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Can you get pregnant after your period?

by Alivia Nyhan
Published: Last Updated on
pregnant after your period

Many women may have doubts regarding the possibility of pregnancy before, during, and after the period. This is because they do not know all the information about this critical and essential issue that every woman should learn from the beginning of her period—sex life.

A common question you may ask yourself is, “can I get pregnant after my period?” And the answer depends on your menstrual cycle and its characteristics, the probabilities increase with a concise menstrual cycle or long periods.

To obtain the exact answer to this question, you must know everything related to the menstrual cycle and fertility. If you want to find out, continue reading this FastlyHealarticle in which we will answer the question about whether you can get pregnant after your period or not.

How is the normal menstrual cycle

Before knowing when you are fertile and are more likely to get pregnant, you must clarify everything related to the menstrual cycle and its expectations. In the woman’s life, a representative event is a menstruation or rule, from the first menstruation or menarche as it is also known, a regular monthly cycle begins with phases that represent an important event in female fertility.

In all its phases, the menstrual cycle indicates the changes that the woman’s interior undergoes to prepare for a possible pregnancy. Day 1 is counted from when menstruation has arrived until the first day of the next, being normal that the menstrual cycle repeats between every 21-35 days, depending on each woman; a relatively standard duration is 28 days. Thus, the menstrual cycle is made up of different phases:

The menstruation

In the first half of the cycle, the main event is menstruation from day 1 to day 14. Bleeding can last between 2 and 7 days, with a standard mean of 5 days. The flow is dark red, brown in color, and pink and can sometimes be light and thicker.

Ovulation

The female body contains high amounts of estrogen and prepares for ovulation, which occurs when the ovum has already matured on day 14. Thus, monthly an ovary releases a mature ovum to be fertilized. The ovum is released and mobilizes from the fallopian tube to the uterus, where it may or may not be fertilized by sperm if there is unprotected sex during this stage.

Timing of possible fertilization

On the second or third day after ovulation, progesterone increases, and both hormones estrogen and progesterone work simultaneously to prepare the uterus for possible fertilization. If fertilization does not occur, the levels of these hormones progressively decrease, and the disintegration of the uterine lining or menstruation begins in the next menstrual cycle. That is, the process starts again.

The menstrual cycle is a reliable indicator of women’s health. Typically, this cycle lasts 28 days, approximately, in 40% of women. However, in 35%, the processes are longer or shorter, and, in addition, 15% are irregular or variable, according to work published by the National University of San Luis – Argentina.

If you want to know more about this topic, we recommend this other article by FastlyHealin, which explains everything about the menstrual cycle phases.

Can you get pregnant after your period? – the answer

Many women wonder, “can I get pregnant after my period?” and here we clarify everything. The answer to this question will depend on the characteristics of the menstrual cycle, especially the duration of the revolution and the duration of menstruation in each case. In a typical 28-day cycle, the fertility window occurs between days 11 and 21 of the menstrual cycle, the most fertile day being just in the middle of the process where, in principle, ovulation will occur. Having clarified this, we affirm that you CAN get pregnant after menstruation for various reasons. These are the different cases in which it could happen:

  • If you have an extended period, that is, more than seven days, this makes the day of ovulation closer and increases the chances of fertilization of the ovum and, therefore, pregnancy.
  • You can also get pregnant after menstruation when menstrual cycles are irregular and ovulation is early; this implies that a mature egg could be available to be fertilized after the menstrual cycle.
  • Other times, there are high probabilities of pregnancy after menstruation when the woman has short menstrual cycles, approximately 20 days. In this case, the ovum can be released just after the rule or in the last days, increasing the chances of pregnancy if you have had unprotected sex during this stage.
  • Lastly, a woman can ovulate more than once in the same menstrual cycle, increasing the chances of pregnancy after her period.

Can you get pregnant after your period

As described, you can get pregnant after your period, as the window of possibility of a pregnancy at that point is wide. Therefore, it is worth knowing other fertility characteristics to guide us if we want to avoid pregnancy.

What is the fertile stage – signs

Knowing that there are many possibilities of pregnancy after menstruation, the female body emits signals that can guide us concerning the most fertile stage :

  • In the fertile stage, the woman increases her sexual appetite.
  • There is likely a slight discomfort in the lower abdomen.
  • It is also typical that the breasts are more sensitive during this stage.
  • During ovulation or fertile window, what is known as vaginal mucus may be visible. In this case, it is similar to egg white, more evident than average, thin, and in greater quantity. Here we explain how to know if you are ovulating due to the flow.
  • There may be a slight increase in body temperature in the fertile period. Usually, it revolves around 36 ° C. When the woman enters the formative stage, the temperature can rise to 36.5 ° C.

Why the menstrual cycle changes

The menstrual cycle can be influenced by different external factors, significantly affecting its regularity:

  • Stress significantly influences menstruation and reproduction, as it involves a more considerable amount of prolactin and, in turn, irregular ovulation.
  • Sudden weight changes can also influence the regularity of the menstrual cycle and ovulation.
  • Suffering from diseases can significantly influence the menstrual cycle. This occurs in the case of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), kidney problems, thyroid, and diabetes mellitus.
  • The consumption of some medications, such as steroids and antipsychotics, can affect the normal menstrual cycle.
  • High-intensity exercise can also alter the female period, generating long cycles and sometimes amenorrhea. This other article shows more information about Amenorrhea: causes, symptoms, and treatment.

In short, the period and the menstrual cycle can vary considerably depending on different factors and result in changes in the fertile window. If you do not want a pregnancy yet, it is advisable to have sex with a safe contraceptive method that allows you to avoid an unwanted pregnancy.

This article is merely informative. At FastlyHeal .com, we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to Can you get pregnant after your period? We recommend that you enter our category of Female reproductive system.

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