Post # 1
Member
73 posts
Worker bee
so my husband and I are doing Natural Family Planning. We don’t really mind if we become pregnant but we aren’t outwardly trying. Really we are just letting life happen.
I have always had had a very regular 28 day cycle. About 9 months ago my period started coming early by around 2 days each month so I guess I somehow shifted to a 26 day cycle.
I took the the mini pill for a month and a half leading up to our wedding because I was exprpecting to get my period on the honeymoon and I wanted to delay it. Immediately after the honeymoon I stopped taking the mini pill.
my period went back to a 28 day cycle for one month, then this last month my period came four days early. We had unprotected sex on the last day of my period (day 7 of my cycle). Is it possible to conceive since my period has been a little off lately. I assume the mini pill messed with my system a bit which is why I’ve been a little irregular, but if my cycle this month is shorter could I possibly become pregnant?
Thank you for any help or information you may have.
Post # 2
Member
7476 posts
Busy Beekeeper
honey421 : I highly doubt you are pregnant from having sex on the last day of your period. That being said, everyone is different and it really all depends on when you ovulate. Some people ovulate early in their fertile window, others late. I would suggest maybe spending a few months using OPK’s to get familiar with your ovulation patterns – because really that’s the only way to know for sure. Technically sperm can live anywhere from 3-5 days so that’s why people who starting having sex before ovulation can still get pregnant even if they do not have sex on the day they ovulate.
Post # 3
Member
617 posts
Busy bee
I also use NFP. What method do you use? As long as you are correctly following the rules of the method, you should have a very low chance of being pregnant. What day of the month have you been ovulating on lately? That is more important than the length of your cycles as a whole, when considering whether this incidence could lead to a pregnancy. If you’ve been ovulating on day 10, and this month is consistent with that, then sex on day 7 could possibly lead to pregnancy. But if you’re ovulating on day 15, then it is much less likely.
If you learned NFP from an instructor, you should be able to speak with them and show them your chart – they could give you the best assessment.
Post # 4
Member
782 posts
Busy bee
It’s unlikely but possible. You would really need to be charting to know since we don’t know what day you ovulated. Sperm can live up to 7 days if cervical fluid is present but that’s highly unlikely.
Post # 5
Member
1467 posts
Bumble bee
If you don’t know when you ovulate then you don’t know when you’re fertile. Maybe you ovulate on day 9 or 10, in which case day 7 sex may very well result in pregnancy. Maybe you ovulate on day 15 or later, in which case you’d probably be fine.
If you don’t mind falling pregant then that’s fine, but if you’d really rather not and are worrying then I suggest a more reliable form of contraception.
Post # 6
Member
9795 posts
Buzzing Beekeeper
Depending on how long your period is, yes, it is possible to have sex at the end of your period and get pregnant if you have shorter cycles. Sperm can live 5 days, so if you ovulated on day 9 or 10 it’s very possible (especially if you have a 24 day cycle). If you are using “natural family planning”, what are you doing to track your fertility/ovulation? What methods are you using to avoid getting pregnant? You need to be temping/charting to actually know when you ovulate.
Post # 7
Member
617 posts
Busy bee
littlebuzz : I would just like to point out that natural family planning is a very effective method when used properly – which usually requires taking a course with an instructor for a specific method (i.e. Sympto-Thermal, Creighton, Billings, Marquette). These methods are extremely effective, just as much so as other types of birth control. These methods are not the “rythm method” of the past where women just watched the calendar – they depend on careful tracking and evidence based practices and rules.
honey421 : Which method are you using? Have you had instruction from a practitioner of a specific method? If not, I highly recommend it. 🙂 I personally use Sympto-Thermal, but there are a lot of options out there. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions!
Post # 8
Member
1467 posts
Bumble bee
bridetobe24 :Â then how come you’re worried about this specific instance if it’s so reliable?Â
Post # 9
Member
73 posts
Worker bee
bridetobe24 : We received a very detailed lesson for NFP at Pre-Cana. The thing is I have always been so regular that I didn’t really worry about keeping track. I have always gotten that discharge that comes with ovulating exactly one week after my period ends, every cycle for years. It’s only recently that my period has started to come earlier which has me wondering if I will ovulate earlier than usual as well.
On on top of that I am absolutely not concerned with falling pregnant. I would be beyond thrilled to become a mother! 🙂
Post # 10
Member
73 posts
Worker bee
littlebuzz : truthfully I don’t mind falling pregnant. If we were truly trying to avoid pregnancy then I would track my cycle to a T to be safe and secure. However we both agreed that we don’t mind falling pregnant right now. If it is meant to be then it will happen. More than anything I was curious as to the likely hood of falling pregnant given the fact that my cycle has been a bit irregular lately.
Post # 11
Member
617 posts
Busy bee
littlebuzz : Well, unfortunately it doesn’t sound like she has tracked everything her method requires, or she would have known whether this instance could lead to a pregnancy or not. When strongly trying to avoid pregnancy, it is best to only use Phase 3 which is after ovulation has passed. But when a couple is using Phase I, pre-ovulation, there are rules set up in each method to help them decide whether it is a “safe” day or not. Phase 1 is obviously “riskier” than Phase 3 because ovulation hasn’t happened yet and could change – usually you have to have been using a method for 6+ months to establish a pattern that can be relief upon. In the Sympto-Thermal method I use, for example, the last “safe” day is either 5 or 6, depending on your signs. When DH and I were strongly avoiding, we only used Phase 3, after I knew ovulation and my fertile window had pased.
Sorry, that was a lot of information… all that to say, day 7 is certainly a possible day of fertility, depending on the OP’s cycles. With careful use of an effective method, she should know if it was likely fertile for her or not. And if she were heavily trying to avoid, it would be best not to use that day if it would possibly lead to a pregnancy.
Post # 12
Member
1300 posts
Bumble bee
If your period came 4 days earlier then that means you ovulated 4 days earlier that last cycle. So it’s possible that this cycle you could ovulate earlier, as early as 4 days. The fact your period came early shouldn’t impact ovulation for the current cycle, but it does tell you that your period may not be 100% regular anymore and that ovulation could potentially happen earlier than you’re use to.
Post # 13
Member
617 posts
Busy bee
honey421 : Oh I see, that makes sense – that’s great, glad you had a lesson about it in Pre-Cana. Since you’re fine with getting pregnant now I completely understand where you are coming from. 🙂 My DH and I were trying to avoid for the first year of pregnancy, which we were successful in, so we were pretty careful with our use of NFP at the beginning. Unfortunately we have been dealing with some inferility issues now that we’ve been TTC – looking back, I almost wish we hadn’t been so careful, as we are now more than ready for children. Best of luck to you! 🙂
Post # 14
Member
9795 posts
Buzzing Beekeeper
honey421 : uh yeah, you are probably ovulating earlier than normal on those short cycles. Your luteal phase almost always remains consistent (might vary by 1 day) but it is O that can potentially vary by any number of days.