LIFE IN THE 21ST CENTURY: C.D.C. Offers Guidelines for Delaying Pregnancy After Zika Exposure. “Women who have had symptoms of the virus or tested positive for it should wait at least eight weeks after their symptoms first appeared before trying to get pregnant, the agency said. Officials recommended that men who had symptoms should wait six months before having unprotected sex. The virus has been known to live longer in semen.” First Ebola, now this.