Tip #1: Track Your Ovulation

Now this is going to sound ridiculously obvious to some (if you are already doing this, feel free to skip ahead), but I mention it here because you may just be starting out on your journey, or not even sure where to begin.

Also, as much as I hate to say this, it isn’t really taught or talked about anywhere so I thought I’d give you the Ovulation 101 you should’ve got at school. 

Tracking ovulation for a few months prior to conception is one of the best ways to get to know your body and your fertility window. There is actually only a very small phase during your cycle (you only ovulate on ONE day), but the sperm can survive for around 5 days which increases chances of conception. 

If you start tracking a few months in advance, you get to know your body, what signs you personally get around ovulation, which helps you plan accordingly. You will also get an idea if you are ovulating consistently or if you need to do some work on your hormones so your body does ovulate – No ovulation, no pregnancy. 

So where do you start? Your first day of your bleed is your first day of your cycle, and then most apps will tell you that on day 14 you ovulate. This isn’t always the case. Ovulation varies from person to person, this is why an APP will not confirm ovulation. 

In order to track ovulation the best methods IMO are temperature tracking and cervical mucus tracking. You can also track your cervix position, but I find most women aren’t overly into this one, so I’ll just let you know it’s an option. 

Temperature tracking is great if you do start a few months in advance, because then you will get an idea of the day you do ovulate and can make sure you try on the days around that. The issue with temperature tracking is that it confirms ovulation, so it isn’t going to tell you you’ve ovulated, until after it has happened, and then you’ve kinda missed your window. This is why getting to know your body in advance helps. The way to know if you have ovulated is if you have a rise in temperature over 2 tenths of a degree for 3 days in a row. 

Cervical mucus on the other hand, can be a great indicator in the lead up, as to when you should try. Your mucus will get wetter and form an egg white like consistency around ovulation. This is your most fertile window. The best way I have found for women is to wear dark underwear and notice the changes on that or when they wipe. 

This is your best starting point when it comes to tracking ovulation 🙂 

Tip #2: Ensure You’re Thriving Not Just Surviving

What on earth do I mean by that? Well, let’s put it this way, if your body thinks that you are in constant danger (you know tigers chasing you, faminine, etc) then it isn’t going to trust that it is safe enough to bring a baby into the world. Therefore it will actually down regulate your sex hormones, in favour of your survival vs. falling pregnant. 

This is why STRESS is one of the biggest things I focus on with my fertility clients. You will have probably heard this time and time again, but I mention it because I have witnessed this being the biggest reason my clients have struggled to conceive in the first place (or even potentially a reason they struggle to stay pregnant). 

Your body’s first needs to feel safe enough to ovulate… which requires a lot of energy, so running a high stress lifestyle (hello 21st century, I get it, it’s hard), is going to need to be scaled back a bit. 

Once the body feels safe (not in fight or flight), and it ovulates, you also produce a lot of your key hormones to help you stay pregnant. Hello progesterone aka pro-gestation. If you have a healthy ovulation, you should produce enough of this to help support the fertilised eggs implantation in the uterus and help continue the foetus’s growth. 

This is why ovulation is super important. However, we also know that too high levels of cortisol, your stress hormone diminishes the amount of progesterone production which is why belly breathing, yoga, meditation, journaling and/or self-love practices are part of the stress management tools I give my clients. 

Tip #3: Eat Enough Food

Again this may sound ridiculous, or blatantly obvious, but again… if your body doesn’t think there is enough food for you in the world, it certainly is concerned there won’t be enough food for the baby, so it won’t help you conceive one. 

I have worked with a number of clients who have been underweight and struggled to conceive, I have also worked with a number of women who were at a ‘healthy weight’ (I hate that term), but they had enough body fat on them for their body to feel safe, but they still struggled to conceive.

This is why eating enough food is important. You can barely survive on 1200 – 1400 calories per day, so if you are trying to grow and nourish a new life, you’re going to need to eat a little more. This really is a case by case basis, but something worth considering if you are struggling to conceive. 

Tip #4: Natural Herbs – Through Tea or Supplementation

This has to be one of my favourite ways to support fertility because they make such a difference. Not only can these herbs help the body fall pregnant, but feel safe, calmer and support balanced hormones (all of which obviously help with pregnancy)

My favourite herbs include: 

• Vitex/chaste tree – proven to help with ovulation and progesterone production
• Ashwagandha – calming effect on the nervous system and balancing cortisol levels 

Other ingredients to look out for that can support fertility include; cinnamon, liquorice root, nettle, peppermint and raspberry leaf which alongside vitex can be found in @glowbodyteanz fertility tea, a natural supplementary tea that I often recommend to my clients to support conception. 

Tip #5: Acupuncture

This practice is so common in the Eastern world, but somewhat new in the Western. It is something that Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners have been doing for decades (if not centuries), it can not only help with conception, but also pregnancy and a more easeful delivery. 

My beautiful friend and personal acupuncturist from @glowbodynz Hannah Johnstone shares this on her website about fertility acupuncture:

“It is scientifically proven that Acupuncture improves the blood flow to the uterus and ovaries. It increases blood flow to the follicles which results in healthier eggs and embryos. Furthermore, acupuncture has been shown to improve the quality of follicular fluid.

SO, if you’re TTC, it is important to focus on improving your menstrual cycle, so you know you’re building a healthy endometrium, which ultimately sets the stage for a healthy pregnancy. 

And guess what’s proven to be great at improving the blood flow to the uterus & the health of the uterine lining (the Stener Victorin research protocol) …ACUPUNCTURE! As well as other diet and lifestyle strategies that I will discuss with you throughout your fertility treatments here at GLOWbody.”

Hannah has had the most glowing reviews from her patients and had incredible success with helping her clients (and assisting with some of mine) to fall pregnant. So if you are in Auckland, NZ I suggest checking her out.