How do I check my cervix for signs of ovulation?
Expert: Toni Weschler, fertility educator [See Biography]
Question: How do I check my cervix for signs of ovulation?
Answer: As you approach ovulation your cervix becomes soft, high, open, and wet — you can remember this with the acronym SHOW. After ovulation these signs reverse and the cervix becomes firm, low, closed, and dry. It might sound easy to monitor, but most women aren't familiar with touching their cervix and when they do, they don't have an immediate point of reference. (How soft is 'soft' during pre-ovulation, for example?) My attitude is that if your other fertility signs are obvious — you produce fertile-quality cervical fluid leading up to ovulation and a sustained temperature shift following the build-up of cervical fluid which confirms ovulation — you don't need to check your cervix. But if there's some ambiguity, your cervix offers good information to corroborate the other two signs.
The best way to learn about your cervix is to start checking its position once your cervical fluid becomes wet, and continue checking it for a few days after your temperature has risen. That phase of about five days is when you'll notice the most abrupt change. Insert your clean, middle finger into your ****** up to at least your middle knuckle or even further. It's helpful to compare how the cervix feels to the touch: just before ovulation it will feel like your lips; after ovulation it will feel harder, like the tip of your nose.
Even if you check your cervix, you still need to monitor your two primary ovulation signs: basal body temperature and cervical fluid. This means taking your temperature every morning, before you get up and after you've had at least three hours of uninterrupted sleep. If you've ovulated, you should notice your temperature quickly rise above the range of lows that preceded it.
But your temperature doesn't tell you when you're going to ovulate, only that you have ovulated, so it's important to use it in tandem with observing the changes in cervical fluid throughout your cycle. After your period, you will probably notice a few days of dryness, followed by increasing wetness until your cervical fluid has a stretchy, slippery quality. This is the time, just before ovulation, when you are most likely to conceive
Question: How do I check my cervix for signs of ovulation?
Answer: As you approach ovulation your cervix becomes soft, high, open, and wet — you can remember this with the acronym SHOW. After ovulation these signs reverse and the cervix becomes firm, low, closed, and dry. It might sound easy to monitor, but most women aren't familiar with touching their cervix and when they do, they don't have an immediate point of reference. (How soft is 'soft' during pre-ovulation, for example?) My attitude is that if your other fertility signs are obvious — you produce fertile-quality cervical fluid leading up to ovulation and a sustained temperature shift following the build-up of cervical fluid which confirms ovulation — you don't need to check your cervix. But if there's some ambiguity, your cervix offers good information to corroborate the other two signs.
The best way to learn about your cervix is to start checking its position once your cervical fluid becomes wet, and continue checking it for a few days after your temperature has risen. That phase of about five days is when you'll notice the most abrupt change. Insert your clean, middle finger into your ****** up to at least your middle knuckle or even further. It's helpful to compare how the cervix feels to the touch: just before ovulation it will feel like your lips; after ovulation it will feel harder, like the tip of your nose.
Even if you check your cervix, you still need to monitor your two primary ovulation signs: basal body temperature and cervical fluid. This means taking your temperature every morning, before you get up and after you've had at least three hours of uninterrupted sleep. If you've ovulated, you should notice your temperature quickly rise above the range of lows that preceded it.
But your temperature doesn't tell you when you're going to ovulate, only that you have ovulated, so it's important to use it in tandem with observing the changes in cervical fluid throughout your cycle. After your period, you will probably notice a few days of dryness, followed by increasing wetness until your cervical fluid has a stretchy, slippery quality. This is the time, just before ovulation, when you are most likely to conceive
