Grappling with Fertility Challenges

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After years of preparation, the day that you finally start trying to have a family is monumental and exciting. But, unfortunately getting pregnant can be a real challenge for some. After months of trying, fertility problems can cause significant stress on a couple’s emotional and physical lives. On the positive side, there may be a chance that something treatable is preventing you from conceiving.

There are many safe and effective treatments out there to help you overcome your fertility challenges and significantly improve your chances of getting pregnant. Also, if you plan on getting pregnant sometime in the near future, there are steps you can take to boost your fertility now.

Limit your Risk

Although many causes of infertility are beyond your control, there are lifestyle changes you can make to limit your risk of future problems. If you’re planning for children in the near future, protect your fertility by:

• Avoiding tobacco and marijuana (which can reduce sperm count and female fertility).
• Steering clear of harmful chemicals.
• Limiting your alcohol consumption because it can be damaging to both women’s eggs and men’s sperm.
• Maintaining a healthy body weight.
• Limiting sexual partners and use condoms to reduce your risk for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) which can damage the reproductive system.

If you are trying to get pregnant, now more than ever, you need to stay active, eat a healthy, nutrient-rich diet, reduce caffeine intake and drink lots of water. You should avoid alcohol and all medicine and it’s recommended that women trying to conceive start taking a daily vitamin with 400 mcg of folic acid. Just make sure you consult your doctor before making any changes to your lifestyle.

Treatment Choices

Typically, after a year of not being able to conceive, a couple is considered to be experiencing fertility problems. This timeline drops to six months if you have certain health conditions or are older than 35. Many couples can and do conceive after the first year without any medical help but you probably want to improve your chances of getting pregnant. The first step in finding a solution is to visit your doctor where you will be referred to a specialist.

Your treatment plan will depend on the cause, how long you’ve been experiencing problems, the ages of you and your partner as well as your own personal preferences. Of course, each of these therapies come with unique challenges and risks so you will need to go over all of your options with your doctor to figure out which one will work best for you. Treatment possibilities include but are not limited to:  

Fertility drugs. These medications are used for woman experiencing ovulation disorders to regulate or induce ovulation. They are designed to work like natural hormones triggering regular ovulation. Also, if low sperm counts are suspected, men can use hormone therapy to boost these counts.

In vitro fertilization (IVF). During IVF eggs are taken from a woman, fertilized with a man’s sperm in a laboratory and then implanted in the woman’s uterus three to five days later. IVF also needs to be accompanied with frequent blood tests and daily hormone injections. This treatment is usually explored if both fallopian tubes are blocked or with conditions like endometriosis, undiagnosed infertility and ovulation disorders.

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). This microscopic technique is used to ensure fertilization during IVF by injecting a single sperm directly into the egg. ICSI is considered especially helpful for couples that have exhausted all traditional techniques and drastically improves the chance that your egg is fertilized.

Assisted hatching. In this treatment the embryo is implanted directly into the lining of the uterus.

Surgery. This option is used in men to unblock the reproductive tract, fix an enlarged vein in the scrotum or to remove sperm directly. For women, surgery can correct blockages or other issues in the fallopian tubes.

Recent studies have also revealed that acupuncture, relaxation techniques, dietary changes, supplements and natural medicines may also help your chances of getting pregnant while undergoing treatment. There are lots of alternative options out there, but just make sure you speak to a health professional before trying anything new. 

Coping Together

A fertility problem can be one of the most difficult challenges you and your partner will ever face and can place significant strain on all aspects of your life. Not knowing how long it will take and having no control over the outcome can cause a lot of pain. To help you and your partner get through this difficult time you must: