People have a variety of different reasons for wanting to conceive quickly. Maybe you want to space your children a certain number of years apart. You might want to get pregnant because your partner is in the military, and you’d like to conceive before deployment. Or, you may just be eager to become a parent. Some couples will get pregnant after trying for a month or two. But, for most, it takes longer. Keep in mind that it may take many months to get pregnant—and one in 10 couples will experience infertility. The good news is that there is help out there.
Tricks to Get Pregnant
Sometimes the old fashioned way of doing things just works. Maximize your chances of getting pregnant by trying the following:
Have sex frequently. Eat a healthy, balanced diet. Get enough sleep. Get regular exercise. Stop your birth control. Track your ovulation. See your doctor if you haven’t conceived after a year (or six months if you are over 35).
Stop Using Birth Control
Obviously, if you want to get pregnant, you need to stop using birth control. What you may not know is that you may need time for your fertility to return. It depends on what kind of birth control you were using. With most forms of birth control, your fertility will return the next cycle after you stop using it. There may be a few bumpy months while your cycle regulates itself, but it’s also possible to get pregnant in your first official fertile month.
Set Realistic Expectations
Getting pregnant is not always a simple and quick process. If you have an implant or an IUD, you’ll need to schedule a doctor’s appointment for removal. That takes time. It may also take a few months for your cycles to regulate after hormonal IUD removal. (With a copper-only IUD, your fertility should return quickly.) If you’ve been on the birth control shot, it also may take several months for your fertility to return. Talk to your doctor so you have realistic expectations of when you can start trying to get pregnant.
Have Lots of Sex
Having sex often for the entire month is good for baby-making. Every other day or every two days is a good amount, according to research and the opinion of the Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. You could aim to have sex every day of your cycle, but for most people, this will lead to burnout, and it’s really not necessary. Having sex three to four times a week boosts your chances for success because it increases the odds of having sex on your most fertile days. If you’re only aiming for ovulation and you make a mistake on timing, you may lose that month. Frequent sex improves sperm health, too. Healthier swimmers mean you’ll be more likely to conceive.
Maximize Your Odds
You may be able to get pregnant faster if you optimize your conception sex, which includes things like timing, frequency, and understanding of when in your cycle you are most likely to conceive. One important thing to be aware of is that regular personal lubricants, like Astroglide and KY Jelly, are harmful to sperm. The best lubricant for conception is your own cervical fluid. But if this is an issue for you, there are sperm-friendly options available, such as mineral oil, canola oil, or hydroxyethylcellulose-based lubricants such as Pre-Seed and ConceivEase. However, research on Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) found that lying down after insemination boosts pregnancy rates. If you’re trying to conceive faster, you may want to at least try lying on your back after sex for a few minutes. On the other hand, if the missionary position is a big turn-off for you, maybe more creative positions would help. Research has found that sexual arousal plays a role in how much sperm is ejaculated. Female orgasms may also help with conception. So, having passionate sex may help you get pregnant faster as well. That said, don’t stress about having an orgasm. You can get pregnant whether you orgasm or not!
Track Your Ovulation
Your most fertile days are the two days prior to ovulation. You can figure out which days these are through several methods, including charting your body basal temperature (BBT), checking for fertile cervical mucus, tracking cervical changes, and using a saliva ferning microscope. The problem with all these methods is they have a steep learning curve. For BBT charting, figuring out how to get your temps right in the morning and interpreting your chart can be a challenge for many people. You may have an easier time using ovulation predictor kits or ovulation monitors. Ovulation tests work like pregnancy tests. You pee on a stick or strip of paper to get a result. They are a little more difficult to interpret than pregnancy tests, so read the instructions carefully. Fertility monitors take much of the learning curve out of ovulation tests. The digital device tells you when you’re most fertile. They are more expensive, though, so you may want to combine charting with ovulation predictor kits.
Boost Your Fertility
In the short term, there are quite a few things (many of which are probably obvious) that a people can do—and not do—to increase their chances of getting pregnant. To keep sperm healthy, keep the testicles away from heat. Hot tubs, laptops placed directly on the lap, seat warmers, and sitting too long with the legs close together can all increase the scrotal temperatures. This can negatively impact sperm counts. And finally, the most oft-repeated health tip—quit smoking and cut down on alcoholic drinks. This is important for both male and female reproductive health. This will not only improve your health now but also help you have a healthier pregnancy and child. There are other things you can do to improve your fertility and overall health that take more effort and time. Being at a healthy weight before trying to conceive can help, as being just slightly overweight has been shown to decrease fertility. Obesity may also negatively impact male fertility.
Wait to Take a Pregnancy Test
Taking pregnancy tests won’t change how quickly you get pregnant, but it can affect your perception of time. Especially if you take multiple early tests, “peeing on a stick” frequently can make the days and weeks feel much longer. Instead, commit to only taking a pregnancy test when your period is at least one day late. In other words, if you expected your period on Tuesday or Wednesday of a particular week, don’t take the test until Thursday. Better yet, wait until Friday. It’s not easy to wait to see if you’re pregnant, but remind yourself that when you take an early test, you are more likely to get a false negative anyway. (In other words, even if you did conceive, the test may not reveal that you’re pregnant.)
Get Help
Getting help doesn’t mean you’re giving up; it just means you’re brave enough to find out if there’s a reason why you’re not conceiving, and what steps you can take to address it. Some causes of infertility get worse with time. Getting help when you need it may help you get pregnant faster with the help of treatment.
A Word From Verywell
There are many factors that influence how long it will take you to get pregnant. However, using the above methods will help boost the odds in your favor of conceiving sooner than later. Be sure to get help from a fertility specialist if you have any concerns or you haven’t gotten pregnant after trying for six months to a year.
