How Does Pregnancy (Conception) Actually Happen?
There’s more to conception than just what was taught in school. In fact, quite a few factors have to align in perfect order for pregnancy to take place.
We first learned about the pregnancy process in biology classes back in school. If you still remember (or if you were even paying attention!), it seems pretty simple: sperm meets egg, egg gets fertilised, baby sees the world after about 9 months.
But we weren’t taught that in reality, getting pregnant is simply not that easy. Many also think that you just need to have more sex; it’s like playing darts and hurling as many as you can at the target board, hoping that at least one would hit bull’s eye, right?
Well, not quite!
How pregnancy really occurs, in a nutshell
- Have sex. Preferably during the ovulation window as this increases the chances of conception!
- After ejaculation, sperm journeys up the vaginal canal to the cervix.
- Sad but true, most sperm don’t survive the journey due to a myriad of factors that may include motility of the sperm, acidic environment of the vagina, etc. Only a fraction manages to conquer it all and reach the promised land, in this case, the uterus and fallopian tubes [1].
- Once there, the (remaining) sperm then searches for the egg and tries its very best to penetrate the barrier of the egg cell.
- Once successful in its endeavour, the fertilised egg (embryo) makes its way through the fallopian tube and attaches itself to the uterus wall.
- Pregnancy success!
Variable affecting pregnancy
If you’re serious about starting a family, there are many variables that could affect your chances.
Some of these pregnancy affecting variables include:
- You and your partner’s fecundability (e.g. sperm motility, sperm count, egg quality etc.)
- Underlying health conditions (e.g. high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.)
- Frequency and timing of sex (e.g. having sex during the fertile window versus on regular days)
- Diet
- Age
- Stress
- Ongoing medication or treatment
Why do some couples experience difficulty in conceiving?
On top of the aforementioned causes, here’s one generational problem. Statistics have shown that the average sperm count produced by men has halved in the last 40 years [2]. That means the first stage of getting sufficient sperm into the vagina already puts you and your partner at a disadvantage.
Let’s not forget the acidic environment of the vagina that we mentioned earlier, plus the fact that surviving sperm could end up in the ‘wrong fallopian tube’ (yes, females have two fallopian tubes and two ovaries) when the egg is actually produced in the other.
Enter, twoplus
This is one of the reasons why twoplus fertility came about — to help improve your chances of conception in a safe, all-natural way. Backed by science, our flagship products such as the Sperm Guide and Applicator are specially designed to get around fertility hurdles. They pose for an innovative solution in getting as much sperm as possible to the right place in the vaginal tract, skipping painful sex and more.
If you’d like to keep scores on your fertility health and set the stage for family planning, there’s the twoplus Hormone Test, a mega-convenient service that gives an in-depth review of your fertility hormones. Think of it as getting your annual body check-ups to pre-empt health threats, all in the comfort of your home or wherever is most convenient for you.
Now that our little biology refresher is done, feel free to check out the good stuff we’ve got to offer in your pregnancy journey!