How long did it take you to conceive?

[Headbanger]

Title says it all really! I (and a fair few of my pals) am not one of those, 'Whoospy I fell on a willy and got pregnant by mistake, how embarrassing!' wimmin. When you have been waiting a few months, it does rather feel as if absolutely everyone else gets pregnant by looking at a naked picture of Tom Hardy - but I'm sure that can't be the case.

I've therefore been thinking: you know, perhaps it just does take a while - for evolutionary purposes perhaps, to prevent the planet being over-run. Perhaps it can take a year or so not because there's something wrong, but because them's the breaks.

So to inform and reassure, I'd be really interested to know how long it took you to conceive, your age when you did so, and whether there were any medical factors that you knew of (including, and speaking as a plump lass myself, weight!).

4 years.
Gynaecologist was completely baffled - I was under 30 (am not any more), had a bmi of 20, am fit, sporty and have a normal cycle.

On the other hand DH and I weren't very scientific about it - no calculating fertile periods or anything and at the beginning I wasn't too bothered if it took a while.

DC1 - first cycle, age 32, BMI 20
DC2 - second cycle, age 34, BMI 20

Most people I know seem to conceive either immediately or around the 6 month mark...best of luck Headbanger!

I'm 34 and with a rather lardy BMI of 31 (but otherwise pretty fit and with "set your watch by them" cycles) and it happened first try. Well, it wasn't exactly a "try". We were on holiday, i was a bit tipsy and forgot what the date was and therefore what point in my cycle I was. But it all turned out to be a rather lovely accident and possibly being on holiday and completely chilled might have had something to do with it.

Under absolutely no illusions that next time (if I'm crazy enough to try for a second!) that it'll be so ridiculously easy. Apparently 2 people with average fertility have sex on the fertile couple of days of the month, they have a 20% chance of conceiving. Which means that it will likely happen eventually but could take months and an awful lot of shagging (looking for the benefits there!)

DS1 - first cycle, age 32, BMI ~30
DC2 - six cycles but BFing, age 33, BMI ~30 - ruptured ectopic
DC3 - first cycle, age 33, BMI ~30 - MMC at 13 weeks

I thought I was one of the 'fall on a willy and get pregnant' people but have discovered that is only part of the problem...

FWIW my top tip to get pregnant is to SWI 3 times a day from the last day of your period.... means that by the time you ovulate the sperm you're getting is lovely and fresh....

5 months, but the fifth month was the first month of using the Toni Weschler book - I swear by it

dd1 7 years - this included 2 years where we couldn't ttc because I was on chemo.

we had had fertility problems (pcos), and had clomid and a laparopsopy. I was 37 when i had dd1

i had dd2 14 months later (a surprise/miracle!) at 38

and ds 3 years later ( took 6 months to conceive) at 41.

I know a lot of people say that they conceived when they relaxed, but it really isn't a contributing factor. It is impossible to relax when you are stressing over ovultion or ivf, or as was the case with me, whether your pregnancy will lead to you developing a cancerous choriocarcinoma!

If the sperm is going to fertilise that egg, I really believe that it is a random event, if its going to happen, its just going to happen!

7 months, aged 39 at time of conception, 40 at birth. I was half expecting that it wouldn't happen given my age, and told GP that I wasn't going to beat myself up if it didn't. Guess being fairly laid back about this possibility might have helped!

It was my 1st pregnancy, and my weight was a bit too much

DD1 - 1 month - I was almost 31. No idea of weight at the time but definitely overweight - I am 5'2 and a size 16

DD2 - 2 months - aged 33 - once again no idea of weight but definitely high BMI.

5 miscarriages, and 3 babies, later xx 10yrs its taken and im 36wks , my others are 18, 16, 14, xxx and really looking forward to it, loads of complications and discomfort but well worth it xx

Ist pregnancy took one year. I was 32 when I got pregnant. No medical reason

2nd pregnancy I was 34 and it took just once (MIL took DS for a walk )

both times I lost a stone in weight just before I got pregnant both times, but I can't remember how much I weighed.

3 years....now 13 weeks pregnant after IVF. No health issues BMI 19 and no problems that could be detected by fertility screening. Crossing my fingers we will make it all the way.

I agree with other posters - it is horrible to be asked "when are you going to get round to having children?" - Don't do it!!!!

you never know what is going on at home.

My BMI was 24 and it took me 4 months of trying to fall pregnant - I was 34 at the time and will be 35 when baby is born.

I think I was pretty lucky now but at the time I was gutted every time I got my period and kept thinking that something must be wrong.

@ knitter SWI 3 times a day from the last day of your period?? 3 times A DAY??

sorry to butt in....it is fascinating to read the range of experiences everyone has...there seems to be no rhyme or reason to it.

DS - 1st month which took us completely by suprise. BMI 20.5 aged 31
No.2 - 2nd month (had a chemical pregnancy in the first month of TTC). BMI 21. Currently 17 weeks pregnant and am 33 years old.

Appreciate we've been very, very lucky.

Before we started ttc I was convinced that it was going to talk a long time to get pg, and (for reasons I can't fathom now) I was genuinely scared that we might not be fertile. Because of this I persuaded DH that we should start trying the minute we were married "as it could take months or years".

Of course by the time we got back from honeymoon I was knocked up!

I can't tell you how relieved I was to find out that we could, and had, concieved. And how grateful I am that we were this lucky.

For your stats I'm 29 and BMI is 19 so pretty healthy. As I say, don't know why I was worried but it was real at the time.

9 Months, lots of Blood tests, a Lap & Dye, a cycle of Isoflavones, then a Big Fat positive !
Lucky really as I was due to start Clomid the following cycle:)

salty everyone reacts like when I tell 'em (which is sort of why I tell 'em IYSWAM!!)... works though :)

should say 'works for us though'

Knitter I am in awe. I am. I will not hijack HB's thread in order to ask the many questions I have. I won't

Hijack away Salts then I don't have to ask!

Yes, I agree thoroughly about the no 'when are you going to start' questions - its really difficult to stay sane when its taking a long time or you've had problems along the way.

salty ask away here!!

11 cycles, 29 and at a healthy weight, using FAM for all 11 cycles. I'd been on the pill for 8.5 years prior and it took 6 cycles for everything to return to "normal".

I fell pregnant after 2 months of TTC but this sadly ended in MMC. I was 32 at the time.

We began TTC immediately after MMC and it took us 11 months and alot of tears! Im now 31 weeks pregnant and will have just turned 34 when our first DD is born.

I understand your frustration. All my friends and family just seem to fall pregnant as soon as they decide. I started to truly believe there was something wrong with us and even had a laparoscopy to see what was wrong. Interestingly, I was due on a day or so after the op. I was told I would bleed afterwards, so when I did, I didnt know if it was AF or the op. As such, I said to DH, lets just forget TTC this month as I dont know when or if AF has even made an appearance. So we stopped trying that month and just enjoyed sex for the sake of having sex and 2 weeks later I must have falled pregnant! Theres alot of be said for relaxing about it but I also know how bloody impossible it can be to relax when youre so stressed and desperate to be preggers!

Good luck :)

18 months - doctor was good enough to refer us after only six or seven months, as my cycle was completely off the wall and it was clearly unlikely anything was going to happen naturally. Good job he didn't make us keep trying for the requisite year, as it turned out I have an underactive thyroid, and even with that fixed, don't actually ovulate. DD was conceived on the third cycle of Clomid.

My friend gave birth to her first 'oops' baby (of three) when we'd been trying for over a year - that was tough.