Sitting here (miserably) with a rotten summer cold, I began to wonder what happens if you get a cold or flu during fertility treatments. Germs are out there no matter h0w careful you are, and many will indeed find themselves not feeling well in the midst of undergoing IVF or IUI. There isn’t much information to be found regarding sickness and fertility procedures which makes me think that it is a relatively non-issue (for the physicians – not the sick one). However, I know that when you are spending all the money and time to try a fertility treatment the last thing you want is to get sick or do anything that could hurt your chances of success. It is not a good idea to add to the overwhelming worry and stress that prevails during treatment either. So, I made a call to my clinic and did some rudimentary “research” and the most common answer is that a cold or even the flu should not affect the outcome of a fertility procedure.
Furthermore, most over the counter medications and antibiotics are safe to use with fertility drugs so there is no need to suffer! Some basic precautions that are advisable include trying to control any fever that may be present, to suppress any cough if possible, and to rest as much as possible to get well fast. The most important thing to remember, though, is to always call your nurse or doctor if there is something you are concerned about or if you need clarification and answers. Clinics have different protocols when it comes to dealing with illness and some may advise not taking anything but Tylenol (or an equivalent), some may want you to postpone your treatment, and many will act like it is just not a big deal and try to make sure you don’t think it is either. If at any point before your procedure or beta results you wake up with sniffles or feel like you are coming down with something call your nurse and she will tell you exactly what you need to do and will probably put your mind at ease.
In an IVF cycle many take an antibiotic prior to retreival. Take heart that while you will certainly not enjoy a runny nose, or pounding head – these symptoms are unlikely to have a reproductive impact and anything that might will be knocked out by the zithromax or other antibiotic that is part of your medication protocol. Something I learned through my pregnancy plagued with dogs jumping on my belly, clumsy falls, and yes, sickness is that human embryos are a lot more resilient than we infertiles often give them credit for and some annoying sniffles or a hacking cough will probably not prevent implantation if this is your time to conceive. I want to reiterate, though, that any time you feel sick or just not right talk to your nurse or doctor - they need to know what is going on with you and will best be able to tell you what your next steps should be. I really, really hope that nobody has to deal with sickness on top of everything else, but if you do try not to worry – it is probably not a big deal (or deal-breaker) at all!
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