For as fun as the act of baby-making can be, it’s also stressful and confusing. It can seem like this simple, natural, relatively straight-forward process is more complicated than putting together IKEA furniture without the instructions (and taking twice as long). The important thing is not to fret. There may be a simple switch that makes your conception click. Take a look at these five common baby-making mistakes and make any necessary adjustments. Who knows? Maybe tonight is the night!
Mistake #1: Not Having Enough Sex
There is an urban myth floating around in the world suggesting that saving up sperm until the right moment can increase the potency of a man’s sperm count. This is false! It is totally not true! Don’t buy into this poppycock idea. In reality, the regular release of sperm ensures that fresh, healthy sperm is circulating through the system. Having sex regularly helps to make sure that the healthy sperm can reach an egg.
Additionally, the more accustomed your body gets to your partner’s sperm, the more welcoming the environment becomes. If you are coming into contact with your partner’s sperm more frequently, the sperm is much less like to trigger an autoimmune response.
Mistake #2: Waiting Until the Day You Are Ovulating
The actual ovulation window is painfully short, and terribly easy to miss. However, since sperm can live inside your body for 3-7 days, your best chances of getting pregnant occur for up to a week prior to ovulation. If you can front-load some of your bedroom action, you increase your chances of becoming pregnant. By working with a wider window of opportunity, you increase your odds. If you ovulate a little early or a little late, you should still be covered.
Mistake #3: Using the Wrong Lube
You are probably savvy enough to ditch any kind of lubricant that contains spermicide. But what you may not realize is that other types of commercial lube can hamper a sperm’s ability to swim. If you love a lube-party, seek out products that are created with conception in mind, such as PreSeed lubricant. Alternatively, you can opt for a natural product like coconut oil, olive oil or egg whites. This product will enable sperm to reach your fallopian tubes just fine.
Mistake #4: Sticking to Missionary Position
There is a long-held belief that missionary position is the best shape to conceive a baby in. The theory has to do with gravity: that lying on your back better enables sperm to swim the way it needs to. This theory, however, just isn’t true. Once ejaculation occurs, semen becomes mixed with your cervical mucus and makes its way into your fallopian tubes. Gravity doesn’t really have anything to do with it. Also, there just isn’t any evidence that one position works better than any other. You are going to be having a lot of sex. Try all sorts of fun positions. Do your best to keep it interesting.
Mistake #5: Stressing Out About It
Once you decide you are ready to have a baby, the process of becoming pregnant can feel like it takes forever. However, even for perfectly healthy, fertile couples it can take anywhere from a few months to 8 months to conceive. It’s just not that quick or easy to hit the baby bullseye. The best possible thing you can do is to try not to worry about it. Have decadent, primal, unprotected sex as frequently as you want. And seriously: try to enjoy it. If you can front load some of that sex into the first half of your cycle that’s great, but try not to worry about it too much. If you and your partner are calm, and maybe just a little bit giddy, about the process, you are more likely to conceive within that 3-8 month window.
This is easier said than done, no doubt. Eight months is a pretty long time to wait, that’s true. But you will have the whole rest of your life to parent that baby. When you take a step back, you can see that there really is no rush.
If it has already been more than 8 months, and you are concerned about infertility, it may be time to contact a professional for infertility tips. Speak to your doctor about what steps you can take. There are many modern conception options available for you. Contact a professional to discuss your IVF Tempe needs, as well as any aspect of your fertility.