Customer Reviews

ClearBlue Easy- Fertility Sticks and Monitor Package, 1ct

5 star:		(72)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I would like to add my support for this product but would also like to inject some reality into the reviews. Some reviews I've read make it sound like this machine is "responsible" for their getting pregnant or having a healthy baby. I know noone thinks that is true, but it's important to remember the sole function of this machine: to help you know when you're ovulating. This is particularly critical if you have irregular periods, like I do. This monitor really did help me know when the "peak" days were, and I just found out that I'm pregnant (yay!).

But, this is an expensive machine, and I think that not everyone needs it. If your cycles are regular there are other low tech ways to know when you're ovulating, e.g. charting your temperatures (read "Taking Charge of Your Fertility", a very empowering book) and looking for other biological clues which I won't get into here.

I like the monitor itself but am really not fond of the company who makes it--they are really trying to shake women down for every last penny. There is no way this machine should cost as much as it does, considering how simple it is. Also, they tell you that you need to use sticks only from the same package in case there are discrepancies in quality from package to package--technically, then, you will be throwing away a whole lot of (expensive, polluting) unused sticks. If there are quality discrepancies, that is their quality control problem! Yet, they want to pass this cost on to you.

Also, they tell you that you cannot pass your machine onto another person when you're done with it because a) it "learns" you and b) might be contaminated with bacteria. First of all, it also says that it only retains 6 months of info before erasing the data month by month as more data is recorded (i.e. it only "remembers" your most recent 6 months of info). This means that it could in fact "learn" a new person. Also, the bacteria b.s. is just to cover their heinies in the case that someone does pass on disease, but urine does not really come in contact with the monitor, only the strips. Also, urine is an antiseptic! So, it's not going to carry disease in that manner. In other words, they want every woman on the planet to buy their own monitor.

So, for women with irregular periods, I do recommend this. But, give yourself some credit to know your own body and its powers as well. If your periods are regular and you use this thing and get pregnant, don't act like this machine did it for you--you and your man had something to do with it too! Let's not glorify technology too much here.

[Postscript: I miscarried on that pregnancy. Again, not the monitor's responsibility. ;) However, I have again gotten pregnant, by making sure to take advantage of the 2 fertile days per cycle that it identifies for you. It solidified my confidence in this product, since I tried to "wing it" for a few months without the monitor with no results. Also, my friend who has an irregular cycle got pregnant very soon after using this. I still believe it is overpriced, but if you're really having trouble with timing, it might be worth it for you.]

This monitor works great!!! My doctors gave me less than 5% chance of getting pregnant due to premature menopause. With out using this monitor I would have no idea when I would ovulate because my cycles are so different. The first cycle I did not hit peak fertility till day 20 the second month I hit peak on day 13. I was a little nervous when first buying this machine because its a lot of money to spend on something that may or may not work but I got pregnant on the second cycle of using this machine so I can say its the best money I ever spend. Its worth every penny.

AFter trying for 18 mos, I finally just bought this monitor, even though I was really skeptical about the cost. After two months I was pregnant, I never even had to buy more refill sticks.

Clear Blue works, I used it for two months got pregnant, had a miscarraige, kept trackin for two more months became pregnant again and now we have our healthy baby boy, he is 8 weeks old.

This takes so much stress away from trying to conceive, especially if you've been trying a while and are starting to get frustrated. I used this after we tried for about 5 months. I was pregnant after 3 more months with the monitor. I'm now pregnant with my second child and only used the monitor 1 month. For me, it was extremely helpful to know the peak days because I have a long and irregular cycle.

Important Points...

1. SHARING THE MONITOR- It says not to share because it can be contaminated with urine. Urine does not touch the monitor. The test strip is soaked with urine and covered with a cap before it is inserted into the machine. I wouldn't buy a used one from a stranger, but I would share with a close friend. It also says the monitor stores your data and therefore won't work properly for a friend. It has directions for clearing the data. You have to clear it if you've stopped using it for a prolonged period and want to start again, so obviously it can be cleared before given to someone else.

2. TEST STRIPS- Buy them from Amazon. They are much cheaper than in stores. They advise to discard extra sticks if you don't have at least 10 for the next cycle. I never threw any away and the monitor appeared to work fine even when I mixed sticks from different boxes.

3. DIRECTIONS- I could give you step by step directions here, but you can go to [...]and read the entire manual. It is very thorough and helpful. The machine is very easy to use.

4. NOT FOR EVERYONE- Obviously, if you have reproductive issues this isn't going to solve them. I have a friend that TTC for quite some time and after using the monitor for a few months she found out she wasn't ovulating. Her doctor confirmed that, gave her fertility medication, and she conceived. Although she didn't get pregnant while using the monitor it still helped her. If you're not pregnant after 6-12 months with this monitor you should see your doctor in case something else is going on.

5. PREGNANCY TESTS- Buy these cheap prenancy tests. 25 pregnancy test strips They sell them in different quantities, but you can get soooo many for the price of just 1 name brand test. They work great and save a lot of money especially if you get obsessive about testing.

Just like many of you, once I decided I wanted a baby I wanted instant gratification. Well, there is no magic pill, device or method to insure that happens. I had been ttc #1 for a little over a year when I stumbled on this device. I also chart my basal body temperature and cervical mucus and use "Pre-seed," a sperm-friendly lubricant, on my dryer fertile days. My doctor put me on Femara which is a fertility drug similar yet different than Clomid when I went for my first infertility workup at 8 months ttc. My doctor diagnosed me with a hormonal imbalance and he wanted to correct that with the fertility drug. I was convinced that it was too early to be on a fertility drug but tried it anyway. On my first month of using this monitor I noticed that I had 15 days of high fertility and no peak - keep in mind, I was using Femara at that point. I went off the fertility drugs at that point, started an organic diet and herbal regimen to naturally correct my hormonal imbalance. The second month, I was stressed out and ovulated very late (CD 22). By using the monitor and taking my bbt every day, I realized that my body ovulated late and the monitor was very helpful. On the 2nd month, I had 3 days of high and no peak. I continued with the herbs and organic diet in an effort to balance my hormones. This is now my third month of using this monitor and I finally have had a normal cycle off fertility drugs with 2 days of high fertility and 2 peak days. To sum this up, anytime you are ttc, you need to have some patience and learn how to interpret what your body is trying to tell you. For me, I think this device gave me peace of mind and it is very helpful when you combine the information with your basal body temperature. I give this product a 4 because it does a great job for most women if you give it a chance. The reason I did not give it a 5 was two-fold: 1) customer service is terrible (the 1-800 help line) and 2) the company will not tell you how the product works (it's top-secret). After 3 months, I am still not pregnant, however, the high and peak days on my fertility monitor have let me know that I am ovulating and my hormones have returned to normal. This gives me peace of mind. For any woman reading this that is having problems conceiving, do your research and keep trying until you find something that works for you! Below I've pasted two links to products that have helped me.

Pre-Seed Intimate Moisturizer - Free Shipping and 2 Free Early Pregnancy Tests

The Infertility Cure: The Ancient Chinese Wellness Program for Getting Pregnant and Having Healthy Babies

I received this product a month ago, and though I'm not pregnant yet (that I'm aware of) I'm very pleased with the monitor. I reccomend it for any woman whos been trying to conceive without success and who desires a more discernable result than with regualr OPK's. You MUST take time to read the entire manuel before turning the monior on for the first time in order to fully understand it! You cannot begin using it the first time after cycle day 5...VERY IMPORTANT to note. I reccomed using it along with BBT charting for best chances of conception.

I felt compelled to write this review after reading the many positive reviews just to add my own experience in hopes of helping others. I bought this product with high hopes of using it to conceive quickly as many others have done. I have a 32-day cycle, do not take any medications that would interfere with the monitor readings, and out of the 3 months I used this product, I only achieved the peak reading once (in the 2nd month)and did not conceive that month despite well-timed BD. I suppose since my cycle is longer that I had to use more test sticks, but I went through 20 sticks per cycle, which was very frustrating. I would start getting high fertility readings on about day 10 and then it would continue to read as high fertility until about day 27. I thought perhaps my method of testing was not accurate enough so I began using a cup and dipping the stick to make sure I was consistent. This did little to improve the results. I know this product has worked for many, but I was disappointed in its performance.
On a brighter note, I did conceive in the 3rd month thanks to using Toni Weschler's Taking Charge of Your Fertility book along with this product. I used her temperature charting and cervical fluid checking methods, and with only 2 days of well-timed BD in the 3rd month, I am in the very early stages of pregnancy.
I like the idea of this product and wanted to love it, but I think having a back-up method (such as charting other fertility signs) would be helpful when trying to conceive. I can give this product very little credit for my pregnancy and owe my thanks to the Taking Charge of Your Fertility book. Good luck to all who are TTC!

I waited to review this product so that I could give accurate information. My husband and I have been trying to get pregnant for 3 years. I had a miscarriage about 8 months ago that broke our hearts. Nothing seemed to be working to get pregnant again. 2 months of using this and I just took a test! I'm pregnant. Hopefully all goes well this time.

If you are trying to get pregnant, try this! I was sceptical, but it worked!

This product will tell you your peak days. I had a regular period, but not a 14 day ovulation. I always had problems reading those ovulation test where you had to look at the lines, I could never tell if one was darker than the other, the same etc. This tells you how fertile you are each day and shows and egg symbol near ovulation.

FYI - I wish I would have know this, but you can not use this test after you are already past day 5 of your cycle. You have to set it during those first few days. So remember that when ordering the product. It's disapointing when you get it... and can't start using it right away. However, it's well worth the price!

First I will start off by saying that my periods are so irregular that some months they can be 20 days and others 45 days! So trying to get pregnant was so difficult! I purchased the monitor and although it tells you to wait until the first day of your period to "set" it I did it right away (I just finished my period that lasted 20 days). Well on the 10th day I saw the ovulation symbol! Which means I ovulate on day 30!!!!! I never would have known that without this monitor! Worth the money! I am now 9 weeks pregnant and happier than ever!