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What is an implantation dip on a BBT chart?

Many women in Australia will confirm that trying to conceive can be a stressful experience. Women trying to add to their families often wonder if they’re ovulating regularly and whether they can get pregnant after having unprotected sex during the fertile window. It’s also common to question whether implantation has occurred.

The most obvious way to confirm your conception is to take a pregnancy test. However, there are other clues you can rely on aside from waiting to see those two lines, and this includes an implantation dip. To understand an implantation dip, you must familiarise yourself with basal body temperature, BBT, and other commonly used fertility tracking methods.

Continue reading to learn everything you need to know about implantation dips and whether or not they are a reliable indicator of pregnancy.

How do you know if its implantation dip?
What causes an implantation dip?

What’s an Implantation Dip?

Your basal body temperature is your body’s temperature while at rest. The temperature changes depending on your external and internal environment and may be influenced by factors such as:

  • Temperature changes in your indoor environment, particularly your bedroom
  • The quality or amount of your sleep (this includes the wake-up time changes)
  • Whether you are on hormonal birth control
  • Whether you have consumed alcohol
  • Whether you have a fever and are on medication to minimise the fever
  • Whether you are fighting an infection or illness
  • Your physical and emotional stress levels
  • Your hormone levels

Using a Basal Body Thermometer for Tracking BBT

Basal Body Temperature (BBT) tracking is a method used to identify the time of ovulation based on changes in body temperature. A Basal Body Thermometer, which is more sensitive than a regular thermometer, is used for this purpose. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to properly use a basal body thermometer for tracking BBT:

  1. Choose the Right Thermometer: Purchase a Basal Body Thermometer specifically designed to measure slight changes in body temperature. These thermometers are more sensitive than regular ones and can measure temperature changes to 1/10th of a degree.
  2. Consistent Timing: Take your temperature first thing in the morning, immediately after waking up and before any physical activity. Any movement or activity can cause your body temperature to rise, leading to inaccurate readings.
  3. Consistent Method: Choose a method of taking your temperature – orally, rectally, or vaginally, and stick to it throughout your cycle. Different methods can give slightly different readings, so consistency’s important.
  4. Record Your Temperature: After taking your temperature, record it on a BBT chart or in a fertility tracking app. Recording your temperature daily and plotting it on a chart will help you see the pattern of your temperatures over your menstrual cycle.
  5. Interpret Your Chart: You’ll see a pattern in your BBT over time. Typically, you’ll notice lower temperatures in the first part of your cycle (follicular phase), a slight drop just before ovulation, followed by a noticeable rise (about 0.5 to 1.0 degrees) after ovulation during the luteal phase. This temperature rise is due to the hormone progesterone, indicating that ovulation has occurred.
  6. Repeat the Process: Continue taking your BBT every morning throughout your cycle. Over a few months, you’ll be able to see patterns and predict when ovulation is likely to occur.

What Link Does a Dip Have With Basal Body Temperature?

When you track your basal body temperature, a process known as ‘temping,’ you will have the opportunity to gather more about your hormones, data which can be used to determine if you had a successful implantation process.

Temperature tracking is one option to monitor fertility; others include cervical mucus tracking, ovulation prediction kits, medical procedures offered in doctor’s offices, and fertility prediction apps.

Many women in Australia prefer BBT tracking because it is an affordable and painless way to check what is going on with your cycle. You must track your basal body temperature for at least three months to know the trends over time. By logging temperatures in a chart, as seen above, you can begin to recognise patterns.

One phase shows a lower temperature, and during this time, the body’s hormones gear up and trigger ovulation. The second phase will show a slight temperature increase to signify ovulation has occurred.

Note that your temperature may show a one-day dip, 7-8 days after you experience the slight temperature rise, which people call an implantation dip.

How Do You Know if It’s an Implantation Dip?

An implantation dip can be defined as a one-day drop in basal body temperature (BBT) in the menstrual cycle’s luteal phase (approximately 7 to 10 days after ovulation). Although anecdotal evidence suggests the drop in basal body temperature is more commonly seen on pregnancy charts than non-pregnancy charts, it’s important to remember that an implantation dip doesn’t necessarily guarantee that you conceived.

basal body thermometer: benefits of tracking
How to Detect Pregnancy or Ovulation on Your BBT Chart

What is a Coverline?

A covering is a horizontal line (imaginary line) on the BBT chart that distinguishes the average temperatures before the ovulation process and the average temperatures after you ovulate.

A dip will appear during the cycle’s luteal phase, between ovulation and the next period. If an egg is fertilised, the embryo’s implantation will occur between the 7 and 11 of the luteal phase and some women attribute the sudden temperature dip to implantation.

What is the Cause of an Implantation Dip?

Regardless of the name, it is unclear if embryo implantation can cause a temporary basal body temperature drop. In some cases, non-pregnancy charts also have a dip, meaning that it is not a unique phenomenon that only occurs after conception.

One theory states that oestrogen is responsible for the dip, which peaks twice during each menstrual cycle. The first and largest surge usually occurs right before you ovulate, and it’s the primary cause of increased sexual desire and more fertile cervical mucus production. The second surge occurs in the middle of the luteal phase but is not as high as the first one.

The progesterone hormone increases the body temperature while oestrogen reduces it. The second oestrogen surge may be the reason why women get implantation dips.

The oestrogen levels are also high in pregnant women, which may explain why some women witness a temperature decline on their pregnancy charts more frequently. But women who are not pregnant can also get secondary oestrogen surges during a luteal phase, a reason why the dip may also appear on a non-pregnant chart.

Dip a day before ovulation.

Certain women also record a dip a day before ovulation, probably caused by an estrogen surge that occurs right before ovulation. All of this is to say that there can be many causes behind an implantation dip, and identifying a drop in basal body temperature is no indication that you’re pregnant.

Ultimately, only a pregnancy test and your doctor can confirm whether or not you are pregnant. If you’ve been trying to conceive for a while, you’ve undoubtedly spent significant money on pregnancy and ovulation tests. Fortunately, Fertility2Family is here to help with our range of affordable, accessible fertility products. From basal body thermometers to pregnancy tests, we have everything you need to track and confirm your pregnancy status. Shop online today, and contact our team if you have any questions.

Sources:

Fertility2Family only uses trusted & peer-reviewed sources to ensure our articles’ information is accurate and reliable.

Cleveland Clinic (2022) Luteal phase of the menstrual cycle: Symptoms & length, Cleveland Clinic. Available at: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/24417-luteal-phase (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

Department of Health & Human Services (2003) Ovulation and fertility, Better Health Channel Australia. Available at: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/ovulation (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

Mayo Clinic (2023) Basal body temperature for natural family planning, Mayo Clinic. Available at: https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/basal-body-temperature/about/pac-20393026 (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

Mayo Clinic (2015) Fertilization and implantation, Mayo Clinic. Available at: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/pregnancy-week-by-week/multimedia/fertilization-and-implantation/img-20008656 (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

Reed BG, Carr BR (2018) The normal menstrual cycle and the control of ovulation. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279054/ (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

Steward K, Raja A (2023) Physiology, ovulation and basal body temperature – statpearls – NCBI … Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK546686/ (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

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Evan Kurzyp

Evan is the founder of Fertility2Family and is passionate about fertility education & providing affordable products to help people in their fertility journey. Evan is a qualified Registered Nurse and has expertise in guiding & managing patients through their fertility journeys.

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