Ladies, today I received a very common question from women who are trying to conceive: IS IT POSSIBLE TO GET PREGNANT WHILE ON YOUR PERIOD? Hmm, controversial, right? Some say it’s impossible, but I have actually seen a few cases like this—friends who became pregnant during their menstrual bleeding days. Now, I’m not talking about spotting, but about a woman’s normal menstrual flow.

Although in medicine it’s considered quite rare, it is not impossible for this to happen1. Of course, it all depends on a range of combined factors and, in particular, the will of God! Yes, dear friend, unless He allows it, it’s not possible. But let’s see how this kind of ‘phenomenon’ of getting pregnant while on your period can happen:

After a woman’s fertile period2, in which fertilization might or might not have taken place, the woman sheds all the endometrium that had built up to receive the baby. But if that egg has not been fertilized and therefore has not implanted, the body lowers its progesterone levels, and then menstruation occurs. If for some reason the unfertilized egg wasn’t released in time, it may be expelled right in the middle of the menstrual period, which can make it possible to get pregnant during your period!

There’s also another theory: if, by chance, a woman—even while menstruating—has her LH (the hormone responsible for maturing the egg) surge earlier than usual, causing the follicle to mature. But remember, for this to happen there needs to be a long menstrual bleeding phase and a short follicular phase, so ovulation occurs—in most cases, this happens in menstrual cycles of about 22 days.

However, we know that for pregnancy to happen, there’s another important player in this process: the sperm, of course. There is a possibility that sperm can live up to 72 hours inside the woman’s body3, oh yes, ladies! And there are even ‘vampire’ men, haha—those who sneak up at night and love, or don’t mind, having sex even while a woman is on her period, and in these situations, it can be a lot easier. If you’ve had the ‘luck’ of getting pregnant while on your period, let me know—it might give hope to others who are really eager to have a baby.

Also read: How Long Does It Take to Get Pregnant After Stopping Birth Control?