Trying to have another baby? Have you tried only to have a miscarriage? Let me give you some advice.
I hear this all the time: “I got pregnant without even trying for our first child. Why is it so hard to get pregnant this time?”
It isn’t unusual to have trouble conceiving after having an easy time with your first pregnancy. 1 out of 10 women need to see an infertility doc to conceive and one common reason for this is ovarian aging. Ovarian aging doesn’t mean that you’re old. We were born with all the eggs we’ll ever have. We run out over time. Every woman runs out at a different rate and at a different age. Scientists haven’t discovered a way to re-set our biological clocks or stop the aging process but there are things you can do to optimize your chances each and every month.
How do you know if you have decreased ovarian reserve which is another way of saying ovarian aging? Has your cycle length changed? Are your cycles longer or shorter than they used to be? Are you bleeding for fewer days than years ago? Ask your mother how old she was when she went through menopause. Having a pregnancy within 5 years of your menopause is very rare. Our age of menopause has a lot to do with our mother’s age at menopause. So if you mother went through menopause at age 48 and you are now 44 and are trying to conceive – you may want to talk to a fertility specialist as soon as you can.
We tend to spend a lot of time blaming ourselves as women but the truth is that many infertility problems can be attributed to the male side of things. Just because a man fathered a pregnancy at one point doesn’t mean that he has a normal sperm count. Men can suffer from many conditions much like women. These problems can cause low sperm counts, problems with the motility of the sperm and the shape of the sperm.
Encourage your partner to take steps to decrease heat to the scrotal area. I advise: no hot tub use, no bike riding or motorcycle riding; and move the laptop off the lap. The good news is that the sperm life cycle is 3 months so an improvement can be seen with lifestyle changes. Male fertility supplements or vitamins high in antioxidants may also improve sperm counts. Don’t assume it’s your fault – get a semen analysis which is a test that tells you how many swimmers he has and how fast they are swimming.
My advice to all of you who are having a hard time getting pregnant after baby #1: seek help sooner than later. If a doctor tells you, “You already have 1 baby. You should be grateful,” that’s not the doctor for you. Have a fertility evaluation: check hormones, tubes and sperm count.
Hope this helps make baby #2, #3 or #4 come sooner than later.
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