Blue Ivy Carter's First Photos
William Lucas Walker: Prop 8: The Color Of Pee-Pee
Can how and when you get it on affect the sex of your baby?
Filed under: Your Pregnancy
I remember announcing to my husband that I was unexpectedly expecting our first child. His response was far from what I had envisioned in the hours between the stick turning blue and his arrival. "My boys can swim!" Say what?Well according to 1060s era reproductive pioneer Landrum B Shettles, my husband was right. We had a son 9 months later, meaning hubby's Y-chromosome sperm swam fast enough to beat the typically longer-lasting X-chromosome to the egg. (Yes even in the earliest stages of life, the females usually outlive the males.)
Anyway, I am completely happy with the way things turned out, but I'm ready to try again. And though I'd be happy either way, I kind of want this one to be a girl. Partially so that I'll have a shopping buddy and partially so I can sew it all up once and for all. (Doesn't that sound charming?)
So I've been researching techniques on gender selection. I'm skeptical and mildly opposed to the scientific methods being employed. And many of the old wives tales seem a tad silly. Well I had no idea that Shettles -- coincidentally the first American to successfully perform an in vitro fertilization -- had a whole book of theories on this very subject.
The Shettles Method uses the theory that male sperm are faster and weaker to determine ideal times to conceive your gender of choice. To try for a girl, for example, you should have sex a few days before your prime ovulation date. Though the males will die off, female sperm have the clever ability to stay alive in unsavory uterine conditions. To conceive a male, Shettles recommends having sex on your actual ovulation date. (usually two weeks after the first day of your last period.) The full details of the method are available on Fertility Friend's website.
Anyone used the Shettles Method before with success? How far have you gone to conceive a baby of a specific gender?
Your<span>Voice</span>
Ask Us Anything About Parenting
TheTalkies:RelatedVideos
-
Baby Making Myths: The Truth About Sex Selection
Admittedly or not' most expecting parents have a preference: boy or girl/ Legends abound about how to make this preference a reality' but what is the truth? Can you influence whether your baby will be a boy or a girl? Fertility docs help DadLabs â??sortâ? the facts from the fictions/ DadLabs Ep 449 brought to you by Baby Bjorn Distributed by Tubemogul/
-
How to Know Your Baby's Gender
Looking to find out the sex of your baby, find out the clinical methods to do so and some just-for-fun old wives tales you can try at home to find out if you're having a girl or boy!
-
Learn About Baby Gender Selection Techniques
Dr. Jamie Grifo, an expert in the field of gender selection talks about the science behind picking your babies sex.
-
Sex After Pregnancy
Some couples have trouble getting back to a normal sex life after the baby arrives. Here are some times to bring back the intimacy.
SitesWeLove
- Site Map
- |
- Staff
- |
- Terms of Service
- |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Trademarks
- |
- Advertise With Us
- |
- About Our Ads
- |
- AOL Downloads
- |
- Contact Us
- |
© Copyright 2012 AOL Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Aol Family
ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
12-24-2006 @ 12:57AM
Elaine said...Both our kids were conceived on the day I was supposedly ovulating, exactly two weeks past the first day of last period. So, by that therory, I should have two boys.
Alas, I am the mother of two very charming, very pretty, very girly little girls. And I wouldn't have it any other way!
Reply
12-23-2006 @ 7:42PM
Kim said...Shettles worked for us. I'm expecting a girl in April. It also worked for both people who borrowed my copy of his book. The timing is trickier if you want a girl. Good luck!
Reply
12-23-2006 @ 9:18PM
MamaChristy said...I haven't used this, but "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Weschler covers this idea as well. I told a couple of my girlfriends that gender selection was covered in this book and one had the little girl she wanted last month and the other is scheduled for a c-section in a few days with her desired little girl. I will be looking in to the book you mentioned when it comes time for us to think about another baby. We will just have to decide which one we would like to try for! :)
Reply
12-23-2006 @ 9:55PM
Kyle said...I think you might have gotten the X and Y mixed up. I'm pretty sure Y is boys, X is girls.
Reply
12-23-2006 @ 10:52PM
cori w said...we tried to use shettles for a girl, and then i randomly ovulated 3 days early! (my 3 cycles previous to that were exactly 14 days, this time it was 11 days!) our little girl was born in june. :) we got lucky.
Reply
12-23-2006 @ 11:11PM
Nadine said...Thanks for catching that Kyle. Figures that I STILL can't keep that straight in my head. I've corrected it now.
Reply
12-24-2006 @ 6:51AM
Kim said...Shettles can work only if the male partner produces both X and Y sperm. Not all men do.
Reply
12-24-2006 @ 4:15PM
trish said...We weren't trying for one or the other, but my little Joseph should have been a Grace according to Dr. Shettles.
Reply
12-24-2006 @ 12:39PM
cathy said...I have three boys (very happy) but boy #3 was a shettles "girl" wanna-be hopeful. I sort of wish I hadn't tried for a girl and wasted my time with this method because I was a tiny tad dissappointed when he came out a HE. Of course, that was short lived, but it is often in the back of my mind that I did try the method.
Reply
12-24-2006 @ 2:29PM
Jane Doe said...I got pregnant exactly 14 days after my period and had a set of boy/girl twins. So if timing is a factor shouldn't I have had either a set of 2 boys or 2 girls?
Reply
12-25-2006 @ 12:03AM
Heather said...I used this method to try for a boy and got one. I know a few people who tried this and it worked. But also remember the temprature of the man also makes a difference.
Reply
1-02-2007 @ 12:05AM
Lyonside said...Heh. I'm one of those women who every other month or so, I FEEL an ovary "pop." The first month we tried to conceive (2 months off birth control, 1 month break), I felt the pop. Now, given the egg has to move a little before fertilization, but I still figure fertilization happened quickly...
Supposedly I'm having a girl (according to the 21 week ultrasound) - which would put me counter to the quick-boy-longer-girl scenario...
Of course, it could just be that my spouse has more Xs than Ys generally, regardless of when conception happened...
Reply