Aw, Mittelschmerz!

My husband and I realized the other night how much fun it is to say, "Mittelschmerz!" to each other in our most convincing German accents. Go ahead. Give it a try!

MITTELSCHMERZ!

The notsomuch fun part? Actually experiencing it.

When I was in my early 20's I began suffering from a recurring paralyzing pain in my lower abdomen.  I'd be in the middle of dinner with friends or worse, a date, when the pain would start slowly... creeping up on me with subtle cues. The first sign was as if I had eaten something gaseous. Like a barrel of beans. But the feeling was way more crippling than gas pains. Within a few short moments, my lower body would bloat noticeably and the pain would deepen. Turning a night out socializing into a complete failure. I remember the empathetic looks of concerned friends, suggesting I go to the doctor. I would tell them, "I think I'm ovulating" before I would hobble off and head straight home in a cab, clutching my side as if dying from appendicitis.  My ovulation theory seemed to make the most sense. This started happening almost every month about halfway through my cycle. So I used my deductive nature to piece the clues together. I thought (hoped) this must be normal. And as I recently discovered, it most certainly is.

Mittelschmerz, as it turns out, happens to 20% of women right around ovulation. I've read varying opinions as to what causes it. Could be the egg bursting through the ovarian wall. Could have something to do with follicular growth. One thing is certain - it is nothing to be worried about. In fact, it's a blessing in disguise. Mittelschmerz actually alerts you (in a really painful way) that you're ovulating. And this is important news for anyone wanting to get (or avoid getting) pregnant.

I feel like a bit of an idiot. All these years I thought I knew about my body. But I really didn't. I mean reallllly really didn't.

One of my best friends recommended the book, "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" to get-to-know the not-so-mysterious signs and signals of our bodies. I bought it right when we started trying to get pregnant and barely made it past the first page. I was afraid it was TOO scientific. I got scared. I didn't want to have to THINK about getting pregnant. I just wanted to do what billions of people have done for ages. Sleep with my husband and make a baby. Ta-daaa!

After the miscarriage, I picked the book back up again. I practically devoured the pages, reading the first 60 straight through. It wasn't high science. It was full of "aha" moments. It was here that I first read about Mittelschmerz.

It's amazing the plethora of information that I've learned in the past few weeks. My body has been communicating with me for 20 some-odd years in a language I didn't understand. There was the "gross, disgusting, stuff" that I kept hush-hush about which turns out to be perfectly normal (and healthy) cervical fluid necessary for making babies. Which shows up just prior to ovulation, screaming at you, "we're fertile now"! I learned that sperm can live up to five days, that tracking your "waking temperature" and cervical fluid is the most reliable way to deduce exactly when you're at your peak fertility, and that your temperature goes up anywhere from .4 - 1 degree right after you've ovulated.

I've been tracking my waking temperature every morning with the help of my husband (*as an aside, he's not actually necessary, but it's a nice way to keep the hubby involved). The past few days my temperature was exactly the same: 97.5. And after my "Mittelshmerz" pains on Friday into Saturday I wondered... does this REALLY mean I'm ovulating? Will my temperature increase on Sunday morning? Today my waking temperature was 97.9.

Ta-freaking-daaa!

Baby-making should be fun, spontaneous and enjoyable. But knowing a little bit about your body ain't such a bad thing either.