The Facts... without the Lecture
B4uDecide.ie is closing down at the end of May 2024.
Alternative sources of relationships and sexuality information and resources:
- For 16-25 year olds: SpunOut.ie is an information provision website, including relationships and sexuality issues.
- For 17+ year olds: Sexualwellbeing.ie is the HSE website that provides information and resources on a wide range of information such as consent, contraception, sexual transmitted infections, vaccinations and unplanned pregnancy
- For parents: The HSE’s ‘Making the ‘Big Talk’ many small talks’ series of booklets to help parents and children talk about relationships and sexuality is available online, and to order free of charge from healthpromotion.ie. HSE funded RSE workshops are available at npc.ie and ifpa.ie
- For teachers: Junior Cycle SPHE Resources are available to support the new 2023 SPHE specification , including the Relationship and Sexuality strand.
- For youthworkers: HSE funded training on relationship and sexuality issues is available at REAL U | Foroige and Tailored Training Courses – National Youth Council of Ireland
Girls
When a girl has her first period, it is a sign that she is fertile – capable of having a baby. A girl can actually become pregnant before her first period too, because she ovulates (releases an egg) before her first period.
Women have a period about once a month – this is called the menstrual cycle.
The length of the menstrual cycle can vary, from 21-40 days.
Ovulation (release of an egg) occurs 12-16 days before the next period. This is the most fertile time of the cycle – the time that a woman is most likely to become pregnant if she has sex.
It is very difficult for young women to predict when they might be fertile, because their cycles can be irregular for a few years, before they settle into a regular pattern. It is possible for a woman to become pregnant before her first period, particularly if she has irregular periodor a short menstrual cycle.
The female egg can survive for 24 hours. Sperm can survive for 5-7 days in the female body. Therefore a woman can become pregnant 7-10 days each month.
To learn more, do the Female Body Quiz