I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Hi! I'm new and a transplant from LIW (futuremrsrice) and a newlywed

My husband and I are going to start trying as soon as we get settled in our new house and as we were talking about this last night, we realized, neither of us really "gets" how we get pregnant. Obviously, we BD... but when? And how do you know when your cycle starts -- like what is day 1?

If someone could just teach me the basics, that would be great!

THANKS!!
Elisabeth (my husband calls me Lizzy - that's how I picked my SN )

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Okay.. Day 1 is the first day of your menstrual period. when you ovulate varies from woman to woman. I would start off by typing in your data (#s of days in your cycle and last menstrual period) using either www.mymonthlycycles.com or www.webmd.com and it'll give you an estimate of when you should BD to get pregnant. Some ladies also use ovulation monitors and kits where they test daily to see when their peak fertility time is.

GOOD LUCK!

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Hi Lizzy,

Day 1 is the first day of your period (AF).

Are your cycles regular? Do you know when your last maybe six AFs were? Then you can get an average cycle length, and approximate ovulation date.

You'll want to BD right before ovulation.

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Posted by Lizzy

Hi! I'm new and a transplant from LIW (futuremrsrice) and a newlywed

My husband and I are going to start trying as soon as we get settled in our new house and as we were talking about this last night, we realized, neither of us really "gets" how we get pregnant. Obviously, we BD... but when? And how do you know when your cycle starts -- like what is day 1?

If someone could just teach me the basics, that would be great!

THANKS!!
Elisabeth (my husband calls me Lizzy - that's how I picked my SN )

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Posted by inbliss

Posted by Lizzy

Hi! I'm new and a transplant from LIW (futuremrsrice) and a newlywed

My husband and I are going to start trying as soon as we get settled in our new house and as we were talking about this last night, we realized, neither of us really "gets" how we get pregnant. Obviously, we BD... but when? And how do you know when your cycle starts -- like what is day 1?

If someone could just teach me the basics, that would be great!

THANKS!!
Elisabeth (my husband calls me Lizzy - that's how I picked my SN )

i thought i was the only one. i have been on BC for so long that i don't know how anything works.

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

thanks. right now i come here to see how things work. we are actually going off BC in April and will be "winging it" after that. i spoke to my gyn. last week and he told me to wait a cycle or 2 and then we will be set. we really can't wait. dh is so excited. (so am I)

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

THEORETICALLY, this is how it goes.

Say you have a 28 day cycle. Day 1 is your first full flow day (not spotting). On day 29, your period should return, and your cycle will really be day 1 again.

You ovulate roughly at day 14. It could be before, it could be after. About the 10th day of your cycle, you will see clear stretchy cervical mucous when you wipe. That's EWCM. When you see EWCM, you will O within 3-5 days roughly. you are most fertile when EWCM is around....

It's really best to get an OPK kit to find out when you O. EWCM is not a good indicator. you should use late-afternoon urine for the OPK kit, and try to not drink too much and have it be too dilute. You should start testing on the day suggested in the kit instructions. OPK kits measure LH surge. LH is a very brief hormone spike (as short as 12 hours) 1-2 days before O. When you get a + on the kit, you will O either the next day, or the day after.

then you enter the 2 week wait!

good luck

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

i should have paid attention in 4th grade to the sex movie. i couldn't though because my mom was pregnant with her 5th child and in the room with me and all of my friends. how embarassing

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Try the book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Weschler. It's an excellent book & it contains so much helpful information about how our bodies work.

Good luck!

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Posted by Dani922

Try the book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Weschler. It's an excellent book & it contains so much helpful information about how our bodies work.

Good luck!

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

I purchased "Taking charge of your Feritlity" and it is VERY helpful. Answers all the questions you could possibly have. We are here to help as well!!! Good Luck!!!

Re: I wasn't paying attention in sex-ed....

Ok -- I just ordered the book from Amazon I feel slightly stupid that I am a grown adult and really confused about how the whole thing works.

I am setting up my account on webmd rght now Maybe then I will have a better understanding of my cycle. I have been on BC until 3 days ago.