How is women get pregnant

Having sex on those days will give you the greatest odds of conceiving. During ovulation, your ovary releases a mature egg. That egg makes its way down the fallopian tube on its way to your uterus.

On this route, the sperm will hopefully meet up with and fertilize the egg. Sperm can live for about five days. Keep a calendar of your menstrual cycles or use an app to keep track. Each cycle starts on the first day of your period, and ends on the day before your next period starts. Look for the midpoint of your cycle.

Drugstores also sell over-the-counter ovulation kits. Refer to the test kit instructions for more information. With hundreds of millions of sperm released in each male orgasm, any unprotected sex around the time of ovulation could result in a pregnancy.

As long as sperm enter the vagina, you have a chance to conceive. No certain positions during sex have been proven to increase likelihood of conception. Yet certain positions may be better than others for ensuring those little swimmers find their way up to the egg. The missionary man on top and doggie-style positions man behind allow for deeper penetration — bringing sperm in closer proximity to the cervix.

In the standing and woman-on-top positions, gravity works against you. Sperm are pretty good swimmers. Once deposited in the vagina, they can reach the cervix within 15 minutes. Placing a pillow under your lower back will also keep the sperm swimming in the right direction.

You might have read that having sex too often reduces sperm quality and quantity. Some research has shown that sperm have better quality when collected after a day period of abstinence.

Studies have also shown that higher rates of conception are seen in couples who have sex every days. Making love once a day or every other day during your fertile window will increase your odds of getting pregnant.

It could lead to unnecessary stress. Ultimately, the ideal number of times to have sex is what feels comfortable to you. Just under two-thirds of women use a lubricant during sex, but there have been questions about whether these products might affect sperm quality.

In lab studies , water-based lubricants like Astroglide and K-Y Brand Jelly reduced sperm movement by 60 to percent. Progesterone transforms the uterine lining into a mature lining that will accept a pregnancy.

The follicle called a corpus luteum at this stage will make progesterone for about days. If pregnancy does not occur, progesterone production stops and this triggers a reaction in the uterus to shed the uterine lining. The menstrual material, which consists of blood, endometrial tissue, cervical mucus and vaginal secretions, passes out of the body through the vagina.

Normal menses lasts for two to seven days. Menstrual periods typically start when girls are between the age of 11 and 14, and continue until a woman reaches menopause, which often begins around age An average cycle is commonly 28 days long, although it is normal to have cycles that are shorter or longer. The commonly accepted normal range for menstrual cycles is every 24 to 35 days.

Women may not ovulate at the same time each month and they may have irregular cycles that make the timing of ovulation more challenging to calculate. The male reproductive system includes the penis, testicles testes , the system of ducts known as the epididymis and the vas deferens, and the accessory glands, which generate fluids that nourish sperm and lubricate the ducts.

The penis has three parts: the root, the shaft and the glans or head. All males are born with a foreskin covering the glans of the penis, which is sometimes removed by circumcision. The tip of the penis has an opening that leads to the urethra. The urethra is the tube that passes through the shaft of the penis and releases urine during urination or semen during ejaculation.

The penis contains cylinders of spongy, erectile tissue. During arousal, these become filled with blood, causing an erection, which is necessary for penetration. Semen, a fluid that contains sperm, is released ejaculated when a man reaches sexual climax.

Most men have two testicles, which are also responsible for producing testosterone, a hormone that helps the male reproductive system function. Normal body temperature is too hot for sperm to survive, which is why the testicles are located outside the body proper and in the scrotum, where the temperature is about 3.

Sperm move from the testes to the epididymis, which are coiled tubes one in each testicle where sperm are stored and reach maturity. The vas deferens is a muscular tube that transports semen from the epididymis into the urethra during ejaculation. Semen contains sperm along with mucus to protect the sperm from the acid secreted in the vagina , proteins and fructose the main energy source for the sperm , and prostaglandins that stimulate female uterine contractions, helping move the semen up into the uterus.

When the ovary ovulates, the egg is released and rests on the surface of the ovary. But women become less fertile as they get older. One study found that among couples having regular unprotected sex:. Some of these factors affect either women or men. The most common cause is ovulation failure which can be caused by lots of different things and sperm disorders.

Read more detailed information about the causes of infertility. Page last reviewed: 4 September Next review due: 4 September Home Pregnancy Trying for a baby Back to Trying for a baby. How long does it usually take to get pregnant?