You try to get pregnant for a while and when it doesn’t happen, you investigate to see if something is preventing it. You discover there is a problem impeding pregnancy, and that treatment is needed. What now? What are the main fertility problems and the treatments to help conceive in each case? Let’s take a look!
Polycystic Ovaries: Unfortunately, this is a common issue among women trying (or not trying) to conceive. Polycystic ovaries occur due to an accumulation of estrogen in the body, which causes the eggs not to reach the necessary maturity nor the ideal size to leave the follicle. They seem to “stall” and get stuck in the ovaries. Low progesterone and insulin resistance are two important factors to consider in these cases. If necessary, the doctor may help with metformin and synthetic progesterone supplementation. If needed, they might also prescribe birth control pills to “rest” the ovaries, so ovulation can start over from scratch. However, the recommended approach is the use of myo-inositol, a vitamin from the B complex that helps women with PCOS. You can find FamiSitol here. Renewed ovaries also renew the chances of getting pregnant.
Endometriosis: The diagnosis that shakes a woman to her core. Besides countless pains the problem causes, infertility is also frequently affected. Endometriosis is nothing more than the endometrium (menstrual blood) accumulating outside the proper place — the base of the uterus, on the inside. It can affect several locations outside the uterus, such as the tubes, abdominal cavity, and various places near the uterus, including the intestine. The treatment for pregnancy in these situations can take many forms: medication, surgery, and also external methods like IVF or artificial insemination.
Medicinal treatment may be based on Danazol and Dienogest. It’s also possible to use a levonorgestrel-releasing IUD, medications to stop menstruation and thereby reduce endometriosis. Surgical treatment for endometriosis is laparoscopy, and only the doctor can decide if the patient should undergo the procedure, which in most cases eliminates endometriosis, even if only temporarily so the woman can try to conceive. IVF, for example, is a common procedure for women with endometriosis and, fortunately, with success in many cases. The problem with conceiving for those with endometriosis is not a lack of follicles but rather embryo implantation. This problem needs to be properly treated before attempts to conceive.
Anovulation: Many women don’t realize it, but they suffer from anovulation. Anovulation is a silent problem, but gives some signs of its presence. The woman simply does not ovulate! Whether due to hormonal or even emotional reasons, the cycle gets out of balance and the woman—who may appear to have a normal cycle (even if irregular)—starts having problems with missed periods, changes in the flow, etc.
In these cases, doctors can suggest medications to stimulate ovulation. These are the well-known oral clomiphene for 5 days or injectables, which are much stronger than the ones sold in pharmacies and still require medical supervision. In certain cases, the doctor chooses to further investigate what might be happening and then prescribe medication to treat the cause of anovulation, rather than forcing ovulation with inducers. Both treatments are effective.
Treatment for Getting Pregnant – Men Need Them Too!
If you think that the responsibility for getting pregnant belongs only to the woman, you’re completely mistaken. Men can also have fertility issues, some of them quite severe, such as oligospermia. Most problems are detected through a semen analysis; if issues are found, the doctor will prescribe treatment. This is where fertility treatments come into play.
Varicocele: A common problem in men that directly affects fertility, varicocele is an issue with the glands in the scrotal sac. The veins become compressed, reducing the amount of sperm produced and can even cause production to stop. This problem has 3 grades and can be treated according to the severity. First-grade varicocele is simple and treated with medication. The second depends on the doctor’s assessment, but surgery may be necessary. The third grade is treated surgically due to its impact on fertility.
Low Motility: Low motility is a very common issue. Nowadays, men’s quality of life is not so great: too much sedentary behavior, poor diet, daily stress, worries, and clothing (100% of designers focus on style, not health), all contribute to harming male fertility. Balancing life, improving diet, and taking more vitamins help a lot. It is also possible to take targeted and specific vitamins such as vitamin E.
But a crucial factor in low motility is scrotal (sack) temperature. If a man routinely wears tight pants, thick fabrics, and is a smoker, for example, this all contributes to low motility. The ideal is to keep the scrotal sac at the most natural temperature possible, without turning the testicles into a mini sauna. Whenever possible, swap jeans for lighter fabrics, tight underwear for boxer shorts, and sleeping without underwear is excellent too.
There are several problems to address, but these are the most recurrent ones submitted on this site. If you have a suggestion, just leave it in the comments!
Important Tip: The couple can use multivitamins rich in vitamins D and E. This will help form healthy sperm for him and give her a boost in ovarian stimulation. You can learn more about the vitamins here.
See also: Fertility Chart – When to Start Testing?
Photos: **tania**,r0bm867
