When do I ovulate? Signs and symptoms of ovulation
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Polly Logan-Banks
Content EditorRecognising the common signs and symptoms of ovulation can help you pinpoint that crucial ovulation window, increasing your chances of getting pregnant. From ovulation calculators and kits to vaginal discharge and abdominal pain, here's everything you need to know about detecting ovulation.
What is ovulation?
Ovulation is the moment when an egg (ovum) is released by one of your ovaries each month.
From the first day of your menstrual cycle, the immature eggs (oocytes) in the ovaries undergo a process of maturation, until one is ready to be released. This usually happens around the middle of the average 28-day cycle.
After ovulation, the egg then travels to one of the fallopian tubes. If you've had unprotected sex, it's usually in the fallopian tubes that the egg will become fertilised, before heading to the womb. If the egg doesn't get fertilised, it will naturally leave the body during your next period.
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Around the time of ovulation is therefore the ideal time to make a baby.
Several factors influence your chances of success, including the lifespan of the sperm and the egg.
Sperm can survive in the female body after sex for up to seven days. The egg, on the other hand, usually has a lifespan of 12 to 24 hours. The fertile period is therefore generally between about a week before ovulation and 24 hours after ovulation.
Use our ovulation calculator to find out your fertile period!
Get to know your body better, and how your menstrual cycles work with Period Power: Harness Your Hormones and Get Your Cycle Working by Maisie Hill. See more details here at Amazon.
How can I tell when I'm ovulating?
Knowing when you ovulate means you can maximise your chances of getting pregnant, by making sure you have regular sex in the days before and after your egg being released.
Sounds simple enough. But how do you know when you're ovulating?
If you have a regular cycle then you can easily work it out.
Ovulation usually happens around 14 days before the first day of your next period. If you can't work that out let our handy ovulation calculator do it for you in seconds ....
However, if you don't have a regular cycle or wish to pinpoint it more accurately, there are other clues to look out for.
Key signs and symptoms of ovulation:
- A rise in body temperature
- A change in cervical mucus (vaginal discharge)
- Other physical symptoms, such as tender breasts
- Hormones in your urine (ovulation kits)
Here's more about each of these ...
1. Rise in basal body temperature
If you're TTC then you may have heard of tracking your basal body temperature (BBT). This means taking your temperature when you're at complete rest, so first thing in the morning before you've got out of bed or moved, which you'll then track over several months.
Noticing a regular rise in temperature can indicate when you ovulate each month. Your temperature is likely to rise just after you ovulate.
Your temperature won't rise by much - usually just about 0.2°C. If you notice this rise for three days or more, around the same time in each cycle, it's likely that you usually ovulate just before this.
Disadvantages: because your temperature rises after ovulation, this won't immediately tell you if you're ovulating now.
Advantages: this method makes it possible to know whether ovulation has actually occurred or whether it is an anovulatory cycle (i.e. a cycle without ovulation).
The temperature curve also helps you get to know your cycle: repeated for a few months, it gives indications about when you usually ovulate so that you can anticipate the moment of ovulation the following month.
How to take your basal body temperature:
- Start taking your temperature on the first day of your period.
- Take your temperature when you first wake up, before you get out of bed or have anything to eat or drink.
- Use the same thermometer every day.
- Always take your temperature the same way (oral, rectal or underarm).
- Record your temperature daily on a suitable chart.
- Get enough sleep (6 to 8 hours per night). Lack of sleep, but also stress, medication and alcohol affect the temperature.
2. Change in cervical mucus (vaginal discharge)
Some women notice that they are wetter 'down there' at a certain time of the month. Vaginal discharge that's wet, clear and white (like egg-whites) can coincide with ovulation and can be a way to identify it. It might feel a bit gross but it's actually a sign of fertility!
3. Other physical symptoms of ovulation
Another way to know if ovulation is near is to listen to your body. When ovulation is imminent or has just taken place, some women notice:
- breast tenderness
- moodiness
- bloating
- increased libido
- heightened sense of smell
- slight cramping or abdominal pain (see more about this below)
- light spotting (if this is persistent or more like bleeding, seek medical advice)
But don't worry, if you don't notice any of these symptoms it doesn't mean you're not ovulating! You're just one of many women who don't notice any physical signs at the time of ovulation.
4. Hormones in your urine (ovulation kits)
Hormone levels in your wee can be an easy way to tell when you're ovulating.
You'll need ovulation sticks or an ovulation kit in order to help with this. These work a bit like a pregnancy test, where you wee on a stick, except here the sticks are detecting oestrogen and luteinising hormone (LH). Levels of these soar in the 24 to 36 hours before ovulation.
The first test should be done a few days before the expected date of ovulation (usually around the middle of your cycle, but it depends on the usual length of the cycle). Then you can keep doing one test per day, always at the same time. When the test becomes positive, it is advisable to have sex within 48 hours, in order to increase the chances of having a baby.
The most reliable ovulation tests:
- *POPULAR* Clearblue Advanced Digital Ovulation Test containing 10 tests – This stand-out ovulation test is designed to detect estrogen and luteinising hormone (LH). Unlike some ovulation tests, which rely on determining fertility by looking at the intensity of a line on a test strip, the Clearblue Advanced Digital Ovulation Test presents a little smiley face in a window. It flashes on high fertility days when it has detected a high level of estrogen. When your LH surge is detected and you've reached peak fertility days, it shows a static (non-flashing) smiley face. Over 99% accurate at detecting the LH surge and easy to use! See more details here at Amazon.
- Femometer Ovulation Test containing 20 Ovulation Test Strips - Sensitive and accurate results. See more details here at Amazon.
- Ovulation Test Strips containing 50 strips. See more details here at Amazon.
What is ovulation pain?
Some women experience abdominal pain when they ovulate, also known as mittelschmertz.
According to the NHS, 'it's usually on either the left- or right-hand side of your tummy depending on which ovary is releasing the egg.'
It may last minutes or days and the pain could either be:
- a sharp pain
- sudden twinge
- dull period-like pain
You may notice ovulation pain when you're TTC especially if you've stopped taking the pill. Being on the contraceptive pill stops ovulation and therefore any associated symptoms that go with it, such as pain.
While some won't notice any abdominal pain at all, some women find that their ovulation pain is so severe that they need painkillers.
Although it's fine to take paracetamol, NHS advice is to avoid ibuprofen when you're TTC.
If your ovulation pain is particularly severe and doesn't respond to painkillers or persists then it's worth getting checked out by your GP in case it's caused by something else, such as:
- endometriosis
- scar tissue (after a C-section, for example)
- ovarian cyst
Many causes of ovulation pain can be treated, so don't suffer in silence.
Looking for more fertility tips? Check out our articles below, or chat with other people who are TTC in our forum.
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