Glossary
Ovulation
Halfway through the cycle a mature egg is released. Around those days you are most fertile.
What is ovulation?
Ovulation, in plain terms the egg release, is the release of a mature egg from the ovary. It happens about once per cycle, halfway through, and marks the most fertile period. Ovulation is one of the phases of the menstrual cycle.
| Also known as | the egg release |
| Category | a phase of the menstrual cycle |
| What happens | a mature egg is released from the ovary |
| When | about two weeks before the next period |
| Most fertile days | the six days before ovulation |
How ovulation works
About halfway through the cycle a mature egg is released from the ovary, set off by a surge of luteinizing hormone. According to Thuisarts.nl, ovulation falls about two weeks before the next period, and the six days before ovulation are the most fertile. When your ovulation falls exactly differs from woman to woman and from cycle to cycle, and that is not something a glossary page can work out for you. If you don’t know whether or when you ovulate, that is, according to Thuisarts, a question for your GP.
Why ovulation matters
Beyond fertility, ovulation also plays into desire for sex. Researchers James Roney and Zachary Simmons found that for many women desire peaks around the middle of the cycle, where estradiol predicted more desire and progesterone less. That is an average from research, not a rule for everyone: how your own desire moves with your cycle can look different. If you want to get pregnant, want to know your fertile days, or notice that your cycle is irregular, that belongs with your GP and not with this page.
Where this fits on this site
That desire can move with the cycle is something I recognize in what women tell me: one week the appetite is there on its own, the next it isn’t. I work nothing out and give no medical advice. What I do is take the time, without the desire having to be there on command. There is more on that at libido.
Sources
- Ik wil zwanger worden. Thuisarts.nl, Nederlands Huisartsen Genootschap. Gives that ovulation falls about two weeks before the next period, that the chance of getting pregnant is greatest in the six days before ovulation, and the advice to see your GP if you don’t know whether and when you ovulate.
- Hormonal predictors of sexual motivation in natural menstrual cycles. James R. Roney & Zachary L. Simmons, Hormones and Behavior, 63(4), 636–645, 2013. Gives that estradiol predicted more desire for sex and progesterone less, and that women showed a peak in desire around the middle of the cycle.
- Ovulation. Encyclopedia entry. Gives the description of ovulation as the release of a mature egg from the ovary, set off by a surge of luteinizing hormone.
Related terms
Ovulation is a phase in a larger whole. The terms below sit around it.
- Menstrual cycle. The full monthly cycle that ovulation is one phase of.
- Libido. The appetite for sex, which can move with the hormonal course around ovulation.
- Menopause. The stage of life in which ovulation eventually stops.
- Contraception. Methods that often work precisely by preventing ovulation.
Frequently asked questions
Questions about this term
What is ovulation?
Ovulation, in plain terms the egg release, is the release of a mature egg from the ovary. It happens about once per cycle, halfway through, and marks the most fertile period. Ovulation is a phase of the menstrual cycle.
When is ovulation and when are you fertile?
According to Thuisarts.nl, ovulation falls about two weeks before your next period. The greatest chance of getting pregnant is in the six days before ovulation. The exact moment differs from woman to woman and from cycle to cycle; if you don’t know, your GP is the right place to turn.
Who can you turn to with questions about ovulation?
For anything to do with your ovulation, fertility, or an irregular cycle, your GP and Thuisarts.nl are the right place. As for me, I’m Victor, a gigolo and psychotherapist by background, not a doctor. I’m glad to think along, with no obligation, about how desire moves with your cycle, through the contact form or first chat for free.
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Still have questions about ovulation?
I'm Victor. I don't work out cycles and give no medical advice, but I'm glad to think along, with no obligation, about how desire moves with your cycle. Feel free to ask, no obligation, and I'll text you back when it suits you.