Getting pregnant is rarely as easy as you would like it to be. Even if you’re in the peak of reproductive health, your fertility is only the chance you have of getting pregnant over a given time period, and that chance is never 100%. If you do have any conditions that affect your fertility, this chance can be much lower than 100%. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome causes you to ovulate less frequently, giving you fewer chances to conceive, as can thyroid issues, and even stress can adversely affect your egg quality.
Fortunately, there are some relatively easy things you can do to move the needle back in the other direction and improve the odds that will get pregnant – even with such challenges to overcome. Today we’re taking a look at some of them.
Time it Right
The time in each cycle when you can realistically get pregnant is surprisingly short. The so-called ‘fertile window’ is the lifespan of sperm overlaid on the maximum 24 hours of viability an egg has from ovulation. This gives you six days in which to get pregnant: five days before ovulation when sperm can survive long enough to meet the egg when it’s ovulated and one day after, before the egg ceases to be fertile.
A modern ovulation device can tell you when you’re ovulating and therefore when you’re fertile. The best ones predict when you will ovulate in advance, allowing you to plan around this date and take full advantage of your fertile window.
You need to choose the right ovulation monitor for you: for example, if you have PCOS, hormone based OPKs won’t give you good results, as the same hormone imbalances that cause the symptoms of the issue also distort the tests.
Choosing Supplements Carefully
There are lots of supplements that you could spend money on that promise to improve your fertility, but it’s important to do your research and choose carefully, making sure that the supplements you choose are effective for you.
Inositol has a great reputation for improving fertility, but that’s because it specifically addresses one of the root causes of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. If you don’t have PCOS, Inositol won’t help!
One way to find good supplements is to make an appointment with your doctor or fertility specialist to talk about your fertility, and find out what specific challenges you are facing. You can then research what supplements can help address those challenges and improve your chances rather than relying on non-specific, broad spectrum fertility supplements.