When's the best time

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-18-2006
When's the best time
7
Sun, 04-23-2006 - 10:11pm

I know this may seem like a stupid question, but i what i wanna know is when is the best time to have sex without the worries of getting pregnant:

A) A day or a couples days before your period start?

B)A day or a couple days after your period stops?

Or C) A day or a couple days before/after ovulation starts or finish?

I've never been to sure about the whole thing with ovulation so thats why i was kinda curious in knowing.If anyone knows more than i do on the questions, it would be very helpful. THANKS.

Avatar for sugarbeat
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-24-2006 - 12:56am
it's definitely not c). chances are reduced with both a) and b). they are supposed to be lowest while you are having your period. however, be forewarned this is not a good birth control method. my friend recently got his girlfriend pregnant when he had sex with her without a condom while she was on her period. all other times they used a condom. so i hope this is something you are thinking about in addition to more reliable birth control methods.
iVillage Member
Registered: 07-26-2005
Mon, 04-24-2006 - 1:40am

If you don't want to have the worry of getting pregnant, then get on reliable birth control, or stay celibate!

Exactly how do you know when a couple of days before your period is? Exactly how do you know when you ovulate? YOU DON'T!

Everyone's cycle is different, and every cycle varies slightly from month to month. Women have gotten pregnant DURING their periods. You have no way of knowing when you can get pregnant, so unless you enjoy sweating each and every month, get to a doctor or Planned Parenthood, and get on some kind of birth control.

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-18-2001
Mon, 04-24-2006 - 1:50am

It's not a stupid question but please tell us that you are not planning to use this as a guide to when have sex.

This form of "birth control" has been around a long time and is called the rhythm method. Personally I like to call women that use this method "Mothers". Because that's what they will be if they use it. My sister used it after the birth of her first child (she'd just had a kid so was feeling like it couldn't happen again that fast) and was promptly pregnant again within two months.

If you want to have sex and be as sure as a person can be that you cannot get pregnant, get yourself on the pill. Then also have a little think about what you would do if you thought that you might be pregnant. How about this; what would you do if you missed a period next month and you'd been having sex? A bit of forward planning never hurt anyone. Better than having to deal with it for real at the time.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-23-2004
Mon, 04-24-2006 - 7:41am

You can't know unless you know YOUR cycle inside out and upside down.


bounxh0a-1.gif picture by dillbyrd

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-14-2002
Mon, 04-24-2006 - 9:50am

What you are asking about is called natural family planning. Contrary to what others say, it does work, when you follow all of the rules. It is work. Basically you chart your basal temperature, cervix condition, and other signs. Then based on what you have observed, you will be able to determine whether unprotected sex is likely to result in a pregnancy. To learn about this, contact your local Catholic church (they can put you in touch with someone who teaches it) or there is an organization called Northwest Family Services (they provided the materials my wife and I learned from) and I think they have an computer based course that you can learn from.

CH




Edited 4/24/2006 10:04 am ET by chahn48926
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-18-2006
Mon, 04-24-2006 - 11:14am
Thank you all for your feedback. We do use condoms when we are having sex, but just in case of a worse case scenerio, god-forbid the condom breaks or leaks whiile we were doing it at least i would know there is a slim chance of me being pregnant. I do know my cycle front and back and know that it can come at least 5 days prior that first day it came the last month. So im always prepared for it and know exactly what day its coming. I just wasnt sure if i would be ovualting before, during, or after my period. Thank you all again though. You were all very helpful.
iVillage Member
Registered: 07-26-2005
Tue, 04-25-2006 - 1:20am

I'm confused by: "it can come at least 5 days prior that first day it came the last month."

Here's the "average" or "normal" cycle......but every one of us can vary from that average.....and many women aren't "regular", too.

The "average" cycle is 28 days, from start to finish. Meaning if your period starts on the 1st of the month, then it will start again on the 28th of the month. You have to take into account that most months have 30 or 31 days, so it won't always be on the same DATE. Some women can have 24 day cycles, some can have 35 day cycles. With a 28 day cycle, if your period started on the 7th of April.....then your next period will start on the 5th of May, and you would ovulate AROUND the 21st of April.

If you have a 28 day cycle, then theoretically, you will ovulate in the middle of that cycyle......that is 14 days after the first day of your period. For some, it might be 12 days, and others it might be 16 days. YOu have no way of knowing when it will be, and it might vary from month to month.