My Infertility Journey: The Ferning Test (Part 6)

Obie Editorial Team

With no success with intrauterine insemination (IUI), ovulation tracking, and fertility acupuncture, I was kind of at a loss as to what to do next. IVF was the only option I knew that I hadn't tried, and it was a lot more expensive than I could afford at that time. Further research online talked about the fertility diet and I was taking mental notes about this, thinking it might be my next best option.

While pondering the fertility diet, I had an appointment with my primary care doctor about some annoying allergy symptoms I'd been having for the past few months. I mentioned my conception troubles to him at the appointment and discussed everything I'd tried. To my surprise, he had a ready suggestion and it was something totally new to me.

He told me his wife had experienced trouble conceiving and that they had tried many of the things I'd just done. He said what eventually worked for them was something called a ferning test. He said it was a much more accurate predictor of ovulation than ovulation predictor sticks.

The ferning test is actually a tiny microscope you buy and you put a tiny drop of saliva on the lens every day. You look at the saliva through the microscope lens and when the saliva sample shows a crystal-like pattern that looks like fern leaves (rather than the normal droplet pattern), it means you are ovulating right then and need to have sex ASAP.

Since my doctor and his wife now have five children (two sets of twins and one single) all due to using the ferning test, it seemed like a good idea to try it. So I bought an inexpensive ferning test kit. I read the directions and duly followed them for a month. It was hard to see through the tiny lens, but I did eventually see the ferning pattern. We had sex on the ferning day as instructed. And did I get pregnant? Sadly, no. Once again, my period came right on schedule.

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