Considering the amount of time and care we take to ensure that we do not get pregnant, you would think that once we decide that we do want to have a baby it would be a lot easier. It starts out as an incredibly exciting moment. A well thought out decision, full of longing, anticipation, and careful mental preparation. You tell your friends and your family that you are trying for a baby, and everyone is delighted and looking forward to the day that you tell them it's going to happen.

Getting pregnant is not always easy

For some women, what seemed like a simple case of no longer using contraception soon becomes an all-consuming obsession packed full of misery and heartache. The longer the miracle of conception evades you the more troubled you become. What started out as a pleasant human need that promised so much loving reward quickly becomes a terrible strain. Months, or even years later, you dread social situations because you know you will be asked if you are pregnant yet. You seem to notice every pregnant woman out there, and you silently curse women who got pregnant accidently and do not appreciate what they have.

Your doctor says everything is normal. He tells you to relax and just let nature take its course, but nature isn't taking its course! "Why me? It's not fair!" Avoid blaming yourself or your partner. There is no blame here, and the added pressure of angry accusations will definitely not help you to conceive.

Having a baby is within your reach!

Once people around you are aware that you are having difficulty getting pregnant you find that the advice comes flying in from all angles, some of it good and some of it very strange indeed. Once you start doing your own research you'll find there are confusing and often contradicting tips out there to improve your conception chances. Best times to have intercourse, best positions to have intercourse, food you should eat, food you should avoid, exercises to try, ovulation times, ways to increase your libido, dealing with stress, and on and on it goes.

Use a plan to test the various methods that could help you conceive

Now is the time to think of your struggle as a beatable challenge. Removing a few barriers and adjusting a few aspects of your lifestyle will bring you the success that you crave. Be patient and methodical. Collect all the sensible advice you can and group all it together in one place. Carefully go through all the different techniques and methods and plan how you will approach each one in turn. Keep track of what you've tried and what's next to try. Call it your "Make A Baby Plan" or something equally positive, and try to involve your partner every step of the way.

One month try one piece of advice, the next month try another, and keep notes about your progress. If you tried a recommended exercise during one month but were under a lot of stress from work at the time, then make sure you do not completely dismiss that exercise. Just move it to the bottom of your plan and try it again sometime.

Using a plan to increase your chances of conceiving is an excellent way of staying in control during a particularly testing time for you. With the right attitude and a little bit of luck from nature, it could be the one thing that makes the biggest difference.