Myth-bust getting pregnant and TTCing "old wives" tales with Clearblue: chance to win £250 NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

We have all heard "old wives" tales about how to get pregnant and now the team at Clearblue would love to hear which ones you have heard of - and which you believe in and which are a load of tosh!

Inspired by threads like this, they'd also love you to share the myths/ pre conceived (gettit)! notions you had before you TTCed about DTD and trying to get pregnant - what was an absolute revelation to you once you entered the land of TTCing?

Clearblue say "At Clearblue we love hearing about the journey women go on when trying to get pregnant, and especially when our products have been able to help in some way, please do share your experiences on this thread!"

Everyone who posts will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky MNer will win a £250 Love2Shop voucher.

Please note your comments and photos may be included on Clearblue's website and social media channels, and possibly elsewhere, so please only post if you're comfortable with this.

Thanks and good luck,
MNHQ

You tend to hear more stories about how long it can take to conceive rather than speedy stories so we imagined it would take years so were surprised when it happened after a couple of months.

I think the idea that you can get pregnant any time of the month comes from sex ed classes and doesn't really prepare woman for the reality that you only have a window of a few days each month.

A lot of sex ed let's woman down later on, it's very much based round stopping teenagers getting pregnant and passing round STDs, but not teaching woman about their fertility.

Plus I'm always surprised how many men don't realise that if their partner is already mid 30s they can't just bob around putting the decision off for a few more years, that just because a few celebs had healthy babies in their 40s doesn't mean every woman can.

"Woman who give away their pram always have an accidental 3rd" - not sure how true this one is, but I'm holding on to my pram for now....

I confess to trying every single "trick" in the book, everything from the legs in the air, to pink grapefruit juice. I've also used every ovulation predictor known to man! I've monitored saliva for crying out loud. I'm pretty sure that with the volume of clear blue ovulation kits and clear blue pregnancy tests I've used over the course of the 14 years it took to have my 2 children, has paid the salary of a member of Clear Blue's staff!

Even IVF couldn't get me pregnant, eventually at 37 my body decided to become fertile!

I lost my first pregnancy very late on when my baby was stillborn. Eventually we decided to try again and using the Clear Blue ovulation kits did help, they were expensive, but yes, helpful.

I do love their pregnancy tests, seeing those words Pregnant 2-3 weeks was an amazing feeling.

That you can somehow sway the gender via ovulation times. 2DD later...

A friend of mines mum told me when i was pregnant that if you are on top when you have sex then youll have a girl but if your underneath youll have a boy.

She has 6 girls

Whilst I'm sure it is bollocks, after just over a year of ttc I got pregnant while on holiday!

Just RELAX! Which, getting older, feeling the body clock ticking and having read about the increased risks and decreased likelihood of getting pregnant due to dwindling fertility is quite difficult...

That swallowing semen would make a woman more fertile.

Nice try, dear husband!

I think for me it was the expectation that I'd come off the pill and be pregnant a month later. I'm a bit lot of a control freak so when it didn't happen I got quite stressed. It took 20 months.
I had the eat dairy, don't eat dairy, don't get up straight after sex.
Relax and it will happen, book a holiday of a life time, practically guaranteed it would happen then nope.
I did however start getting fitter, and it happened then, I didn't lose weight and still had a high BMi, but I was definitely more active and felt better in myself.

The biggest myth for me was that ttc sex is the most unsexy sex you'll have.

I'm now overdue and feeling like an oil tanker, a very unsexy oil tanker with a very wriggly fidgety baby who seems to wake up whenever the conversation takes place (and at this point in time, we're talking logistics on the scale of a small navy operation). I would say to anyone who is ttc, enjoy yourselves because this end of pregnancy is not the fun end.

What get's them in, does not get them out!

Still, it'll all be worth it when (hopefully sooner rather than later) we get to hold our beautiful newborn.

The only one Id heard of was bum in the air, which I vaguely remember trying once.

A friend told us that after (trying to conceive) she lied with her legs up the wall in order to assist the process...... it was a little too much information but she obviously felt it worked as she was pregnant at the time of telling us!

I have nothing but praise for clear blue fertility monitor. It showed that I actually ovulate later than textbook so I was able to use this information and now have 2 children. It was bought after yrs of trying.

First time I got pregnant within about 10 minutes of deciding to start trying, when I was expecting it to take several months and involve actually trying. Walked around in a 'What the fuck? I'm pregnant' daze for a couple of months :)

2nd time also really quick, 3rd time several months and lots of 'What? I've had sex twice I should be pregnant now, possibly with twins'

Like many on here, the biggest myth in my head, after years of trying very hard not to get pregnant, was that getting pregnant was so easy. When we decided we were ready, one month later I was left wondering - "so where's my baby then?". After that we tried everything, no matter how unlikely it sounded, I figured it was worth a go just in case! I spent most my time upside down! My husband was keen to sell me on the theory that swallowing semen increased fertility but I must say I struggled to believe that one! After 5 years we finally got our blessing but I don't think it was because of anything we did.

I think we should start "young wives tales" and back them up with psychobabble. I.e. if your dh/do does the all ironing for a week before TTC it increases your oestrogen levels by proving what a capable partner he is. Likewise washing up, childcare etc. We could make this work to our advantage Gets them back for the myth about swallowing sperm increasing fertility!

I've heard the 'there's a chair at work...' or 'there is something in the water' (literally apparently!) when a couple of pregnancies are announced at around the same time.

I also tried the 'sticking your legs in the air'!! Think I saw it on an episode of 'Friends'!!! the

I was told that you can't conceive while breastfeeding. I was breastfeeding and on the pill when I conceived this time round!!! At 40 (which scotches the "over 30" fertility issue as well)

I sat on a fertility chair in Bluewater. Got pregnant that month .

Havent heard of many other than lie with legs in the air to increase chances of fertility ,tho didn't practise and still had a boy.

I am not an old wives tale fanatic at all - but I have to admit to trying a pillow under my bum to raise the pelvis and hope it added those poor little tadpoles having to swim all that way ;) AND I did conceive so maybe it did help....But I do believe if at first you don't succeed try try try try again ....:)

Just the old one about getting pregnant from toilet seats.

Eat red meat to have a boy and cheese for a girl

Don't sweep under the bed! A great one!