Why can’t I see ovulation on the basal body temperature graph in some cases?
To make any assessment on a basal body temperature chart it would be good to have a complete set of readings from one period to the next.
In the majority of cases, between one menstrual period and the next, a biphasic trend is evident which allows the day of ovulation to be identified with good precision, possibly with the help of tracing the coverline .
However, the typical trend of an ovulatory cycle may not always be evident and the graph could look like this:
There is no rise in temperature that has persisted for more than three days and that could indicate that ovulation has taken place.
In this case it could be an anovulatory cycle , i.e. a menstrual cycle in which ovulation has not occurred.
When ovulation does not occur, it is not possible to see the temperature rise because progesterone has not been released, which is the hormone responsible for the increase in basal body temperature.
In fact, progesterone is produced by the corpus luteum which is formed after the bursting of the follicle which releases the egg cell ready to be fertilized.
Sometimes a fluctuating and indecipherable graph can be due to errors in the detection: it is enough to have a cold or sleep little or badly, or even take the TB at different times, to make a graph unreliable.
A small percentage of women may get these graphs because their body does not respond to changes in blood progesterone levels and therefore does not detect the temperature jump even if they have actually ovulated.
It may happen that you get charts like this occasionally even if you ovulate regularly in most months. Anovulatory cycles can be caused by flu, stress, the presence, for example, of ovarian cysts…
If you notice frequent anovulatory cycles you may be suffering from Micropolycystic Ovary , or menopause may be approaching, or there may be a hormonal imbalance that needs to be investigated.
If you are in doubt as to whether the temperature pattern reflects ovulation or not, and if you are familiar with natural methods that rely on the position of the cervix and mucus symptoms, you may want to combine all methods, including temperature, to get a better picture. clear of the situation.
If the doubts persist then all that remains is to carry out some ultrasound monitoring to evaluate the maturation of the ovarian follicles.
Kathryn Barlow is an OB/GYN doctor, which is the medical specialty that deals with the care of women's reproductive health, including pregnancy and childbirth.
Obstetricians provide care to women during pregnancy, labor, and delivery, while gynecologists focus on the health of the female reproductive system, including the ovaries, uterus, vagina, and breasts. OB/GYN doctors are trained to provide medical and surgical care for a wide range of conditions related to women's reproductive health.