The Family Jewels FAQ for blue and pink!
:diaper:While this is all very “old wives’ tale-y” since I do get a lot of questions on these topics I decided to make a little thread for them.:diaper:
The general principle involved here is that anything that lowers sperm count and quality sways pink, and anything that improves it sways blue. But please be aware that we have reason to believe that men always make 50-50 X and Y sperm (what kills Y sperm, kills X sperm - the idea that X are strong and hearty and Y are weak and easily killed has been completely debunked http://genderdreaming.com/forum/scie...m-y-sperm.html) and NONE, precisely NONE of these tactics have ever been proved to do anything at all whatsoever to sway. I don’t feel confident in any of them (other than jogging and biking for pink swayers’ hubbies, that is) and their inclusion in this FAQ is not in any way an endorsement. This is just how to do them if you want.
:diaper::diaper:The heat is on!:diaper::diaper:
:giggle: For pink, heating up hubby’s gents may help a pink sway. Hot baths, hot showers, saunas and Jacuzzis, tighty whiteys, even putting a heating pad on his balls. Be warned that these things have never been proven to definitively sway and have really cut odds of conception!
If using hot baths, saunas, Jacuzzis for swaying pink, don’t overdo it. 5-10 minutes tops! Hot showers are more forgiving but if he’s using a showerhead to soak the area be sensible with this. 5 minutes is probably more than enough. And if he has any male factor issues going on - poor sperm count/health/motility, if he is already doing lots of other, more effective things (such as jogging and biking, which unlike heat have been shown to sway in studies), if he’s much over 40 and/or you are in your late 30’s to 40’s and are in a rush to get pregnant...let this crap go! It has never been shown to sway in any reliable way (anecdotes are not proof) and heat has really, really, really been shown to reduce sperm count/quality to nuthin so I’d drop this stuff sooner rather than later, or maybe never even try it. Sperm does take 72 days or so to form so too much heat in March may still be having an effect in April and May!
:bluecheer: Blue swayers, heat kills sperm but this DOES NOT MEAN that icing a man’s balls is in any way necessary for blue. SERIOUSLY ladies, do not have your poor longsuffering hubbies do this. Heat kills sperm but cold does not magically resurrect them. This idea is idiotic and cooked up by someone who was trying to placate people into thinking they were doing something constructive to help with male factor infertility. Sometimes, medical professionals will essentially make things like this up to give people who really just need to have patience and keep trying to conceive, something to do that feels constructive. And then these things will stick around and continue causing trouble forever and ever after even though they have no hard data backing them up. Yes, there are studies, but I’ve read the studies and I don’t think they prove anything. We are talking minute sample sizes (4 people? really?), having people do 17 other things to boost sperm count at the same time but then writing the paper as if it was only done in icing balls, NOT icing balls at all but using cool underwear or some other device all day or all night long (more about this below), and perhaps most damning, using only data that sperm is harmed by heat to “prove” that icing will therefore help - again, just because heat kills sperm, does not mean that ice resurrects it.
And the same goes for cold showers; no they do NOT raise testosterone. Exposure to too much cold actually probably LOWERS testosterone. Here’s an article from someone who also read the studies (sorry it has a lot of cursing in it.) Bullshit About Cold Showers You?ve Been Told So Far - The Broscientist
You are basically torturing your husband for something that probably doesn’t do anything anyway. Think about it - even if heat is the issue (as it may be for a man who has varicocele (kind of like a varicose vein in the testicles), it doesn’t make any sense at all that ice on the balls for 15-30 minutes a day would make up for the 23 ¾- 23 ½ other hours out of the day that he is NOT icing his balls. Some of the studies claimed you had to ice the balls for 2-3 hours a DAY for 3-6 months to see any improvement!! Who has that kind of time (let alone the potential damage to skin that could be caused by overzealous icing for that long!!) Now, they do sell some fancy schmancy “cooling underwear” which are safe to be worn for several hours during the day or at night while sleeping and if you want to try those, hey, whatever floats your boat - especially if your hubby has a varicocele or has to work in extreme heat or is a professional athlete (has to wear a jock or cup a lot) or is an avid jogger or bicyclist. For the average person I don’t think they’re necessary.
Blue swayers, all you need to do is have your husband NOT wear tight underpants/jocks/athletic cups, avoid or reduce the amount of biking and jogging he does, avoid hot baths, saunas, Jacuzzis, and go easy on hot showers. If he can sleep in the nude (at least the bottom half LOL) that may help, Those things actually help. If he has a varicocele or male factor infertility you may want to give the cooling underwear a try - just have him wear them during the night.
But NO ONE needs to have their husband put frozen peas or on his nuts for 15 minutes a day. You certainly don’t need to have him ice his balls for 15 minutes before your attempt - sperm take 72 days to form and you aren’t doing anything for the swimmers about to be released. It accomplishes nothing and is just another thing to get on our husband’s nerves with. Please, please ladies, save your requests for the things that are actually going to help your sway!
:diaper::diaper:The Pressure Cooker:diaper::diaper:
Another thing that is proven harmful for the manly bits is pressure. Pressure usually goes along with heat and it’s really not very cut and dry about which is actually reducing sperm health - is it heat or is it pressure or is it both? We aren’t sure.
Two things that have been entirely proven to my satisfaction to sway pink is jogging and biking. These have been demonstrated in studies to alter the gender ratio towards more daughters conceived. Reminder: NONE of the other things in this essay have been proven to sway at all. ONLY jogging and biking have been demonstrated scientifically to sway.
Some other things that seem to make pressure or a lack of oxygen that may affect blood flow to the testicles include deep sea diving and being a jet fighter pilot but these are obviously not things that most guys are going to be able to utilize for a sway! But luckily for blue swayers, at the least not many of you guys fall into this category. Believe it or not we have actually had more professional BMX bikers (2) swaying blue than we have deep sea divers and jet pilots combined. (0) :)
:giggle: Pink swayers, if your husband is willing and able to jog or bike for a sway, it’s a great addition. If you do choose to use these things, be aware they may really cut odds of conception. And wearing tight fitting underwear ~may~ be an approximation of the pressure and heat involved in sitting on a bike seat
:bluecheer: Blue swayers, if your husband is a jogger or biker or diver or pilot, don’t panic. You’re no worse off knowing this information than you were not knowing it! You can still have a successful blue sway if your husband does any of these things. In fact the only pilot I’ve ever encountered on both IG and GD sites was the father of 3 boys! Remember none of this is 100%, just sway using other methods. Focus on what you CAN change rather than what you can’t and you absolutely completely and totally can still have a successful sway!
Blue swayers, I would absolutely have him change things up if his day involves not only jogging or biking, but ANY sitting for long periods. If he’s in the car a lot or drives a truck, have him stop every hour to stretch his legs. If he sits at a desk
:diaper:WAIT! Are there ways to get these same effects only without actually doing these things? You know...after the fact? Without all the embarrassing messing around with DH’s jewels?:diaper:
Yes!!
:bluecheer: For blue swayers, it’s very easy (but be sure to read the pink section to know what NOT to do!)
Just have DH release on his own or with you, with a nonspermicide condom (or even unprotected if you aren’t worried about timing), every 2-4 days starting as far in advance of your sway as is feasible. Sperm take 72 days to form and doing regular release during this time period is a really good way to ensure that he makes a nice amount of healthy sperm. Don’t panic if this goes a little longer or a little shorter occasionally, you’re just aiming at the overall pattern.
You may want to have intercourse doggy style or deep missionary with your legs over his shoulders for maximum depth. Deep release is great. More about positions here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...ting-pregnant=
Then, after intercourse, stay laying flat for at least 30 minutes or even more. Spend part of this time on your belly as we have seen better odds of conception for women with tilted uteruses this way (50% of us have them!)
Do NOT use Instead, Diva, or Moon cups to try and “hold sperm in.” You lose more semen and sperm trying to insert the darn things than you do just laying flat after intercourse. Plus, they can act as a barrier that actually keep sperm from reaching your cervix. If we needed a rubbery plastic cup to conceive a baby boy the entire human race would have died out a long time ago! Just stay laying down for 30 minutes or more and you’ll get the exact same results - if not better!
:giggle: For pink, you may want to use a frequency pattern as spelled out here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...pink-and-blue=
Best positions are women on top, shallow missionary (without the legs over shoulders) or standing. Some people will recommend shallow release for TTC a girl. I do not recommend doing shallow - except for maybe the first month or two if you feel that you must - because it has really, really cut odds of conception for people. More about positions here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...ting-pregnant=
You can also try adding in Jump and Dump - more about that here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/ttc-...ing-Technique= Unlike many sway tactics like pH, timing, and frequency, J and D has actually seemed to add a little something in our statistics. Over time you will want to gradually want to extend the amount of time you stay laying down - 5 minutes, 10, 15...and spend part of that time on your belly to improve odds of conception if you have a tilted uterus (or even if you don’t!)
