A pregnancy begins with conception. A child is conceived when the male sperm successfully fertilises the female egg.
You've heard all the horror stories about how hard it is to conceive. Here's the latest news to help you: how often to have sex, when to do it, which ovulation kits work best -- and what you absolutely must do first.
On the face of it, making a baby seems rather simple. After all, the basic "how to" is probably something you've more or less been doing for some time now. Yet when it comes to the finely tuned sequence of events that must take place for
conception to occur, there's plenty of room for foiled attempts -- and confusion. "Because most women's cycles vary from month to month, it's no wonder most couples have some mistaken notions about predicting when ovulation will occur and when you're most fertile," says Allen Wilcox, M.D., chief of the epidemiology branch at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Lack of knowledge doesn't always hamper your efforts, of course, but it can add unneeded frustration and delay. For instance, many women assume that the minute they stop using birth control, they'll conceive. Or that if becoming pregnant with their first child was a snap, things will go like clockwork the second time around. When it doesn't, they panic.
A visit to your gynecologist can help clear up some of the confusion. In fact, it's essential to visit your doctor before trying to conceive; you need to make sure you've had a German measles vaccine and that you're getting enough folic acid (both critical for preventing birth defects). Your doctor may also suggest testing for certain genetic diseases.
But since it's tough to get every last question answered (and sometimes even to know which ones to ask), our guide gives you the lowdown on baby-making -- from the latest research to time-honored advice you can, in fact, forget.
BY JANIS GRAHAM
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