Part One of Conception to Newborns: Get the Nitty Gritty

Welcome to the first part of my blog series-Conception to Newborns: Get the Nitty Gritty. I thought the best place to start would be conception because well that is where things start! I guess I could have started with preparing for conception but I really believe there is only one important thing that needs to happen before conception which I will address in this post.

The most interesting thing I learned in my conception journey was the fact that I wonder why I worried so much all those years about an unplanned pregnancy prior to trying to conceive because let me tell you, it takes work to get pregnant! Of course this thought is thrown out the window for the next time I tried to conceive because after my first pregnancy I became a fertile mertile. Once my body got a hang of the job it was like riding a bike and if the goalie was pulled I was pregnant. And that is how Kaiden and Taryn both came along after a one time baby dance. So if you are planning to try to conceive make sure that you understand it can take some time. If it starts to take too long the experts recommend seeking help after 1 year of trying if under 35 but if you are over 35 then to seek help by six months. There are many ways to get help trying to conceive but because I have no experience in this area I'll leave that information to the experts.

Some infertility links that may help answer your questions or help you find clinics.

Infertility Awareness Association of Canada
Infertility Resources for Consumers


One thing I do recommend doing before trying to conceive is taking folic acid. The experts recommend taking 0.4-1.0 mg of folic acid. Folic acid is important because it reduces the risk of your baby having a neural tube defect. Continue to take it while trying to conceive, during pregnancy and breastfeeding. A prenatal vitamin is a great way to take your folic acid. Just a friendly warning about prenatal vitamins, they contain iron which can cause stomach upset, so you may need to find a brand or time of day that the vitamin is easier on your stomach. In a future post you'll see why this is important.

As previously mentioned I have never had fertility difficulties but I think it is important to learn about how to detect your fertile times to make your trying to conceive journey easier. Tracking your monthly menstrual cycle will be important as well as any physical changes that occur through the month. Truthfully this is the stuff I learned in college in a healthy sexuality course. I recommend taking such a course if available--it was a very eye opening experience for me because of my lack of healthy sexuality teachings as a child and teen. I'm going to use the "average" cycle length based on the "average" woman--which we know really doesn't exist.

Diagram of the average 28 day menstrual cycle: Click to view larger

So we all know what Aunt Flo (your period) is but the important part of the cycle is those fertile baby making days during ovulation. Truthfully in my experience counting the days wasn't the most conclusive way to judge when ovulation was to occur, it just gave me a general idea. The most useful ways were to analyze cervical mucus--yes I know, too much information and it sounds really gross but it is a very easy and physical way to judge fertility. Through the month when you wipe after using the bathroom check the bathroom tissue. At certain times your body will secrete more and less discharge. Specifically during ovulation women will secrete cervical mucus with the look and consistency of egg whites. When you see this, it is time to hop in the sack with your man! Yes I realize there are other ways to have a baby but for the sake of ease I'm going to generalize once again to the "average". Another way help figure out your most fertile days is to "listen" to your own sexual desires because you will find that the times you desire sex more is actually during the time you are most fertile and ovulating. A great way to help you track your most fertile times for free is through Fertility Friend.

So you've gotten through ovulation, pulled the goalie, done the deed and now are waiting to see if it worked. If you take part on any online forums you'll hear to this time period referred to as the two week wait. If you are just starting out on your trying to conceive journey I suggest buying stock in pregnancy tests. Seriously you will be shocked at the price of these bad boys and how many you will pee on! I don't have a recommendation on a certain brand of pregnancy test, since I usually went with the cheapest and have never had any false positives. Now let me tell you--a line is a line no matter how faint. So if you find yourself with a pregnancy test under the stove light at 11:30 pm and see a faint line (yes I did this when I found out I was pregnant with Audree-Ann)--CONGRATS!

So there you have it--a Nitty Gritty view of conception. I hope you enjoyed the first part of my series and I hope that you'll be back to read the next part which will focus on the Nitty Gritty of pregnancy during the first trimester.