Pregnancy and Ovulation - Taking Basal Body Temperature

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Ovulation occurs approximately in the middle of your cycles. This means from the first day of your last menstrual cycle to the first day of your next menstrual cycle ovulation should happen about in the middle. However, everyone is individual and predicting ovulation can be tricky. Some women's cycles are longer than others, and not all women have their menstrual cycle regularly. Pregnancy and ovulation go hand in hand, and here is some information to help you determine if you're ovulating!

Ovulation and Basal Body Temperature- Your body's temperature will fluctuate slightly over the course of the day. Basal body temperature is the very lowest temperature your body gets. This is basically when you first wake up. If you think about it, while your sleeping, your body slows down and thus your body temperature will drop some.

 So to measure your basal body temperature, you want to have thermometer sitting by the bed. As soon as you wake up (meaning before you talk, get up, yawn, stretch, or anything else), pop that thermometer in your mouth and take a reading. Then record it in your basal body temperature log. Your temperature will rise by about 0.5 to 1 full degrees about 2 days after ovulation. Note that I said AFTER ovulation. It will stay higher until you begin your next period.

 What this means is your most fertile right before the rise in body temperature. Now you can try having intercourse as soon as you notice an increase in temperature, but often times it's too late by then. What you need to do is keep track of this over time. You will begin to see a pattern. You may notice your temperature rises on the 14th or 15th day of your cycle. When you see the pattern you will know that you are more likely to become pregnant 2-3 days before the rise in temperature.

 For instance, over the course of 3 months of monitoring your basal body temperature, you notice that your temperature rises by half a degree on the 15th day of your cycle. This means you need to try and have intercourse on days 12 and 13, they will be your most fertile days and give you the best chances of hitting ovulation and getting pregnant.

 Remember, you may see small spikes in temperature on some days, but unless your temperature rises and stays that way, you probably haven't ovulated yet. If you are sick, your temperature may not be accurate either. If you do not take your temperature immediately in the morning, before doing anything else, it is likely not accurate.

 You may be unable to determine a pattern in your ovulation. If this is the case, you can get a kit to help you determine, or look to other methods to determine ovulation and increase pregnancy chances. If this happens, come back and visit for more tips coming soon!