Misconception: You Have to Have Sex in the Missionary Position

FACT: There have been no definitive studies linking sexual positions with success at conceiving. Some doctors do recommend that couples try the missionary position, because it allows for deeper penetration, which deposits the semen (and sperm) closer to the cervix. And some advise women to lie with their hips on a pillow (or feet in the air) afterwards, so that the sperm don’t have to fight gravity to reach the cervix. A rear-entry position also gets sperm closer to the cervix, especially in women with a tipped uterus. By that thinking, sex with the woman on top, or sitting or standing positions, would make conception less likely. But babies have been conceived in all sexual positions, and sperm are designed to swim—upwards, against gravity. Far more important than how you have sex is when you do. If there’s no egg ready for fertilization, nothing will happen no matter what position you try.