Knowing Baby’s Gender Without Ultrasounds

I got a few: “So, you know it’s a boy?!” and “How do you know it’s a boy?!” in the last few weeks.  Well, you know that if I do, it is NOT because of an ultrasound, since I am going ultra-sound free.  But I do have an 80-90% shot of being right on determining my baby’s gender, and actually selecting it beforehand.  How?  Wouldn’t you like to know!

For about four years now, my hubby and I have been off birth control [BC].  It was not only because we were going to attempt to conceive, but because it is totally evil–yes, one day I will tell you all about that too, but for now, let’s just agree that elevated hormone levels in women, for extended periods of time, sans pregnancy, are never “good” or “normal”.  As we were getting off BC we did it, first, to clean my body out, grow in our intimacy and start planning for a baby.  We used Creighton Model method, combined with fertility awareness method [FAM]–using the best of the both of them.

Get To Know Your Body!

Using natural family planning teaches a couple to be very aware of their bodies–how they operate, when a woman is fertile and when it is optimal to try to conceive… or avoid conception.  It was no wonder that I knew that I was pregnant, the day after we conceived, and confirmed it only 2 days after missing my period, at 2.5 weeks.  It was quiet simple, actually–I knew how my body works, so I knew when the changes set in.

But, that is not what this post is about.  Let’s get to the nitty gritty.  How can one pre-plan baby’s gender.  Yes, I did say pre-plan, but you can say select, or guess. 

How Strong Are Your Swimmers?

It was a wise older man, who broke it down for us many years ago first.  He and his wife had four kids, and they knew who they were going to have before conceiving them, except when they ended up with twins, but their gender selection was still correct.  Impossible? Tee-hee… Let’s see.  When he told us this fact, Hubby and I thought: “No way! Wishful thinking!”  I, being me, said: “And how exactly could you tell?” without blinking my eyes.  The man could not believe that we did not know.  “Catholics have been using this method for a long time,” he said, “you should really learn from them.” But he told us anyhow, in the hands of the inquisitive interrogator.

The boy sperm have a shorter life span and swims fast, so, if a couple is intimate right at the time of ovulation [when the egg comes out to play ;)], the chances are that they will conceive the same day.  The sperm that will make it to the egg is going to be a fast swimmer with a short life span [male sperm], giving the couple 80-90% chance of conceiving a boy.

The girl sperm lives longer and swim a bit slower–ladies, we have always been survivors!–so, if a woman knows her normal ovulation day, and wants a girl, it is more optimal for the couple to have intimacy a day or two before ovulation and then let the nature take its course.  The boy sperm won’t make it that long [sorry, fellows!], but the girl sperm will be hanging out, getting stronger, waiting for their lady-friend [the egg], and when she comes out they will have a party.  Under these circumstances there is an 80-90% chance of the couple having a girl.

So, to answer the question: “How do you know your baby’s gender without an ultrasound?” is actually quiet simple.  The day of [ahem!] I was very fertile–my cervical fluid was fertile [something that you would learn from both of these methods], my physical signals suggested that I was fertile, so… well, I won’t tell you all of the details ;), but we maximized the moment.  The very next morning my Basal Body Temperature went up, and kept going up every day after*, which meant only one of two things: 1) I got preggo!  or 2) I ovulated and, if did not conceive, would reach a menses.  I had a good hunch that it was the former, the very next morning, but 16 days later we knew for sure!

How easy is that, boys and girls?  And you thought gender selection is a thing of SyFy future!

So, that is how I know that we have 80-90% chance of having a boy… And even if I was not sure at all, I still have a 50% chance of being right :). The most important part for us, is that the baby is healthy, regardless of the gender ;).  I would welcome either, or both, since there is a high chance of that too–twins run in both of our families.

*Here is an example of basal body temperature chart of someone who got pregnant [click to enlarge (source)]:

Once the temperature goes up after conception, it tends to stay higher than normal, passed the “regular” luteal phase, varying only by a couple of 1/10th of a degree or so, going up and down, but it won’t fall until after baby is born.