The importance of cervical mucus

Cervical mucus is an important player in conception. This rather unsung hero catches, traps and feeds the sperm on their journey to meet the egg. So if you're deficient, it may be a problem, but it won't be the end of the road for you.

Cervical mucus is not the same as the secretions you make when you're getting, um, ready to do the baby dance. Those secretions purpose is lubrication, and that's important, too. Cervical mucus is almost absent most of the month, but it increases as ovulation nears and then goes away after ovulation. For that reason, it is useful for predicting ovulation is coming.

It also changes in quality as ovulation approaches. The mucus that exists before ovulation is usually thicker, but it thins out as the hormones change toward ovulation time. As a family planning method, it takes some practice to identify the difference, but I know some families who did this, and their plans worked out perfectly. Others had some surprises!

Now, some women don't really have cervical mucus or they have "hostile" mucus. Either way, it can present a problem for conception.

Without mucus, the sperm have a difficult time. How important this is was probably under-rated in the past. Most specialists think it's pretty important now. A woman's body is an unfriendly place for sperm as the internal pH kills them before they can make it to the uterus. The cervix provides a better pH.

Hostile mucus is thicker and traps the sperm a little too well so that they can't make it any further. This can happen to women taking Clomid, for example, but some women just have this type of mucus naturally. They may be told to take guaifenesin to thin it out. That may work.

Other women are deficient in mucus, and the primary reason for this is surgery on the cervix, such as due to dysplasia or cervical cancer. That happened to me due to cervical cancer surgeries.

For both types of women, there is the option to do intrauterine insemination or IUI. The doctor will shoot the sperm directly into the uterus through a narrow tube attached to a syringe. By going past the cervix, the sperms' journey is much shorter, and the mucus is not a factor anymore.

Don't worry too much if you're told you don't have any mucus or you have "hostile" mucus. It can be overcome, and even if it's not a romantic solution, at least there can be a baby in the end.