10 Things You Might Not Know About Your Chance of Getting Pregnant

Here are some reasons why a couple might not be able to conceive right away:

1. In a young, healthy, fertile couple there is only a 20% chance of getting pregnant each month.

2. It takes 5 to 6 months for the average fertile couple to achieve pregnancy.

3. 40% of infertility cases are caused by female factors, 40% of infertility cases are caused by male factors, and 20% of infertility cases are caused by both male and female factors.

4. One out of every 6 couples has difficulty conceiving.

5. Sperm can live inside a woman's body for about 5 days. A released egg only lives inside a woman's body for about 24 hours. Timing is very important!

6. Ovulation usually occurs around day 14 of a woman's cycle, but it is dependent on the length of the cycle.

7. A woman may ovulate while having her menstrual cycle. Again, knowing the length of her cycle will help a woman know about when she will ovulate. OPKs (Ovulation Prediction Kits) are helpful with this.

8. Even if a woman always has a 28 day cycle, she might not be ovulating. This is called an anovulatory cycle.

9. Miscarriages sometimes happen very early in a woman's cycle. If this happens around the time her period should start, she might not realize she was pregnant and think it is just her period.

10. Prenatal vitamins cannot help a woman get pregnant, but are essential for the development of a baby.

To maximize your chance when trying to conceive, there are many things you can do. Charting your cycles is one way to start. There are many things involved in charting your cycles. It's really up to you how in-depth you want to go with this. Keeping track of your cervical mucus and the position of your cervix will help you see signs of when your most fertile days are. Some women also track their basal body temperature. This won't tell you when you are about to ovulate, but you can track the trends in your cycle.

Losing weight, if you are overweight, is another step you can take to maximize your chance of getting pregnant. A healthy diet and exercise will help prepare your body for carrying a baby for 9 months.

Smoking, drinking, and doing drugs are not recommended when trying to conceive. These can all affect your chances.

If you think there is something else wrong with your body or your husband's body, the best bet is to just go see a doctor. A doctor may perform many tests that will rule out any major problems, one of which is the Clomid Challenge Test. Another test might be done to check if your fallopian tubes are blocked. A semen analysis can be used to check sperm count and the characteristics of the sperm. Don't get upset about having to go through a lot of tests. Most likely, they will rule out anything that could be wrong.