When Wagon Sr. and I decided to start trying to get pregnant with our second child, I started to research methods on conceiving a girl. Wagon Jr. is a very active little boy, and even though Wagon Sr. and I would have loved to have had a second boy, I figured we might as well try for a girl since we’re pretty sure we’ll be two and through.

With a quick google search, I came across the Shettles Method. In conception, the gender of the baby is determined by the sperm that fertilizes the egg. The theory behind the Shettles Method is that male sperm are faster but more fragile than female sperm, and acidic environments harm male sperm. So, according to the theory, there are several techniques you can employ to stave off the faster, weaker male sperm and raise your chances that the sperm that reaches the egg first is female. Or you can employ the opposite to favor the male sperm. Here are the three techniques:

  1. Timing of intercourse. Male sperm will reach the egg faster, but female sperm will survive in your body longer. To try for a girl, you should baby dance 2-3 days before ovulation. According to the theory, the stronger female sperm will live in your body for several days while the weaker male sperm die off, so when the egg reaches your fallopian tube, there will be far more female sperm left in your body than male. To try for a boy, you should try as soon after ovulation as possible, since the male sperm will get to the egg faster.
  2. Sexual position. Apparently, the entrance to the vagina is the most acidic area, which hurts the weaker male sperm. To try for a girl, shallow penetration will allow the slower but stronger female sperm to prevail. To try for a boy, deeper penetration will deposit the sperm at the least acidic area, closer to the uterus opening, and allow more of the faster male sperm to survive and beat the female sperm to the egg.
  3. Female orgasm. Apparently this makes the environment more alkaline, which favors the male sperm. To try for a girl, do not reach orgasm. To try for a boy, reach orgasm.
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This all made sense to us as far as Wagon Jr.’s conception, since we tried on the day of ovulation, and the sexual position and orgasm situation were aligned with the method for conceiving a boy. So since we weren’t in a huge rush to get pregnant with our second, we decided to try this method, even though it’s widely discredited by all kinds of scientific research. I have no idea whether or not the method really did increase our chances of having a girl, but it worked!

I actually find the Shettles Method to make sense, and also to be a little funny. Women do tend to live longer than men, and I believe they are stronger (I think the human race would be extinct if men had to go through childbirth), while men tend to be physically faster but die sooner. After our experiment with the Shettles Method, I joked to Wagon Sr. that if we were in fact pregnant, I’d think the baby would turn out to be a strong, willful person because the sperm would have lived inside my body for 3 days and fought harder than all the other sperm around it. I also believed that it was impossible for me to be pregnant when we had tried days before ovulation, that I even had a drink of alcohol the next night. Imagine my surprise (and chagrin when looking back on that drink!) when a pregnancy test 3 weeks later was positive!!

I now joke constantly about Wagon Sr.’s super sperm. (Sorry, Wagon Sr.!) And I’m half-delighted, half-afraid of the strong, willful girl growing inside of me. While I’m thrilled to be having a daughter, I know we will constantly butt heads since I’m also willful with a strong personality.

Did you have success in using techniques to conceive a specific gender?