Ask The Experts – Frequency of Intercourse
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Dr. Carolyn Givens worked with thousands of in vitro fertilization patients over the last decade using a combination of attentive, personal care and advanced medical technology. More about Dr. Givens · Read Other Posts |
Question: I’m confused about how often to have intercourse around the time of ovulation. Some things I have read say it should be not more than every other day while my doctor tells me it should be daily. What is the right answer?
Answer: There may be no exact right answer for everyone. Indeed, there might be a slight decrease in sperm concentration on the second or third straight day of ejaculation. However, for most men, there are still millions of active sperm present on the second or third day. As such, it may be better to have more sperm available in the reproductive tract during the window of fertilization for the egg.
My bias is to have intercourse as frequently as possible when you know you are soon to be, or in the process of, ovulating. The best method to detect when this is occurring is to use an ovulation predictor kit such as Ovu-Quick or Clear Blue Easy. When the kit detects the surge, have intercourse on that day and the next day. Beyond that, it is probably too late. If you don’t want to get that technical, subtract 16 days from your usual cycle length and start having intercourse daily from that day of the cycle for the next 3-4 days. For example, if your usual cycle length is 30 days, begin having intercourse on about day 14 and continue to day 16 or 17.
– Carolyn Givens, MD
