Thank god the road to baby is supposed to be fun, am I right? For how many times you have to try, and the percentage of it actually working being so low, at least you get some pleasure out of the experience — hopefully. For many women, the sooner they can get pregnant the better once they’ve decided they want to start trying to conceive (TTC). But what is the best method of action here? Should you have sex every other day to get pregnant, or should you do it every day? What about the day you’re ovulating? How do you know when you’re ovulating?
According to Dr. Jessica R. Brown, OB-GYN at NYU Langone Medical Center, "Having sex every day is associated with the highest chance of pregnancy, but sex every other day is nearly as effective." She tells Romper in an email, "So we generally recommend that couples have sex every one to two days."
If you want to have sex every day, that’s up to you. But it’s important to still try to have fun with it and not make it all about making a baby. If you’re forcing yourself to have sex every day of your fertile period, it may make sex seem like a chore, and you definitely don’t want to do that.
"Sex every day is fine, but it helps reduce stress and performance anxiety to know that every other day is sufficient," Brown says.
So if not every single day, when is the best time to have sex where it statistically shows you’ll have more of a chance of making a baby? According to Brown, "Sperm can survive in the cervix for several days, so intercourse prior to the time of ovulation can definitely result in pregnancy. Studies show that pregnancy is most likely when intercourse occurs one or two days prior to ovulation, or on the day of ovulation."
Brown says since it isn’t always possible to know the exact day of ovulation, it is best to have sex every day or two starting about a week before you think you are ovulating.
As someone who is actively TTC, I will say that using Ovulation Prediction Kits (OPKs) have given me peace of mind and ease of scheduling when it would be most beneficial to try to make a baby. When they’re positive, it means you will ovulate or have ovulated within 24 hours. Apps such as the Ovia Fertility Tracker & Ovulation Calculator and the Period Tracker: PMS & Ovulation Tracker can help you figure out when your fertile window is, so you know when to time your baby making dates with your partner.
Good luck and have fun. Remember, half the fun is in getting there, so enjoy every moment. Once that little one comes into your lives, it may be more difficult to have intimacy for a while, especially every other day.
