Ttc for a year. Questions on ovulation and fertility?

Question

My husband and I have been trying ttc for a year now. We opted not to do fertility treatments (not yet anyway). We want to do it the natural way before resorting to the treatments. This is our first time to use Ovulation Predictor kits. I need help in understanding a few points. My questions are:

1) When is the best time to have intercourse? Is it when you are

fertile or when you ovulate?

2) I read that a 28day cycle ovulates somewhere between Days 11-21

of your LMP. If after the 21st day and still no (+) on ovulation,

should I stop using the ovulation predictor kit and wait for my next

period? Or should I keep using it? (I have my periods irregularly; i

get it every 6-10wks)

I really appreciate any form of enlightenment on this matter. Thanks!!

Answer 1

The best time to have s*x is when you are fertile and on the day of ovulation.    It definately has to take place before ovulation, or within a few hours of ovulation, as an egg only lives for 6-12 hours unless it is fertilized.

You are correct about ovulating on days 11-21 for a 28 day cycle.   However, as you have irregular periods, if you are ovulating, it will happen from about week 4 - week 8.    (You ovulate 10-16 days before you period starts).     With irregular cycles, it would probably be worth monitoring your cervical mucus - when you notice mucus increasing on the toilet paper when you wipe - it would be time to start using your ovulation predictor kit.

You may also be interested in charting - as it helps you find out if you are actually ovulating.   With such long cycles, you may not be ovulating but instead having estrogen withdrawl bleeding.    Charting would help you discover if this is happening.     Plus, if you eventually go to a fertility specialist, they may ask you to begin charting.

You can find more information out about charting and monitoring your fertility at www.fertilityfriend.com - I found this site really useful - not just for charting but for becoming more aware of my fertile signs.

Good luck.   I hope you get to hold your own little one soon.

Answer 2

The best time to have intercourse is the 5 days before ovulation (especially the day before expected lh surge and the day of the lh surge).  You ovulate 24-36 hours after a detected urine lh surge.  Because there is no way of knowing when the egg releases, it's best to have sperm already waiting for it.  If you wait until you've ovulated, you might miss the egg.  Some say the egg lives for 24 hours but most of the time, they deteriorate after 12 hours.

If you're only having periods 6 to 10 weeks, you might want to speak to an gyn.  Your cycles shouldn't be that long.  You're either not ovulating in a timely manner or you're lining is building to thick which will interfere with implantation.  You really need to get your cycles more regular because with the cycles you're having, you're only going to waste money on testers and get stressed with each passing month when it could be something simple to correct.  

The longer it takes the egg to mature, the more at risk you are of something going wrong. Gyn's like to see ovulation between 14 to 21 days.  I wouldn't bother testing after 24 days, the chances of conceiving after that long is very slim.

Answer 3

fertility is highest just before ovulation.  the egg only lives about 24 hours after ovulation, so the window for conceiving is pretty narrow.  that's why many suggest having intercourse for every other day the 5 or so days before ovulation since sperm can live up to 5 days.  just think of the more, the merrier (and the higher chance of one of them being "the one.")

with irregular periods, it can be hard to tell when ovulation will occur.  the book "taking charge of your fertility" is very helpful in learning about other body signs of ovulation and to learn about charting.  most libraries and bookstores have it, or you can get a used copy online for less if you want your own.  i suggest checking it out!  

also, you may want to consider getting a checkup, if you haven't already, as they may be able to pinpoint something simple that is easily remedied.  we had gotten pregnant right away with #1 (now 2 years old) and #2 (died at 9-10 weeks), then had trouble conceiving.  we didn't want to do fertility treatments, either, but my doctor sent us to a specialist just to check things out.  he found one hormone level was low.  just took pills for a month and conceived!!  (now 13 weeks!)  also, have a friend who learned her progesterone would drop, so they gave her something and all is well and due soon.  you may consider hormone therapy too much like full-blown fertility treatments, which is fine.  do what's best for you.  either way, hope this helps and best wishes!!!