Smex Ed

So you’re ready to get pregnant…on purpose.

Woo hoo!!

I don’t know about you but the brief bit of sex education I got in school prepared me for pleasurable orgasms about as much as it did conception – which is to say, NOT AT ALL!

With most of the focus on pregnancy avoidance, most of us went through our youth panicking that some heavy petting was a one-way ticket to a teen pregnancy statistic.

If your reproductive education growing up was anything like mine, you might be flying blind into the conception process and it turns out getting pregnant is a bit more complex than dramatically tossing your birth control in the trash. 

But no worries, as a fertility pro I’m here to make it a little easier for you! Let’s start by dispelling some of the biggest bedroom myths out there:

Myth #1: You can get pregnant throughout the month 

Your fertile window (the days that you can become pregnant) is limited to 5-6 days each cycle.

In total that’s a max of 72 days a year that you can get pregnant but in truth, it’s more like 36 days (and that’s if you’ve got a pretty consistent monthly cycle). 

Now, if you’re trying to avoid pregnancy those numbers sound pretty good but if you’re intentionally trying to get pregnant those numbers mean that nailing down your fertile window each cycle is important!

If you want to start tracking your fertile time each month, start by paying attention to what’s going on in your underwear.

As you near ovulation (the time when your egg is released) you may notice an uptick in your sex drive and a change in cervical mucus. In the 2-5 days leading up to ovulation, many people notice their cervical mucus changes from a white, thick consistency to a clear, gel-like consistency.

This change in mucus indicates that your fertile window is open and it’s go time!

Myth #2: Laying down with your legs up after intercourse will increase your chances of pregnancy.

Snuggling up after a shag session? – Yumm

Gluing yourself to the mattress with your legs at a 90-degree angle for 10-20 minutes? – Yawn

Thankfully, you can skip right over that snoozefest because research shows that staying horizontal for X number of minutes after coitus doesn’t do much in terms of conception.

Remember that fertile mucus I mentioned about 3 inches north of here? That fertile mucus is like a venus fly trap for sperm and as soon as it gets up there it’s snagged so you don’t have to worry about gravity.

Myth #3: Having an orgasm increases a female’s chance of pregnancy

The “upsuck theory” (a semi-popular hypothesis with a cringe name) suggests that the uterine contractions that come with a female orgasm push more semen into the fallopian tubes and increase the chances of fertilization.

However, this hypothesis is poorly studied, and the research we do have shows that the upsuck theory is just a theory and not fact.

So if you want to go for it by all means, have some fun! Achieving orgasm can increase the connection between you and your partner but at this time isn’t shown to improve your chances of pregnancy.

Myth #4: To increase your chances of pregnancy, you should have sex every other day.

While it sounds good to get it on regularly, even the most high-drive people can find it a little frustrating to follow such a rigorous schedule.

Instead of getting it on like bunnies every other day, concentrate your conception efforts during that time when your cervical mucus shifts into that clear, gel-like consistency, and the rest of the month you can go back to enjoying sex for the fun of it!

If you’ve been making detours past the baby aisle at Target and you’re finally ready to take the leap and grow your family – congratulations! It’s a wild ride and you’re already ahead of the game because you’ve read through these basics.

And if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the Dos and Don’ts of conception, be patient with yourself. It’s more than likely your reproductive education so far has been lacking so it’s going to take some time to sort it all out. 

Join me over @thefertilitynut on social media for more tips and if you want to dive in with your own personalized quick start conception plan then take the Find your Fertile Path quiz and let’s get it on!!!

Xo- Whit (aka The Fertility Nut)