Knowing when in your cycle you are most likely to get pregnant involves determining when you ovulate. After ovulation, an egg can live inside your body for 12 to 24 hours, but in some cases, your body may release a second egg, increasing the chances of pregnancy for three days after you ovulate. Sperm can live inside your body for up to five days, so you could also become pregnant if you have unprotected sex in the days preceding ovulation. To identify the time period in which you can conceive, learn to recognize symptoms indicating ovulation is about to occur.
Step 1
Use an ovulation predictor kit. These tests measure a hormone in your body called luteinizing hormone, or LH, which increases before ovulation. Ovulation tests work similarly to pregnancy tests: you urinate on a stick, and lines will appear to indicate your levels of LH.
According to the American Pregnancy Association, OPKs are 99-percent accurate in detecting increases in LH. However, because the LH surge occurs only 24 to 48 hours before ovulation, individuals should not rely on OPKs as a means of contraception. They are primarily recommended for women who are trying to conceive or as a method of confirming other ovulation symptoms produced by your body, says the American Pregnancy Association.
Step 2
Monitor and chart your cervical fluid. A variety of methods exist that allow you to predict or identify the day you ovulate. These methods are sometimes referred to as the ovulation method, the sympto-thermal method, the cervical mucus method or the Billings ovulation method. Collectively, they form the practice of fertility awareness, or natural family planning. These methods require monitoring and charting naturally occurring symptoms produced by your body.
In the days leading up to ovulation, you may notice changes in your cervical fluid. As your body prepares for pregnancy, the cervix begins to release a sticky substance in order to provide the sperm with a fluid in which to swim. By observing the changes in your cervical fluid and recording them on a calendar or chart, you can eventually begin to recognize patterns that indicate ovulation is imminent, says Toni Weschler in her book “Taking Charge of Your Fertility.”
Step 3
Chart your basal body temperature. After ovulation, your body experiences an increase in the hormone progesterone, reports Weschler in “Taking Charge of Your Fertility.” This progesterone increase causes a slight rise in your basal body temperature. By taking your temperature every morning upon waking and recording the results on a chart, you can identify when this increase occurs.
The change in temperature will be slight--between one-tenth and one-half a degree. Use a digital thermometer that provides an accurate measurement, and try to take your temperature at approximately the same time every day.
Since the temperature change indicates that ovulation has already occurred, you should not use this method alone as a form of birth control. Monitoring your basal body temperature may be useful if you are trying to conceive, however.
References
- American Pregnancy Association: Ovulation Kits & Fertility Monitors
- “Taking Charge of Your Fertility”; Toni Weschler; 2001
