Does holding your legs up after sex increase chances of pregnancy? An ob-gyn reveals the truth

There are several couples who want to conceive, but end up feeling miserable, because they aren’t able to, even after several attempts. With a ton of information available online, we really do not know what’s true or not. For instance, there’s a common fertility myth that if someone wants to get pregnant, they can maximize the chances of conception by lying with their legs in the air after sex or artificial insemination. But is there any reality to this?

Dr Brooke Vandermolen, also known as the obgynmum on Instagram, writes, “
The ‘logic’ is that elevating your legs after sperm is released into the vagina, means gravity helps sperm make its way through the cervix. If you can increase the amount of sperm that travels through the cervix, then theoretically this would increase the likelihood one would meet the egg and lead to conception.”

But is there any link between this position and trying to get pregnant faster?

When the sperm is ejaculated inside the vagina at high speed, it ends up in your cervical mucus. The mucus holds sperm there for fertilization, and helps it travel through your reproductive system, regardless of gravity, she adds. In addition, some of the sperm can travel into the fallopian tubes in under two minutes, so raising your legs is unlikely to make any difference.

There’s really no conclusive evidence or research that shows a connection between raising your legs up and trying to get pregnant faster.

Also Read: Can you tell the signs of healthy fertility? This expert says YES!

How to get pregnant faster?

If you really want to conceive, try to have intercourse around the time of ovulation, which essentially occurs 12-14 days prior to the start of a period. In case of women with a 28-day cycle, this would mean around Day 14. Also, increasing the frequency of intercourse in the lead-up to ovulation can help.

Why is that so? Because the sperm can live in the female reproductive tract for 3–5 days, so when you have frequent intercourse, you can make sure the sperm and egg have more opportunities to meet.

Check out the post by Dr Brooke Vandermolen!

Any more tips that can help you to improve your chance to concieve?

* Try to control your stress levels whether it is with the help of meditation, exercise or any other channel.
* Avoid alcohol and cigarettes, since they can lower your chances of conceiving.
* Ensure to have prenatal vitamins that contain both folic acid and vitamin D.
* Stay hydrated at all times
* Track ovulation with a period tracker
* Increase the frequency of intercourse during your fertile window