Can One Get Pregnant After Periods

I Conceived My First Baby Easily So The Next Pregnancy Should Be Easy

Theres no sure way of knowing. Youll be older, you may have less time to be spontaneous with your sex life and you may even have a different partner all of these influence your chances of pregnancy. If you are under 35 and have been trying to get pregnant for a year, talk to your doctor .

Can You Get Pregnant After Your Period

In a word: yes.

Think of your menstrual cycle starting on day one of your period, and lasting for roughly 28 days .

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Typically, youll start ovulating in the middle of your cycle.

So it depends on how long your period lasts as to whether you start ovulating right after.

Plus, you can get pregnant any time from 5 days before ovulation to 1 day after ovulation.

Considering ovulation usually lasts for 1 day, that gives you about 7 days during your menstrual cycle that you can get pregnant.

However, theres no guarantee that you will get pregnant outside of these days.

How soon after your period can you get pregnant?

You can get pregnant straight after your period, although the chances are pretty slim.

However, youll likely be at your most fertile about 7-16 days after day 1 of your period .

The Causes Of Irregular Periods You May Be Overlooking

One of the main causes of an irregular period is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome . PCOS is an imbalance in the hormones controlling the reproductive system. PCOS causes irregular ovulation, cysts on ovaries, bleeding, and infertility. Research shows PCOS cases double miscarraiges and premature deliveries.

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Your Menstrual Cycle And Conception

“There are two phases to the menstrual cycle: the follicular phase occurs before ovulation, and the luteal phase occurs after ovulation,” says Lauren Sundheimer, M.D., MS, FACOG, an OB-GYN practicing in Orange County, California. Dr. Sundheimer explains that typically people who have 28-day cycles will ovulate approximately 14 days after the first day of their period.

Cycle length varies for everyone, though. Ovulation tends to occur 14 days prior to your next period. That can make predicting ovulation tricky if you have irregular cycles since you don’t know when your next period will arrive.

The egg that’s released during ovulation survives for only 24 hours. Sperm, on the other hand, can survive three to five days in the uterus and fallopian tubes, says Barbara Stegmann, M.D., a triple board-certified OB-GYN and women’s health clinical lead at Organon, a global healthcare company. So having PIV sex during ovulation or the days beforehand can result in pregnancy since the egg can meet with existing sperm in the reproductive tract.

But “if the egg is not fertilized by a sperm during this time, it does not survive,” says Michele Hakakha, M.D., a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist based in Los Angeles and co-author of Expecting 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Pregnancy . Then, about 12 to 16 days later, your uterine lining sheds, resulting in your period.

What Are The Chances I Can Get Pregnant On My Period

The chances of getting pregnant if you have sex during your period are very low. However, if youve had unprotected sex, it is still possible to get pregnant during your period.

To understand how this can happen, you need to know how your menstrual cycle works.

• Your cycle starts on the first day of your period and lasts until the first day of your next period.
• About 10 to 16 days before the start of your next period, you will ovulate, which is when one of your ovaries releases an egg.
• Once youve ovulated, you enter the Luteal phase, when the now empty follicle develops the corpus luteum, which produces the hormone progesterone.
• The lining on your uterus thickens in preparation for a fertilized egg to implant.
• If you have not conceived, then the egg passes into the uterus, hormone levels drop, and the womb lining sheds as you begin your next period.

You are at your most fertile around the time you ovulate. Although the egg lives only for 12 to 24 hours after being released, you can get pregnant even if you have sex days before you ovulate as sperm can live up to five days in your body.

So how likely are you to get pregnant during your period? Well, it depends on a few factors like:

• whether you used contraception or not
• the length of your menstrual cycle
• the length of your period
• when you had sex

You can also conceive after having sex during your period if you have short menstrual cycles, as this means you ovulate a few days earlier, and closer to the end of your period.

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Whens The Best Time To Get Pregnant After Your Period

So, its time for the how to get pregnant after period portion of our guide.

The funny thing is, for all the procreating we do as a species it must be fun or something women can only get pregnant during a pretty small chapter of every month.

The fertile window, as its called, is a small one.

So if youre wanting to know if you can get pregnant after your period, yes you can, but typically a few weeks after.

The fertility cycle is about 6-10 days in most women.

If youre the cookie-cutter textbook 28-day regular cycle case, this would be around days 10-17 of your cycle.

Thats why many couples land up getting a fantastic toolkit of calendars and clocks and sometimes even canceling important engagements to, well, get it on.

But of course, in the chimeric world of what is typical, very little is. In fact, in only about 30% of women is the fertile window entirely within the days set out by the clinical guidelines

The Fertile Window Includes:

• the 5 days before ovulation
• the day of ovulation

Simple. Just calculate your window and enjoy worry-free romps for the rest of the month, right?

Not so fast. Like sex, your bodys schedule can be beautifully messy. Its more art class than math class.

Even during your period, when pregnancy-friendly progesterone is low, your body is prepping for its next fertile window. Sometimes, your ovaries get eager and release an egg early. Or sometimes you skip an ovulation day.

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Can You Get Pregnant Right Before Or After Your Period

The fertile window usually occurs in the middle of a persons cycle. This window lasts a few days before ovulation and ends a day after ovulation. People are most likely to become pregnant during this time.

Due to this, people are less likely to get pregnant in the days leading up to their period. This is especially true if their periods are regular and they have a 28-day menstrual cycle.

It is, however, possible for a person to get pregnant immediately after their period. This is because sperm can still fertilize eggs for up to 7 days after sexual intercourse.

If a person with a short cycle has sexual intercourse right after their period and ovulates early, they may ovulate quickly enough for the egg to connect with sperm cells.

The Easiest Method To Check For An Irregular Period

A one-off occasion of a late or early period should not cause concern. To check, record the last day of the last period to the first day of the first period. Repeat for at least three months. A significant difference over the timeframe means a possible irregular period. To be safe, schedule an appointment with a gynecologist.

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A Quick Review Of Conception

To conceive a baby, the following series of steps must occur:

• Unprotected sex resulting in ejaculation resulting in ejaculation the sperm can hang around within the uterus for five days, patiently waiting for the egg.
• Ovulation is the release of the unfertilized egg into the fallopian tubes the egg is a little impatient and remains within the uterus for only 12 to 24 hours.
• Fertilization the union of the sperm and egg within the fallopian tube Implantation when the fertilized egg snuggles within the uterine lining, its home for the next nine months however, a fertilized eggs journey to implantation takes between 6 to 12 days.

Perfect timing and favorable conditions lead to pregnancy. However, wont menstruation create a hostile environment for fertilization and implantation? Can you still get pregnant while you are on your period?

Here are the answers to a few questions that some of us may have.

What happens if sperm goes inside during the period?

Sperm can survive within the female reproductive system for up to five days, regardless of whether one is menstruating or not.

Can sperm survive in menstrual blood?

Yes, sperm can survive in menstrual blood. The optimal pH for viable sperm is between 7 and 8. The pH of menstrual blood is about 7.4.

Can a period flush out a fertilized egg?

Since we have revised the concept of fertilization and implantation, lets now get some insight into the menstrual cycle.

Understanding Your Menstrual Cycle

Your menstrual cycle begins on the first day of your period and continues up to the first day of your next period.

You’re most fertile at the time of ovulation , which usually occurs 12 to 14 days before your next period starts. This is the time of the month when you’re most likely to get pregnant.

It’s unlikely that you’ll get pregnant just after your period, although it can happen. It’s important to remember that sperm can sometimes survive in the body for up to 7 days after you have sex.

This means it may be possible to get pregnant soon after your period finishes if you ovulate early, especially if you have a naturally short menstrual cycle.

You should always use contraception when you have sex if you don’t want to become pregnant.

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How Soon Can I Get Pregnant After Coming Off The Pill

You can get pregnant as soon as you come off the pill but if youre trying to get pregnant, its a good idea to wait until youve had a natural period. This will give your body time to adjust and give you a chance to make sure youre ready for pregnancy. Make use of our pregnancy planning tool to see what else you can do.

When Can A Woman Not Get Pregnant

A woman cannot get pregnant if she is infertile. Female infertility can be caused due to several reasons:

• Scarred or damaged fallopian tubes that prevent male sperm from fertilising the female egg can cause female infertility.
• Irregular or abnormal uterine shapes make it challenging for a fertilised egg to attach itself to the uterine wall, and this causes female infertility.
• Conditions such as PCOS cause women to ovulate inconsistently. When left untreated, this could lead to female infertility or inability to conceive for a while.

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Should Women With Irregular Periods Panic

Irregular periods are concerning. More so if getting pregnant is on the cards. Missing periods can also be a sign of an underlying medical issue. Theres no need to panic. Take action early. Seek advice from your OB/GYN, as doctors can help increase the chances of a successful pregnancy.

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Sex Right After Your Period

While you may assume that your odds of getting pregnant are slim in the first few days following your period, you are actually moving into a new fertility window. Researchers have shown that a person’s chances of conception jump starting a week after the start of their last period and rise steadily after that, peaking around day 15 LMP.

Your odds of getting pregnant in the days just following your period rise when you have a shorter length between periods because that usually means you ovulate soon after your period ends. Research has shown that people with a 23-day menstrual cycle, for instance, have a 9% chance of ovulating on day 10 LMP. That means they are fertileable to get pregnantbetween six and 11 days after the start of their last period.

Remember, even when you are in your suspected fertile window, that does not mean you will necessarily get pregnant from sex. Structural problems with your uterus or fallopian tubes or issues with either your eggs or your partner’s sperm can prevent conception and fertilization. If you are timing sex to get pregnant and having trouble after several months, consider talking to a fertility doctor about tests you can take to better understand how to maximize your chances of conception.

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How Can A Woman Get Pregnant On Her Period

Its easy to mistake vaginal bleeding for the beginning of a period. Its possible you could bleed during ovulation when youre most fertile. This could easily be mistaken for a period. Having unprotected sex at this time dramatically increases your chances of becoming pregnant.

For the average woman, the ovulation cycle is somewhere between 28 and 30 days. This means that if you have sex while on your period, you wont likely ovulate until several days later.

But women with a shorter cycle wouldnt have the same amount of time between having their periods and ovulating.

Another consideration is that a mans sperm can live inside a woman for up to 72 hours after ejaculation. Toward the end of your period, your chances of becoming pregnant will increase.

If youre curious about your ovulation patterns, you can track the number of days between your periods. This includes when you start your period, and then when you start your period again.

Over several months, you can identify a pattern to determine roughly when your ovulation cycle occurs.

What If You Want A Baby

If youre trying to get pregnant, its vital to schedule plenty of time between the sheets during your fertile window.

If youve been getting frisky mid-cycle for a while and still arent preggo, it might benefit you to have sex more regularly. Cycles vary, after all. It also helps pinpoint your ovulation knowledge is power!

Heres how to get a better handle on your bodys ovulation patterns:

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What Can I Do To Get Pregnant

If you want to get pregnant, its a good idea to talk to your doctor. Many doctors will advise a few lifestyle changes if youre trying for a baby, such as taking a or prenatal vitamin supplements, avoiding alcohol, quitting smoking, and trying to maintain a healthy weight. You may also want to use an ovulation test to help you identify when your most fertile days are. You can see our range of ovulation tests and here to help you maximize your chances of conceiving.

Also, see our tips on .

While Youre On Your Period

As any woman with a calendar and a bunch of best friends will tell you, the amount of days each woman spends menstruating can vary a lot.

Your menstrual flow may start to diminish and lighten in color, or turn brown towards the end of your cycle. It feels and looks like youre still menstruating, but your body is already gearing up for your next fertile time.

If you have sex towards the end of your period, you may actually be getting close to your fertile window, especially if you have a short cycle. Lets take a look at the math.

Say you ovulate early, about six days after your period starts. You have sex on the third day of your period. The sperm have no egg to fertilize, but theyre also in no hurry to die so they hang out, doin what sperm do.

A few days later, while theyre still swimming around, you ovulate and theyre drawn to that egg like a fish to water. One gets through, and there you have it fertilization has occurred as a result of period sex.

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Using Ovulation Calculators And Kits

Ovulation calendars and kits can also help you predict ovulation.

Ovulation calendars are available on websites such as www.yourfertility.org.au, and use the date of your last period and the length of your cycle to predict when you are likely to be most fertile.

Home ovulation predictor kits are available from pharmacies. You use the kit a few days before your predicted ovulation day, to test for a rise in the level of a hormone called luteinising hormone in your urine. A positive result indicates you will ovulate within the next 24 to 36 hours.

A blood test, which your doctor can order, can also detect ovulation by measuring levels of the hormone progesterone.

If you are trying to get pregnant, there are also a number of other things you should consider, such as taking folate, maintaining a healthy diet and making sure your vaccinations are up to date.

For more information and support, call Pregnancy, Birth and Baby on 1800 882 436.

How Many Days After Period Is Safe To Avoid Pregnancy

Is your menstrual cycle regular? One can have either a regular or an irregular period cycle. A woman’s menstrual cycle can last from 21 days to 35 days, in general. However, an ideal menstrual cycle is 28 days.

Unprotected sex at any time during the menstrual cycle does not nullify the risk of getting pregnant, whether it is during the period, just after the periods, or any time.

Many of us might be wondering, “Is it safe to have sex after periods?”

Ideally, there is no terminology as ‘safe time’ to have sex without using contraception in the month. There are phases during the entire menstrual cycle when you are most likely to conceive and most unlikely to conceive.

If you are trying to avoid getting pregnant, you have a minimal chance of getting pregnant if you have sex within the initial seven days after periods, when the eggs are not released from the ovaries.

Nevertheless, if you have a shorter cycle, you may ovulate around this time, thus using appropriate contraception is necessary.

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