Located right between the rectum and the bladder is the uterus. The core purpose of this reproductive organ is to nurture the fetus throughout the pregnancy until birth. Normally the uterus is situated in a straight up vertical position. When your uterus tilts to the back of your pelvis it is known as a tipped uterus with about 20% of women have a tilted uterus. Pregnancy makes it a fairly more common occurrence.

Will a Tilted Uterus Make Me Infertile?

The short answer is no. Having a tilted uterus is not anything unusual, whether it tips towards the bladder or toward the spine. There are many factors that have something to do with a woman's ability to conceive but the tilt of her uterus is not one of them. Whether a woman can get pregnant depends on the ability of sperms swimming through the uterus, the consistency of the mucus in cervix at that time, etc.

Tilted uterus can be caused by a condition called endometriosis or pelvic inflammatory disease. But it is these conditions rather than the tilted uterus that make it difficult to conceive. One of the signs of endometriosis or PID is pain during sex or painful menstrual periods. So it is still these conditions rather than the way your uterus is positioned that would be treated in order to conceive.

Can a Tilted Uterus Impact My Pregnancy?

A tilted uterus won't affect pregnancy that much. During second trimester, your tilted uterus will take care of itself. By weeks 12 and 13 the uterus grows out of your pelvis and gets into place in your abdomen to make enough room for the growing baby. But it does have some influences which are listed:

• With a tilted uterus pregnancy may give you more back pain than the average women expecting a baby.
• On other occasions, a titled uterus could be sitting right on the woman's bladder, so it would be hard for the woman to completely empty her bladder and poses a greater chance of a urinary tract infection, or UTI. If you do find that you may have a UTI, you should notify your doctor right away to get antibiotics that are safe to take while pregnant. Signs of UTI include pressure in your stomach or pain while urinating.
• Instead of using the standard ultrasound machine for your sonograms, your doctor would probably need to use a transvaginal ultrasound to provide you with your sonogram.
• If the retroverted uterus doesn't shift itself into place on the second trimester, you should discuss it with your doctor as you may have a chance, even though it is rare, of having a miscarriage.

Does a Tilted Uterus Affect Childbirth?

Tilted uterus has few effects on your delivery. You won't have to worry about having a C-section because by the time the second trimester is here your tilted uterus won't be tilted anymore but will be in the correct position to nurture the growing baby within. With tilted uterus, pregnancy may run across some complications like an incarcerated labor where the baby gets trapped in the pelvis rather than popping out into the abdomen, back labor where intense lower back pain similar to that caused by contraction is felt during labor, etc. But these complications are really rare.

What Happens to the Tilted Uterus After Birth?

After labor, the way and place that your uterus settles depends on: during pregnancy how stretched your ligaments are and how much weight you gained because extra pounds put pressure on the uterus and impact its position after delivery. No matter if it returns to its straight up vertical position or not, it will not affect any pregnancies in your future.

What Other Moms Say

If you are a new mom who is facing a tilted uterus, pregnancy can make you worried and scared all the time. But there is no need to be. Many women have gone through this and here is what some of those women have to say:

“My uterus is retroverted and it really hasn't caused many problems regarding my ultrasound. I did notice that the medical professionals have to really work a little harder at my cervical checks to determine how much I am dilated. As long as they check it correctly, they will get a correct reading.”

“While pregnancy with a tilted uterus is not common, it is also not uncommon and not dangerous at all. Actually my uterus usually returns to an untilted position by the time my baby begins to grow during the second trimester. But if your uterus does not lift out as it is supposed to you need to talk to your doctor.”

“I have had two children with my tipped uterus and getting ready to have my third baby soon. I have not had any problems with my tipped uterus and my pregnancies. The only thing I did notice wasthat doctors had to go in a little deeper to check how much I was dilated.”