Many women who are trying to get pregnant ask their doctor, “How long does it take to get pregnant?” While it may only take a month for a few of the luckier women, most will find that it can take a while. It is important to not get discouraged if pregnancy does not occur quickly. You have many factors that affect conception which you can start working on to improve your chances of getting pregnant faster

How Long Does It Take to Get Pregnant?

There is no actual way of telling each individual the answer to “How long does it take to get pregnant?” but there are some statistics that can help you understand the numbers a little better. Of every 100 couples that are trying to have a baby without any fertility help:

• 20 couples conceive the first month
• 70 couples conceive in the first 6 months
• 85 couples conceive in the first year
• 90 couples conceive in the first 18 months
• 95 couples conceive in the first 2 years

Take note that the numbers above are averages and can vary. There are some people who are more fertile than others and therefore may conceive quicker. People who have lower fertility may take longer to conceive, but does not necessarily mean they are infertile. The probability for getting pregnant each month is just lower. It is pretty normal for some people for conception to take up to two years to occur and 50% of people trying to have a baby get pregnant in the second year of trying.

What Affects My Chances of Getting Pregnant?

There are a lot of different factors that affect fertility. Among them, the five below are the major factors that affect your chances of conception:

Factors	Descriptions
Ovulation	Your ovaries need to be releasing an egg(s) each month on a pretty regular cycle for you to conceive. If your ovaries are not regular or don’t ovulate, it will be harder to get pregnant.
Your age	For women, there is only a certain amount of time in your life that you can conceive. Men produce sperm for their entire life, but women only produce a fixed number of eggs and stop at a certain age. Once your ovaries are done, they are done. This usually doesn’t occur until well into a woman’s 50th year, so plan early.
Sperm count	Some men have a low sperm count naturally, or he may be doing something that affects the sperm count. If the sperm count is too low, it may be harder to get pregnant.
Fallopian tube patency	Your fallopian tubes need to be clear and open for the egg to meet up with the sperm. Smaller tubes or blockage can make getting pregnant more difficult.
Timing	You have about a 4- to 5-day window during ovulation time which you can conceive. If you know the approximate day of ovulation each month, begin making love a few days before and a few days after.

Women under 35, who have been trying to conceive a baby more than one year, should just check with the doctor to see if any testing might be needed. If you have polycystic ovarian syndrome, there may be a problem with your ovaries releasing eggs properly. Men can also have undescended testicles with a low sperm count. Some of these can be treated easily.

Women over the age of 35 should see their physician earlier. Each year after the age of 35, fertility begins to drop considerably as egg production begins to decrease.

Actually anyone trying to get pregnant should see their physician before beginning to try and conceive to make sure both partners are in good health.

How to Improve My Chances Of Getting Pregnant

You can help increase your fertility and chances of becoming pregnant by doing just a few easy things prior to trying.

1. Prepare Your Body for Pregnancy

Make an appointment to see your doctor for a full physical examination. Eat healthy, quit smoking and get some exercise every week. There are certain foods that can help increase the chances of conception by providing your body with the right vitamins needed for pregnancy.

2. Learn Your Body’s Ovulation Schedule

While they say that ovulation occurs around the 14^th day of a woman’s 28 day cycle, not everyone has a consistent cycle. Ovulation happens somewhere around the middle of the cycle, but there really is no assigned day. There are some different techniques for predicting ovulation including: ovulation predictor kits or using a basal thermometer and chart.

3. Time Intercourse with Ovulation

When you figure the approximate day of ovulation, try to make love a few days before and a few days after. When you time intercourse with ovulation, the statistics above get even better:

• 38% get pregnant the first month of trying
• 68% get pregnant within 3 months
• 81% get pregnant within 6 months
• 92% get pregnant within 12 months

One important fact that fertility specialists recommend is not having intercourse too often when trying to get pregnant. This can diminish the supply of sperm and actually reduce the chances of conception. Relax and let it happen naturally and try to enjoy the wonderful, beautiful gift of love. Usually when people stop trying too hard, they actually end up pregnant. There are many stories of couples going through years of fertility treatments give up only to find themselves expecting after a few months of only relying on nature.