Did you have unprotected sex in the last few weeks even if it was once? And now you’re thinking whether you’re pregnant or not or what may be the chances? There are many factors that affect the possibility of a pregnancy from a single intercourse, including whether you were ovulating or not, age factors etc.
Unprotected sexual activities can result in unwanted pregnancies and STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) which isn’t really pleasant to deal with. In the following content we would discuss the chances of getting pregnant by a single unprotected sexual intercourse, the factors that affect it and the early signs of pregnancy in case you do get pregnant.
Chances of Getting Pregnant from a Single Intercourse:
According to a European study, women are more likely to have sex about two days prior to ovulation due to the increase in sex drive. Around this time, you have about 25% chances of getting pregnant while you only have 5% of chances of getting pregnant in the rest of the cycle. Estimated, if a young couple perform an act of sexual intercourse even once, there is 1/20 chance of a pregnancy.
When are you more Likely to Get Pregnant?
Did you know that your sex drive increases during your ovulatory phase? That is the time when you are more likely to have sex as you’re the most fertile during this time. During the ovulatory phase, the body is prepared to receive a male gamete or the sperm cell to fertilize the egg explaining the increased sex drive. If you have sex even once during the ovulatory phase, the chances of getting pregnant increases considerably. Oops! That’s not some good news if you’re avoiding a pregnancy.
The Statistics for a Single Sexual Encounter:
About 85% of women would become pregnant within a year if they have unprotected sex every once in a while. A single sexual encounter makes the chances pretty low comparatively but if you’re not ready to parent a child, you should take precautionary measures such as birth control methods. You can consult a doctor regarding those for better advice about the contraceptive methods.
Factors that Affect the Chances of Getting Pregnant:
Now what are the factors that affect the chances of getting pregnant in a single encounter? Well if you’re a young couple then there’s a higher chance that you’d get pregnant than an older couple. Some of the factors that affect the chances of pregnancy are as follows:
Sex During Periods:
If you’ve had a sexual encounter during your periods, the chances of getting pregnant is very less but not impossible. The menstruation is the process when your egg is not fertilized so the uterus lining prepared for the implantation sheds.
The least chances of getting pregnant during your menstrual is the first day that you bleed. But as the days pass, you get closer to your ovulatory phase in which the release of the egg from the ovaries occur. If you have a regular menstrual cycle of about 28-30 days, there is less chance that you’d get pregnant during your periods. If your cycle is sort, the chances may increase.
After an ejaculation, the survival of the sperm in the woman’s body is about 5 days, this can resulting the egg being fertilized as soon as it is released if your cycle is short. This just proves that with a regular menstrual cycle, it is possible to get pregnant with extremely low chances.
The Pull-Out Method:
The pull-out method is the oldest way of avoiding an unwanted pregnancy, but the risks still lie there and may not be very successful. You may avoid the ejaculation in the vagina but the pre-ejaculation also contains live and viable sperm which are capable of fertilizing the egg. By using this method, almost 22% people would get pregnant within a year.
It is hard to predict when the pre-ejaculation might occur so you can’t really make a guess whether you would end up being pregnant or not. It is still advised that you don’t use this method if you’re avoiding a pregnancy. The method can be helpful with perfect use but then again, no one can really make a perfect use due to the uncertainty of pre-ejaculation.
Breast Feeding:
You must be familiar with the term “lactational amenorrhea” if you’ve already given birth before. After giving birth, a nursing mother may not have periods until almost 6 months postpartum. This is because there’s a temporary pause in the ovulation and the time can be used as a birth control method.
The hormone, prolactin is produced which induces milk produced and the estrogen hormone is suppressed, temporarily ceasing the ovulation process. The time period of lactational amenorrhea can only be used as birth control method if the following criteria is met:
- Amenorrhea (absence of periods)
- Frequent feeding of your baby
- Exclusive breastfeeding or breastfeeding on demand
- Less than 6 months postpartum
Menstruation can resume even while you’re breastfeeding so as soon as you notice the return of your periods, know that you’re ovulating again and you should now consider alternative birth control methods.
Older Age:
if you’re above the age of 40, the chances of you getting pregnant are pretty slim. When a female is born, there are about 2 million eggs present in the ovaries, as the person grows the number of eggs reduce and by the time you start menopause, you only have about a thousand eggs left.
Your fertility decreases by 95% by the time you’re in your mid-40s, this means you only have a 5% chance of getting pregnant every month. This is not really an effective method for birth control but the statistics show the chances of a pregnancy after a sexual act during that age.
The Common Signs and Symptoms of Early Pregnancy:
If you have had sex in the past few days or weeks, although once, you must be curious whether you’ve got pregnant or not. It could be that you’re trying to get pregnant of you’re avoiding a pregnancy. a single symptom might have triggered the thought that you might be pregnant.
During pregnancy or early pregnancy, you can’t really judge whether you’re pregnant or not by a single symptoms but if many symptoms occur in combination, its more likely that you are. Some of the common sign and symptoms of pregnancy are as follows:
Missed Period:
If you’re pregnant, you must’ve missed your period, especially in your child bearing years when you’re nowhere near to your menopause. If you’re someone with an irregular menstrual cycle, it might be misleading as missing you periods is normal.
Nausea and Vomiting:
Nausea and vomiting are one of the most prominent and early signs of pregnancy and occurs throughout the first trimester. It is more commonly referred as morning sickness, unlike the name, morning sickness can occur during any part of the day or night.
The feeling of nauseated is due to the change in hormone levels during pregnancy. your sense of smell and taste can sharpen when pregnant acting as a contributing factor to feeling nausea when pregnant.
Frequent Urination:
During pregnancy, blood volume increases hence putting more load on your kidneys to process the fluid resulting in frequent urination. you would notice that have started going to the bathroom more frequently if you are pregnant.
Change in Breasts:
The milk glands are stimulated, water retention occurs causing the breasts to swell up and become tender. Sensitivity in your breasts also increases and this could be uncomfortable. Don’t be mistaken as sore breasts are also a part of the pre-menstrual symptoms.
Fatigue:
If one is pregnant, there would be a surge in the progesterone levels that prepares the body from any external harm to the embryo. This can cause fatigue and you may feel like being tired and weakness.
Other Signs and Symptoms:
These were some of the common signs and symptoms of early pregnancy that you can use to judge whether you may be pregnant or not. Since every body and every pregnancy is different, the body may react in variations to pregnancy. other signs and symptoms that you can notice during pregnancy are as follows:
- Bloating
- Mood swings
- Cramping
- Spotting
- Food cravings
- Constipation
The Bottomline:
You might be worried that you may have gotten pregnant after a single unprotected sexual encounter but there are many factors affecting the possibility. These factors can be helpful or risky depending on whether you’re trying to get pregnant or avoiding a pregnancy. the major factor affecting this the ovulation and age factor.
Obviously if you had sex during your ovulatory phase, you’re more likely to get pregnant as you’re more likely to have sex during that time, if you’re above the age of 40 and had sex there’s less chance of being pregnant as you’re close to menopause. Whatever the situation, the best way to find out is to take a pregnancy test and before that you can just tick off the points from the signs and symptoms of pregnancy list.
