It’s always sad when I hear friends telling me they have a hard time conceiving because their menstrual cycle is irregular. What that means is that it is hard for them to pinpoint their most fertile days, the day when they ovulate. Ladies with regular menstrual cycles, like me, have it a lot easier. With the help of a menstrual cycle tracker, we can easily figure out which days to go for it if we’re planning to conceive. Well, actually there’s another way of knowing without the help of fancy apps. Just obey the signs your body gives off.

DISCLAIMER: I’m no medical expert. I’m just sharing my view and experience which might help friends who are trying to conceive.

I don’t know when I started to take notice, but one day it just occurred to me that my vaginal discharge is different at different times of the month. One moment it’ll be sticky and creamy, the next moment it’s all runny. Erm…what’s going on here? It was only when I was ready to conceive that I began to notice that the runny discharge coincided with the period when I’m most fertile (according to menstrual cycle app I’m using). It was a “eureka” moment for me but I needed some confirmation so of course, I turned to Google.

And yes, I was right. There are different types of cervical mucus and it can help you determine your most fertile days. Cervical mucus that has a raw egg white texture (e.g. transparent, a little sticky) is the most fertile. Watery/runny cervical mucus is also considered fertile; this type of cervical mucus makes you feel like you just peed in your pants. I really kid you not. There were times when I wondered why the hell my discharge was so watery. Did I really pee in my pants? But it’s odourless, unlike pee. Anyway, these two types of cervical mucus have consistencies that help sperm to swim easily.

I started to rely a lot less on the app for calculation of my ovulation day, and began to take note of the bodily signs. While the app can more or less calculate your ovulation day based on your menstrual cycle, it can sometimes be a bit off. There were times when the app told me that Aunt Flo was coming, but she really only arrived a week later.

All I can say is BINGO, I’m now pregnant.

If you’re interested to know more about the different types of cervical mucus, this babycentre page is pretty useful.