Using Ovulation Predictor Kits
Ovulation predictor kits are available from chemists and are fairly simple to use. They work by detecting a hormone in your urine that increases when ovulation is about to take place.
The simplest urine kit tests for luteinising hormone , which increases 24-36 hours before ovulation. This will help to identify the best two days for conception, although a woman can be fertile for a day or so before and after this time.
It is best to become familiar with your usual menstrual cycle to help figure out when you should start testing. If you have an irregular cycle then an ovulation predictor kit can help you identify the time of ovulation but expect to use more of the test strips.
How To Get Pregnant Fast
Once youve made the big decision to start a family, its hard to wait. And while your patience may be waning, you can begin planning right away. Thats becauseas it turns outtheres more to getting pregnant fast than just having sex at the right time its also about creating the perfect environment so that when sperm meets egg, a healthy embryo grows into a healthy baby.
Conceiving quickly may be the goal, but its never a guarantee. Fortunately, there are a few steps you can take to help kick start the process. So if youre wondering how to get pregnant fast, read on for all the top dos and donts. From tracking ovulation to changing your diet, were sharing a few tips to help you on the exciting journey to parenthood.
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What Positions Are Best
With hundreds of millions of sperm released in each male orgasm, any unprotected sex around the time of ovulation could result in a pregnancy. As long as sperm enter the vagina, you have a chance to conceive.
No certain positions during sex have been proven to increase likelihood of conception. Yet certain positions may be better than others for ensuring those little swimmers find their way up to the egg. The missionary and doggie-style positions allow for deeper penetration bringing sperm in closer proximity to the cervix.
In the standing and woman-on-top positions, gravity works against you. Yet standing up right after sex shouldnt reduce your odds of a pregnancy. Sperm are pretty good swimmers. Once deposited in the vagina, they can reach the cervix within 15 minutes.
Though you dont need to raise your legs in the air after sex, or even lie flat on your back to help them get there, it cant hurt. Placing a pillow under your lower back will also keep the sperm swimming in the right direction.
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When Is The Best Time To Have Sex To Get Pregnant
The best time to try for a baby is on the days leading up to ovulation and the . Since sperm can live up to 5 days inside a womans body, timing sex for the days leading up to ovulation can also lead to pregnancy.
There is a common myth that all women have a 28 day cycle, but this is not the case. 52% of menstrual cycles vary by 5 or more days so using a method to identify when you ovulate can help you conceive.
When Should You See A Doctor
If youve been trying to get pregnant but are having no luck, see your primary care doctor or a fertility specialist.
How long should you wait before seeing a doctor? That depends on your age.
- Women younger than 35 should try for at least 1 year before seeking medical help.
- Women 35 or older should see a healthcare provider after 6 months of trying.
Make an appointment sooner if you have any of these issues, which could affect fertility:
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Does A Lubricant Affect The Odds Of Getting Pregnant
Just under of women use a lubricant during sex, but there have been questions about whether these products might affect sperm quality. In lab studies, water-based lubricants like Astroglide and K-Y Brand Jelly reduced sperm movement by 60 to 100 percent.
Before you panic and throw out the lube tube, of actual couples trying to conceive have found no negative effect on fertility. In fact, lubricant might aid in your efforts to get pregnant by making sex comfortable enough to have more often.
If youre concerned about lubricant reducing your chances of getting pregnant, try sperm-friendly brands like Pre-Seed.
Your Chances Of Getting Pregnant Every Day Of The Month
When sex coincides with your most fertile ovulation days, you’ll increase your chances of getting pregnant. Get to know each phase of your cycle to make conception faster and easier.
To hit the baby-making bullseye, you’ve got to aim for certain sweet spots of fertility in your cycle. Here’s your guide to the best chances of getting pregnant throughout the month so you can plan accordingly.
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It’s All In The Timing
Women are born with about 1 million to 2 million eggs but release only 300 to 400 through ovulation during their lifetimes. Usually, you release just one each month. The egg travels along one of the two fallopian tubes that connect your ovaries to your uterus. If the timing is right, sperm may fertilize it on its way to the uterus. If fertilization doesn’t happen within 24 hours of the egg leaving the ovary, the egg dissolves. Sperm can live for about 3 to 5 days, so knowing when you are ovulating can help you and your partner plan sex for when you’re most likely to conceive.
Dealing With Low Sperm Counts
If sperm counts are borderline normal or on the lower side, the general recommendation is to have sex every other day during the fertile window.
For example, if on Monday you get your first positive ovulation predictor test result, or you see fertile cervical mucus, you should have sex on Monday, skip Tuesday, and then again on Wednesday, skip Thursday, and once more on Friday. The day in between will help replenish the sperm supply, possibly increasing your chances of pregnancy.
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How Else Can You Increase The Chances Of Getting Pregnant
Often, when couples are trying to conceive, they focus so intensely on their reproductive health, they neglect their overall health. Life becomes all about cervical mucus, sperm count, and doing the deed. But it’s important to pay attention to your health in general because issues like weight, smoking, stress, and medications can affect fertility too, Dr. Chen says. Before trying to conceive, it’s a good idea for both you and your guy to have a medical checkup to discuss any issues that may affect fertility or pregnancy.
How Long Does It Take To Get Pregnant After Having Sex
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Getting pregnant may seem like a rather mystical process. Once you learn the science and timing, it makes a bit more sense. Still, you may wonder how long it takes to actually conceive after having sex.
The short answer is that the egg and sperm can meet within minutes to up to 12 hours after ejaculation. But to see that second line on the pregnancy test, you still have some hurdles to cross.
Heres more about how reproduction works , as well as how to time things and possibly up your odds of getting pregnant.
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Will Orgasms Help You Get Pregnant
Some experts believe that uterine contractions during orgasm help propel sperm into the cervix, but one thing is for surethe tingles during orgasm definitely make you relaxed. And that means you’ve already cleared the biggest baby-making blocker: stress. “The better the sex, the better the chances of conception,” says reproductive physiologist Joanna Ellington, Ph.D., in the British documentary The Great Sperm Race. Men who are fully stimulated will ejaculate up to 50 percent more, according to research revealed in the program. “So if you have what I call ‘gourmet sex,’ where you really spend time and you make it fun for both partners, that is going to make the man more stimulated and he is going to ejaculate more and healthier sperm,” Dr. Ellington says. Sure, sex without female orgasm can result in a baby, too, but why not go for the gold?
When To Get Pregnant: Family Situations
When does the rest of your family have a birthday? Perhaps youd like everyone to all have their special day around the same time, or perhaps you want to space them out.
Some people think that its better to have a childs birthday not coinciding with major holidays or events, such as Christmas, or maybe summers better because you can go on holiday and celebrate.
All these concerns vary for all families so you can see how things might differ, depending on your situation.
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What If You Have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
Polycystic ovarian syndrome , a hormonal disorder, is one of the most common reasons for female infertility. It affects between 6% and 12% of American women of reproductive age.
There is no single test to identify PCOS, but a doctor will determine if a woman fulfills two of the following three criteria,the CDC said:
- Irregular periods or no periods, caused from lack of ovulation
- Higher than normal levels of male hormones that may result in excess hair on the face and body, acne or thinning scalp hair
- Multiple small cysts on the ovaries
It is not clear why some women develop this syndrome, although it is often diagnosed when they struggle to get pregnant.
There is a strong link between PCOS-related infertility and weight. About 40% to 60% of women with PCOS are overweight or obese, and healthy eating and exercise have been shown to improve reproductive problems in women with PCOS, according to a 2019 article in the journal Therapeutic Advcances in Reproductive Health. A number of prescribed medications may also induce ovulation and regulate insulin levels, such asletrozole and metformin. High levels of insulin push thepituitary gland to release large amounts of hormones thatdisrupt ovulation.
Doctors recommend in-vitro fertilization if other interventions have not worked, or as a primary treatment if monitoring, cost and accessibility are not issues.
Will It Be A Boy Or Girl
Both the man’s sperm and the woman’s egg play a part in determining the gender of a baby.
Every normal human cell contains 46 chromosomes . Chromosomes are tiny threadlike structures made from DNA, which each carry human genes. Genes determine a baby’s inherited characteristics, such as hair and eye colour, blood group, height and build.
When a sperm fertilises an egg, 23 chromosomes from the father pair with 23 from the mother, making 46 in total.
The sex chromosome from a woman’s egg is always the same and is known as the X chromosome. But the sex chromosome from a man’s sperm may be an X or a Y chromosome.
If the egg is fertilised by a sperm containing an X chromosome, the baby will be a girl . If the sperm contains a Y chromosome, the baby will be a boy .
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Using Ovulation Predictor Tests
Ovulation predictor testswork a lot like pregnancy tests, except they tell you when you’re likely about to ovulate. They come as test sticks or test strips that react with your urine. To use these, you can urinate into a cup and then dip the test strip into the collected urine. You will get your result based on color changes or digital reading.
At-home ovulation tests detect the luteinizing hormone in your urine. LH surges just before you ovulate, so when the test reads positive, this indicates that your body is attempting to trigger the egg release from the ovary and that it is probably your optimal time to become pregnant.
When Is The Best Time Of The Day To Have Sex To Get Pregnant
No specific time of the day is associated with a greater chance of pregnancy. Nevertheless, some people wonder if having sex in the early morning will help them conceive faster. The idea that morning sex may facilitate conception is often based on the belief that sperm conditions change throughout the day. Does this match the research? Lets take a look.
Several groups of scientists have investigated how different sperm parameters may change depending on the time of day. Some of them suggest that sperm count might rise in the morning, which means there might be more sperm to fertilize the egg. However, the reported difference is only slight.
Another study found that sperm count and motility may increase in the afternoon. In other words, sperm may be more abundant and mobile, increasing their likelihood of reaching the egg in the evening.
These findings look pretty contradictory, and there is no consensus among doctors. Instead, more important factors may help improve sperm quality rather than the time of day. While the time of the day makes almost no difference in sperm activity, a persons lifestyle, long-term health, medications, and even ejaculation frequency can influence sperm quality.
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How Often To Have Sexual Intercourse
To give yourselves the best chance of success, try to have sex every two to three days. If you are under psychological stress, it can affect your relationship and is likely to reduce your sex drive.
If this means you do not have sex as often as usual, this may also affect you or your partners chances of getting pregnant.
When Does Fertilization Happen
Fertilization occurs when the egg and sperm meet in the fallopian tube. In order for this to happen, a woman must be in her fertile window. This means that shes nearing or has reached ovulation the moment each menstrual cycle when an egg releases from the ovary.
An egg can only be fertilized between 12 and 24 hours from when it is released. After that, it starts to break down, hormones shift, and eventually, a period starts the next cycle.
While it sounds like the chances of catching an egg are pretty slim, consider the numbers. Its estimated ejaculate contains up to 280 million sperm cells. And under ideal conditions, sperm actually live for several days once inside the reproductive tract.
Any unprotected sex you have within about 5 days of ovulation may leave enough sperm waiting and ready to fertilize. In other words, you may conceive after having sex nearly a week before ovulation if healthy sperm are already hanging out at their final destination.
On the flip side, conception can occur very soon after having sex as well. Experts say that the sperm can navigate the uterus and fallopian tubes to reach the egg as soon as 30 minutes after ejaculation.
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What To Expect At Your Appointment
During your first visit with a fertility specialist, your doctor will ask a lot of questions about your history, to try to understand factors that may be making it harder to become pregnant. They may order some blood tests to try to understand any irregularities that might be keeping you from getting pregnant, and to make sure you are in the best possible health to become pregnant. Theyll also order a semen analysis on your partner though this wont be performed on the day of your initial appointment. Depending on your medical history, you might also plan an ultrasound and additional imaging to further explore. If you arent ovulating, your doctor may prescribe medications, including ones that can help induce ovulation. The best choice is very personal and your doctor will help you understand all of your options.
Wherever you are on your fertility journey, remember that approximately 85% of healthy women will get pregnant within a year of trying. For those who struggle to conceive, you can increase your chances by mixing love with science and seeing a doctor who specializes in fertility.
We want our patients to feel as comfortable as possible during this emotional and sometimes stressful time. Our team is committed to providing the most caring, compassionate, and leading-edge fertility care available.
How Often Should You Have Sex
You might have read that having sex too often reduces sperm quality and quantity. Some research has shown that sperm have better quality when collected after a 2-3 day period of abstinence. Studies have also shown that higher rates of conception are seen in couples who have sex every 1-2 days.
Making love once a day or every other day during your fertile window will increase your odds of getting pregnant.
Try to have sex more often, but dont force yourself into a schedule. It could lead to unnecessary stress. Ultimately, the ideal number of times to have sex is what feels comfortable to you.
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Other Tips For Getting Pregnant
Changing your sex practices isnt the only way to improve your likelihood of conceiving. Here are a few other things you can do to boost your fertility:
- Orgasm. For a man, ejaculating is essential to getting his partner pregnant. Though a woman doesnt have to climax to get pregnant, the movement of her orgasm can help propel sperm closer to their destination.
- Control your weight. Being too heavy or too thin could lower your fertility.
- Dont smoke. Smoking increases the odds of infertility and miscarriage, and reduces sperm motility.
- Limit caffeine. In large amounts more than five cups of coffee a day caffeine can lower fertility.
