When you are having sex, pregnancy is always a real possibility. Sex, like other fun activities, comes with certain risks if you are not using protection, with STI’s and unwanted pregnancies being the most obvious ones.
If you want to know what’s the chance of getting pregnant if you had unprotected sex you have come to the right place.
Like others, you will hear many rumors about where and when you could get pregnant. For some women, the thought of getting pregnant is met with great joy and anticipation, while for others it’s a cause of worry.
This is why most women in the reproductive age or the ones who are trying desperately to conceive will have many questions or doubts about their chances of conceiving.
We will look further at this below to help you understand more about unprotected sex and pregnancy.
What’s the Chance of Getting Pregnant If You Had Unprotected Sex
There is a good chance that you could get pregnant nearly any time that you engage in sexual intercourse without using an effective birth control. This scenario is familiar to most women.
Pregnancy usually occurs around the ovulation period, the time when your ovary releases egg in the fallopian tube. If you are having regular periods, ovulation will take place midway between your menstrual periods.
Ovulation usually happens midway between the first-day of 2 consecutive periods, but this can vary from the eight day to the twentieth day of a 28-day cycle.
Researchers calculate the average risk at varying times in a monthly cycle of a woman, but you should know that your risk can be lower or higher.
You cannot know the definite time of your ovulation, which is why the researchers use the monthly cycle of a woman when calculating the average risk for pregnancy.
Figuring Out the Chances of Getting Pregnant If You Had Unprotected Sex
You are more likely to conceive if you have unprotected sex during the middle 2 weeks of your cycle. The time varies, but many women ovulate about day 14.
You will have the highest risk of pregnancy by having unprotected sex one or two days before your ovulation starts; when the ovary releases the egg.
This is a 30% chance. The risk of having unprotected sex and getting pregnant three days prior to ovulation is 15%. You will have a 12% chance on the ovulation day. [1]
Photo: Bigstock.com
In the real world, large studies show that women who engage in unprotected sex during mid-cycle have a much lower chance of getting pregnant as the risk is around 5.8%.
This is because you will have a much lower risk of getting pregnant if you engage in any sexual relations on the ovulation day and any day besides the three days prior to.
Not Getting Pregnant After Having Unprotected Sex for Months
There are times when having unprotected sex is not enough for you to get pregnant. You could be doing this for months with no luck.
Thankfully, there are certain things that you could do to increase your chances if it’s taking longer than expected for you to conceive.
This includes doing thinks like monitoring your ovulation, using an ovulation predictor kit, charting your basal body temperature, as well as checking and observing your cervical mucus.
When you have an idea of your ovulating time, you can start to time your sexual activities around that period. If you are using this method, you must ensure that you are having sex 2 days before your ovulation day or every other day during the week of your expected ovulation. This will boost your chances of conceiving.
If it’s a case where you have been engaging in unprotected sexual activities for more than six months without success, you could visit your doctor or ob/gyn to know about the alternative treatments that you could use for fertility problems. There are several solutions available and they are very effective.
How to Know When You Get Pregnant
The most common sign of pregnancy after unprotected sex is missed period. However, this missed or late period is not a sure sign as there are many other things that can cause it besides pregnancy.
This includes using birth control that contains hormones, stress, sickness, improper eating habits, or too much exercise.
It is pretty common for teens to have periods which come later than normal or missed periods because it could take several years for them to have a regular cycle.
So, the best way for you to know if you are pregnant is to do a pregnancy test. These are easy to get nowadays because they are available at drugstores or health centers.
It is important to note that the home pregnancy tests are ninety-nine percent accurate if taken after you miss a period.
Hopefully, you will now know what’s the chance of getting pregnant if you had unprotected sex.
Do you have a question about your period, ovulation, pregnancy or other related topic? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions page.
Wondering if you’re pregnant? Try our Online Pregnancy Quiz and get a rough estimate of your chance of being pregnant.
Read this post to learn more about when is the right time to take a pregnancy test.
References
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1. http://www.thedoctorwillseeyounow.com/content/womens_health/art3356.html
I had unprotected sex may 12 and i should have my period may 20th
What are my chances of getting prego??
Thanks
Hi, the same prob I had, I had sex today and and 8 days later I’m having my ovulation day and i have healthy, 28 days cycle, will get pregnancy?
Hi – I had sex on day 9 of cycle on day 15 started showing signs of ovulation. Do you think I could get pregnant?
There is a small chance you may be pregnant but not very likely. Inside a woman’s body, sperm can live for up to five days, possibly a little longer depending on the conditions but again, there’s a small chance of pregnancy occurring. If you want to be sure, it’s always best to take a pregnancy test.
my last period started at april 19 and my calculated ovulation date is may 5..I’m on a regular menstrual cycle. I had unprotected sex 4 days after my ovulation date which is may 9 and I use an emergency contraceptive (lady) immediately. my expected mens date is may 19. will i get pregnant?
Hi, if we were going by the ovulation date and the fact that sperm can live up to six days after sex, then yes. However, with the day after pill you should be fine. According to web md, If you took the pill within a day it’s 95% effective. If you get worried you can take a home pregnancy test.
Hi..i had protected sex on my 9th day after my period. My cycle is regular between 30/31-33 days..will my ovulation be accurate on 14th? by the way, will i get pregnant?
Hi, not medical advice here but this is what I found. Basically, ovulation is about halfway between your normal periods…so in your case about 15 days in. HOWEVER, though ovulation only lasts a day, sperm can live up to six days! So, yes you could be pregnant I would suggest purchasing a pregnancy test if you miss your period or get one of those 5 day early ones.
I was suppose to be ovulating the 22nd of April , I had unprotected sex the 19th & 20th I was suppose to start my period the 6th of may & nothing has yet to come. Ive had heartburn for the past few days . my question does anyone else think that I AM pregnant? I dont wanna jump the gun again but i have a feeling i may be pregnant.
Yes, It is really possible that you could be pregnant. Sperm can last for up to six days so if you had sex during that time and ovulation happened for sure, there is the possibility. At this point a pregnancy test SHOULD be effective, start with the cheapos and try one every few days if it comes up negative. When I was pregnant, I had really bad heartburn but symptoms normally don’t start so soon. Good luck!
Hii … I had my menstrual cycle on 18 april and on 9 may i had unprotected sex but after 4 hours i took a pregnancy control pill and intercourse was also not proper i mean to say he didn’t penetrate deep and it was my first time so will i get pregnant or not ?
By the 9th of May, you’ve already started to ovulate and your next period would’ve been close by. With unprotected sex there’s always a possibility of pregnancy at any stage of your cycle but in taking an emergency contraceptive you have lessened those chances and it is unlikely that you are pregnant. Please do not resort to this method repeatedly (taking a morning after pill too frequently) as that could cause complications later on. Also note that whether or not a woman is deeply penetrated, pregnancy can still occur (even without penetration). Once there is any contact of the man’s ejaculate in or around the vaginal area, pregnancy is still possible. It’s best to use some form of birth control on future occasions if you are not yet ready to have a baby.
I had unprotected sex the whole time I was feritle and my ovulation day I want a baby is there a good chance I could get pregnant
Hi my lmp start day was April 4..I’m always regular..so when I didn’t feel my usual premenstrual symptoms a week before my period was due..i began to get nervous. .so here I am..5 days late..took an hpt it’s positive. .I had unprotected s*x April 14th and 22nd..which date did i likely conceive? ??
It’s hard to say. If you have a regular 28 day cycle, you would’ve been ovulating most likely between the 12th and 16th day of your menstrual cycle. In your case, this would’ve been between April 16th and 20th. Sperm may survive in the body up to 5 days and you had unprotected sex on the 14th, just 2 days prior to your ovulation period. You will have the highest risk of pregnancy by having unprotected sex one or two days before your ovulation starts; when the ovary releases the egg. This is a 30% chance. You could’ve very well conceived on the 22nd, but it’s more likely to have been the 14th, as your chances of conceiving were higher on that day. This is because you will have a much lower risk of getting pregnant if you engage in any sexual relations on the ovulation day and any day besides the three days prior to ovulating.
I had unprotected sex on my periods. shall i use the pill immediately? i dont wanna get pregnant
Yes, a morning after pill would be advisable. The probabilities of getting pregnant while on your period are low, but the possibility is still there.
Can you get pregnant with pre-cum while ovulating with un protected sex ?
Yes! It is possible to get pregnant from pre-ejaculation fluid. If the penis comes into direct contact with the vaginal area at any time, there is a chance that pregnancy may occur. This fluid, by itself, does not actually contain sperm and could not cause a pregnancy. However, as the purpose of this fluid is to flush out the penis it will bring any sperm left in the penis from the last ejaculation to the tip of the penis. If this happens that small amount of sperm could cause a pregnancy. If the man has urinated since his last ejaculation the urine would have flushed out and killed any left over sperm in the penis which means in this case a pregnancy wouldn’t happen. The safest thing is to assume that an erect penis is always capable of causing a pregnancy even before an ejaculation so be sure to use a condom before it comes in contact with the vagina if you do not intend to become pregnant.
I had unprotected sex on 29,1 and 3 all in this month and my ovulation day is today. I am expecting my period on the 18th. Can I get pregnant?
It is possible to get pregnant, but not all unprotected attempts result in pregnancy. There is a possibility that the spermatozoids survive inside of a woman body long enough to merge with the egg cell. You can definately stay pregnant with this technique.
I had unprotected sex on September 20th 2014 last year with a ex. I started my period October 13 and ended October 18. I started dating someone (who is my current boyfriend) a day after my period stopped and we had unprotected sex (he came inside me) atleast 8 times until November 20th 2014 I found out I was 4 weeks pregnant. Is he for sure the father ? I believe so but I wanna be for sure. Can someone help ?
Yes, he is a father. You conceived during the last week of the October 2014 as you suppose to. You also had a period so there is no chance that you are pregnant with your ex husband.
I had an unprotected sex during the last day of my menstruation, day after that I started using birth control pills, is there a possibility that I can be pregnant?
If you were still menstruating a chance to get pregnant is really really thin. If you are taking the birth control pills I would say it is not possible. Also, it was too soon for the egg to mature or anything to happen, even without the birth control. It is my opinion that you can’t be pregnant.
No, it was too early for you to get pregnant, especially if you are taking the birth control. The spermatozoids can survive inside of a female body for a while, but even with that it was too soon for the ovaries to create a mature egg.
So you can’t get pregnant if you have unprotected sex 6 days before period and my husband didn’t pull out
No, I believe it is a little bit too late for your egg to catch a shower, lol. The eggs usually age at that point so there is no risk of the unwanted pregnancy. That is, if you have a regular periods and if you know your fertile window. Some women don’t so it makes it really difficult to estimate if the pregnancy is possible or not. With the average periods it is not so complicated.
“You will have the highest risk of unprotected sex one or two days before your ovulation”
Should be “You will have the highest risk of pregnancy by having unprotected sex one or two days before ovulation”
Good article though. Thanks for the info!
thank you, it’s fixed now 🙂
13 Jan 2015 being my first day of menstruation and on 19th Jan had an protected sexual intercourse, is there a possibility of conceiving?
there is a typo in this article.. under “Figuring Out the Chances of Getting Pregnant If You Had Unprotected Sex” it says “unprotected six ” instead of unprotected sex..
thanks, it’s fixed now 🙂