We calculate the ovulation calendar

The ovulation calendar is an important female "secret", the maintenance of which helps the fair sex to know the peculiarities of their menstrual cycle, monitor their reproductive health, as well as resolve contraceptive issues and plan pregnancy. Compiling such a calendar is not as difficult as it seems, there are various methods for this.

What does it show?

The ovulation calendar or simply "women's calendar" (this is how it is most often called) reflects several important indicators:

the duration of the cycle in a particular woman;
days of menstrual bleeding;
days of low fertility, when conception is impossible or unlikely;
fertile window days when conception is very likely;
the day of ovulation when you are most likely to get pregnant.

Ovulation is the release of a mature egg from the follicle on the surface of the ovaries. This day happens only once in one menstrual cycle. It gives a woman the opportunity to become a mother if she wants to, because it is impossible to get pregnant without a mature reproductive cell.

The egg cell lives for a very short time - just over a day, or more precisely, from 24 to 36 hours. If during this period she is not fertilized with a sperm, then the woman's reproductive cell will die, pregnancy in this cycle will no longer be possible. For this very reason, the ability to clearly and as accurately as possible determine the day of your ovulation is of great importance both for couples planning to conceive and for those who use contraception.

Male sex cells (spermatozoa) are constantly produced in the body of their host, the processes of spermatogenesis are continuous from the moment a boy starts puberty until old age.

Even an elderly man who has problems with potency has a chance to become a dad, because doctors can take his sex cells without having intercourse, and then fertilize a female egg with them in the IVF cycle.

Women can only dream of such an ability to reproduce. For them, fertility is limited by the number of follicles with which the girl is born. They begin to ripen with the onset of puberty, the body tries to save oocytes, because as soon as the ovarian reserve, which is not renewed and not replenished during life, dries up, menopause will come. The woman will come out of reproductive age.

In one cycle (from menstruation to menstruation), only one egg (rarely two) from a limited ovarian reserve matures. After the germ cell matures, it leaves the follicle and becomes available for fertilization within 24-36 hours. This day of oocyte release is called ovulation. The exit process itself usually takes no more than an hour.

The beginning of the menstrual cycle is considered to be its first day, that is, the day the next menstruation begins... From the first day there is a self-cleaning of the uterine cavity from the remnants of overgrown endometrial cells from the previous cycle, the reproductive organ carries out a "general cleaning" before the new cycle. At the same time, a process starts in the gonads, which should lead to ovulation after a while.

The amount of follicle-stimulating hormone increases; under the influence of FSH, follicles begin to grow in the ovaries already on the 5-6th day of the cycle. Several of them grow, but only one will remain, the development of the rest will be stopped (the female body must save oocytes). In the dominant follicle-vesicle in a nutrient liquid medium, an egg cell grows and matures.

By the middle of the female cycle, the content of estrogen, luteinizing hormone, rises in the lady's body. LH acts on the membrane of the grown follicular vesicle, making it thinner. On the right day, this membrane ruptures, the oocyte enters the abdominal cavity, is captured by the fallopian tube. It is in it that the meeting with the sperm is to be held, if it gets there within 24-26 hours, and also if the male reproductive cells are already in the female genital tract.

Sperm, unlike the egg, live much longer. They can exist in the fallopian tubes, uterus after unprotected intercourse for about 3-4 days. There are men with very high fertility, their sex cells are highly resistant and can exist without losing the ability to fertilize for up to 6 days.

If for 3-4 days there was sexual contact with ejaculation in the genital tract, then male cells have every chance to wait for ovulation and immediately fertilize the oocyte. That is why in the women's calendar, not only ovulation is noted as favorable days for conception, but also 4 days before and 2-3 days after it. This is the fertile window or fertility period.

How to calculate the day of ovulation?

A woman's menstrual cycle consists of two phases - in the first half, the maturation of the egg and the growth of the follicle take place (this phase is called follicular). In the second half, the body either rebuilds for the onset of pregnancy, or prepares for the next menstruation (this period is called the luteinizing phase). Between them is ovulation. When compiling an ovulation female calendar, first of all, you should learn how to calculate the day of ovulation. This can be done using one of the methods suggested below.

On my own

Understanding the physiology of ovulation, which was described above, gives a woman approximately the following idea - ovulation occurs in the middle of the cycle. But every woman's cycle is different. The self-counting method is called calendar. To do this, you will need a calendar for the current year, pencils of three colors, for example, red, green and yellow. The procedure is as follows.

We determine the duration of the cycle, that is, how many days you have passed from one period from its first day to the next. A typical female cycle, considered normal, lasts 24 to 34 days, most often 28 days.
If your cycle lasts more than 35 days or does not reach 24 days, the calendar method is not suitable for you, you need to plan pregnancy and contraception with your doctor.
If the cycle fluctuates (then 28, then 30 days), then add up the data for the last 4-6 months, and then divide the amount by the number of months. This will be your average menstrual cycle.
We determine the duration of menstruation (from the first to its last day). If the duration is less than 3 or more than 7 days, it is also worth consulting a doctor, since independent calculations may turn out to be too erroneous.

Next, you should use the formula O = D-14, where O is the day of ovulation (estimated), and D is the length of your cycle.

The number "14" in the formula is explained as follows. Under the influence of various factors, the first half of the female cycle can lengthen or shorten, vary quite significantly within a few days, and the second part of the cycle - the luteal phase - is usually less subject to fluctuations and is 14 days (plus or minus days).

Let's look at this with an example.

The woman's cycle is regular, lasts 30 days, the duration of her period is 6 days. Since the duration of the cycle fits into the medical boundaries of the norm, as well as the duration of menstrual bleeding, it should be assumed that the woman's reproductive system is not affected by the cycle, and therefore she can calculate ovulation using the above formula. 30-14 = 16. This means that she can expect the release of the oocyte on the 16th day of the menstrual cycle from the moment the next menstruation begins. With a 28-day cycle, ovulation usually occurs on the 14th day, with a 26-day cycle - on the 12th day.

Mark the resulting day on the calendar with a red pencil.

Next, we move on to calculating the fertile window. It is calculated taking into account the viability of the sperm. If you do not have a spermogram on your hands with a result of the phenomenally high fertility of your man, then focus on the standard life span of the male sex cells (3-4 days).

The formula for determining the first day of the fertile period, when intercourse can theoretically lead to pregnancy, is as follows: D-17 (18), where D is the length of your cycle. This means that the "dangerous" period begins approximately 3-4 days before ovulation. If you are using protection, it is better to subtract 4 days with a margin. If you are planning a pregnancy, then subtract 3 days to increase your chances of conceiving.

Thus, we get that with a 30-day menstrual cycle in a woman, the fertile window begins on the 12th day, and with a 28-day cycle, on the 10th day (or on the 11th day of the cycle, if conception is ahead).

From this day until ovulation, mark the days with a yellow pencil. Remember that intercourse during this period without contraception can lead to pregnancy with a high probability, since the sperm will live in the woman's genital tract and have every chance of waiting for ovulation.

After ovulation for another 24-36 hours, the probability of conception remains high, so we boldly mark two days after day "X" in yellow. And also add another 1-2 days to the yellow sector, just in case (ovulation was delayed for a day, the egg showed miracles of resilience and survived longer, and so on).

Paint over the days of menstruation green or any other.

We look at the calendar and see where the boundaries of the fertile window are when ovulation is expected. Of course, the rest of the month is considered non-fertile.

Online calculator

If there is no time for independent calculations, you can take advantage of the achievements of the digital age - make a calculation using an online calculator, which contains the above-described forms and algorithms. You can use such a calculator for free, the calculation will not take more than two minutes.

To do this, you need to enter the duration of the menstrual cycle, the duration of the menstruation, indicate the first day of the cycle (the day when you started your period), and also indicate for what period of time you would like to receive the calculation - for one cycle, for two, for three. The calculators themselves are available on the Internet, you can also download the "Women's Calendar" application on your smartphone and use it from your mobile device.

When creating calculators, different data are used, and therefore you can get a result that is different from calculating yourself. So, some counters with a 28-day cycle indicate the 15th day of the cycle as the day of ovulation, not the 14th. What is the reason for this error, one can only guess. Perhaps the creators of the counter drew attention to the fact that the duration of the second phase of the female cycle is 14 days plus minus a day, therefore this day was added to the program algorithm.

The calculator quickly calculates and offers to save or print the received data. It is convenient to carry the printout with you, always have it at hand, so that you can check it at any time.

Some calculators are equipped with an additional feature - they mark the days in the calendar that are most favorable for the conception of a boy or girl. The method of predicting sex by ovulation is based on the pseudoscientific hypothesis that sperm differ from each other in different ways, depending on their genetic makeup. Science knows for sure that an egg cell cannot have a different set than XX. Male cells differ in the chromosomal set in the sexual pair - there are cells with a set of XX, and there are cells with a set of XY.

If the egg is fertilized by a sperm with a set of XX, it turns out that XX + XX = XX. This means that a girl will be born. If fertilization is produced by a sperm with a set of XY, it turns out that XX + XY = XY. In this case, a boy will be born.

And now about the pseudo-scientific: there is a version that XY sperm are faster and more mobile, they are able to reach the oocyte faster and fertilize it, and therefore, for the conception of a boy, the calculator suggests having intercourse on the day of ovulation and for 24-36 hours after that.

Spermatozoa with XX set are considered less fast and mobile, but more hardy and able to live longer, so the program recommends starting the conception of a girl 3-4 days before ovulation, so that by the time the oocyte emerges, only cells with a “female” set remain alive. We will discuss the reliability of the method below.

How accurate is the calendar method?

Counting in a calendar way and drawing up a female calendar is considered the most common method of planning and contraception on the planet, although its accuracy is low. It does not matter whether you calculate and draw the calendar yourself or use an online calculator, the accuracy will be the same, and the probability of an error in determining ovulation will be about 20%.

The calendar method is based on medical data on the average statistical timing of the onset of ovulation, it in no way takes into account your individual characteristics, age, health status, and this is very important. The female body cannot work like a programmed machine, failures are possible for a variety of reasons, and therefore ovulation may not happen on the day that is marked as the most important in your calendar. If this day happens earlier or later, then the period of the fertile window will shift accordingly.

The calendar method is practically not worth using for women with an irregular cycle. Even ladies with regular periods and a stable cycle length may have errors, and what can we say about those who have delays and early onset of menstruation is a habit! Of course, the calculation of the average duration recommended for such women can give a rough idea, but the error in determining the day of ovulation in this case may not be 1-2 days, but immediately about a week (the more irregular the cycle, the greater the "range" of the error).

Important! The calendar method does not provide for corrections for the irregularity of the female cycle.

The process of ovulation in the female body and all other processes that accompany the female cycle are not subject to dates on the calendar, but to changes in the balance of very specific hormones. For example, FSH stimulates follicle growth, while LH stimulates follicle rupture. If there is little estrogen, there will be no LH, there will be no rupture, there will be no ovulation. If there is little progesterone in the second phase of the cycle, pregnancy may not take place, the fetus will not gain a foothold or die in the early stages. And also against the background of progesterone deficiency, the second phase is insufficient, which leads to serious disruptions in the cyclicity of the female body.

A variety of things can affect the balance of hormones in a woman's body - from diet to lifestyle. The following factors can influence whether ovulation is early or late and whether it will be at all:

diseases of the organs of the endocrine system, which are accompanied by the failure of any hormonal relationships and connections;
inflammatory, non-inflammatory and infectious gynecological diseases in which the condition of the ovaries and tubes is impaired;
age (after 35 years, the amount of sex hormones begins to decrease);
pathology of the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, traumatic brain injury;
recent abortion, as well as the postpartum period while breastfeeding;
prolonged lack of sleep, chronic lack of adequate sleep, work at night, fatigue;
travel with a change in climatic and time zones;
taking hormonal drugs, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, and sometimes antibiotics;
severe stress, nervous shock, emotional and psychological distress;
the abolition of oral contraceptives (within 2-3 cycles, significant fluctuations may be observed, ovulation may not occur);
transferred viral disease, flu, colds, SARS;
drastic weight loss or significant and rapid weight gain.

In this case, the following may occur. If a woman is planning to conceive, then she may miss the day of ovulation. With early ovulation, the chances of conceiving are quite low, since the egg is often immature, morphologically unsuitable for fertilization. With late ovulation, pregnancy is more likely if the woman again guesses the right day, but the likelihood of gestation is questionable. The risks of early miscarriage are significantly higher, because late oocyte release reduces the chances of a favorable implantation.

If a woman uses the calendar method as a method of contraception, such cycle fluctuations can lead to an unplanned pregnancy. Believing that the "dangerous period" is in the past, a woman may face late ovulation, when conception is likely, even if this is not part of the couple's plans.

And certainly neither the calendar nor the calculator can even approximately predict the probability of not ovulating. But anovulatory cycles, in which the process of maturation and release of the oocyte does not occur, occur in the life of absolutely every woman, even a completely healthy one.

Here it is imperative to focus on age: if a woman is at the age of 20-30, then normally she has up to two "empty" cycles, not accompanied by ovulation at all, in which she is sterile and without contraception. But after 30 years, the number of anovulatory cycles grows to 3-4, and after 35 years it reaches 5-6 per year.

This is due to the age-related decrease in the amount of sex steroids (progesterone and estrogen). That is why it is more difficult for older ladies to conceive a child, even if they have sexual intercourse every month according to all the rules and only on days favorable for conception.

Women have many questions about the accuracy of determining the sex of the unborn child by the date of conception. Let's say right away that the days listed on the calendar as favorable for the conception of boys or girls should be treated with a fair amount of humor. How to play, fortune-telling, without taking too much to heart. The hypothesis that sperm with different genetic sets have different characteristics has been studied by reproductive scientists. however, no difference was found between the viability and mobility of XX and XY cells.

This means only one thing - a woman can give birth to both a boy and a girl on any day of the fertile window. Spermatozoa of the two types have absolutely equal chances of fertilizing an egg, both if they have just arrived in the genital tract, and if they have been waiting for the oocyte there for several days.

We increase the accuracy of calculations

Realizing that the female ovulation calendar is not a guide to action, but only an approximate plan for the next cycle, you can take other measures that will help you more accurately know when ovulation will occur. And already based on this, either plan conception, or solve contraceptive issues. The methods that are closely related to the calendar and complement it favorably include several of those mentioned above.

Symptothermal

A method with high accuracy, allowing three signs to confirm the phase of the cycle. You will need to add to your calendar basal temperature chart, as well as an indication of the nature of vaginal discharge on different days of the cycle. Additionally, manual self-examination of the cervix should be performed.

The temperature is measured every day in the morning before the woman gets out of bed (any movement raises the basal temperature). You need to use a mercury thermometer, introducing it 2-3 centimeters into the vagina or rectum. Readings should be recorded to the nearest tenth of a degree. The discharge should be monitored with the onset of the fertile window. The rest of the time this is not necessary, although observations can be made on other days if desired. The position of the cervix is assessed just prior to the expected ovulation.

The fact that a woman has a favorable fetal period is indicated by a decrease in the level of basal temperature, after ovulation it rises. Discharge 2-3 days before ovulation becomes abundant, viscous, reminiscent of raw chicken protein, it is easy to stretch them between the fingers. The cervix rises and softens. The coincidence of all signs speaks of the day of ovulation with very high accuracy.

This behavior of the cervix is due to its high sensitivity to hormones and changes in their concentration. The cervical mucus becomes abundant so that its alkaline environment reduces the acidity of the vagina - this will help the sperm survive as they progress to the target. Already a day after ovulation, the discharge becomes less, under the action of progesterone (a hormone of the second phase), they thicken, become opaque, white or yellowish.

During ovulation, most women notice increased libido and special sensitivity of the mammary glands.

Symptothermal method allows not only to determine the days on which a woman can conceive a baby, but also shows whether conception has taken place.In addition, this method is very informative in the diagnosis of inflammatory processes, hormonal disorders, and the threat of miscarriage in early pregnancy.

Ovulation tests

Many women try to confirm the data of their female calendar with the results of ovulation tests. This is especially necessary for women planning to conceive. Tests are different: they are strip strips for determination by urine, and reusable electronic tests, and even mini-microscopes that help to navigate in the phase of the cycle by saliva or vaginal discharge.

All strips (cassette, inkjet), as well as electronic tests with replaceable strips, determine the concentration of luteinizing hormone LH in the urine. The test contains a reagent that will alert you of the high content of this hormone with two bright stripes. Their appearance means that ovulation should be expected within 12-36 hours.

Saliva microscopic tests are not focused on increasing LH levels, but on increasing estrogen. This sex hormone, as we remember, reaches its highest values a couple of days before ovulation. It is able to retain sodium and potassium in body fluids, and therefore the dried saliva of a woman who is in the fertile period, when conception is most likely, resembles fern leaves or frosty patterns on glass. On the remaining days of the cycle, this effect is not observed.

Other ways to check your ovulation calendar include Ultrasound of the ovaries with interpretation, as well as the dynamics of the concentration of hormones of weekly cycles according to laboratory blood tests.