Q & A: Who's The Daddy?

Q: I'm pregnant! My last period was the first week of October. Me and my boyfriend have been together since the 10th of October - is this his baby?

A: The most common way to date a pregnancy is to consider conception to be 14 days after the 1st day of your last period. For example, if the first day of your last period was October 1st, then you probably conceived around the 14th of October. Or, if the first day of your last period was October 10th, then your conception date is probably around the 24th of October.

However, this is only a probably. Most people ovulate 14 days after the start of their period, but not everyone! You may ovulate 20 days after your period starts, or even 5 days after the start of your period.

To avoid math, use this online due date calculator. The luteal phase is the length of time from when you ovulate until the first day of your period. If you don't know when you ovulate, leave the luteal phase at the default setting of 14 days.

It is also possible to have a period AFTER you are pregnant. Usually these are lighter and shorter than normal periods, but occasionally they can be just like a regular period.

Your current boyfriend is probably the father, but as your pregnancy progresses and other signs (and ultrasound, if you choose to get one) confirm your due date, you can be more certain who the biological father is. The only way to be absolutly 100% certain is if the baby and the father (and often you as well) have a paternity test after the baby is born. If you want to do that, blood can be taken from the umbilical cord at the time of the birth so that the baby doesn't have to be poked. (Prenatal paternity testing is available, but not entirely accurate last I checked.)

Believe it or not, this situation isn't all that infrequent. Talk with your midwife or doctor about the question of paternity so they can be sensitive to the issue. (If they aren't sensitive to the issue, get rid of them and see someone who is!)