It is simply not right to say that all women ovulate on day 14 of their cycles. I’ve been researching about fertility for over 10 years now and I’m still amazed that the prevailing thought is if you want to get pregnant you have sex around day 14. If that’s true, then why are so many women not conceiving? And likewise, why do so many conceive when they avoid having sex around day 14?

I will tell you why. Ovulation can occur as early as day six or much later than day 14. One woman may ovulate like clockwork on day 21 of her cycle every single month – while another may ovulate on day 10. It’s all according to the reproductive hormones, the level of stress and your health. Any of these things can be out of whack and can hinder ovulation.

Let’s take a look at the cycle and the hormones involved.

The hormones that rule the female reproductive cycle are FSH or follicle stimulating hormone, estrogen, LH or luteinizing hormone and progesterone.

The first one to appear is FSH. FSH begins to peak in production at the beginning of the menstrual cycle, during the menstrual bleeding. It’s FSH that prompts the ovaries to produce about 15 to 20 eggs to mature. As the eggs mature they are encased in a follicle and it’s this follicle that produces estrogen.

As the estrogen picks up in production several days before ovulation the cervical fluid becomes clear (fertile quality). This type of fluid is also known as “egg-white” like in consistency. This is the best fluid to carry the sperm to the egg. Presence of this fluid indicates that ovulation can happen in about one to four days.

LH is released when the levels of estrogen reaches the peak. The surge of LH prompts the egg to break out of the follicle. This is when ovulation occurs. The follicle then turns into a corpus luteum cyst and begins the production of progesterone. The time after ovulation is called the luteal phase (LP).

Normally the luteal phase is the same length each month. You can always pinpoint the day your cycle will show if you are charting your fertility signs by counting the days in the luteal phase. You will know also when to take a pregnancy test if you are trying to get pregnant.

The average length of the luteal phase is from 12 to 16 days. An LP shorter than 10 days is known as deficient and can hinder a pregnancy from taking hold. This deficiency is often caused from low progesterone.

After the corpus luteum starts to produce progesterone, the body warms up. This is indicated by a rise in the basal body temperatures. This keeps the uterine lining from shedding long enough for a fertilized egg to implant. If you chart your fertility signs you can tell if you have a progesterone deficiency by noting the temperatures if they don’t rise enough or they stay too low the 2nd half of the cycle. A drop in temperatures means that the progesterone level has dropped and signals the uterus to begin shedding the lining – thus a new menstrual cycle starts.

Obviously it’s important to time intercourse around ovulation in order to conceive a baby. If you chart your fertility signs you can see that the body will prepare for ovulation for several days – and if something like stress or illness happens – the ovulation process will stop. In cases like this ovulation will normally resume later. The reproductive hormones are very sensitive to your state of health.

The truth about ovulation is that it can occur at anytime within the cycle with many factors determining the exact day. Day 14 is not the only day ovulation occurs. Take into account the different things that can hinder it. Chart your fertility signs and see just when you do ovulate – and you may find it’s on a different day from day 14.

Lori Ramsey writes from her experiences of being a mother of five children. She writes about fertility and pregnancy on her website http://www.stages-in-pregnancy.com

Additional reading:

1. Best Day to Get Pregnant: Find Out Your Date of Ovulation


2. Best Day to Get Pregnant: Find Out Your Date of Ovulation


3. Best Day to Get Pregnant: Find Out Your Date of Ovulation


4. The Truth About Ovulation


5. The Truth About Ovulation


6. The Truth About Ovulation


7. What Are the Chances of a Woman Getting Pregnant While on Her Ovulation? Find Out the Truth


8. Ovulation Fertility – Increase Ovulation by Going Green


9. Best Day to Get Pregnant: Find Out Your Date of Ovulation


10. The Truth About Ovulation