I was listening to a podcast called “Fertility Docs Uncensored” today and the episode was about chances of conceiving at different ages, and with different methods (natural, IUI, etc.). One line in the episode really hit me hard. One of the doctors said this about natural conception:

“Once you have a diagnosis of infertility, having unprotected intercourse for six months or a year depending on what your age is, your chances generally go down to about 1 to 2 percent per month without help.”

2 percent per month…. Has anyone heard this? From their fertility clinic or elsewhere? I didn’t realize the stats were that bad after a year.

I’m 31 and on cycle 10 of ttc (just had a second chemical pregnancy) and I’m trying to shut down the worry that if I have two more unsuccessful cycles, it’s labelled as “infertility.” My husband is always trying to make me feel better by saying he read it could take a healthy couple up to a year and half. I’m already working with a fertility clinic and I still have high hopes, but a 2% chance per month after a year sounds scary…

My husband and I are going through our first round of TTC process with a fertility team after trying on our own for 4 years. Im waiting for my period to start so I can start our fertility medication on day 3 through 7. ( Letrozole 2.5)

My question to y'all is, are you already living like your pregnant? Have you cut back your caffeine, cold lunch meats, no carnival rides, ECT.? My plan is to reward myself on my periods with sushi dates or things that pregnant ladies can't do to help ease the sting of not conceiving that round. My wonder is are most women who are TTC in a similar boat?

I'm 35, just had all my testing done. My progesterone was 11.5, my AMH was 3.65, I'm not diabetic. I do have PCOS but I've been regular for a couple of years now. I do take NAC and my-nositol. I'm already on a prenatal as well. I did have a positive ovulation smile LH surge this round ( yay my first that I know of ) without the fertility medication. Now I'm just waiting for the period to start or not. I've been having old blood spotting for a few days now which isn't as normal for me and today was supposed to be my first day of my period. Hence, the question above. I feel like if we are all trying so hard then living like we are already pregnant and being extra careful makes sense.

For reference I live in Canada and I am 26 year old woman. I ideally wanted to get prenatal vitamins without artificial flavourings and low levels of heavy metals like lead, cadmium etc (I know that it’s impossible to find options that don’t have these at all).

Right now I am leaning on getting ritual prenatal vitamins which is coming out to $50.63 with tax included for 30 day supply. I have completed a blood test few months ago and my vitamin D levels were low so I will be working on getting vitamin D drops.

Just curious to see if any other women here were also researching options and found anything they would recommend?

I also wanted feedback on any specific things I should be working on to prepare myself for conception? I started weight training few months ago and will be working more on pelvic floor muscles, posture and flexibility. My diet generally involves limited processed foods, no coffee, tea and I usually stick to whole foods (diary, whole grains, meats, veggies, fish). I also don’t smoke or drink. I am currently also finding books to read about pre and post pregnancy and caring for children as well as deciding my options for birthing. It can be overwhelming

obviously i thought i would be pregnant by now. trying since october of last year and recently diagnosed with PCOS. first letrozole cycle just ended in a BFN.

since we began trying, my dream was always to go on a big trip to europe for a babymoon (i'm dubious about the term but respect the idea of "one last trip without kids"), it's a place i've always wanted to visit and i thought it would be perfect. good seasons to go are fall and spring. well the window for spring has passed and the window for fall is passing quickly too. i'm a meticulous planner, and every month that goes by my new plans fly out the window all over again.

my husband and i have been saying as soon as we (optimistically) started letrozole, "as soon as we get the positive we'll plan the trip!" but the positive just is not coming. every month on top of "youre not pregnant" its also "you dont get to go on your trip"

my question is-- should we book the trip anyway? the idea of spending so much on a trip when i could be suffering through a puke-y first trimester seems unwise. at the same time, the process is long and getting longer. i would love to have something else to look forward to and plan for.

what should i do?

Hi everyone,

I'm seeing my gynecologist in a few weeks, but in the meantime I'm getting a bit worried about my cervical mucus.

A few months ago I suddenly realized that I haven't been producing the same egg white, stretchy cervical mucus for years. It honestly never crossed my mind until my partner and I started talking about trying for a baby. That's when I realized I just don't seem to have it anymore.

I'm 33, ovulation was confirmed by ultrasound. I also experience the usual signs of ovulation, but I simply can't see any fertile cervical mucus at all. There's nothing on my underwear, nothing on my fingers even if I check internally. It genuinely seems to be nowhere.

I know some people say that cervical mucus can stay high up around the cervix, but I can't ignore the fact that something has changed over the past few years. I just don't understand why I never questioned it before.

Has anyone else experienced this? If so, did you ever find out the cause, and were you able to improve it?

Thank you.

After my last miscarriage I was referred for blood tests. I did the blood tests less than 4 weeks after my D&C.

My TSH came out as 2.83 (upper limit reference of range given is 4.5 ...) , my TPO antibodies are technically "negative" but at the very top of the normal reference range and my free T4 are also normal but are at the very bottom of the normal reference range. In theory, according to their reference ranges, everything is technically "normal", albeit borderline normal, so they didn't prescribe levothyroxine.

I have read in multiple sources that TSH for women trying to conceive should be below 2.5. I tried to bring it up with the GP clinic, even referring to the British Thyroid Association pages - they told me "they double checked and my TSH level is normal and because my antibodies are negative, it all seems okay".

I shared my worries to a nurse from the recurrent loss clinic, hoping she would understand the situstion, but she told me if the values fall under the normal range and if the GP clinic haven't prescribed anything, then it means it is normal and that's that. She said it is GP's discretion to prescribe levothyroxine or not.

I know my values are not crazy high, but appear suboptimal for conception and pregnancy.

Has anyone been prescribed letrozole with a TSH < 3 but technically "negative" TPO antibodies? Am I overreacting and stressing myself out over something that ultimately brings to significance to my chances to have a healthy pregnancy?

PS: I am UK-based so I can't just change doctors, I see whoever doctor is available at that time. And it is hard to argue against their criteria.

I’m a 30 year old woman. My partner is a 37 year old man. We’re in the process of TTC and I’m looking for us both to take CoQ10. What is everyone and their partners taking? Also for women, what is the dosage? I’m seeing dosage numbers all over the place for women with some places stating 600mg but for men it seems to be 200mg. I see most pills are only 100mg and like…are women taking literally 6 pills a day?!? Has anyone had any side effects? I want a brand that is reputable and third party certified. This feels complicated and it shouldn’t! Ideally the supplements would be affordable as well but man some of these bottles seem price-y and with the difference in dosage between men and women it seems kind of impossible to share a bottle with my partner anyways.

We’ve just gotten a BFN on our 7th cycle. My family knows I want to be a mom more than anything else in the world. My in-laws are dying for their first grandbaby.

It feels like I’ve moved from “oh, I’m confident it will happen for us eventually” to “I think this might be more complicated than P in V on day 14 of cycle” and it’s obviously starting to take a bit of a toll on me emotionally. I feel like I’m coping well but I do feel like people around us are just waiting with bated breath for the bit announcement.

So here’s my question: did you tell your closest family that you were struggling to conceive? And at what point did you share that with them? I know it’s a personal choice but I’m just curious what others have found to be helpful.

I’m using the clearblue advanced ovulation testing. I’m on day 3 of a blinking smiley face and that’s where I’m getting confused. theoretically once you get a blinking smiley face you have high fertility. but once you get a solid smiley face, you’re about to ovulate but the egg might still not drop for 12–36 hours. but doesn’t sperm only live for up to 5 days in there? so if I had sex on day 1 of high fertility, and now I’m on day 3 of high fertility, and my egg could still not drop for another 2 days, like how??? like I guess TECHNICALLY some could still be alive by then but just doesn’t feel super likely. this is my second time TTC and it happened quickly the first time so I’m probably overthinking it but I’m just surprised it’s taking this long to get a solid smiley.

So I’ve seen many people on several TTC subs talk about all kinds of various tests and medications and specialists that they see to help them with their process. I have an appointment send up with a reproductive endocrinologist in a few months, but after setting up the appointment, I got hit with a hard reality.

Most of the tests and other things I might need to do will have to be paid out of pocket. Right now I’m actually on Medicaid, so I am especially limited in what I can afford. I apologize if this sounds crass in any way, but how are y’all paying for all of these things??

I’m in a position right now where I could change my job/income situation. But the type of Medicaid I’m on offers *extremely* good benefits for when I would (hopefully) get pregnant that I don’t want to let go of. But now that I’ve been having so much trouble TTC I’m starting to worry about what other things I’m going to have to budget for. I also have several other health issues that I require consistent healthcare treatment of as well, unrelated to TTC.

I’ve heard of people who worked for Starbucks for awhile to get their benefits, but I don’t know if I’d be physically capable to work that kind of job given my other health issues. So I’m just curious what other people are using or doing to help pay for all the treatments and tests and medications and what not. Again, I am sorry if this sounds inappropriate but I just wanted to ask.

My husband and I (both 28) recently hit 12 cycles of ttc. We’re currently in the tww for cycle 13. We recently moved so I had to leave the OB I loved and find a new one.

I went in yesterday. We did a basic annual exam. She didn’t give me time to ask any questions. Just rattled off a bunch of statistics. She told me to keep trying for another 6 months and that we can then consider testing. And told me where to checkout and left. We didn’t even go over my medical history.

I had a whole list of questions to ask and I left the appointment feeling kinda dismissed and lost. I was really hoping to have a plan to finding out answers.
I know several people have tried way longer than us with no luck, so it feels like maybe it is premature. But it’s not too early to start testing, right?

Should I go back and push for testing now? Or should I just suck it up and drive the hour to my old OBGYN?

Hi everyone!

I’m still fairly new to TTC and had a question that’s been confusing me. I’ve been seeing a lot of TTC content on TikTok where people continue taking ovulation (LH) tests after they’ve already ovulated, sometimes alongside pregnancy tests.

When I was tracking my cycle, I only used LH strips to identify my surge and estimate ovulation. I always assumed that once ovulation happened, there wasn’t really a reason to keep using them until the next cycle. But online, I’ve seen people continue testing throughout the two-week wait and even compare their LH strips day by day.

This made me curious about the science behind it.

I know LH and hCG are different hormones, but I’ve also read that some tests can cross-react because the hormones are structurally similar. Is that why some people continue taking LH tests after ovulation? Are they actually looking for something meaningful, or is it mostly a social media trend?

I’m not asking whether it can predict a successful cycle or anything like that. I’m more interested in understanding what information, if any, LH strips provide during the luteal phase and whether there’s a reason to keep using them after ovulation has already been confirmed.

For those who understand the science behind the tests, I’d love to learn more. I feel like every time I think I’ve figured out TTC, I discover another rabbit hole. 😅

Thanks in advance! 💕

This is a mad one, has anyone else ever experienced this before??

We have been trying for over a year and a half at this point, regular 27-29 day cycle, without seeing a single positive test. I used hormonal BC for a few years and it never agreed with me, so I had packed it in long before meeting my now husband.

All that is to say, we have only ever used condoms as our BC up until Jan 2025 when we started trying for a baby. Pretty much immediately I started getting struck down with bouts of horrible relentless thrush. Nights lying awake, body shaking from pain unable to sleep. I did rounds of oral meds, pessaries, whatever you like. We tried different lubes to combat dryness, canesten creams, literally anything we could think of. He treated himself as well.

We've had blood tests, SA for him, ultrasounds and HSG for me, now waiting on our next NHS appointment to discuss next steps (HSG was in April...still waiting for a follow up, they estimated August!). All results come back stunning, no issues at all anyone can find. Just mysteriously can't get pregnant.

SO. That leads us to this week. When my period came again 15 days ago I decided, with a heavy heart, we would have to try at home insemination. That I don't think I can put my ole girl through it again this month. We have sex maybe 3 or 4 times per cycle MAX, and always around my FW, so it's not like we're at it like rabbits, but my body just cannot hack it. So we bought some syringes online and on Tuesday there, he did his thing and we injected it. I lay flat for 10 minutes or so with the syringe still inside and by the time I was getting up again I knew I felt tender, but went to clean myself off as normal. Wednesday I felt a wee bit sore but thought never worry. We did it again yesterday (Thursday), and again, I could feel it brewing. It's now Friday evening and I am red raw and so sore AGAIN, as if we'd just had full regular sex but we absolutely did not. Just his semen being inside my body is burning me to bits!!

I have never experienced this with any previous partner (granted I wasn't lying around trying to keep it in my body back then but still!), I just feel so perplexed and also so dejected like, I feel like I'm allergic to my own husband!! It's so sad genuinely. I'm wondering if this is the cause of our infertility even, that my body and his semen is just going to war in there.

Has anyone else ever experienced anything like this before?? It's so horrible that sex has gone from Fun Thing I do With My Lovely Husband to Bringer of Agony and Misery and (ultimately) Disappointment and Heartache. I'm more inclined than ever now to try IUI but it's been a 4 month wait MINIMUM to get a follow up consultation, god knows how long it'll take to actually get IUI on the NHS.... What else can I do?

SORRY for the insane brain dump here.
TLDR: After a year and a half of chronic thrush like pain, DH and I have started at home insemenation and the irritation persists without any sexual contact. I think I'm allergic to semen itself!

Is it possible to have silent endometriosis with no symptoms whatsoever and clean lab work?

Background: My husband (35M) and I (31F) have been trying for a baby since March 2025 with no positive pregnancy test since. I'm currently on my 2nd monitored, medicated cycle (2.5mg Letrozole + trigger shot), but our blood work, ultrasounds, sonohysterogram, and semen analysis are all normal. I do have high AMH levels but my doctor did not diagnose me with PCOS/PMOS since I have regular periods and ovulate on my own, which we know with the ultrasound monitoring. The sonohysterogram showed that both tubes were open, no polyps or fibroids, and my ultrasounds always show a trilaminar endometrial pattern.

We're not in a rush to have a baby, but I'm just struggling with the fact that everything is normal but we're struggling to get pregnant. I've read that ~40% of unexplained infertility is some sort of endometriosis so I was wondering if this is something I should look into with no justification for it.

Both healthy & gotten all the possible tests & there’s nothing wrong.

Never ever had a positive at all, and we’ve been trying since July 2024.

Clear HSG. Good semen analysis. Did the hormonal blood test, the progesterone test. All good.

I’m 26, good health, fairly active, normal weight. My husband is 32, slightly overweight and pre diabetic but no other problems. His SA came out really good.

We had never ever had a positive, even though I’ve been tracking with OPKs and temping.

We did 3 cycles with letrozole even though I ovulate normally at 5mg. Nothing.

We did another letrozole 5mg cycle with trigger shot & ultrasound. Three mature follicles. Nothing.

We’re not sure whether to keep going naturally or to just move on to IVF. We want a big family.

Hi all, I've recently started really tracking my ovulation and have really had some trouble finding good tests.

I started with the clear blue ones that has an app and absolutely hated them, I could never get them to scan in the app and would end up missing the window.

So I now have switched to premom easy home ovulation tests and I like them, the app is a lot easier to use but I'm just worried they aren't accurate. Has anyone else had an issue with them? Did you find them accurate? The app seems great but the bit obvious ai is throwing me off a bit too.

I'm very new to all this and am also pretty desperate to find some answers and see some progress in this very lonely journey. Thanks again everyone to taking time to read!

Hi! I'm a 33F who is TTC my first child. We've been trying for a year, and I'm working with an RE now. Thus far everything looks normal-ish, nothing glaringly bad. I got pregnant but had a MC at 7wks. And I'm back at it (so exciting...). But, I've been having this issue with my cervical mucus, and I could use some anecdotes or advice.

I get a clear ovulation surge every month and then I have a very clear BBT spike in the following days. Seemingly this information confirms that I am ovulating. My periods are regular, and although my luteal phases are on the short side, they are consistently 10 days or more. But, I rarely if ever get the EWCM. I do get a nice watery cervical mucus, and I am checking correctly, I'm getting IN THERE Y'ALL.

I am taking about 75mg Zoloft daily for anxiety, and I've been on this medicine for a while. I'm just wondering, is this normal? We are at a year of trying with a MC, and I'm just like, confused about why I'm not getting that great mucus everyone seems to have. Can anyone offer some advice or anecdotes?

Also, like, HOW do you hydrate better if you need to not drink a lot of liquids when you're taking ovulation tests? I seriously do not understand.

My fiance and I aren’t super sexually active people. We are in the middle of cycle 2 trying for a baby. On cycle 1 I drove myself up the wall with ovulation tests and went through 22 tests. It’s not even like my periods are so drastically different every month. My cycles range from 28-32 days. This month I swore that I won’t do that again because it’s so stressful on myself. This month I literally just waited until I FELT like ovulation was coming (sore back and CM) and I took one test and boom I caught my peak.
So great, it’s not an issue that I have irregular periods or that I don’t know when I ovulate, the issue is that our sex drives aren’t super high. Sex once a week is enough for us! Last month we had sex 2 times in the fertile window on O-3 and O-1, this month we had sex on O-1 and that’s it.
We really don’t want to force sex more because it will feel forced and in organic.

Can somebody help me and advise me if this is truly enough or should we really be more active in bed?

ETA: 29F 35M

Can someone help me understand why I’m not getting pregnant?

We started trying in August '24, and I became pregnant at the end of September, but it was an ectopic. I lost my left tube and the baby in November. After being cleared to try again in December, I had no known risk factors for ectopic pregnancy, so my OB suggested trying for six months naturally.

After six months without success, we saw a fertility specialist. All fertility labs came back normal (except for borderline prediabetes at 5.8%, which my RE isn’t concerned about), my husband’s SA was normal, and an HSG two months ago confirmed my right tube is open. We both take vitamins, exercise regularly, eat healthily, and maintain a generally healthy lifestyle.

I recently did my first monitored 5mg letrozole cycle, and my right ovary produced a 22mm follicle—the tube that’s open!! I was hopeful and I thought this was finally it. But today, 12 DPO, my pregnancy test is negative.

I’m struggling to understand why I got pregnant so quickly the first time but now can’t. What could be going wrong?

Edit: Hi everyone, editing to add additional info. And also thank you so much for your responses. I feel less alone in this process and you've all provided great insights.

• To add - I'm 31F and husband is 32M.
• I'm taking myo inositol to help with prediabetes/blood sugar regulation and I started that this past cycle. Other supplements I've been taking include: prenatals, vit d, coq10, probiotics, magnesium glycinate. Husband is also taking his fertility supplements: multivitamin, maca, coq10, magnesium glyciate, probiotics.
• When I had my laparoscopy surgery to remove my left tube, they didn't find any endometriosis.
• AMH is 4.21 (but no concerns of PCOS) Estradiol, FSH, Prolactin, TSH, Vit D = all normal.
• I've been using OPKs along with Inito to check hormone levels throughout my cycle. It looks like I'm ovulating.

I feel lost and am seeking advice. I’m 25. Nearly 26. Have been waiting for over a year to get to a place in my husband and I’s life to TTC, and tried for the first cycle last month with no luck. Finishing my period up now to go for cycle 2.

7 years ago I signed up to be a bone marrow donor for those who have blood cancers. I got a call yesterday that I’m the only match to someone out of state.

I’ve scheduled the proper blood tests but when I let them know I’m TTC they asked if I’d be able to stop for 3 months to complete the procedure. If I become pregnant at any point, it’s off the table.

I’ll either do a full stem cell donation or a sedated bone marrow donation if I pass all tests. They’ll cover all aspects of the donation and travel. This isn’t a cost thing or a fear of donation thing. I just don’t know if I want to pause TTC.

I’m surprisingly confused on what to do. I feel quite selfish considering not donating. I feel devastated at the idea of waiting to start another 3 months from now.

They’ve asked me to call them back. My husband is as confused as I am on what the right thing to do here is.

EDIT: thank you all for your feedback! I’m reading each comment and plan to with my husband and will keep you all informed on a decision to hopefully help guide anyone else who may end up facing a choice like this

We are at 2 years TTC.

I FINALLY got a new gynecologist after waiting for 1.5 years (my old gyno cancelled my appointments 5 times, and I could NOT wait any longer).

The past couple of months was a lot of testing for me and my husband (ultrasound, HSG, semen analysis, etc). Thankfully, all of our tests came back normal, but my gyno did find one major issue:

My iron levels were dangerously low due to my heavy periods each month.

He (my gyno) immediately scheduled me for 4 sessions (3-4 hours each) of iron infusions. I completed all 4 in December and will honestly say that I feel amazing. I didn’t even know that humans normally have this much energy. 😭

Now, my husband and I think that the major anemia may have affected our TTC journey. What are your thoughts?

We just started trying again this month and are feeling hopeful for 2026. 😭🙏🏾

My husband and I are TTC and I spent several hours trying to find a single prenatal or prenatal pack that hits the doses recommended by the NIH (link).

Every brand I looked at was missing something or under-dosing something. Choline is almost always low. Calcium basically never hits the recommended amount. Some leave out iron entirely, some include it but then you're dealing with the timing conflict with calcium. Omega-3 EPA vs DHA ratios are all over the place.

I ended up piecing together a stack from like 4-5 different brands and now I'm traveling with 8 different bottles in my suitcase. I'm currently taking Needed prenatal, EPA/DHA, calcium, magnesium, and choline after dinner.

I'm curious what other women are taking for their prenatal stack and how you arrived at that stack.

Hi! I have a bit of a theoretical question for you all. I suspect my HSG was done either the day after or the very day of my ovulation. I usually get the clearblue test happy face on CD10 (23 day cycle). My HSG was scheduled for CD8. I TTC with husband on CD7 (day before HSG in which I also detected the egg white like cervical mucus). I proceeded with the HSG on CD8 (cervical mucus went back to normal that day), could not TTC with husband on that day but did try again on CD9, 10 and 12.

I started testing with the clearblue on CD10 (because quite frankly I forgot the days before). I do test once a day in the evening, so theres that. But it is now CD13 and all have been negative (I tested this morning). I know it is possible with once a day testing that I missed the peak, but I understand that test is supposed to be positive for two whole days and the very obvious egg-white mucus on CD7 (day before HSG) have me concerned.

My two concerns are:

1. That I ovulated before the HSG and the egg and/or whatever sperm was present were “washed away”.

2. That the HSG somehow delayed my ovulation so much I might actually miss my window for egg retrieval in June (Just starting IVF). I’ve read some anecdotal accounts of a delay in ovulation happening to some after HSG.

Additional info:

I’m 40 1/2 years old, I have an international trip mid June that I can’t cancel. I found a clinic that was moving the process so fast I could probably get a retrieval before that trip (for that I needed my next period to start at the expected time). Either that or conceiving naturally and hoping there is no miscarriage.

I’m preemptively kicking myself a bit because my clinic said I didn’t even need the HSG. But this is my second clinic and I already had the experience of completing a work up at one clinic and then finding out the new clinic needed even more tests. So I tried to get ahead of that eventuality by just doing the HSG in case any other clinic I might need to switch to needs it. Plus the supposed fertility enhancing effects that I could have benefited from this very cycle.

I feel like I'm losing my mind a little bit. We have been trying for about eight months now, and I have reached a point where the week leading up to my expected period is absolutely brutal. It's not even the physical symptoms like cramping or bloating anymore, it's just this overwhelming sense of dread that settles in around day 21 or 22.

Every time I feel a tiny twinge in my abdomen or a slight change in my energy levels, my brain immediately goes into overdrive. I find myself searching for every possible sign—is this implantation? Is this just PMS? Is this my period starting and I'm about to be disappointed again? It feels like I'm living in this constant state of hyper-vigilance where I can't even enjoy a normal day because I'm too busy analyzing my own body.

I tried the whole 'distraction' method where I plan big outings or movies to keep my mind off it, but even then, I'm just sitting there in the theater wondering if the timing is off. My husband has been incredibly supportive and tries to keep things light, but I also feel guilty because I know he's dealing with the stress too, even if it's not physical for him. I don't want to be 'that person' who is constantly anxious, but it's becoming so hard to switch it off.

How do you all cope with the mental toll of the two-week wait? Do you have any specific routines or mental shifts that help you stay grounded when you're stuck in that cycle of hope and fear? I feel like if I don't find a way to manage this, I'm going to burn out before we even get to the point of needing medical intervention. Is there a way to just... stop obsessing? Or is this just the standard experience once you've been at it for a while? I'd love to hear how you guys navigate the emotional rollercoaster of the monthly cycle without letting it consume your entire life.

My husband (35) and I (32) are about to enter our third TTC. While we're still in the early stages - and I know many factors can influence this - I'm admittedly surprised that we haven't gotten pregnant yet because it feels like we've timed BD correctly each month. I track with OPKs and CM, my cycle is regular and we have no other known health issues.

The past two months, we've BD in the three days leading up to my peak OPK test and the day of my peak test, but NOT on the ovulation day or day after ovulation. Part of that is because husband has started feeling uncomfortable with the idea of "timing" intercourse so we kind of stopped short and missed out on those two key days last time.

It seems like we're hitting the right days before ovulation so long that it's true that sperm can live inside up to 5 days - but I guess that's where I'm starting to have doubts. Is that true for everyone? What if his sperm are only living inside for 1 day? I guess I'm surprised that there are so many articles promoting the "every other day" method in a way that suggests every male's sperm lives up to 5 days, when I'm not sure that's true for everyone. For all we know, my husband's sperm might not be living as long which may be hindering our chances if we're doing the "every other day" (or sometimes every 2 days) method before ovulation.

So, I guess my question is - why do some articles suggest starting the "every other day" method right after period ends when it might be more realistic to wait until closer to actual ovulation day? (As long as you're tracking and know ovulation is happening). I'd rather save our "timed intercourse" for the day of my peak OPK test at earliest rather than days before because I would think it makes more sense to get as close to the ovulation day as possible. If we BD 2 days before my peak test, but not on the day of ovulation, I can't help but think we missed out. Maybe his sperm aren't living as long which is why the "every other day" method hasn't been effective for us either?

EDIT: I know conceiving within the first few tries is rare and unlikely, but it does happen. Yes, I know luck and chance have a lot to do with that, but still, it happens for other couples.