When to get pregnant

Many women want to know when to get pregnant in other words, which times during their menstrual cycle are most suitable days to have intercourse if they are hoping to conceive a baby. Unless you want to rely on far-fetched theories for which there is no proof, like lunar fertility enhancement, there is only one answer to this question. In order to get pregnant, a sperm will need to fight its way to the egg and break through its outer shell. Of course, for this to happen, the egg actually need to be present. Ovulation, the time the egg is releases, and up to five days before that, are is the one window women have to get pregnant.

We have blogged extensively about ovulation, how to recognize it, using an ovulation calendar and ovulation predictor kits. We believe that knowing when you ovulate is the key to getting pregnant more quickly although just having regular intercourse without knowing when your most fertile days are will probably also lead to pregnancy, just a little less soon. Because of the many earlier articles we have written about ovulation, this is not another post about ovulation tests. I want to use this opportunity to point out that different women can ovulate at vastly different cycle days. It is true that most women ovulate somewhere between cycle days 10 and 14, roughly halfway through their cycle, but some don't.

Assuming that cycle day 14 is the time to get pregnant and focusing all your efforts on this time may be doing your chances some harm. There are women who ovulate while their menstruation barely finished, on day five or six of their cycle. There are also women who ovulate just before their cycle comes to an end. The former is no problem for women who are trying to get pregnant, as long as they are aware. The latter can mean their luteal phase is too short to facilitate implantation of a fertilized egg, meaning it might get flushed out with menstruation. This is called a Luteal Phase Defect or LPD, and often needs to be resolved with medication.