll find your regular pattern soon!

With temping, it should be done every morning every day of your cycle - the first thing you do - so getting a small thermometer and placing it in your bedside cabinet is a good idea! I also recommend doing both ears, as sometimes one ear is artificially hotter than the other (due to lying on a pillow!), unless of course you have an oral thermometer etc.

Every woman will have a slightly different temp pattern, but in short - you are looking for on average a 0.4 degree farenheit shift UP in temp, which will show you have ovulated. Progesterone makes the body hotter! I work in celsius as I am from the UK so it's more like 0.2 degree shift for me! The temp shift occurs after ovulation - so its not a way to plan intercourse, it'll be too late! It just lets you know you have ovulated, which is nice.

The temperature will remain that 0.3 - 0.4 degrees higher until usually the day before or day of your period, at this point the progesterone plummets if you are not pregnant and your temperature will go back to around your baseline. HOWEVER, if you are pregnant, you remain with elevated progesterone and your temperature will not drop! It may possibly climb even higher!

So in a nutshell, you're looking for a temp increase to show you have ov'd and the temp to remain high!

Some believe there is even an implantation dip in temperature (on the day of the blastocyst implanting in your womb, you may get a slightly lower temp but it will go back to being high the next day) - but not everyone gets that and I wouldn't be too hung up on looking for it!