Getting In Position
Over the years, many people have wondered about whether the various sexual positions might have an effect on a woman's ability to conceive. At last, we may have come a bit closer to the truth of that particular matter. A new study relating to artificial insemination (AI) reports that women who lay on their backs for 15 minutes after insemination have increased rates of conception. Wouldn't it make sense to apply this idea to regular conception sex, too?
Sperm Assistance
Thirty years ago, two Americans, Rorvik and Shettles, developed a theory that the sperm's journey to a woman's egg involves a great deal of travail and that gravity may help or hinder that journey. These researchers therefore advised women to stay on their backs after sex to give a bit of assistance to the sperm in getting to the egg.
Sperm Determination
But since that time, a conclusion has been reached among the experts that a couple's sexual position doesn't much impact on their chances of conception. The sperm can get to the egg no matter how the couple positions themselves. Sperm are actually quite determined about reaching their target. A woman could stand up and the sperm will still continue their journey to her egg.
Still, if a woman has fertility issues, it may be prudent for her to take advantage of any help she can get, including gravity. This would serve to explain what happened in the AI study. Sperm can get where they're going, but if they need a little help, it couldn't hurt to nudge things along with gravity.
You can use this information to your advantage. If you're having trouble conceiving, skip the woman-on-top position. On the other hand, if you know you have the normal physical variation known as a retroverted (tipped) uterus, in which the uterus tips toward the woman's back instead of frontward, you can compensate for this by having sex in the doggy position. This may give sperm an easier journey to the cervix—the entrance to the uterus.
Hip Propping
To help things along even more, try putting a pillow below your hips just after sex to prop up your pelvis. You don't need to stay in that position beyond 15 or 20 minutes. You don't need to lift your legs in the air or buy a special pillow for this purpose. You can cover the pillow with a towel to absorb leaking fluids.
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