https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sat, 09 May 2026 12:28:20 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-737603 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:15:39 +0000 LindsayInNY 737603@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@nana87: It's hard! I planned on doing that, then slowly added OPKs and temping, LOL! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-737573 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:05:52 +0000 nana87 737573@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@LindsayInNYC: ooof, that's good to know! I'm trying to only use FF to keep track of my period at this point rather than as a predictor of anything, but I keep getting ahead of myself! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-737553 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 14:58:49 +0000 LindsayInNY 737553@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@nana87: FF uses default settings until you have three cycles worth of data entered. Default is usually a 28 day cycle, putting O around CD 14 or 15. You can change the default length if you know your cycle already but seeing as you're just getting off BC, you probably won't. FWIW, and I don't want to discourage you in any way, my first cycle post-BC was 40-something days, 2nd cycle was 63, 3rd cycle (this one) was 32 days. This has all been since December. =/ </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-737538 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 14:49:44 +0000 nana87 737538@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@LindsayInNYC: yeah, I think it's just going to be totally unpredictable this month! FF says I should be ovulating right now (CD 15) but who knows since the pill has been controlling my cycle! I felt a weird twinge that could have been ovulation pain last Thursday (CD 10) but I could just be searching for clues, lol </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-737455 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 14:31:29 +0000 LindsayInNY 737455@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@nana87: If this is your first cycle post-BC, be prepared for any and every possibility. Some people regulate normally right away, some take a couple cycles, some are normal then get wacky... There's really no telling what your body will do! That being said, your CM could also be all over the place now without the hormonal help of BC. I speak from experience :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-737440 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 14:25:35 +0000 nana87 737440@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>thanks everyone, this is all really helpful! I feel like I have no idea what's actually going on with my body since I've been on bc for about 6 years and I keep trying to read all these signs without actually charting and it's probably driving me crazier than if I just charted. I'm way too impatient for all of this! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736968 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:04:34 +0000 LazyLightning 736968@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yeah like others said, try to check it before BD. Like right away in the morning or something. Otherwise it gets so mixed up, you really can't tell! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736921 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:56:02 +0000 citymouse 736921@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@maplemoose I totally notice that happening on days that I ovulate!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736881 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:48:03 +0000 MapleMoose 736881@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs Green Grass: Mine did. It was hard to tell the difference on a pad but I was able to tell based on the toilet test. The OP says she feels pretty wet so I was just posting in case it helps her </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736862 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:40:53 +0000 pui 736862@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs Green Grass: See this wasn't true for me at all! I experienced what very much looked like EWCM after sex. It could be pulled apart very far between fingers over and over again without breaking.</p> <p>Maybe this wasn't semen, it could have been my own natural lubrication (TMI sorry). It definitely wasn't EWCM because then I had EWCM almost every day lol. In any case it messed up my tracking. I just wait 12 hours to check again. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736855 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:38:50 +0000 mrsjyw 736855@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ditto PPs-- EWCM is much much thicker that semen. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736854 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:38:47 +0000 Mrs Green Grass 736854@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MapleMoose: cm will very rarely drip into the toilet unless there is a lot of ewcm which would be noticeable. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736849 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:37:30 +0000 Mrs Green Grass 736849@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Semen basically turns watery after the initial moments.</p> <p>Ewcm sticks together...you can pull it apart and it won't break.</p> <p>It would be very hard to tell the difference between semen and watery cm which is why you usually don't chart cm after you bd. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736815 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:28:07 +0000 MapleMoose 736815@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I read that if CM drips into the toilet it will become little droplets that sink to the bottom whereas semen will not. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736763 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:09:24 +0000 Bao 736763@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I could tell because EWCM was stretchy and semen was not as stretchy. I found this to be the same when checking before or after BD. I'm not sure if it varies from person to person though. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736732 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:59:28 +0000 Foodnerd81 736732@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I could never tell so I gave up trying. I preferred temping-- it was just easier and less icky for me, personally. Also, keep in mind that if this is your first cycle after stopping the pill, you will probably be... well, wetter, there all the time. So for this first cycle I think it's good to sort of pay attention and be aware, but don't count on any conclusive signs or anything until your hormones balance out and you know what's 'normal' for you. </p> <p>(See, I took your TMI and went even further :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736718 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:57:08 +0000 citymouse 736718@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I can't tell the difference either! I just pray that after I pee/wipe after BD that my body is just keeping itself "wet" because we just DTD!! Haha! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736680 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:46:27 +0000 nana87 736680@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pui: i'm glad i'm not alone in finding this confusing! 12 hours seems like a good number to estimate </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736589 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:25:04 +0000 pui 736589@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had trouble with this too.</p> <p>In the end I decided to make sure to check CM before BD, or at least 12 hours later. By 12 hours, things seem to be back to normal in there lol.</p> <p>There are multiple things people suggested I do to try and tell the difference, and none were conclusive enough for me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tmi-question-difference-btw-cm-and-semen#post-736586 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:23:02 +0000 nana87 736586@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>hi everyone!</p> <p>this is my first cycle after getting off the pill so I'm still trying to figure everything out. I don't want to start actually charting/temping yet because I know I'll drive myself crazy with it, but I've been trying to pay closer attention to things like CM anyway. </p> <p>here's the tmi part....I can't really tell the difference btw CM and semen. dh always would come inside me (I warned it was tmi!!) but I've been waiting longer than usual to pee after BDing, with the result that I just in general feel a lot "wetter" than usual. I've read some stuff online about how to tell the difference btw the too, but not the answer to one of my main questions--how long does semen actually take to leak out all the way? if I feel wet on and off the day after dtd, is that still the semen or is that CM? </p> <p>gah I'm embarassed to actually be asking this, but I'm so confused! </p>