Take Control of Your Menstrual Cycle by Understanding Ovulation

Many women have heard of ovulation, but if you are not trying to track your fertility, you may not think twice about the role of ovulation within the menstrual cycle. Ovulation can be used as a tool to know the best time to get pregnant, how to prevent pregnancy naturally, and a strategy to track your period.

Ovulation is important for all around hormone health. Lack of ovulation is a signal that your body may need some love and attention. Missing ovulation in your menstrual cycle may come from health conditions, stress, or your diet intake. Ovulation can be tracked through some simple steps without costing you a fortune (or pokes to get your blood taken).

Let me breakdown the symptoms of ovulation so you can be your own ovulation calculator:

• changes in cervical mucous

• increased basal body temperature

• breast tenderness

• abdominal pain (not everyone will experience abdominal pain when ovulating)

• increased sex drive

Cervical Mucous

Cervical mucous will be most abundant right before and during ovulation. It looks like raw egg whites, slips between the fingers and can stretch. Think about the mechanism of sex, again—slippery fluid. Ovulation from a primate view is meant for sex and reproduction.

Cervical fluid is a sign of ovulation because the fluid is slippery and abundant, carry sperm to the egg dropped from the ovary. You will notice discharge throughout your cycle, but increased amounts and different textures than during the luteal phase or follicular phase.

Basal Body Temperature (BBT)

Basal body temperature is a way to track ovulation, but in order to know if you are ovulating you need to track your baseline temperature. Body temperature rises after ovulation which means it is better at predicting that you have ovulated, not an indicator you will ovulate.

BBT can be challenging because it takes time to understand your baseline temperature to predict ovulation in your future menstrual cycles. Also there are other factors that can impact rise in body temperature that could throw off your period trends including being sick, weather, stress.

But with consistency, BBT can be a tool to predict ovulation and track period patterns.

Signs ovulation may not be happening

• missing periods

• irregular cycles

• no change in cervical fluid

• no increase in basal body temperature

• low sex drive

There can be many causes concerning lack of ovulation. It could be stress, hormone imbalances like thyroid conditions, PCOS, under eating, and so much more.

If you suspect you are not ovulating or want to ensure you are supporting healthy ovulation lifestyle and diet can make huge impacts. Working with a professional can make a huge impact in uncovering root cause to your missing ovulation to address your individual needs without wasting time.

Do you have questions about ovulation? I would love to hear them.

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• How many days after your period do you ovulate?

  Ovulation occurs between the follicular phase and the luteal phase which can vary depending on the individual. Approximately on day 14 of a 28 day cycle.

• Can you get pregnant if you are not ovulating?

  If you are not ovulating at all, then no. Ovulation is needed to get pregnant. Ovulation however is part of a fertile window. Sperm can live for up to 5 days through ovulation. If you do not hope to get pregnant this is the phase to exercise pregnancy protection.

• What do hormones do during ovulation?

  luteinizing hormone (LH) is high which signals the release of the egg from the ovary. Estrogen rises increasing feel good moods, and desire for sex. testosterone also rises increasing sex drive further. Basically sex drive is high because the more sex the more likely you are to get pregnant quick.

• Why do I feel moody when ovulating?

  This is most likely from a hormonal imbalance. To get to the root cause of your hormone imbalance work with me 1:1.