TTC a Girl LIBRARY

[atomic sagebrush]

UPDATED 12-14-17 I'm going to unsticky these and let them sink into oblivion. It's just too much work for me to keep all these threads going and up to date and barely anyone reads them anyway. The links in the Complete Index here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...ete-index.html is in the process of being completely updated and that is your go to spot for the most current swaying info.

Here's the TTC a Girl Library - all atomic's TTC pink essays in one thread. This thread is JUST essays, no questions, comments, or discussion. If you would like to read the comments or post a question, follow the link at the top of each essay back to the originals.

If you're looking for more general posts, try these two library threads:

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...ound-here.html

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...pink-blue.html

the complete index is here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...ete-index.html


READ ME FIRST - Planning Your Pink Sway (these essays are all posted in this thread or one of the other Library threads but posting this here for convenience.)

There is a lot of info here and more coming every day, so daisynyc suggested that I make a kind of "menu" for getting started with planning a sway. (THANK YOU!!) Any and all suggestions are very welcome...it is hard for me to keep track of what I've covered adequately and what needs a little more attention, please let me know about anything that you would like to see more of or that I maybe forgot to go back to.


EVERYONE planning a sway needs to stop to think what their swaying strategy should be so please start by reading:

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ule-of-swaying!

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...zing-your-sway

DIET

LE Diet Nutshell version http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...l-version.html

LE Diet FAQ http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...tml#post335985

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...he-magic-foods

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...s-for-TTC-Pink

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...s-for-TTC-pink!

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ls-to-TTC-Pink

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...e-%96-how.html

DOUCHE/LUBE

(checking pH)http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...-for-DH-and-DW

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...-lure-of-Lubes!!

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-rephresh.html

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ching-TTC-Pink

HORMONES

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...s-for-TTC-Pink

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...sterone-levels

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...a-both-genders

TIMING

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...le-timing.html

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...nd-girl-Part-1

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...istory-of-O-12 (this essay contains links to part 2 and 3 in this series)

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...-pink-and-blue

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...pink-blue.html

SUPPLEMENTS

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...periences-here!!!

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ELP-TTC-A-GIRL

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...-HELPFUL-HERBS

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...S-FOR-TTC-PINK

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...LEMENTS-FOR-DH

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...depth-how.html

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...echniques.html

LOWERING SPERM COUNT

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/sper...M!!!=#post3001

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ting-Technique

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...-Condom-method

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...tting-pregnant!

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...-pink-and-blue

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...l-version.html


Low Everything Diet - Nutshell Version

The full Low-Everything Diet for Pink(LE Diet) is found in the Dream Members section http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-ttc-pink.html along with a lot of other good stuff!! (plus atomic always answers questions in that section first.)

If you want to understand the scientific reasoning underlying the LE Diet, read this:
Understanding the Trivers Willard Hypothesis

And the LE Diet FAQ is found here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...tml#post335985

Before you do the LE Diet, take a sec to revise your thinking when it comes to sway diets. The LE Diet does not involve mineral balancing, pH of foods you eat, and there ARE NO forbidden foods on this diet (there are a few foods that you may want to avoid which I’ll talk about below, but even those are not make-or-break) It’s the overall totals of the day that count, not any magical food http://genderdreaming.com/forum/sway...gic-foods.html

If you can’t let go of those ideas, please follow the link for a thread that will describe how to tweak the existing sway diets to be more in line with LE principles. http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-ttc-pink.html

In short, the LE Diet is a low calorie, low protein, low fat diet, with nutrient intake kept on the low side and eating in patterns that are more likely to help keep blood sugar low.

Basic guidelines:

1500-1800 calories a day

This is the level of caloric intake recommended by reproductive endocrinologists for safe weight loss while going HT. It is a safe level of weight loss while TTC.

If you’re very tall, are breastfeeding, want to stop weight loss or are losing massive quantities of weight too quickly, bump up to 1800-2000 cals (keeping protein and fat intake within limits and making up the difference with carbs.)

If you are very petite, typically only eat 1500-1800 cals, or have plateaued on weight loss at 1500-1800 and still have more to lose, you can bump down to 1200-1500 cals. DO NOT go any lower than that. Starvation is not an option and is not allowed on LE Diet (in fact, it may actually temporarily raise your testosterone!!)

If you have a lot of weight to lose, please try to resist the temptation to start off at 1200-1500 cals. It’s best to start on 1500-1800 and then see how you go. Cutting back more than you need will wreck your metabolism and make it harder to lose weight in the long run. You can always cut back more later on, but you can’t reset your metabolism right in the middle of your sway.

Calories should come primarily from carbs

If you are very thin to start with or have already lost a lot of weight and are needing to hold steady, it’s good to include lots of empty carbs. (refined, white grains and sugar.)

If you have insulin resistance, PCOS, or are heavy to start out with, you should focus more on fruits, vegetables, and limit grains to 2-3 servings of whole grains a day. The fiber will slow down the rise in your blood sugar and make it easier for your body to digest the carbs. Please read the following link about adjusting your diet if you have blood sugar issues http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...ar-issues.html

40-50 g protein

DO NOT go below this. This is the lower limit of healthy protein intake for an adult woman in her childbearing years. You need this much protein prior to conception.

If you have insulin resistance or PCOS, you should increase protein to 50-60 g. You may also want to increase protein to 50-60 g if you are breastfeeding if you find your milk is not adequate.

20-30% of your day’s calories from fat

This is the amount of fat intake advised from virtually all medical sources as ideal for good health. It’s much lower than most people eat, however.

Depending on how many cals you are eating, this typically works out to be between 25-60 g. The more cals you are eating, the more fat you will be taking in.

DO NOT eat NO fat. You need fat to manufacture progesterone and estrogen that will help you get and stay pregnant. If you’ve gone on a long time without getting pregnant for no apparent reason, please start to eat the highest percent fat. If you are breastfeeding, eat the highest percent fat.

2500-3500 mg potassium MINIMUM

DO NOT go under this amount. It can be FATAL. You can get more if you would like to.

It is quite likely potassium does not even sway anyway, please don’t risk your health for a sway tactic that is utterly unproven and doesn’t even make any sense. BTW, this is the same level of potassium that is recommended on InGender and in the French Gender Diet, but neither of them are very vocal about stressing how important it is that you get that amount of potassium. YOU CAN DIE if you do not get enough potassium, and this is a real risk that can actually occur.

If you are exercising, are tall, or drinking a lot of liquid, aim for the higher range. If at any point you feel like your heart is skipping beats or otherwise weird in any way, increase potassium.

Low Nutrient, not NO nutrient

Vitamin supplements and highly fortified foods should be avoided. The exception is folic acid – you should be taking 1200-1600 mcg a day spaced out over the course of the day. Also, if you legitimately need certain supplements for your health, please take them regardless of how they sway.

Fruits and vegetables are 100% allowed on the LE Diet. If you have a choice between higher nutrient vegetables and lower nutrient vegetables, then pick the lower nutrient ones, but that does not mean you cannot eat higher-nutrient vegetables. YOU CAN!! You would have to eat a mountain of broccoli to reach the level of nutrition in one Big Mac, fries, and a chocolate shake.
Even high nutrient vegetables are really low nutrient foods overall.

If you have insulin resistance or PCOS, you should focus on getting your carb needs from fruits and vegetables.http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...ar-issues.html

Low carb vegetables are free foods meaning you can eat as much as you like, no need to count them.

High carb (sweet or starchy) veg and fruits, count calories but not protein or fat.

High protein vegetables (legumes), count calories and protein.

High fat vegetables (avocado and olives) should be limited but if you have some, count cals and fat.

700-1000 mg sodium

This is by far the least important. I do not believe sodium even sways (and high sodium intake may even sway PINK by harming overall health) but I keep it in the mix because it’s good for overall health and is relatively easy for people to include. If you have to cheat, make it on sodium.

Foods that are probably best avoided

While there are no magic foods, there are some foods that are probably best eaten sparingly or avoided all together, either because they’re somewhat blue-friendly or they make it too hard to stick within your day’s limits, or both.

Any highly fortified food like breakfast cereal.

Garlic, onions, oatmeal, and celery have compounds in them that may raise testosterone.

Fruit and vegetables juices – highly concentrated sources of nutrients

Meat and eggs, especially whole eggs, are highly concentrated sources of protein for very few calories. So after only a small serving, you exceed your protein allotment for the day and have eaten barely any calories whatsoever. Also, they are very nutrient dense foods so even just a tiny serving can give you a big burst of nutrition. They may also have fats in them that your body can use to make testosterone.

Nuts and seeds – healthy fats and lots of nutrients and protein. A small amount is ok.

Beans and peas – high protein. A small amount is ok.

Fish and shellfish – Avoid oily fishes like tuna and salmon all together due to their healthy fat. Whitefish/shellfish are very high in protein and low cal and should be avoided, but are better than the oily fishes.

Full fat dairy – Most swayers will want to use skim products instead. However, if you need fat intake, switching to full fat dairy can be helpful for getting more fat and cals without adding protein - if you were eating skim yogurt, switch to full fat...same amount of protein, but extra fat and a few more cals. Also, those with PCOS or insulin resistance, you should use full fat dairy, particularly yogurt and cheese, because this gives you a much better insulin response than skim does.

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-ttc-pink.html

also there is a short recipe thread here, more recipes in the Dream Members section http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-ttc-pink.html

diet suggestions for TTC Pink

ETA - Just a reminder, this is NOT the only diet to follow when you sway. This is more of an attempt to put ALL the diets together into one big diet plan. You DO NOT need to be this restrictive, there are several options available for you.

This IS NOT THE LE DIET. That is available in the Dream Members section along with recipes, meal plans, tips, food guides, etc. for the cost of $1 a month ($12 a year). This is just a way to incorporate some of the LE Diet principles into the IGD and FGD that some people are/were following. You do not need to be this strict at all on the LE Diet.

The purpose of this diet is to make your body think that times are hard and you don’t have access to as many nutritious foods as you normally do, while reducing testosterone levels by lowering protein and fat intake and reducing the amount of phytonutrients in the diet that help to keep testosterone levels elevated. Low protein, low nutrient, low fat, low calorie - that is the goal.

Potassium and sodium are also kept low. pH is lowered by weight loss and supplements more effectively than eating or not eating a few foods could ever do, so a few more alkaline fruits and vegetables are allowed. Everyone should make the effort to lose even just a pound or two, and NO ONE should gain weight while swaying pink. Weight loss will lower your testosterone and lower pH.

Diet should be based primarily around grains, fruits and vegetables, and skim dairy. Every food should be as low in sodium as possible. Protein intake should be kept to a minimum - adult women only need 40-50 grams of protein for optimal health. Most of us eat much more than that anyway, and eating too much protein is worse for the body than not eating enough.

A small bagel has 10 grams of protein so you can see that it‘s actually very easy to get enough. It is possible to develop a form of malnutrition called Kwashiorkor from eating too little protein for long periods, so just aim for 40 grams of protein a day. Don’t worry if you fall a little short one day or go a little over another day.

ALL foods contain nutrients, so always keep in mind that eating unlimited amounts of even the foods on this list may keep you from losing weight/muscle and keep your testosterone elevated. Also, there are no magic foods http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...he-magic-foods so if you find that eating a food not on this list occasionally as a treat, really helps you to stick to the overall goals of the diet - low protein, low nutrient, low fat, low calorie - it is FINE if you eat it once in awhile.

I'll say it again - IT IS FINE TO EAT A FOOD NOT ON THIS LIST, OCCASIONALLY AS A TREAT, AS LONG AS YOU STICK TO THE OVERALL GOALS OF THE DIET. It's even ok if you find a low-protein food not on this list (let's say for the sake of argument, radishes) makes a good everyday food for you. Radishes it is. As long as it helps you to stick to those overall goals - low protein, low fat, low-calorie.

It's best to skip breakfast and also to eat 2-3 meals a day, rather than grazing or snacking all day long. http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...=3764#post3764

Fruits - Apples with skin cut off, pears with skin cut off, cranberries, dried cranberries, and diet cranberry juice (avoid juice blends and cocktails, 100% pure juice is best), green grapes, fresh strawberries. AVOID brightly colored and strong tasting fruits.

Vegetables - Cucumber (skin cut off), green beans (wax beans aka yellow green beans are also acceptible), mung bean sprouts, iceberg lettuce, eggplant with skin cut off, white mushrooms, white corn, spaghetti squash, zucchini with skin cut off. AVOID brightly colored and strong-tasting vegetables.

Grains - white rice, low sodium pasta, homemade low sodium bread. Pasta and flour are sold fortified with iron and B vitamins, that is just something we have to live. Luckily, the type of iron in white flour is not well used by the body, esp. when you’re not eating a lot of Vitamin C. Spaghetti squash may be another option to consider.

Dairy - If possible, find dairy without Vitamin D. If you can’t find it, you may wish to reduce your dairy intake to avoid getting too much Vitamin D. Vitamin D is believed to raise testosterone.

Organic dairy may be preferable because it does not contain growth hormones.

Regardless of what you may have heard elsewhere, ALL dairy has potassium. By law, potassium content does not have to be listed on the label, so just because something doesn’t say ’potassium’ on the label, does not mean there is no potassium in it. Even UHT shelf-stable milk has potassium. Dairy also has a LOT of sodium per serving. Be aware and monitor to make sure you are not getting too much sodium.

Skim milk, fat-free yogurt (sweetened with aspartame is best), low sodium cheeses. Dairy foods have lots of protein, sodium, and other vitamins and should be used with care - remember, the goal is to reduce your protein intake enough to lower your testosterone.

Protein - Protein should be limited. Red meat and oily fish should be avoided all together because they have lots of protein and good fats in them, and it’s best to avoid chicken, turkey, and white fish as much as possible too. Egg beaters or egg white should be used in place of whole eggs when possible, because yolks have good fats and lots of vitamins. Beans are very healthy and high in sodium anyway, so they should be used sparingly, although they’re a good once in awhile treat on a day when you haven’t had much protein or sodium. Nuts should also be avoided due to their high healthy fat content, in addition to their protein.

Soy is somewhat controversial. On the one hand, soy has been shown to lower testosterone, but on the other hand, it IS protein and some believe that it increases estrogen and CM and may sway blue because of this. Soy is probably a great option for DH, if he’s dieting along with you, since lower testosterone and higher estrogen does seem to sway pink in men and men need more protein anyway. And if you find that you’re unable to get enough protein from grains and dairy, soy is probably the best option of all protein sources due to the potential to lower testosterone.

It’s best to meet your protein requirements through grains, vegetable (beans, soy) and dairy sources rather than from meats.

Condiments - Unfortunately, most condiments are very high in sodium and should be avoided. One tablespoon of ketchup has 7% of a day’s sodium for a normal diet, let alone a swaying diet! Even low sodium ketchup/mustard should be avoided due to their phytonutrient content. Low sodium mayonnaise is ok to use sparingly.

Tahini, or ground sesame seeds, is another acceptible condiment. It’s actually quite nutritious and is high in zinc (known to sway blue), but it is a traditional part of a pink sway due to being high in calcium and magnesium, and it’s used so sparingly that it’s probably fine as a part of an otherwise restricted swaying diet.

Strawberry jam (sugar free is best), homemade cranberry sauce, homemade eggplant dips, and small amounts of vinegar and lemon/lime juice are acceptable. However, vinegar and lemon/lime juice may make you more alkaline, even in small amounts. If you choose to use them, monitor your pH to make sure that it doesn’t go up. (if you’re taking supplements to lower your pH, you should be fine.) Homemade plain yogurt based dips and sauces are a good option as well.

Beverages - In addition to 100% cranberry juice and dairy, Crystal Light, Perrier, and peppermint tea are good choices. Caffeine should be avoided. Rice milk is a vegan drink made out of rice - it is fortified with calcium and several other vitamins and does have sodium, but it is very low protein (much less than cow's milk) and is low fat. It may be an option if you find that dairy is adding too much protein to your diet.

ETA - In terms of what ~I personally~ think should have the most priority when planning your diet, I copied this from another thread. Keep in mind that I don't necessarily believe in minerals or pH, I think protein
/fat/calories and keeping blood sugar low in the 2 WW, is more important.

"The problem with swaying websites is that we lay out all the info at once and it can be overwhelming but you don't need to do everything! It's like a menu at a Chinese restaurant, you can pick something from Column A and something from Column B that work for you and your lifestyle and call that your sway! There is no right and wrong way to do it.

In order of what I think is the most important aspects of diet:

1) Lower blood sugar levels IN THE 2WW (if you can't stick to it all the time, make sure you at least try during the 2WW)
2)Losing weight (and this WILL help lower your blood sugar even if you eat 8 meals a day)
3)Lower fat (fat is easier for most people to cut back on than protein, even though I suspect protein may sway "harder".)
4)Lower protein (and lower is lower - if you can't get to 40 G a day, that's OK! If you were eating 120 and you're now eating 60, that's STILL lower. Protein can help with blood sugar)
5)Lower calories (again, lower is lower, going from 2500 to 2000 is still an improvement.)
6)Lower sodium (this is SO HARD for people to stick to that I seriously doubt all the girls who have ever been born on the face of the planet were to moms eating very little sodium)
7)Only after ALL those other things, come the lower nutrients. Eat veggies if it helps you get through the day. A huge plate of veggies is better for pink than a steak and a baked potato.
8)More cal and mag IF you want to and if you can do it without screwing up on the protein, fat and sodium.

Don't feel that you need to do everything. You don't. Making changes in the right direction still sways.

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-ttc-pink.html


When and how to eat meals to TTC Pink

WHEN AND HOW TO EAT YOUR MEALS FOR TTC PINK

(I wrote this some time ago, can't believe I didn't have it posted out here yet!)

Scientific research indicates that female blastocysts develop best in a lower glucose environment, so we try to keep our blood sugar levels somewhat on the low side (particularly during the 2WW, to limit the amount of sugar present in our bodily fluids such as the fluids in our reproductive tract where the eggs develop for several days before implanting in the uterus. This is the most proven aspect of gender swaying - researchers have actually witnessed XX and XY sucking up different amounts of glucose from the fluids around them and can differentiate between the two genders based on nothing other than the amount of glucose they suck up.

The following strategies will help:

*Skip breakfast when you can, especially right around ovulation and during the 2WW. (The blastocysts have their own food supply during this period and do not need nourishment from you.) This will give you many hours out of the day with no food intake and lower sugar levels, the environment that your newly conceived daughter seems to prefer.

* If you find you absolutely cannot skip breakfast, it is better to eat foods that are either all or mostly protein OR mostly carbs, not both together. When you eat carbs, your blood sugar rises, and protein keeps it higher for longer after eating. Protein alone does not raise blood sugar levels, and carbs alone raise your blood sugar but then your body releases insulin to metabolize the carbs, and your blood sugar drops afterwards.

Protein-based foods, such as cheese or sugarfree yogurt, will not raise your blood sugar terribly high, even though some do have a small amount of carbs in them (milk DOES have carbs and will raise your blood sugar and keep it high for a long time). Pure protein like eggs or chicken will not raise it at all. Since protein takes a long time to digest, you will not be hungry again for a long time.

Quick-burning carbs, like rice cakes, will raise your blood sugar but then your sugar levels will drop quickly as insulin is released, leaving you with blood sugar levels that were even lower than they were before you ate. WARNING - you will get hungrier than ever after your blood sugar crashes, and you may be more likely to cheat.

If you are insulin resistant, it's a bad idea to eat very many carbs because your body doesn't respond normally to insulin. Better for you to keep blood sugar levels low by eating small amounts of protein rather than carbs.

* Do not eat big, huge meals that take several hours to digest, because your blood sugar will stay elevated for a very long time after you eat them. (think Thanksgiving or Christmas Dinner.)

The worst thing you can do is eat a big breakfast (or any meal) with large amounts of both protein and carbs, because your blood sugar will rise high because of the carbs and then stay elevated for a long time due to the protein. It's ok to eat a normal meal with both protein and carbs, I'm talking about the type of meals that lay in your stomach for hours after eating them.

* Do not snack constantly, especially on sugary/high carb foods. If you are eating every 30 minutes, your blood sugar will be rising constantly and will never have a chance to drop after insulin is released.

*Allow yourself to get good and hungry between meals. This insures that you have at least some time during the day when your blood sugar is on the low side.

YES, BUT IS THIS SAFE FOR MY UNBORN CHILD?? - Some well-meaning nutritionists have been heard to say, the most important time for your child’s development is prior to conception. This makes people wonder if it’s really safe to be dieting when you’re ttc.

Throughout human history and even right now around the world, people have conceived and carried perfectly healthy babies with far, far less access to the kinds of nutritious and plentiful foods we can buy any day of the week at our local supermarket. Great minds like Socrates, Confucius, Lincoln, and Einstein, all were conceived with their mothers eating far less of a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, and without eating the massive quantities of animal protein that is currently present in the American diet.

Historically (and even in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, when our mothers conceived US!!), people just did not have access to the same sorts of foods that we have come to take for granted nowadays, and that is why we have an obesity epidemic. People are actually eating way more food than they even need.

You will be only be eating this way for a few months anyway. Once you are out of the 2WW, take a pregnancy test and if you are pregnant, you can immediately begin eating as many nutritious and healthy foods as you can get your fork into.

WARNING - If you are diabetic, hypoglycemic, or insulin resistant (less sensitive to the effects of insulin) or even suspect that you might be, you need to follow the diet and eating pattern that is right for your health, regardless of how it sways.

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...e-%96-how.html
Weight Loss for Pink, Weight Gain for Blue – How to

Weight Loss for Pink, Weight Gain for Blue – How to

One of the most common questions swayers ask is about weight loss/gain, so I thought I’d put all the info in one spot for future reference.



Why do we want to lose weight for pink?

Losing weight does a lot for us in our pink sways. First of all, we shrink muscle mass which lowers testosterone levels, because having and using muscle signals the body to make lots of testosterone (please note – there are some studies out there that show weight loss RAISES testosterone. This is in very obese people and NOT in the average person. Obese people, men especially, sometimes have very high estrogen levels due to their high body fat and their body “gives up” making testosterone and makes estrogen instead. For a woman of average weight, losing weight will loser testosterone.)

Being very heavy can cause T levels to drop, because excess body fat actually makes estrogen. Another benefit from weight loss, is that we also reduce body fat which lowers estrogen (body fat actually makes its own estrogen) and in turn dries up CM. People have reported a lot less CM after having been on the Low Everything Diet, even only after a couple of weeks. We also lower blood sugar levels by quite a lot – just by losing 5-10% of our body mass (which if you’re thin, is not much weight at all) you drastically lower blood sugar levels. Less proven, but still a plausible benefit of weight loss for your sway, is the idea that burning fat/calories for fuel acidifies the body more effectively than any supplement.

Additionally, weight loss and being at a low weight, tend to inhibit fertility overall, as does eating a less nutrient dense diet (by definition, if you’re losing weight, you’re ingesting fewer nutrients than if you’re gaining weight or holding steady.) Role of diet in ovulation problems Losing weight also sends a message to your body that food resources are scarce, which according to the Trivers-Willard Hypothesis, sways pink…we do not know if it sways via the previously-mentioned mechanisms (lowering T and E levels, drying up CM, lower blood sugar, pH), or if there is an entirely different set of mechanisms that come into play. Either way, losing weight is great for your pink sway.

How much should I lose?

You should try to be at your lowest conception weight for sure, and if possible, at your lowest adult weight. If this is undoable, just losing any weight will help. I personally only lost 3 lbs before I conceived my daughter (but this was also my lowest conception weight.) If you have PCOS and/or insulin resistance, it’s imperative to lose weight because it will help get your blood sugar, and in turn, your testosterone levels, down. The Nurses’ Health Study II found that having a BMI below 20 made it 38% more likely that your ovulation would be suppressed. (please see the link above for more about the Nurses’ Health Study II)

Is it possible to lose too much?

Yes, it is possible to lose too much weight and stop ovulation all together. Aim to go no lower than 18.5 BMI (this is the lowest normal BMI) – between 20 and 18.5 BMI should be your goal range. This will be a different number of pounds for each person depending on your height and you can find a calculator to help you figure out your BMI here: Calculate Your BMI - Standard BMI Calculator If you get to that BMI range, and can’t keep weight on, increase calories and emphasize simple carbs (unless you have PCOS or insulin resistance, in which case you should limit carbs overall, and eat complex carbs rather than simple ones). This will not hurt your sway; mice who were fed a carb-based diet still had more daughters than mice fed a high-fat diet even though their BMI and caloric intake was identical. The Nurses’ Study II also found that women who ate more simple carbs had lowered fertility. Striking variation in the sex ratio... [Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003] - PubMed - NCBI

Remember, the caloric goals of the LE Diet are 1500-1800 cals a day. People who are very petite or have a lot of weight to lose can drop down to 1200-1500. People with PCOS/IR, or who have plateaued on 1500-1800 cals a day, also may wish to drop down to the 1200-1500 cal level, temporarily (people with PCOS/IR may find that as they lose weight, their insulin sensitivity improves so much that they are able to eat more calories than they could before and yet still lose weight.) If you are very tall, have lost every pound you can spare, and/or are doing the 60-6/7 exercise recommendations for swaying found here http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...h-genders.html you may need to increase calories to 1800-2000. Do not go below 1200 cals for the sake of your health, or above 2000 for the sake of your sway.

How soon before I sway, should I lose weight?

That depends on a few different things. The conventional wisdom espoused on other sites is, you can start the diet 90 days before you start to sway because the egg has a lifespan of 90 days (grows from a tiny seed to a mature egg in that time) and the “egg priming” theory suggests there is some benefit to be gained by dieting for 90 days OR you can start diet 6 weeks out because the French Gender Diet/InGender Diet claim that your mineral levels take 6 weeks to change. I don’t personally believe in either egg priming or mineral levels swaying but just so you guys are aware of these options.

If you have a lot of weight to lose, you’ll need to start diet sooner. If you don’t have much to spare, you may want to hold off starting the diet until 2-3 weeks before your first month’s sway. pH and blood sugar drop very soon after beginning diet (for a thin person), and while testosterone and estrogen do take some time to diminish, the odds are that you won’t get pregnant the first month anyway (see below). You don’t want to waste away to nothing or feel like you need to rush your sway and drop sway tactics that you want to use, in order to conceive more quickly. I do not want ANYONE who is already thin, thinking that they need to do, or should do, a strict sway diet for 90 days before swaying and then spending 6-9 months TTC. That is a recipe for disaster. You can easily stop ovulating if you try and it can sometimes take many months or even years to get your body moving in the right direction again. We have no evidence that 90 days is any more effective than 6 weeks or 2-3 weeks.

If you’re going to start off doing a very strict sway, unless you have a lot of weight to lose (over 30 lbs), you may not want to start the diet strictly until even as soon as 2-3 weeks before your sway. Remember, you will probably not get pregnant the first month swaying; it may take you some time to ******line everything and you don’t want to feel undue pressure to drop sway tactics that you really WANT to include, just because you’ve lost too much weight.

If you already are eating a pretty girl-friendly diet (example, you’re vegetarian/vegan or you’ve been on the FGD/IGD for a few months and have just decided to switch to LE) you may wish to start LE Diet 2-3 weeks before your first month’s attempt. In fact, this is also a valid strategy for anyone who has very little weight to lose…you have the option of going vegetarian/vegan, or following FGD/IGD if you are a believer in minerals, without cutting calories, for a few months before you start to sway in earnest. That way, you potentially can reap some benefit, be it lower T and E levels and reduction in some nutrients found mostly in meat, from a veg/vegan diet, or mineral levels from FGD/IGD.

Do you know you’re higher than normal in testosterone and/or estrogen than the average person? If you have a lot of muscle mass, have PCOS, or have ever had a higher-than-average testosterone or estrogen reading via blood tests, you may want to start diet sooner rather than later, because testosterone and estrogen do take some time to lower.

I’m already really thin. Should I gain weight to lose? AND Should I try to time my weight loss to coincide with my month of conception? Many people have asked if they should try to time their weight loss to peak at conception, or gain enough weight so they will be guaranteed they are actively losing weight when they get pregnant.

Neither of these ideas is the best, for pretty much the same reasons. Firstly, remember, you may not even get pregnant the first month of swaying, so timing weight loss to peak just at the right moment, is extremely difficult. Secondly, T and E levels rise slowly and drop slowly, so all you accomplish with gaining weight to relose, is basically padding your T and E levels so diet is less effective. It’s silly to take a big step backwards when you’re trying to move forward. Thirdly, some people have had more difficulty than they thought they’d have in losing weight – you don’t want to give yourself 6 weeks to lose 20 lbs and then find it’s taking much longer than you thought. Fourthly, never underestimate the potential for an accidental pregnancy. Many people have taken time to gain weight to lose/relose only to end up with an oops baby right at the worst possible second, when they’re heavier than they’d like to be or even actively gaining (this actually happened to me and the result was DS 4). Best to ALWAYS be moving in the right direction, just in case a surprise occurs!! Finally, by trying to time weight loss, you add a huge amount of stress to the mix. Putting a deadline on yourself, planning and thinking about your sway constantly, is the type of mindset that is proven to raise testosterone levels.

It’s much better to lose weight whenever and however you can and then maintain (even if you only l
lose a single pound!) than to be trying to gain weight to lose and/or timing weight loss to coincide with some self-imposed deadline. There is nothing gained by trying to time weight loss (esp. if your plan is to gain weight first) and many risks along the way.

Should my husband lose weight before we sway?

No. For men, higher estrogen (more body fat) lowers testosterone and sperm count and so his being a little on the cuddly side, can help with a pink sway. Somewhat annoyingly, when men lose weight, they often lose mostly fat while preserving or even increasing their muscle mass. Testosterone levels increase accordingly.

Should I have DH gain weight, then?

No. Thin guys tend to add muscle long before they add fat, and so for a thinner man to gain weight, oftentimes only will add muscle and increase his testosterone levels. For a pink sway, it’s best to have DH hold steady at whatever weight he’s presently at.

Is losing weight before pregnancy healthy?

The LE Diet is designed to be in line with the recommendations of reproductive endocrinologists as a safe caloric intake pre-pregnancy for women who want to lose weight before doing HT. The protein (40-50 g a day) and fat requirements (20-30% fat, about 25-60 grams on a 1500-1800 cal diet) are low-normal protein and fat intake (low nutrients does NOT mean no nutrients) and are recommended by WebMD and WHO as safe protein and fat intakes for female health. If you are in the minority of people who need to lower to 1200-1500 cals a day, PLEASE still continue eating the 40-50 g protein and 20-30% of your day’s calories from fat. For people with PCOS or IR, you may bump up to 50-60 g of protein (this will help keep your blood sugar levels under control) but stick to the 1500-1800 calorie range.

If anything, the LE Diet is actually healthier than the diets that many of us consume pre-pregnancy. High protein intake, particularly meat, is not super-healthy as some would have you believe and of course high-fat is not super healthy either. Reducing calories slightly is also proven to be better for overall health. That having been said, lower protein, lower fat, and lower calorie diets do suppress fertility, but remember that’s what we want for pink.

Some people take the diet too far and do not follow these recommendations against my advice. I strongly urge everyone to follow the LE Diet guidelines, for your health, your baby’s health, but also for the sake of your pink sway. If your body perceives a crisis situation where it thinks you’re literally starving, it may interpret that sudden lack of food as an indicator that you are in a circumstance where you may need to fight for survival.

Your body then may rob Peter to pay Paul – shut down/reduce estrogen and progesterone production (because your body “knows” that when you’re starving is not the greatest time for a pregnancy) and switch to producing higher levels of testosterone to assist you in the fight for food. Even if your T level are lower than they once were, it very well may still be higher in proportion to estrogen and progesterone, and that may sway blue. It can be difficult, if not impossible, to totally rob your body of the raw materials it uses to make testosterone, and if you were even able to do that, you’d have rendered yourself infertile by that point anyway because your body would have nothing to make estrogen and progesterone from (all three sex hormones are made of the same raw materials.)

Should I fast to lose a lot of weight quickly?

No, for the reasons I mention above and also because it’s not healthy for you or your baby, to have a super low protein intake, either. That having been said, some people HAVE gotten baby girls while on juice fasts or during periods where they were fasting for many hours out of the day for religious reasons. If you have a lot of weight to lose (in excess of 50 lbs), you may wish to consider a temporary juice fast (you actually get a fair amount of nutrients on many juice fasts) but be sure to include many different juices to maximize your nutrition (remember, low nutrient does not equal NO nutrient). Also, you will need to come off the fast for at least a month or two before you conceive. Rapid weight loss can also cause stored toxins to be released from your body fat, so you need to give your body time for them to be processed and eliminated in order to have a safe and healthy pregnancy.

Fasting for 12-16 hours out of the day (so skipping breakfast and eating 2-3 meals in a period of 8-12 hours), a similar pattern to the daytime fasts performed by some religious groups, is not only ok, but is recommended and studies have shown it sways pink in both humans and mice alike. As long as you stick to the LE Diet and get an adequate amount of calories, you’ll be getting adequate nutrition during the hours you are eating, and this will only help your sway.

Severe fasting around ovulation, juice fasting for months on end particularly if you are already thin or even average, or in an unhealthy way, especially doing things like drinking only Crystal Light or peppermint tea, is NOT ALLOWED. Fasting at ovulation may delay O, rapid weight loss can cause a release in toxins (not what you want immediately before conception) and it’s never a good idea to fast unless you have some nutrients coming in (ie juice fast). To be honest, I really don’t want anyone to fast, even a juice fast, but if you MUST, please keep it in the short term, only if your body mass can easily sustain you, and stick to juices so you are getting some calories and nutrition coming in.

If being very heavy also lowers testosterone and lowers fertility (which it does), can I gain weight instead, or stay overweight if I already am?

Gaining weight to sway pink is not wise because it really takes a LOT of excess weight to sway pink for most people. It could take years to add enough body mass to suppress your fertility. Plus, there are no guarantees – some people can carry a lot of extra weight and still stay fully fertile, and for many people, you only make yourself more blue friendly by adding muscle mass and body fat, plus increasing nutrients overall. Beyond that, gaining weight is not good for your health and especially not good coming into a pregnancy where you’ll be gaining even more. Losing weight is the best option because it’s easy to do, sways for everyone at least to some extent, can be done in the short term, and is good for your health.

Staying overweight if you already are, is a more complicated matter and I must admit I do not have a satisfactory answer to that. If you’re overweight and you’ve conceived boys easily at your higher weight, then it would seem that you’re one of the ones who can stay very fertile at a higher weight. However, it may also be that it has just taken some time for the weight to take its toll. The problem becomes, you have to lose SO much weight to get to a low weight, and it ~could~ be that just by losing some weight, you put yourself in a better position fertility-wise and end up even more likely to conceive a boy than you were to begin with. That having been said, I know of at least a couple people who were overweight and had conceived boys, then lost some weight (not ALL the weight) and then did get a girl, so it is possible. I wish we had more info to go off of. Until we do, follow your gut.

Studies and articles that support weight loss as a method of swaying.
Small weight loss effectively reduces sex hormones linked with breast cancer | Fox News
Maternal Eating Disorders Influence Sex Ratio at Birth
The contrasting effects of ad libitum and restri... [Biol Reprod. 2007] - PubMed - NCBI
Hungry mothers give birth to more daughters : Nature News & Comment
Nighttime fasting may foster weight loss - latimes.com
Diabetes and Weight Loss

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-rephresh.html


Complete guide to Replens and RepHresh

Guide to Replens and RepHresh AND ACI-JEL (Part 1)

Ok, after reading 6 million (conflicting) posts on Replens and RepHresh and Acijel, I finally feel qualified to write this LOL.

Replens and RePhresh are both vaginal moisturizers that are low in pH. They're made by the same company and are available in the US and Europe at drugstores and worldwide via the Internet. Aci-Jel is made by a different company but does much the same thing and contains acetic acid which some believe sways more heavily pink. To read more about Aci-Jel, click here http://genderdreaming.com/forum/newt...newthread&f=13 Aci-Jel is very similar to Replens in most ways and you should use them in the same fashion. You might find one works better for you. Wherever you read the word "Replens" in this essay, mentally insert the words, "and Aci-Jel"!

REPLENS - Most swaying websites advise Replens for swaying. It has a superlow pH, according to the company it is 3-3.5, according to IG the pH is 2.8. Sounds fab right??

However, Replens was recalled this last fall. In light of this, I started looking more at RepHresh (some of you may remember the situation with Aci-Jel, where it was recalled and then did not return to the market for many months, so I wondered if the same thing might happen with Replens). I found out that RepHresh may actually be BETTER for swaying than Replens is. I'll lay out the details for both and then everyone can make up their own minds about which is better for them.

Replens does have a very low pH, so if you use Replens and then immediately take your pH afterwards, it's gonna look great. Very low. But according to the company that makes it, Replens contains pH buffers of 4-5. pH buffers are chemicals that react with low pH (whether it's the low pH of the Replens, or the low pH of your vagina, or both) to actually RAISE the pH to 4-5. The normal pH of the vagina is 4.5 and so that's what the company designs ALL its products to emulate. The company is not designing their products to sway, so NONE of their products are meant to lower your pH any more than what our vaginas are most of the time anyway. If you're looking for pH lower than 4.5, you're going to have to douche. (Aci-Jel ~may~ not contain these buffers.)

Still, 4.5, that's not too shabby. Replens is also a sticky gel and hangs around your vagina for awhile, unlike douches which wash away, leaving behind CM and semen to take their place. Replens may mix somewhat with CM and semen, rendering them lower in pH than they would be otherwise, but the pH will be an average between the two, not the 4-5 of the Replens alone. Anyone who likes Replens, it's a good option for swaying, especially with O+12. It does lower pH, no doubt about it, although some women find that their bodies try to work against the low pH and end up raising their pH as a result.

The recall on Replens is over with and if your drugstore is still not stocking it, you can fill out this form, find out when it will be back at your local store, and get a $5 coupon. Replens Long-lasting vaginal moisturizer

REPHRESH. People used to use RepHresh for swaying back a few years ago in the same manner that Replens is used by some people now. It was abandoned when some enterprising people armed with pH sticks, realized that the initial pH of RepHresh is slightly higher than the initial pH of Replens (the pH of RepHresh is somewhere between 3.5-5, depending on who you talk to), not understanding that Replens contains the pH buffers that react chemically to produce pH of 4-5 anyway.

The difference between Replens and RepHresh is, that RepHresh is designed to BALANCE vaginal pH at that magic 4.5 number. If your pH is higher, it lowers it to 4.5. If your pH is lower, it will raise it to 4.5. That has scared some people off RepHresh because they think, OMG, I just douched with my lime douche that had pH of 2 and now the RepHresh will RAISE my pH back up again!

But go back and reread that first part. If your pH is higher, it lowers it to 4.5. You know what that means? It means that when the more alkaline EWCM arrives on the scene, which it will, because your entire reproductive tract is ALWAYS churning out more CM especially around ovulation, RepHresh will lower its pH to 4.5. It means when your husband's semen arrives on scene, RepHresh will react with it and lower its pH to 4.5. It will be a 4.5 party going on. WHO cares if the initial pH of RepHresh is slightly higher than the initial pH of Replens? Both of them end up between 4-5 anyway because the company designed them to.

The difference is, RepHresh KEEPS working, reacting with everything it touches to reach 4.5, while Replens gets diluted by CM and semen. The company even advises using RepHresh immediately after sex to restore that normal vaginal pH of 4.5, because some women who are prone to yeast infections or bacterial vaginosis, get a flare up EVERY time they have sex because their pH goes up from the semen. RepHresh is designed to prevent this jump in pH from happening by lowering the pH of everything it touches to the magic 4.5. Including semen.

Plus, because it's a sticky gel, RepHresh lasts for THREE DAYS. Perfect for a cutoff. Replens also lasts three days too, but remember it gets diluted by CM and semen and its pH WILL rise. So for a cutoff, I think RepHresh is best. However, since we don't know how long it will take RepHresh to work, if you're going for O+12, it may be best to use Replens or Acijel (which contains the acetic acid) to lower pH immediately, because the sperm will not be waiting around in the cervical crypts for the egg like they do with a cut-off.

(Part 2)
NOW - onto the directions. Using Replens/RepHresh for swaying purposes is not scientifically tested. I'm just reporting on what makes the most SENSE to me after reading about them. If something doesn't make sense to you, if you think of a better way to do it, by all means, please do what feels right to you. And let me know about it so we can improve! This is all about helping as many people as possible get their DG!!

Both Replens and RepHresh are sold in pre-measured applicators kind of like tampons. I'm not sure if Aci-Jel is sold in applicators as well, but remember, wherever you read the word Replens, imagine that it also says, "and Aci-jel" because they work much the same way, although I am not sure about Aci-jel and vaginal dryness. Acijel may not do anything for vaginal dryness at all in which case you should consider using Sylk as a girl-friendly lube.

How to use Replens and Acijel -

Replens is actually safe to use every day, but the company suggests that for best results, you use it every three days, beginning the day after your period. It will keep your pH somewhere between 4-5 but can get diluted and made less effective, by CM and semen. One nice thing about Replens is that it helps with the vaginal dryness that many of the pink swayers experience and it's girl friendly unlike most lubes.

To use Replens for lubricant purposes, you don't need to use it immediately before your attempt...in fact, you shouldn't. That initial burst of very low pH may kill ALL the sperm. It works best as a lube when used some time prior to intercourse anyway (if you read on any other websites that it doesn't work as a lube, it's because they used it right before DTD and it needs time to disperse). IF you choose to use finger-quantities of Replens simply to lower pH and not for its lubrication, make sure you use it one day in advance of your attempt. Any longer and it will be diluted, any sooner and it may kill sperm.

The amount to use and how often is really open for debate and is probably different for everyone. Some swayers use only a fingertip full, applied near the cervix, every other day, but I personally believe this is based on a lack of understanding the pH buffers, and that the initial pH of Replens is lower than what it will be in the long term. Not to mention the reality that your body will begin to make massive amounts of CM as you near O and that sperm will be deposited throughout your vagina and you don't want any little nooks and crannies with higher pH. An applicator-full will get everywhere, not just around the cervix.

Also, the applicators are easier and more sanitary to use than our own fingers, cutting down on the risk of infection and the overall stress of swaying.

If you choose to use an entire applicator, I would do it three days in advance of when your attempt will be, NOT when O will be. So if you're going for a cutoff, do it three days prior to the day you anticipate DTD. If you're going for O+12, you should use it 2 days before O.

If you choose to use less than an applicator-full, you might choose to push it closer to your attempt - as an example, a person might choose to use 1/2 an applicator 2 days before, or a fingertip the morning of an attempt and then another fingertip an hour before DTD (IF your pH is above 5 - but remember that even if your pH has been very low, it WILL rise around ovulation). Do not use Replens with Pre-Seed. And DO NOT use Replens when there is sperm on scene, such as immediately after an attempt. (use RepHresh for that.)

You may want to play around with Replens in the months prior to your attempt to see how long the Replens-induced lower pH lasts for you. Since many of us find that we have very little CM and our vaginal tissue becomes more delicate after being on the TTC girl diet and supps (thanks to lower testosterone levels), you may find it helpful to use Replens twice a week regardless, to help provide moisture and for your own comfort. Esp. if you're going for frequent release - vaginal dryness when you're trying to DTD every day is hard on everyone's equipment.

If your pH is already very very low (less than 5) AND you have monitored it through ovulation and even your EWCM is very low, you are probably better off staying away from Replens all together and using RepHresh instead. Also, if you're using other things like antihistamine to reduce your CM, douching to wash CM away, and spermicide to lower sperm count, you may want to reduce/not use Replens because it will make it even harder to get pregnant. You CAN use Replens along with douching, but just make sure that you stick to the "full applicator three days before BD/fingertip morning of BD and hour before" idea. You can use just plain distilled water to douche with Replens, because you're only trying to wash away CM and not affect pH.

So, Replens can be a great addition to an overall sway, if only by making intercourse more pleasant and doing so in a pink-friendly way. Plus it has the nice additional advantage of lowering pH.

NOTE - IF you are lucky enough to stumble onto the magical Aci-jel, use it exactly as you use Replens.

How to use RepHresh -

You can use RepHresh exactly as you use Replens, a full applicator-full every three days, beginning the day after your period ends. Or you can use less than that, less often. Whatever works for you. It will react with and lower the pH of everything alkaline that it comes into contact with, like CM and Semen, and even other lubes (although you should never mix any low-pH product with Pre-Seed because it affects sperm negatively). And it will help maintain moisture in your vagina making it easier to DTD.

However, instead of stopping three days before your attempt and then only using fingertips, use 1/2 applicator 12 hours before your attempt, and if you choose to, 1/2 applicator right after after your attempt (yes, this will kill off some sperm, but serves the same purpose of spermicide, lowering overall sperm count, while also lowering pH.) Since we don't know how long it will take for the RepHresh to chemically react with and lower the pH of the semen, it is probably best to use RepHresh with a cut-off rather than O+12.

You may want to play around with RepHresh in the months prior to your attempt to see how long the lower pH lasts. Some people have found their pH actually rises on RepHresh, but this may be temporary and with repeated usage, it may stabilize at 4.5.

Since many of us find that we have very little CM and our vaginal tissue becomes more delicate after being on the TTC girl diet and supps (thanks to lower testosterone and estrogen levels), you may find it helpful to use RepHresh twice a week regardless of whether it increases your pH a wee bit, to help provide moisture and for your own comfort. Esp. if you're going for frequent release - vaginal dryness when you're trying to DTD every day is hard on everyone's equipment.

If you're also doing things like taking antihistamines to dry up CM and also using spermicide to lower sperm count, you may want to go easy on the RepHresh and skip the after-BD dose...may be too much of a good thing. Also, DO NOT use RepHresh along with douching because it will react to the low pH of the douche and cause a rise in pH.

NUTSHELL VERSION - Replens/Aci-Jel: Using a full applicator every three days beginning the day after your period and ending three days before attempt will help lower pH while providing moisture and lubrication esp. if you're doing frequent BD/release. OR just a full applicator three days before attempt for those abstaining BUT test in advance to see if your pH stays low. A fingertip's worth every other day throughout your cycle may help lower pH, but will not help with vaginal dryness. You may use a fingertip the day of your attempt and/or a fingertip an hour before DTD, but only if your pH is above 5. DO NOT use immediately after DTD and do not use with Pre-Seed. Test ahead of time for best results. You CAN use a fingertip of Replens along with lime douching because it doesn't respond to low pH. Or you can just use a distilled water douche to wash away CM if you like.

RepHresh: Use full applicator every three days beginning the day after your period and ending 1 day before attempt, esp. for those doing frequent BD/release, because it will help with dryness in a pH-friendly way. If abstaining, you can forgo using it every three days if you like, and use 1/2 applicator 12 hours before BD and/or the other half immediately afterwards, in lieu of douching (you can use the 1/2 applicator 12 hours befor and after even if you have been using it all month long if you like). RepHresh is best with a cutoff because an O+12 may not give it enough time to chemically react with the semen to lower its pH. DO NOT use RepHresh with a lime douche as it will cause pH to rise. DO NOT use RepHresh with Pre-Seed. Test ahead of time for best results.

WARNING - From the Replens/RepHresh website:

Some women notice a residue or discharge after initial use of Replens (RepHresh). This is caused by the elimination of dead skin cells. Your body naturally sheds dry vaginal tissue that has built up over time. When used on a regular basis, Replens (RepHresh) will help prevent the buildup of dead skin cells and the discharge should dissipate. If the discharge does not dissipate, you may wish to wait an extra day or two between applications. While use is recommended every three days, every woman is unique and you may wish to increase or decrease the amount of time between Replens(RepHresh) applications to maximize moisture and minimize discharge.

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...-ttc-pink.html


Guide to Douching - TTC Pink

Why douche?

The idea that douching could help sway for gender comes straight from Dr. Shettles himself. He believed that an acidic douche could help sway pink, while a more alkaline douche could help sway blue. Even though Dr. Shettles did away with the idea of douching in later editions of his book, the idea has stuck around and it is still one of the cornerstones of a traditional sway.

How to make douches:

Your materials must be scrupulously clean. Boil your equipment and allow it to cool, then use it - every time you douche!!! Wash your hands EVERY time. (Is douching safe? http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...=4882#post4882)

You'll need a storebought douche bag/bottle, a small syringe or eyedropper, a few plastic or glass containers. Do not use metal. If you want to follow up with a lime tampon, you'll need the kind that have a plastic applicator. And a Diva cup if you want to use one. DivaCup.com

To make it easier, keep the ingredients of the douche at room temperature. Once you've mixed the douche, it must be kept refrigerated, but the ingredients are all safe to keep at room temp. Before you use the douche itself, you need to raise it to body temperature by carrying it around in your bra for awhile until it's no longer cool to the touch.

* The easiest douche is simply a store bought Massingill vinegar and water style douche. ShopInPrivate.com - The World's Most Private Store (if you're embarrassed to buy it in a store, you can order it from this cool company that caters to shy people in need of private things.) You'll need one regardless of what douche you choose, because the douche bottles are very handy.

*Another option is a lime douche. (Ingredients - lime, distilled water.) To make a lime douche, mix lime juice with distilled water, trying to reach a pH of 2. Use plastic or glass containers only. Be sure to let it stand 10 minutes before you use it to make sure that it's mixed adequately.

Some people believe that fresh lime juice has some property that makes your sway better, and if you believe that, by all means, use a fresh lime. Just be VERY sure to wash the lime well (you may even want to use diluted bleach water on the rind to kill germs), and sanitize your knife and cutting board with boiling water or bleach and let dry before using - always cut on a dry cutting board.

Others might prefer to use RealLime in the little squirt bottles and this will work too and is certainly easier, although it does contain preservatives. Proceed as above, mix the lime juice with distilled water to pH of 2, let stand for 20 minutes.

If you make it in advance, give it a stir before using it and make sure you raise it to body temperature.

* The final, and most complicated option, is a 7% vinegar douche. (Ingredients - vinegar, distilled water, calcium if desired) Take plain old white vinegar and put it into the freezer in a glass or plastic container (no metal) until a layer of ice forms across the top. Remove the layer of ice 5 times, and your vinegar should be at, or close enough, to 7%. In the interest of full disclosure, I would like everyone to know that a 10% vinegar solution is more effective at killing weeds than Roundup. This is some strong stuff, although you will be diluting it with water.

Traditionally, most people add crushed calcium to the 7% vinegar douche. The pH AFTER adding calcium and distilled water should be 4.

*Adding calcium to douches - Lime juice has naturally occuring calcium citrate. Calcium is believed to help sway pink, and some believe that this calcium citrate in the lime juice may assist in a sway. It may be that adding crushed calcium to douches (esp. vinegar, which doesn't HAVE calcium citrate to begin with) is helpful in some way.

When using vinegar as a douche, if you would like to add some crushed calcium to the douche, just mush up a calcium tablet to the best of your ability and add it to your 7% douche above (it may work in the storebought douche and lime douche also, but was only tested in the 7% vinegar douche.) Let it sit for an hour to make sure the calcium dissolves (pH should be 4, if it's lower, then add some distilled water to dilute it). Add a couple of drops of distilled water to activate the douche right before using it.

The downside to adding calcium to the douches is firstly that it may raise pH, and secondly because it is pretty unlikely that the calcium can even make it up into the Fallopian tubes where the egg is fertilized anyway. Not to mention that you are adding yet another ingredient that carries with it a risk of bacterial infection. So you are risking pH level and infection, for something that may have zero benefit.

*About making your own distiled water - Many of us can buy distilled water by the gallon at your local grocery store for very little money. Making your own distilled water is messy, complicated, every step along the way you run the risk of contamination...it ain't worth it. Remember, part of pink swaying is trying to AVOID stress and obsessivness, and making your own distilled water is both stressful and obsessive, and fraught with opportunities for contamination and just generally screwing it up. If you live in a part of the world where you cannot find distilled water, use bottled drinking water. The ONLY reason why we use distilled water is to avoid the mineral content in the water, which is miniscule in most bottled waters. It's highly unlikely that anyone's sway came down to the mineral content of the water in their douche.

How to use the douche -

1 hour before DTD, use your storebought douche bag/bottle and do a regular, normal amount of douche solution, while lying down. This will lower the pH in your vagina and rinse away CM. Allow any excess to flow out. PLEASE insert the douche slowly and gently, do NOT under any circumstances use any force whatsoever. You will probably want to use a pad afterwards.

Five minutes after BD, check your pH - when dealing with douches, you only need to check pH of the fluid around the entry to your vagina, not around your cervix. If it is above 5, using a syringe or eyedropper, insert 1-3 mL of douche solution. You can either let it run out (lowering sperm count and pH) or keep it inside using a lime tampon. (relying totally on lower pH to sway) OR, you can completely forgo the first douche and simply use this followup douche. Do what feels right to you. If you're using a lime tampon, insert it immediately after this douche.

30 minutes after BD, insert 1-3 mL of douche solution regardless of what your pH is. If you're using a lime tampon or Diva cup, you'll have to remove them to insert the followup douche, trying to keep as much sperm as possible in the vagina. Continue to check your pH every 30 minutes for the next 4 hours IF you're using O+12 timing. If not, you are supposed to check your pH every hour (after the first 4 hours, that is) until you're certain your egg is either fertilized or dead. Even at night. If it's above 5, insert more of the followup douche.

How to make and use a lime tampon

Using the lime douche mix as described above, soak a plastic-applicator tampon while still in the applicator (do not use cardboard, the applicators will disintegrate). Use only a plastic or glass container, and as always, make sure your container has been sanitized with boiling water beforehand. Shake the tampon off so it isn't dripping wet, and insert immediately after BD, keeping as much sperm inside as possible. You're relying totally on pH to sway so you want as much sperm as possible on scene. You will need to take it out and check your pH every 30 minutes, and if it's above 5, use another 1-3 mL of douche. After 4 hours, you can remove the tampon.

Keep in mind that with tampon use comes the risk of toxic shock syndrome. https://health.google.com/health/ref...shock+syndrome

To reduce the risk of TSS, use the smallest size tampon you can find - junior or light days are best. Never use large or superabsorbent tampons because they have a greater surface area that can grow more bacteria. NEVER use tampons dry. Several people have asked about the RepHresh pH tampons (planning to use them dry rather than as a lime tampon) no one should do this, because dry tampons lead to toxic shock syndrome. RepHresh pH tampons can be turned into a lime tampon and/or used during AF if you wish to include them as a part of your sway.

If you ever have a tampon...er...ahem...go missing...here is a hilarious and very informative video that will help you know what to do to get it out of there!!!

http://www.docgurley.com/2008/10/24/...-tampon-video/

Douches and timing

If you're doing a cutoff, the conventional wisdom is that you have to check your pH every hour until you O and insert the follow-up douche if your pH is on the high side. That could be three days with a cutoff. Obviously, that is impractical to the point of undoable which is partly why some people recommend O+12 timing. If you do choose to use this method, check your pH every hour and use more of the followup douche as needed.

How to use a Diva cup with douches

Using a Diva cup DivaCup.com to keep the sperm/douche mixture in place can help raise your odds of becoming pregnant. Use it in place of the lime tampon. After your first followup douche (five minutes after DTD) put the Diva cup in to keep as much of the sperm in place as possible. Every 30 minutes, you should take the cup back out, check your pH, then add another followup douche if need be. Replace the Diva cup, keeping as much liquid inside as possible.

Alternatives to douching -

* Doing NOTHING - nowhere is it written in stone that you HAVE to douche. If you don't want to douche, don't. The vast majority of females that have been conceived on our planet were conceived without benefit of douching! If your pH is superlow, 4 or 4.5, and you have little or no EWCM, you may choose not to douche anyway (even if you had been planning to.) Even Dr. Shettles gave up on douching in favor of just timing, in the later editions of his book.

*Antihistamines - these will dry up your CM so there may not even BE any to wash away http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ELP-TTC-A-GIRL

*Replens and RepHresh http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...pHresh-(Part-1)

*Spermicide http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...ur-experiences

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...s-aci-jel.html

The ins and outs of Aci-Jel

Aci-Jel (which from now on I will type as Acijel because it's quicker LOL) is sold in Australia and New Zealand and is a cheaper option for those Down Under (although more expensive for those of us stateside.) Unfortunately, Acijel doesn't seem to have a helpful website like Replens/RepHresh and Sylk does. If you live in the US and are interested in Acijel but can't find it, look for a product called "acid jelly". You may need a prescription for it.

The pH of Acijel is 3.9-4 which really isn't any better than Replens. The advantage that Acijel has over Replens is, it contains acetic acid which is believed to be a better sway than other acids. It also contains other ingredients, oxyquinoline and ricinoleic acid, which actually help the acetic acid to work better to lower pH.

It ~may~ also lack the pH buffers that Replens has that raise the pH to between 4-5, but without a website there is no way for me to know that. Unlike Replens/RepHresh, Acijel was DESIGNED to sway pink (it's marketed otherwise because of legal issues). R&R were designed to mimic the natural pH of the vagina which is between 4 and 5. Since it was originally designed as a swaying aid, that makes me think it has no pH buffers like Replens does.

Acijel is used exactly as you use Replens. You can use an applicator-full every three days, a fingertip every other day, and/or a fingertip the morning of your attempt and then one hour before your attempt. See the following thread.

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/show...s-and-RepHresh

Warning - Acijel and Replens ~may~ cause pH to spike after using it. Test in advance to see if this happens to you. If it does, DON'T PANIC and don't give up immediately. Try using it every few days over the course of two weeks to see if your body gets used to it. It may simply be the presence of a new chemical in the vaginal area that causes the rise in pH and it may get better over the course of time as your body becomes accustomed to using it. It may be best for swaying purposes if you use it a couple of times per week so your body doesn't get "surprised" by them around O time and end up raising pH right at the critical moment.

Also, some women have noticed increased vaginal discharge when using these products. According to the makers of Replens, it is normal and consists of dead cells sloughing off your vaginal walls. It should go away after a couple of weeks. If you find it continues, back off the frequency you're using it and see if that helps.

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/tryi...-ttc-pink.html
Hormones for TTC Pink

Certain hormones that exist naturally in the human body may sway, depending on how much you have and how in balance your hormones are with one another. Different people are born with different body types genetically and have had vastly different life experiences, so all people produce different amounts of hormones, but we can still do things to alter our own unique settings.

For DW, higher levels of testosterone and estrogen seem to sway blue, while lower levels of testosterone and estrogen seem to sway pink. Higher levels of progesterone also sway pink.

For DH, higher levels of estrogen seem to sway pink and higher levels of testosterone sway blue.

One method we have discovered that helps us to track what exactly our hormones are doing is by monitoring our temps. Over the course of a few months, you will begin to notice patterns in your own personal average temperatures. Sometimes your temperatures are lower, and sometimes they are higher. (This is completely aside of the fluctuations in temp that occur on a daily basis due to your menstrual cycle - the entire range of your temps will run lower or higher overall.) A lower-than-average temp range may indicate a rise in boy-friendly hormones, and higher-than-average temp range may indicate a rise in girl-friendly hormones.

Many women have also noticed that they can actually feel and see the changes in their hormones - they are less passionate, less motivated, they may have lower sex drive and less EWCM. Your muscles may be smaller, you may find that your skin either clears up or breaks out, you may have less body hair. Some people have even noticed that their clitoris seemed smaller and less sensitive. It may be harder to have an orgasm. Interestingly, even though men produce 40-60 times more testosterone than women do, women seem to be far more sensitive to its effects and respond to very small changes in testosterone levels.

For men, the changes caused by lower testosterone are much the same, only they may also find that they begin to have some trouble getting or maintaining an erection. This can make certain aspects of ttc more challenging, but it’s actually an encouraging sign that your hormones are getting into a more girl-friendly place.

By dieting and taking your supplements, you are doing a lot to get your hormones into the right zone, but there are still other factors that you can control that can really help to get your hormones into a more girl-friendly zone.

WEIGHT LOSS - There are many reasons why losing weight helps you sway pink. First of all, it sends the overall message to your body that times are hard, and female mammals of every species seem to have more daughters when food is scarce. Secondly, body fat tends to raise estrogen levels, and for women, higher estrogen = more sons, so the less body fat you have, the better. The third reason is that the body becomes more acid when you lose weight and so weight loss helps to lower your pH (see below for more about the importance of pH).

The fourth reason is much more complicated, but may actually be the most important reason of all. You see, when you lose weight, you don’t just lose pounds of fat, you also lose pounds of muscle.

Studies have shown that the more muscle mass a person has, the higher their testosterone levels, so when our muscles shrink, we’re actively reducing the amount of testosterone circulating in our bodies. Though the mechanism of how this works exactly is not known, it seems that the amount of muscle that you use and how frequently and intensely you use it, signals the production of more testosterone. The more muscle you have, the more you use, and then that sends the signal to your body to produce more testosterone. In short, muscle makes its own testosterone, and the more muscle you have, the more testosterone you will make.

In order to shrink your muscle mass through weight loss, quick is best. Cutting your caloric intake by as little as 15% makes your brain think it’s starving, so it begins to cut back on testosterone production. And your body is just as willing to burn off its muscle for food as it is fat, so not only are you making less testosterone because you’re taking in less calories, you’re also making less and less as your muscles shrink.

For best results, you want to lose weight as quickly as you can, while doing nothing to help your body build that muscle mass back up. (Eating a high protein, high nutrient, high cholesterol/good fat diet actually feeds muscle mass and will help maintain it even if you‘re losing weight). So losing weight quickly on a lower protein, lower nutrient, lower cholesterol/good fat diet (such as the IG TTC girl diet) will help shrink muscle mass overall and will help lower your testosterone levels.

NOTE - In men, the situation is even more complicated, first of all because men have so much more testosterone and muscle mass to begin with, so just going about their day-to-day lives they use more muscle and way create more testosterone than women do. And secondly because very few men actually want to lose muscle mass and would be willing to do the kinds of weight loss that it would take for their naturally muscular bodies to begin to lower testosterone levels.

Consequently, for DH, it may actually be more helpful for them to be carrying a bit of excess body fat - in men, higher estrogen levels tend to sway pink which in turn lowers testosterone, and since more body fat = more estrogen, this may be the time for us to accept our husband’s beer bellies and love handles!!
HORMONES FOR TTC PINK PART 2

EXERCISE - Another powerful tool in our arsenal is exercise. The overall goal of using exercise while swaying is to further eat away at your body and shrink muscle mass. Exercise can be a double-edged sword, because exercise of any type has the potential to grow your muscles, especially when coupled with a high caloric intake of nutritious, high protein foods. So, when using exercise, you must be very careful to follow the suggestions exactly, and be totally honest with yourself about how much you are doing and how much food you are consuming.

There are two ways to use exercise to regulate our hormones, and though at first they may seem to be completely opposite of each other, they seem to affect body chemistry in a similar way, and so either strategy can be a very beneficial addition to a sway.

IMPORTANT - Regardless of which strategy you choose, you MUST follow a lower protein, lower nutrient, lower calorie diet and lose weight. If you’re not following the diet and not losing weight, the exercise you do may actually be increasing your muscle mass and inadvertently swaying blue!!!

*The first strategy you can use is to do no exercise at all. In only 3 days of being sedentary, your muscle mass begins to shrink (i.e. use it or lose it), and in 6 weeks of doing absolutely nothing, you can lose up to 60% of your muscle mass. Coupled with weight loss and a lower protein, lower nutrient, lower calorie diet, (6 weeks of dieting in the weeks before TTC) your body will have no choice but to burn away its muscle, and the lack of exercise will make the diet even more efficient because you‘re doing nothing to counteract the muscle loss.

*The second strategy you can use is to overexercise, exercising very intensely 60 minutes a day minimum, 6-7 days a week, WITHOUT FAIL, beginning 8 weeks prior to TTC, while you are eating a lower protein, lower nutrient, lower calorie diet. This is very effective and will help acidify you even further by releasing lactic acid as your muscles are worked. However, if you are not honest with yourself about the amount and intensity of the exercise you are doing, and are not pushing yourself very hard, you run the risk of growing your muscles and inadvertently swaying blue.

It is up to you to decide which strategy is best for you. If you are a very physical and muscular person who has always worked out very hard, it may be better for you to not exercise at all. This is because you’re in such good shape and carrying so much muscle already, that to exercise hard enough to truly tax your body and burn off enough muscle to lower your testosterone will take you way, way more effort and it simply may not be possible for you to do. You may want to give yourself an additional month to make sure that the diet and lack of exercise has shrunk your muscle mass enough.

If you don’t have enough time to dedicate to exercising 60 minutes a day or more, 6-7 days a week, you should probably forgo exercise as well. Doing a moderate amount of exercise sways blue, and if you’re not absolutely certain you can give it your all, it’s best not to exercise at all.

However, if you’re a person who doesn’t really exercise much but has an active lifestyle (such as, a very active job, lots of moderate physical activity due to having small children - going for walks, lifting toddlers 100 times a day), it is probably better for you to find the time to overexercise if at all possible. This is because you’re already doing a moderate amount of exercise (swaying blue) just going about your day-to-day life, and so there’s no way you even are able to do no exercise at all.

Also, if you’re a larger person to start with, you are probably better off overexercising if at all possible. Not only because you have more weight to lose than another person, but also because you are very likely carrying a lot of muscle mass, and just for you to get through the day requires that you use more muscle to move your heavier body weight, so even if you have a sedentary lifestyle, you may be using more muscle than you might think that you are, putting you into the realm of moderate exercise. However, if you are heavy, you might want to give yourself an extra month for weight loss and exercise to work before TTC, simply because you probably have more muscle to burn off.

The best exercise to focus on is straight cardio - walking, running, aerobics without toning. While overdoing any type of exercise does have the potential to shrink muscle mass, exercises involving lifting weights or toning exercises (such as, squats, push ups, abdominal exercises) are actively working to build muscle - exactly the opposite of what we’re trying to do.

*AVOIDING STRESS

The final thing we can do that will help us lower our testosterone levels is to lower stress. Unfortunately, just as everything seems to be in swaying, it’s not that simple.

Some forms of stress actually lower testosterone levels. Stressors such as losing a loved one, divorce, life-threating illness, job loss, failing at an important task, and being victimized by bullies, abusers, or criminals (especially when the abuse is chronic and long-term) all seem to sway pink by lowering our testosterone. Since those things are all beyond our control, and are certainly not anything we would want to have in our lives regardless of how they sway, they’re mentioned FYI only.

However, the kinds of stress that we do have a lot of control over - things like competition, arguing, taking on challenges and succeeding at them, even little things like watching your favorite sports team win a game and finishing projects that we worked hard on, all these things raise our testosterone levels.

Therefore, the months before you begin TTC a girl are not the time to begin a new sport, launch into a new project at work, or enter the Mrs. America Pageant (unless you‘re certain you will lose!!). Instead, spend time doing relaxing, peaceful pursuits that you enjoy - yoga, meditation, prayer, getting a lot of sleep, reading a good book…stress reduction can be difficult to accomplish while you are swaying, because swaying tends to CAUSE stress for a lot of people. If you can help it, try not to take swaying too seriously.

[atomic sagebrush]

Lowering testosterone levels

Scientific research indicates that reducing testosterone is KEY if you want to conceive a daughter.

Testosterone is manufactured mainly in the testes/ovaries. The more muscle you have, the more testosterone your body will make, because testosterone helps to make muscle function more efficiently and repair itself more easily. The one fundamental rule of lowering your testosterone levels is, the less muscle mass you have, the lower your testosterone will be.

DIETARY FACTORS -

*Eat less animal protein and fats - your body uses animal protein to build muscle. Meat also has varying levels of testosterone in it, but it is unknown whether or not your body uses this testosterone for its needs, or excretes this source of testosterone and manufactures its own supply. Vegetarians have been proven to have lower testosterone levels and also conceive more daughters. Testosterone is actually MADE out of fat.

Aside from all meats, beware of eating large quantities of dairy and eggs. They contain both protein and fat. If you're incorporating higher calcium into your sway, it may be better to get the bulk of your calcium through supplements and stick with fat-free dairy. Egg beaters or egg whites are better than whole eggs because the yolks have a lot of good fat in them.

*Salmon has been encouraged on other sites, but research indicates that oily fish like salmon and tuna are excellent at RAISING testosterone. Stay away from all oily fish.

*Eat less protein overall - your body uses ALL proteins regardless of their source to manufacture muscle. Watch out for beans, whole grains, and particularly nuts.

*Low fat, low calorie, low nutrient diet - the lower the nutrient intake, the smaller your muscles will be. And less fat means less of the building blocks your body uses to manufacture testosterone.

*Soy - this is somewhat controversial for swaying pink, but research indicates that soy meal produces a significant increase in the level of sex-hormone-binding globulin (chemicals your body produces that control the levels of free testosterone in your system). Soy increases these chemicals, thereby removing testosterone. Some people believe that soy raises estrogen, which may sway blue in women, and also believe that in increases EWCM, however.

Soy is made up of plant estrogens, but just like testosterone in meat, it's not really known whether or not your body can actually utilize hormones that it takes in, in food form, or whether it uses food as a building block to make its own hormones.

Lower testosterone/higher estrogen is believed to sway pink in men though, so it may be a good choice for your husband.

*Alcohol - this is another controversial one. Alcohol raises estrogen while lowering testosterone. So just like soy, alcohol may sway blue for women while swaying pink for men. And wine and beer have a lot of other nutrients in them as well as calories, so may help maintain muscle mass, not what you want to do.

*Coffee/caffeine - Sorry, there are no easy answers here unfortunately. Caffeine in excess has been proven to reduce testosterone levels, but in moderation it has also been shown to make sperm healthier and more mobile. Coffee also raises estrogen levels slightly. Personal note - I find that coffeemakes me more likely to get into competitive situations (see below)

*The following foods should be avoided when you can, as they've been linked to improving testosterone production - avocado, garlic, banana, asparagus, figs, spinach, dark chocolate.

LIFESTYLE FACTORS -

*Weight loss - this is the most important thing you can do to lower testosterone. Whenever you lose weight, you do lose some muscle mass along with the fat. Regardless of what you eat or don't eat, if you're losing weight, you're lowering your testosterone levels. The quicker you lose and the more you lose, the more your muscle mass will shrink.

*Exercise - this is a complicated, tricky issue. If you exercise A LOT, especially while losing weight and eating a low protein diet, you will actually eat away at your muscle mass and lower your testosterone. This is a dangerous method though, because moderate exercise, especially while gaining weight, will make your muscles grow. Proceed with caution - if you cannot exercise intensely 60 minutes a day 6-7 days a week AT MINIMUM, while losing weight and eating a low protein diet, you are better off not exercising at all.

Interestingly, some types of exercise may sway pink for another reason - by heating up the scrotum and damaging the cells that produce sperm. If your husband runs a lot or rides bikes, that's good for a pink sway because it reduces his sperm count overall.

*Reducing stress - Another tricky one. Mild to moderate stress, and any stress that results in success and triumph, actually raises testosterone. But chronic, severe stress releases a hormone called cortisol which uses the same transport mechanisms as sex hormones do. So your levels of ALL sex hormones go down when you're under a lot of stress.

Also, sleep is necessary for testosterone production. Getting less than 6 hours a night may reduce testosterone levels. Not recommending this, but if you're up a lot with other children, it might be a welcome benefit!

*Conflict and competition - ANY conflict or competition in which you are going head to head against another person OR even just trying to succeed at something that is very important to you, has the potential to raise your testosterone levels. Even people who were competing in a chess tournament had huge rises in their testosterone levels prior to the contest, and winners of the tournament had even larger rises.

So while you're TTC pink, it may not be a good time to engage in competition or launch any big projects that you're very emotionally invested in. Researchers found that in a group of monkeys removed from a group living situation and housed in individual cages began to have way more female offspring because the day to day competition for food raised their testosterone levels. In fact, even just the act of swaying itself may cause obsessive-minded people to have a rise in testosterone and inadvertently sway blue. Proceed with caution.

*Smoking - QUIT smoking if you do, and if you don't, don't start. Obviously. But smoking DOES lower testosterone levels.

*Less sex - The less sex you have, the less testosterone you will produce. This is true for both women and men.

SUPPLEMENTS

*Peppermint tea - may reduce both estrogen and testosterone levels, so is best for DW. DH can have it as a drink now and then as well, but it may reduce his estrogen. Use only from AF-O. One study has shown that spearmint tea also works.

*Saw Palmetto - reduces levels of free testosterone circulating in the blood, use only AF-O

*Vitex - only to be used by DW AF-O

*Licorice Root - raises estrogen while lowering testosterone, so best if used by DH.

*DIM - this is a new supplement that is said to lower testosterone. We don't know much about it, but it's made from cauliflower and broccoli and is probably safe. For safety's sake, if you want to give it a try, use only AF-O.

*Dong Quai - probably raises estrogen while lowering testosterone and is not safe during pregnancy, so it's probably better to leave this one alone.

*Black Cohosh - this is one of those scary herbs with lots of side effects that we would probably be better off without. Just throwing it in here so people know about it.