Can You Get Pregnant on Your Period? Is it Worth a Try?

Can you get pregnant during your period? Let’s see: It is believed that the process of ovulation occurs exactly in the middle of the menstrual cycle. The menstrual cycle is the interval between the first day of the last menstrual period and the first day of the next.

For example, when the menstrual cycle is 28 days, the ovulation day is the 14th. The egg does not live more than two days, then it dies and leaves the body – it’s the period of menstruation, which lasts 4 to 7 days. It is easy to calculate that with such a menstrual cycle it is simply not possible to get pregnant during menstruation! It is logical to assume that the probability of conception increases significantly with regular sexual acts before or after menstruation. So is it impossible to get pregnant on your period? Not exactly.

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Pregnant on Your Period? There’s a Risk!

First of all, every woman has a different length of the menstrual cycle and the period of menstruation. If the menstrual cycle is short (20 to 22 days), the “dangerous” days for conception will fall just on the monthly period, about the 5th or 7th day. Even at later ovulation, do not forget that sperm can survive in the vagina for up to seven days. This means that if some particularly nimble sperm will live up to ovulation, the conception may occur.

Secondly, we must remember that even the steady rhythm of ovulation may change because of births, after abortion, or during the pre-climacteric period as you turn forty. Therefore, relying on the method of calculation of ovulation is not necessary. When a sudden change in the menstrual cycle is quite possible you can get pregnant while on your period.

Thirdly, there exists, albeit rare as spontaneous ovulation. As a result of spontaneous ovulation, two eggs may mature instead of once per menstrual cycle. The reason for this can be a strong orgasm or any other hormonal surge. Often, the ability to play two eggs instead of one is inherited. Although the phenomenon of spontaneous ovulation is not completely studied, it is known that this is one more reason for conception during menstruation.

I would like to emphasize, that the period of greatest risk of pregnancy occurs on the last days of menstruation. In the early days of the menstrual cycle, there are rather unfavorable conditions for the sperm, associated with excessive bleeding. The sexual act during the first days of menstruation is a less frequent scene for the same reason. Therefore, the probability of conception in this period is practically zero.

Sometimes women mistakenly believe to have conceived in the early days of menstruation. In fact, the fertilization happened two weeks earlier and that was not menstruation, but small bleeding that often happens in early pregnancy.

The last days of your period may be “dangerous”, especially if your menstrual cycle is irregular and your menstruation lasts longer than 4-5 days; the probability you can get pregnant on your period increases in times! Moreover, there is a real risk of conception in the last days of the protracted month!

Therefore, gynecologists insist on additional contraception during menstruation. Perhaps the use of condoms, birth control pills, or IUDs. Do not forget that during the period, the partners are at risk of infection during sexual intercourse, because spotting is an excellent breeding ground for bacteria. A condom protects a man from contact with this environment and reduces the risk of infection in the uterus.

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Taking Birth Control Pills?

None of the contraception means giving a 100% guarantee of protection against unwanted pregnancy. This also applies to oral contraception. Although correct and regular intake of contraceptive hormones reduces the risk of pregnancy up to 0.01%. Modern oral contraceptives (OC) have estrogen or ethinylestradiol hormone in composition, which blocks ovulation, making it almost impossible to conceive.

There are also pills with other principles of work: they do not affect ovulation, but thicken cervical mucus, preventing sperm to reach the uterus. These pills are often called mini-pill, they are not as reliable, but have fewer contraindications. They can be taken by nursing mothers, women over 35 years, without any risk to health.

As mentioned above, the greatest risk of pregnancy accounts for the last days of menstruation. If, however, this woman takes OC, the possibility of conception is virtually nonexistent. Of course, if a woman does not violate the rules of the use of birth control pills.