Getting Pregnant: The Guide

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You are on part four of the getting pregnant guide!

When ovulation is imminent, the cervix rises up in the vagina, softening and opening up slightly. At the beginning of the menstrual cycle cervix feels similar to the tip of your nose, when you’re about to ovulate it feels more like the soft flesh of your lips. This can be a useful tool when monitoring your ovulation cycles.

• The typical menstrual cycle is 28 days, if your cycle differs from this then ovulation won’t occur on Day 14. In a typical cycle, ovulation will occur 14 days prior to the start of the next menstrual cycle, so it’s really useful to track your cycle so you know when your next menstrual cycle is due to begin.

pregnant woman belly

• Although you haven’t yet actually conceived, it’s worth starting to think about who you would like to be present at the birth of your baby. There is no better recommendation than word of mouth, ask friends and relatives for names of any doctors and midwives that they particularly valued during their own pregnancies. Figuring this out now lets you put more focus on the more important things...like getting pregnant :)

• It is important to stay relaxed while you’re trying to conceive. Studies have proven that an orgasm is 22 times more relaxing than a typical tranquilizer. If you are tracking your basal body temperature (BBT), remember that you shouldn’t wait until your temperature rises before trying to conceive, by this point you have already ovulated and have missed your chance!

• You will need to wait at least twelve days after ovulation before there will be enough human chronic gonadotropin in your urine for you to see a positive result on a pregnancy test.

Getting Pregnant Tricks...

• If you’re monitoring your BBT, you may be able to work out for yourself if you are pregnant. If your period doesn’t arrive on time, you can take a note of whether your luteal phase (number of days since ovulation) is longer than normal. If you have an elevated temperature for eighteen consecutive days, you can safely assume that you are pregnant.

• Scarlett O’Hara famously stated: "Death and taxes and childbirth. There's never any convenient time for any of them?" One of the most critical periods in embryonic development occurs in the period before you even know you are pregnant. Whilst you’re trying to conceive it’s worth cutting out on cigarettes and alcohol, assume you may be pregnant until you are sure that you’re not. Better safe than sorry when getting pregnant.

• Roughly a week after conception, your body begins to produce hCG. This along with rising levels of progesterone causes an increase in blood flow to the pelvic area. This causes the need for more frequent urination as pregnancy progresses.

• Certain women experience light spotting about a week after conception. If this does happen to you, try not to panic. Spotting at this time is usually implantation bleeding and signifies the point when the fertilized egg attaches itself to the wall of the uterus. Sometimes this is mistaken for a menstrual period and can create confusion about the estimated due date.

Continue to the next chapter of the getting pregnant guide.