12 Misconceptions About Ovulation
Many widespread assumptions about ovulation are now outdated or have always belonged in the realm of myth. 12 facts about ovulation that might surprise you!
1. There should be an egg jumping in each cycle
The fact: Don’t worry if you have a non-ovulating cycle every now and then. For example, infections such as colds, bladder infections or gastrointestinal flu can postpone ovulation or prevent it – especially if they are more severe. Treatment with an antibiotic or other medication can also disrupt the cycle.
Sometimes, however, there is no apparent cause at all if ovulation does not occur. As long as this only happens occasionally, there is no need for action. But if, for example, your cycle curves or the doctor’s examination show that you rarely or never ovulate, this can be triggered by certain medications, which works well in the majority of cases.
2. Where there is menstruation, there is ovulation
The fact: Even if you have your “period”, this does not mean that ovulation has taken place beforehand. A lack of ovulation may be noticeable through irregular or absent bleeding, but it does not have to be. Menstruation does not tell you whether you are ovulating regularly.
3. An “Ovu Test” indicates if and when ovulation takes place
The fact: Test strips can indicate whether the ovulation-triggering hormone LH (= luteinizing hormone) is present in the urine. However, the tests are not reliable in determining the date of ovulation. On the one hand, scientists were able to observe something astonishing: Surprisingly, the highest concentration of LH occurred after ovulation, not before, as was previously thought.
Secondly, the presence of LH alone does not indicate whether its concentration is/was high enough to actually trigger ovulation. Test strips therefore provide a rough guide.
4. You can feel ovulation in the middle pain
The fact: The lower abdominal discomfort that some women experience around the ovulation date is also a very unreliable indicator of ovulation. Abdominal discomfort in the lower abdomen is often caused by the large intestine, which is sensitive to stress, restlessness, or even too little fiber. Even an experienced woman can hardly distinguish these complaints, which can also be one-sided, stabbing, pulling or also dull, from the middle pain. A study showed that 85 percent of the women who thought they felt ovulation were wrong!
Even the real middle pain is anything but exact: Here not only the ovulation itself hurts, but already days before the rising tension in the capsule wall of the swelling follicle can hurt. And it can still hurt after ovulation, because the small amount of blood and fluid that has leaked from the ruptured follicle continues to painfully irritate the peritoneum for a while. So the mittelschmerz (which, by the way, many women don’t have at all) doesn’t indicate when the egg will pop, or whether ovulation hasn’t already passed.
5. If you have intercourse at exactly the right time, you will also get pregnant
The fact: Many women who want to have children believe that if they could catch the exact moment of ovulation, they would definitely get pregnant. But this is by no means the case. A woman up to the age of 30 has – depending on the scientific study – a 20 to 30 percent chance of getting pregnant in each cycle. But you can increase these odds if you can narrow down your ovulation date, for example, by using basal body temperature curves or cycle computers.
Of the women with such cycle control, about 80 percent will get pregnant within six months, compared to only 60 percent of women without ovulation control. That sounds good at first – but in a single cycle it only corresponds to an increased chance of a few percentage points. More is not possible even with intercourse at the perfect time!
6. Ovulation is around the 14th day of your cycle
The fact: Again and again you can read that a normal cycle is around 28 days long and ovulation is on the 14th day. But that’s not true: A study by the University of Leipzig found that 70 percent of all women do not ovulate between the 13th and 15th day of their cycle, but either earlier or only afterwards.
Even seemingly far too long 60-day cycles don’t have to mean that ovulation is not occurring. There are women who can get pregnant without any problems. But if you always had much shorter cycles in the past and have only developed excessively long cycles for some time, a hormonal weakness could be behind it. The same applies to very short cycles: If you have a duration of less than 21 days, or if you have had longer cycles before, you should speak to your doctor if you want to have a baby.
7. Intercourse during the period is safe
The fact: It is true that there is no ovulation during the menstrual period. But sperm can survive in the uterus and fallopian tubes for five days, according to other studies, and up to eight days according to other studies. At this point, however, a woman has easily arrived on the 12th day of the cycle – a frequent time for ovulation and fertilization! Therefore, you should also use contraception during your period when you and your partner want to sleep together on those days.
8. Overweight women or competitive athletes do not ovulate
The fact: Those who carry around too many pounds more often have hormonal problems, such as PCO syndrome (in which many egg follicles are formed, but often none mature). This can actually reduce the chances of success in the desire to have children. But this does not have to be the case: Even plump women or women with PCO can ovulate and become pregnant.
Extreme competitive athletes – as well as underweight women – often have anovulatory (ovulence-free) cycles. But again, there is no fixed rule, they too can ovulate.
9. Only the doctor can determine when ovulation occurs
The fact: It used to be like that, today it is no longer necessarily true. Because there are now tools with which you can determine your cycle much more precisely than with the conventional methods of ovulation tests or basal temperature measurement by hand: There are small measuring devices that are either only worn at night or also continuously in the vagina (e. B. the ovular ring). There they measure the temperature at short intervals. They are taken out for the duration of menstruation. Other devices are worn on the arm or as small ear plugs and measure the skin temperature there.
The software of these tools evaluates the measurements and first determines (by increasing the body temperature) when ovulation normally occurs. Later, she can also make a prognosis as to when ovulation can be expected. In most cases, these devices only have to be worn for a few cycles if they want to have children, after which a woman knows which cycle day her own ovulation is usually.
10. Fertility is greatest on the day of ovulation
The fact: Depending on the scientific study, the egg can only be fertilized for 6 to 24 hours after ovulation. For example, if you ovulate in the morning but have intercourse in the evening, you may already be too late. It is therefore safest to have s ex with your partner on the two to three days before you are expected to ovulate. This way, the sperm, which can easily survive for several days, can already be waiting for the egg in the fallopian tube. In this way, you will not miss the most fertile hours.
11. A woman who fully breastfeeds will not ovulate
The fact: The lactation hormone prolactin can inhibit ovulation, so that pregnancy is unlikely in a fully nursing mother. But this is not a safe method of contraception: even when they are fully breastfeeding, some women ovulate again as early as six to eight weeks after giving birth. This applies even more to non-breastfeeding or partially breastfeeding mothers.
A pregnancy that soon follows, however, puts a lot of strain on your body and the risks of complications are higher. Even if you are breastfeeding, you should therefore use reliable contraception from the end of the week. Your gynecologist will now advise you on a gentle and breastfeeding-compatible contraceptive.
12. Assumption: You cannot get pregnant before the first period after childbirth
The fact: Ovulation always occurs about 11 to 15 days before menstruation, and this also applies after childbirth. You can have your first ovulation again before your first menstrual period. Therefore, you should talk to your doctor about the right contraception at an early stage, even if you have not yet had your period again.