understanding your ovulation cycle

To sharpen you skills at conceiving, you need a crash course in the workings of your ovulation – or menstrual – cycle. Ovulation occurs when a mature egg is released from a follicle in the ovary, is carried through the fallopian tube and becomes available for fertilization. In the meantime, hormones have signaled the lining in the uterus to thicken to prepare for potential implantation of a fertilized egg. If the traveling egg is not fertilized within about a day after its release, the egg will dissolve. And when implantation has not occurred within approximately two weeks, the uterus will shed its lining in a process called menstruation.

The entire ovulation cycle lasts an average of 28 days and can be divided into several phases:¹

Mother nature tends to favor variation, and the ovulation cycle is no exception. The length of each ovulation cycle phase varies from woman to woman. Cycles can even vary month to month in the same woman.

Most of this variation occurs in the follicular phase, whereas the luteal phase takes 14 days in almost all women. This means that the time it takes from the first day of a period to ovulation widely varies – ovulation does not necessarily occur 14 days after menstruation begins, as is commonly believed. Using fertile signs as a guide, most women are able to pinpoint the precise time of ovulation in order to find the relatively fertile days in their cycle.

In most cases, a lack of menstruation means a lack of ovulation. On the other hand, just because you get your period doesn’t guarantee that you’ve ovulated. Reasons for missed or irregular periods can signify pregnancy, of course, but also:

• Stress
• Breastfeeding
• Quick weight loss
• Advanced maternal age
• Unusual levels of thyroid hormone or prolactin hormone
• Polycystic ovarian syndrome
• Fibroids (growths in the uterus)
• Polyps (small projections that may block fallopian tubes)
• Endometrial hyperplasia (overgrowth of uterine lining)
• Travel involving time changes

Some of these conditions can impede fertility and require medical care, emphasizing the importance of looking for support after six months of trying to conceive.