Other Factors

A good rule of thumb for women struggling with infertility is to behave pre-conception as you would in the early stages of pregnancy. That means a lot of people abstain from alcohol, caffeine, and certain foods when undergoing fertility treatments. When it comes to your hair, though, opting to let your grays or roots show is to some akin to leaving the house in your underwear. I had the worst of both problems - gray roots - and was appalled when I heard that coloring my hair was something else that I needed to give up when trying to conceive. Along with my questions of whether a glass of wine was ok when we were taking… [more]

Whenever weight is mentioned as a factor in infertility, I automatically think of being overweight. This is definitely not surprising to me since in the last ten years being underweight was not a personal danger. I gained after college, gained even more with fertility treatments, and had trouble losing for a myriad of reasons - though I choose to mostly blame my extra 15 (or 20 or more) on infertility. Anyway, I realize that not talking about the hazard of being underweight is short-sighted since there are many women who may unwittingly be struggling because they weigh too little. Whereas women who have excess body weight can be faced with an overproduction of hormones that disrupt… [more]

Men get off relatively easy when it comes to infertility. The woman is advised to do all sorts of things to improve her chances of conception, but the man is often let off the hook when it comes to making lifestyle changes. Often the female partner is told to watch what she eats and drinks while the male partner (even if male factor plays a role) is rarely similarly inundated with advice revolving around not eating certain foods, drinking caffeine or alcohol, smoking, exercising or not, etc. Most couples undergoing fertility treatments do know the "rule" that the male should not ejaculate 2-3 days prior to providing a sample, but many don't know that the sperm that… [more]

It is never a bad idea to eat well. It can definitely be difficult, though, to concentrate on being healthy and eating good for you foods in the midst of the turmoil and disappointment that infertility brings. Researchers and doctors suggest that noshing on comfort foods or pick-me-up sweets can actually be detrimental to not only your waist line, but also fertility. I am a stress eater and I know that there are many others who also turn to carbs or chocolate when they are feeling low. In order to boost fertility, it is suggested that people trying to conceive seek out certain kinds of foods that will have a fertility benefit. It's really all… [more]

I recently went in for a thorough physical and got into a discussion with the Doctor about Vitamin D deficencies and new research that shows that supplements can really make a difference for women in regards to bone strength, fatigue, rates of certain types of cancer, and in a number of different areas. I was definitely intrigued, but agreed with the doctor that my results would probably come back fine considering that I got well more than the recommended amount of sunlight each week and tuna fish and salmon are two of my favorite meals. So, I was pretty surprised when my level came back really low and not only were supplements recommended, but a prescription was… [more]

When my husband and I decided to start trying for a baby we followed all of the recommended steps. We went to a pre-conception check-up, started trying to adopt a healthier lifestyle, had heartfelt discussions about our parenting philosophies, and I started taking pre-natal vitamins and folic acid thinking it could never be too soon. I religiously took my vitamins and folic acid for months and months until I began to feel silly. I began to slack off a bit on taking the vitamins every day since even the simple act of ingesting a prenatal vitamin made me feel like a fraud. I began to ask myself why I was even pretending that I would actually get pregnant and… [more]

I was blissfully ignorant about the whole reproductive process before I had trouble conceiving. I honestly did not know that the actual window of conception was so short and that on most days of the month you aren't fertile. Now that I know more about how it all works I am truly flabbergasted at the number of "accidental" pregnancies. Not only are there fewer days than I thought that can actually lead to conception, but there are also a lot of things that have to work perfectly to create a baby. You have to ovulate, the egg has to travel through the fallopian tube into the uterus, you have to introduce sperm in some way to the whole environment at… [more]

"I didn't know age mattered so much!" That statement, or a variation of it, is one that I have heard too many times when talking to others struggling with infertility. We all know of a young person who "accidentally" got pregnant, oftentimes saying it was their first time or while using birth control. However, we have probably all also heard stories of older women with teenage children suddenly pregnant with an "oops" baby. So, it isn't surprising that when a couple is struggling to conceive, many don't automatically make the correlation between age and infertility. The sad truth is that age does play a significant role in a woman's chances of getting pregnant. The American Society… [more]

There are quite a few tactics and techniques swirling around out there in the "world" of infertility that are supposed to help you conceive. I'll admit that at first I was reluctant to try most of them, but after a couple of years I was game for pretty much any suggestion. I must say that I think that the reality is that if you have fertility issues your baby-making position, daily aspirin regime, or time of day won't make much difference. There are definitely some things you can do that will help - charting ovulation, learning your cycle and peak days, watching your diet and getting healthy to name a few. Almost as many times as I was advised to… [more]

In my last couple of posts, Could Your Weight be Contributing to Your Infertility? and Fertility, Obesity, and Eating Disorders, I have been talking about how obesity has been linked to fertility issues. I have also been sharing about my own struggles with the eating disorder of binge and compulsive overeating.

If you have an eating disorder, it has likely become much more intense as you have been facing your infertility challenges. Infertility is very painful, and eating disorders are ways in which we use our bodies to manage our painful emotions. Infertility is the fuel that increasingly flames the fire. You might find that your eating disorder is more out of control than ever.

If you do succeed in becoming pregnant, you… [more]