Chart Fertility to Achieve Pregnancy

If you are trying to get pregnant and have been having sexual intercourse without practicing any form of birth control for over six months, you may want to learn to chart fertility. This is a simple, low tech method available to anyone and really has no cost involved at all. It is a great way to identify the best days to attempt to achieve pregnancy and certainly a smart move before investing in fertility monitors or consulting fertility specialists.

The process to chart fertility is based on the fact that the hormones in a woman's body change predictably during each monthly cycle. You might have noticed certain things change about your body during certain parts of your menstrual cycle or you might be totally unaware of these changes. Becoming aware and charting to determine the most fertile days is the idea of the chart for fertility tracking.

Several factors help in the chart of fertility. Basal body temperature, cervical mucus and cervical position are factors taken into consideration. By maintaining a chart of these factors, a woman can know with confidence when she is ovulating. This allow the couple to engage in intercourse or, if artificial insemination is being used, to visit the doctor for attempted fertilization.

During the menstrual cycle, estrogen increases preparing the ovarian follicle to release an egg when the right levels are achieved. This hormonal change results in cervical mucus changes as well. The character of the mucus changes from dry to sticky to creamy and finally to a somewhat watery consistency. The watery mucus is a medium which allows the sperm to easily pass into the uterus. During the second half of the cycle, the levels drop, resulting in mucus that becomes less and less friendly to the sperm. This is one factor that will be charted on your fertility chart.

Progesterone is a also low in the first portion of the monthly cycle and peaks after ovulation. This hormone prepares the uterus to accept and host a fertilized egg. It also increases basal body temperature which can be tracked easily. Once the basal temperature has gone up and remains up, it can be assumed that an egg is ready to be fertilized. This is another factor that will be on your chart; fertility tracking really isn't that difficult.

The third monthly change is the position of the cervix. When a woman is fertile, the cervix is high and soft. This, too, will be on the chart since fertility is impacted by the cervical position.

In order to chart fertility, you need a sensitive thermometer that can read small changes in basal body temperature. These are usually glass thermometers made specifically for this purpose and are easy to read. They are quite inexpensive also.

To chart fertility, you must understand how to take basal body temperature. This is done when the woman is rested and must be taken before getting out of bed in the morning. It should be taken at the same time each day. Even getting up to go to the bathroom is sufficient to invalidate the reading and result in a meaningless reading.

Record each factor on your chart; fertility prediction can soon be seen by this tracking method. After several months, you'll probably realize which days of your cycle are most fertile for you.

If you continue to have difficulty achieving pregnancy even though you chart fertility and have intercourse on the best days of the month, you may want to consult your doctor. However, before going to a specialist, you should consider using a fertility monitoring device. These devices are much less costly than specialized medical care at a fertility clinic.

Record yourall of your findings on your fertility chart each day. For women with very regular cycles each month may look strikingly similar. For women with irregular cycles a wealth of information may be gathered from serial fertility charts. Some fortunate couples may find out that their main problem was simply one of timing. Others may be able to eliminate timing as the major cause of their infertility.