We have had countless calls and messages from our cherished visitors requesting us to write on processes leading to pregnancy. Pregnancy, the process of procreation,the very process that had made it possible for us to communicate today. Sometimes I wonder, if not for pregnancy, the earth would have surely be a vacuum like outer space.
The Three steps of Pregnancy
Ovulation: The ovary releases an egg
Hormones associated with the menstrual cycle (period) cause eggs inside the ovaries to mature. Every 28 days or so, one mature egg is released from the ovary. This is called ovulation. After the egg is released, it moves into the fallopian tube where it stays for about 24 hours. If the egg is not fertilized during that time, the egg disintegrates (breaks down) and menstruation (your period) begins 2 weeks later.
Fertilization: Sperm meets egg
The mature egg is fertilized when it is joined with a sperm cell. This usually happens after a penis has ejaculated semen inside a vagina. Sperm is contained in the semen which travels up the vagina, through the cervix and uterus and into the fallopian tubes. If an egg is less than 24 hours old, it can be fertilized by a sperm.
Fertilization sometimes (but rarely) happens when semen has been ejaculated outside but near the entrance of the vagina. Technology can also be used to fertilize an egg, either by inserting semen into the female’s body (artificial insemination) or by fertilizing an egg outside the body and then placing it into the uterus.
Implantation: The fertilized egg attaches to the lining of the uterus and pregnancy begins.
Most eggs are fertilized by sperm while still in the fallopian tube. The fertilized egg then travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus. This can take 1-2 days. When the egg reaches the uterus, it may attach itself to the uterine lining (the endometrium) and pregnancy will begin. Many fertilized eggs are never implanted and are flushed out of the body with the next period.
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