Being able to identify the ovulation symptoms that occur in your body is important to know when you should have intercourse when trying to get pregnant. Generally, ovulation occurs sometime between the 13^th and 16^th day after the first day of your last period. During this time due to changes in hormonal levels, your body undergoes slight changes as well. These changes occur in the vaginal area as well as in the saliva and other areas of the body. You may have felt some of the ovulation symptoms before, but simply never paid much attention to them.

Identifying Ovulation Symptoms

1. Ovulation symptoms tend to be subtle, but can be identified once you know what to look for. The first step in identifying symptoms of ovulation is to become more aware of the changes that occur in your body during each cycle. One of the first changes that occur is with your vaginal secretions. As your hormonal levels change when ovulation begins to occur, your vaginal secretions also increase. Approximately two to three days before ovulation begins, you will notice an increase of clear slippery discharge. The discharge tends to resemble that of raw egg whites. During this time, you are fertile, but you are most fertile on the last day of the vaginal discharge as that is when ovulation (the releasing of the egg) actually occurs. Once ovulation ends, the discharge will become cloudy and sticky and/or disappear entirely.

2. The second symptom of ovulation is a change in the basal body temperature (BBT). During ovulation, your BBT increases slightly. By utilizing a digital thermometer or one that is specifically designed to measure BBT and charting your temperature readings, you will be able to identify when you are most likely fertile. Generally, you will be most fertile two to three days before your temperature begins to increase.

3. The third symptom of ovulation involves your cervix. The position of your cervix does change during your menstrual cycle. After your period, your cervix will be low, hard to touch and closed. Some say it feels like touching the tip of your nose. This is when you are infertile. Just as ovulation begins to occur and your estrogen levels increase, your cervix will begin to move higher. The cervix opens and becomes much softer to the touch. The cervix will remain in this high position until you ovulate, and this is your most fertile time. After ovulation occurs and your estrogen levels subside, your cervix will return to its low, closed, and hard position.

Ovulation symptoms do vary somewhat from one woman to the next, but for the most part they will be similar for each woman. That being said, one of the best determining factors when trying to identify when ovulation is going to occur is with a fertility kit.