145. Oh, Yeah

Svetlana and Tim came in to talk about infertility.  They have both had children from prior relationships; sexually active without contraception; she has regular menses suggesting ovulation; no history of pelvic infection that would block fallopian tubes. So far so good. Anything else, I ask?

Oh, yeah, Tim just had a vasectomy reversal.

What?

The average couple, with no health problems, takes about 7 months to conceive.  If seven is the average, then even a year or so of trying without conception does not imply an infertility problem. Umm, come back in a year, I suggest.

But not a wasted visit.  We talked about timing of intercourse.  Generally, a woman is fertile three days a month (since both sperm and egg are viable for about a day; do the math), so a worthwhile discussion.

Although there are various ways to determine ovulation, it's not exact. So assuming a 28-30 day cycle, I recommend that starting on day 10 of cycle (first day of bleeding is day #1), have sex every 2-3 days for 10 days. Every day would be depleting; four days of abstinence might miss the three day window.  Actually to keep it simple, I usually just say, every other day. At which point Svetlana winced.