Should you pee after sex while trying to conceive? Is this a healthy move or a counter-productive one? Read on to find out.
When it comes to the land of TTC, there are a lot of myths out there. It’s hard to know what is true and what is worthy of debunking.
One common question: If you pee after sex when trying to conceive (TTC), does it stop you from getting pregnant?
What’s the deal when it comes to taking a pee after sex when trying to conceive? Does urine kill sperm? Let’s explore.
In this article: 📝
- Should you pee after intercourse if trying to conceive?
- Is it ok to pee after sex when trying to conceive?
- Can you still get pregnant if you pee after sex?
- Does peeing prevent pregnancy?
Should you pee after intercourse if trying to conceive?
First things first: why is it that we’ve all been told to pee after sex?
The answer is: to lower your risk of urinary tract infections (UTIs).
In fact, the CDC recommends peeing after sex, whether or not you’re TTC.
To understand why, let’s do a quick anatomy lesson.
The tube that pee uses to exit your body from your bladder is called the urethra.
Your urethral opening (the end of the tube) is located between your clitoris and vagina–aka the middle of the action, sex-wise.
It’s also very close to the anus, giving fecal bacteria an even better chance of making their way into your urinary tract.
Added to this, our urethras are short—somewhere between 1.5 inches long.
Considering that this is only about the length of a paperclip, that doesn’t leave much of a barrier between the outside world and your bladder.
The result is that, during sex, harmful bacteria in the surroundings can make their way into your urethra, and that can cause an often painful infection in your urinary tract.
The thinking is that, by peeing after sex, you are “washing” the bacteria away from your urethra, thus preventing a UTI.
However, experts are not totally in agreement about how effective peeing after sex actually is at preventing UTIs.
This study, for example, showed that while UTIs in women definitely appear to be linked to sexual activity, peeing after sex doesn’t necessarily serve to prevent them.
Other preventative strategies, such as wiping front to back and avoiding hot tubs and douching, may be more effective.
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Also, it’s important to note that there are many other risk factors when it comes to developing UTIs, including family history.
Simply peeing after sex will not necessarily protect you from getting them.
Is it ok to pee after sex when trying to conceive?
Okay, so now we’ve covered why peeing after sex might be a good thing in general.
But what if you’re trying to conceive?
Yep, totally okay. Peeing after sex won’t get in the way of getting pregnant. Full license to go with your flow.
To understand it all, let’s do another quick anatomy lesson (last one, we promise!).
Can you still get pregnant if you pee after sex?
Conception happens when sperm meet up with an awaiting egg in your fallopian tube.
During sex, sperm are ejaculated into your vagina.
They then have to pass through the cervix, which is like border control between your vagina and your uterus.
It’s only then that they can make their way across the uterus and into the fallopian tube.
Does peeing prevent pregnancy?
Because the sperm is going up and pee flows down, doesn’t it make sense then that they would bump into each other along the way?
Well, as it turns out, they’re taking different routes.
- Sperm goes through your vaginal canal (vagina, cervix, and onwards to the uterus).
- Pee goes through your urinary tract (kidneys, ureters, bladder, and then urethra).
As a result, these two different fluids do not cross paths.
There is no way for your urine to come in contact with the sperm or harm it in any way.
So there you have it! Yes, you can definitely pee after sex if you’re trying to conceive.
And it might be a good idea, if you’re trying to prevent a UTI.
You don’t have to navigate the TTC journey alone.
The more we have these conversations, the more we can protect and guide ourselves with the knowledge we need. Join us on Peanut.
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