FACTS ABOUT OVULATION

· An egg lives 12-24 hours after leaving the ovary
· Normally only one egg is released each time of ovulation
· Ovulation can be affected by stress, illness or disruption of normal routines
· Some women may experience some light blood spotting during ovulation
· Implantation of a fertilized egg normally takes place 6-12 days after ovulation
· Each woman is born with millions of immature eggs that are awaiting ovulation to begin
· A menstrual period can occur even if ovulation has not occurred
· Ovulation can occur even if a menstrual period has not occurred
· Some women can feel a bit of pain or aching near the ovaries during ovulation called mittelschmerz, which means "middle pain" in German
· If an egg is not fertilized, it disintegrates and is absorbed into the uterine lining.

Seven possible causes of infertility- which one is preventing you!

Being pregnant is every woman’s dream but there are times when certain situations deprive a woman that beautiful dream of being what she should be…. Mum! There are seven classes of causes of infertility. Infertility can be caused by one of these or combination of it.

1- Ovulation Issues
This is a condition where a hormonal disorder prevents the normal release of mature eggs from your ovaries each month, which reduces considerably your chances to get pregnant. This condition is called anovulation. To fix it, there are ovulation-stimulating drugs that really help to regulate your ovulation cycle but be sure to ask for medical advice before taking it.

2- Blocked Fallopian Tubes
When the fallopian tubes are blocked, it makes it very hard for your eggs to arrive at the uterus and be in contact with the sperm. There are many causes that could provoke this, such as Chlamydia (a sexually transmitted disease), pelvic inflammatory disease or previous sterilization surgery The way to fix this is with Laparoscopy surgery, but if the blockage can't be removed successfully, In Vitro Fertilization treatment may work. However, keep in mind that it is a really expensive treatment.

3- Damaged eggs
When you are at your late 30's or early 40's, the quality of your eggs starts declining considerably. This means they are not as "fresh" and start to develop genetic anomalies, which makes a lot harder to sustain pregnancy. The most recommended action when the causes of infertility are genetic is to find a young egg donor, because you can still develop the baby in your womb with "borrowed" eggs and the probabilities of having a safe pregnancy increases a lot.

4- Endometriosis
This condition is recognized by painful menstrual cycles and heavy menstrual bleeding. Endometriosis occurs when part of the endometric tissue, that is inside your uterus, starts to grow out of it and blocks the fallopian tubes. This is one of the most common causes of infertility and can be solved by a small surgical procedure called Laparoscopy. This surgery is not a particularly pleasing process, but women that do it increase by a 40/60% their possibilities to get pregnant 18 months after the surgery.

5 Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome
Conceiving with polycystic ovaries is harder than normal but is very achievable. Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome (PCOS) cause a hormonal disorder on your body so you start producing more masculine hormones than feminine ones, interrupting the regularity of your periods. This dramatically reduces your chances to conceive. The most effective way to treat this hormonal disorder is with fertility drugs but you should do it with the supervision of your gynecologist or a fertility endocrinologist because he must indicate you the right dosage for it to work.

6- Sperm Issues
The main causes of infertility on males are low sperm count and slow sperm mobility. There are fertility drugs to increase the sperm count and they usually improve the conceiving chances by 25%. Another option to this problem is Artificial Insemination or Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (which means to directly inject the sperm into the egg)

7- Overweight
This is by far one of the most common causes of infertility and is easily overlooked. Watch out for your weight, since elevated levels of insulin in your body can mess around with your hormonal balance, complicating the conception and increasing the possibilities of pregnancy complications; like gestational diabetes. Studies have revealed that even a small reduction in your weight (about 5%) can greatly increase your chances to get pregnant if you are having trouble to conceive.(Alexa Miller)

My Most Fertile Days?

A woman who wants to conceive may wish to know when she is most fertile in a month. Your ovulation and menstrual cycle are co-partners that work together to determine this.
Your most fertile period in a month are the 4-5 days before ovulation begins and the day of ovulation. You will not be pregnant if you have intercourse the day after ovulation. Sperm can survive at most five days before it dies so you need to really calculate well to know when are the optimal days for fertilization to take place, that way a better chance of conception is greater.

My most fertile days: Calculate with your wall calendar.

Let’s use the calendar at your home, mark the first day of your period. When your next period starts, mark the day before on the calendar. Continue marking the first and day before the first day of your menstrual cycle for few months. Calculate average days between your periods together to determine the average length of your cycle. For instance, if you tracked for three months and noted 30, 31 and 29 days the average length of your menstrual cycle would be 30 days.

Ovulation takes place about half way through the menstrual cycle. In the above example, ovulation would normally occur on the 15th day of the cycle. Intercourse should take place three to four days before the 15^th to achieve fertility and conception during these fertile days.

Important note: Your cycle is not necessarily monthly. If you have a 30 day menstrual cycle the first day could start in the middle of the month so use the calendar to mark the 15th day of your cycle and the three to four days before that midpoint as your fertile days.
My most fertile days: Calculating with your vaginal mucus

Vaginal mucus will change as ovulation comes closer. The mucus is normally thick and glue-like. Start noting the characteristic of your vaginal mucus on the first day after your menstrual cycle stops. About five to seven days later, there should be a change in the feeling and look of cervical mucus. The mucus will change from that thick, glue-like consistency to being thin and stretchy. Watch out for the change in your mucus in the morning when you get out of bed, let it be the first thing once you go to pee! This is a great sign of your coming fertile days – now is the time to have intercourse.
My most fertile days: Other ways to know

A mild cramp is often noticed about two days before ovulation. Sex drive may increase due to a reduction in oestrogen levels. Basal metabolic temperature may also slightly rise. These changes indicate ovulation and you most utilize the period.