Infertility is not a new issue, but it is only recently being spoken about more often and more openly. Because of this, there may be various views on fertility due to the many myths that surround the topic. In this post, we will debunk 3 myths relating to male and female infertility.
Myth 1: Infertility Only Affects Women
Based on the title of this article, this is clearly untrue. Many wrongfully blame women for being infertile, but the truth is that 30-50% of couples suffer from male infertility. Neither partner should be blamed for infertility because it is a genuine medical condition; just know that it could affect women and men just the same.
Myth 2: You Are Infertile Because You’re Stressed
Although chronic stress may play a role in a couple’s battle with infertility, especially if it is related to chronic stress, infertility is not explicitly psychological. Reducing your stress may help in conjunction with fertility treatments such as North Houston IVF or IUI, but reducing stress alone is not enough to get pregnant. Because it is a medical condition, patients must undergo procedures and medically administered treatments.
Myth 3: You’re Safe From Infertility If You’ve Already Had Children
Even if you and your partner have already had one or more children, you may still experience what is known as secondary infertility, which occurs when one pregnancy was successful while the next one was not. Factors such as age or other health concerns may contribute to secondary infertility, but it happens seemingly randomly. At our fertility clinic in The Woodlands and Kingwood, we have had patients who easily had their first child, required North Houston IVF for their second pregnancy, and then had a third unplanned pregnancy.
Our Noth Houston Fertility Clinic In Kingwood And The Woodlands Can Help You Get Pregnant
Because infertility can be unpredictable, we recommend getting fertility testing if you have tried to get pregnant for over a year with no results. This helps our fertility specialists determine what treatment may be best for your particular case. If you are having a hard time getting pregnant, know that it's not your fault and you still have options. Please request an appointment with our fertility doctors so we can determine what fertility treatments may result in a healthy pregnancy.
Egg freezing, otherwise known as Mature Oocyte Cryopreservation, is one of the more advanced modern fertility treatments we offer at our clinic. It was still experimental until early 2013, but since then it has become a very common procedure we perform in addition to North Houston IVF at HART Fertility Clinic in The Woodlands and Kingwood.
How Does Egg Freezing Work
Egg freezing has 3 main steps:
- Taking fertility medication that stimulates egg production
- Egg Retrieval
- Egg freezing and storage
Egg Production
Everyone’s body is different, so our North Houston fertility clinic’s specialists will design a specific medication program that is suitable for your body, which will enable us to obtain the most eggs possible. More eggs to freeze means more chances of successful fertilization. The medication is the same type that we use for patients planning to undergo North Houston IVF treatment.
Egg Retrieval
When it’s time to retrieve your eggs, we will sedate you prior so you don’t feel any pain or discomfort. The process takes less than 30 minutes and you can go about most of your daily routine afterward. You may experience minor cramping after the procedure, but this should resolve by the next day.
Kingwood Fertility Clinic Egg Freezing And Storing
Once your eggs are retrieved, it’s time to freeze them immediately. Once frozen, we have to store them carefully because when egg freezing was still in its experimental phase, the eggs would typically ice over and destroy the cell. At our North Houston fertility clinic in Kingwood and The Woodlands, we dehydrate the egg and use our rapid freezing technique. This protects the egg and keeps it safe for years until you're ready to get pregnant.
Who Is A Good Candidate For Egg Freezing At Our Kingwood Fertility Clinic?
Whether you come to our fertility clinic in Kingwood or in The Woodlands, a good candidate for egg freezing is someone who is between their 20’s and their 30’s, but those of who are in their 30’s may benefit the most. However, this is merely based on the possibility that someone who freezes their eggs in their 20’s may not end up needing to use them.
Fertility Specialists In Kingwood And The Woodlands
If you are considering freezing your eggs as a way to preserve your fertility and plan for a future pregnancy, then please request an appointment so that our caring specialists can address any questions or concerns you may have.
When it comes to difficulties carrying a baby, a surrogate is often considered to be the best option. However, there are two types of surrogates: the traditional surrogate or IVF with a gestational surrogate. Here is how they compare to one another and why we prefer to offer IVF with a gestational surrogate.
Traditional Surrogate For Infertility
With traditional surrogacy, the surrogate’s eggs are used, which means the surrogate is legally the biological mother of the baby it carries. This can, unfortunately, create blurred lines and a gray area between the surrogate and the intended parents, which is why this option for fertility treatment has decreased in popularity.
North Houston IVF With A Gestational Carrier
Utilizing a surrogate as a gestational carrier, on the other hand, means the intended mother’s eggs are used. Alternatively, if the intended mother’s eggs aren’t successfully fertilized, an egg donor may also be used. In both cases, the surrogate has no biological ties to the baby it carries and this is reflected in the baby's birth certificate.
How IVF With A Gestational Carrier Works At Our Kingwood And The Woodlands Fertility Clinics
For women who don't have a functioning uterus, are dealing with medical issues that make sustaining a pregnancy difficult, could be in serious danger if they become pregnant, or for women with no uterus, Kingwood and The Woodlands IVF with a gestational carrier may be a viable solution.
Our North Houston fertility specialists will perform the IVF procedure in order to retrieve the intended mother's or donor’s eggs. The eggs will then be fertilized with the intended father's sperm.
Following this, we will wait until the embryo has reached the blastocyst (day 5 embryo) stage. The blastocyst will then undergo pre-implantation genetic testing, which allows us to determine which embryos are genetically normal and have the highest chances of resulting in a successful birth. A single embryo will then be selected to be transferred into the gestational carrier’s uterus.
Our North Houston IVF Specialists Will Assist You In Finding A Good Gestational Carrier To Help You Achieve Your Dreams Of Parenthood
Having a baby is a blessing and we are proud to support couples through their IVF Journey. Our North Houston IVF lab boasts rates of genetically normal embryos that have exceeded the national average for all U.S IVF labs that utilize the same PGT laboratory, thanks to our exceptional IVF lab conditions. If you're considering IVF with a surrogate, please request an appointment so we can begin the process.
HART Fertility Clinic, which serves both the Kingwood and The Woodlands, is renowned for its North Houston IVF treatment. Our advanced, state-of-the-art IVF laboratory is the very reason for our above-national-average normal and healthy embryo rates. Because of this, many couples hoping to become parents turn to our North Houston IVF specialists for guidance and help. Here is part 3 of our North Houston IVF FAQ.
If I Undergo IVF, When Are Frozen Embryos Transferred?
Freezing your embryos is an alternative to freezing your eggs. Transferring the frozen embryo can take place during your natural cycle or a controlled cycle, depending on your body and it is painless. If your cycle has always been regular and predictable, then transferring during your natural cycle will be fairly easy and effective because it already prepares your uterus for pregnancy. On the other hand, if your cycle is rather erratic and unpredictable, our IVF specialists will put you on hormonal fertility medication (estrogen and progesterone) to prepare the uterus for pregnancy.
If I’m An Out-Of-Town Patient, Can I Travel Home Right After Kingwood or The Woodlands IVF?
In IVF, the actual implantation is a fairly straightforward and quick process that is relatively pain-free. Most patients that come from out of town can expect to travel back home the day after or, in some cases, the day of. You may continue with your daily life as you normally would. About 10 days later, you will get some blood work done to test for pregnancy.
Does North Houston IVF Use Up All My Eggs?
Women with normal cycles who don’t need fertility treatments have hundreds of thousands of eggs around the time at which puberty takes place. Every month, one particular egg is selected to become fertilized while others undergo a natural death called atresia. If it isn’t fertilized, menstruation takes place. When women undergo IVF at our fertility clinic in The Woodlands or Kingwood, we give them egg-stimulating injections. This actually gives you more eggs and also prevents other eggs from undergoing atresia.
Visit Our North Houston IVF Clinic in Kingwood and The Woodlands
Although we are best-known for IVF, we offer several other fertility treatments that each yield great success. If you are considering undergoing fertility treatment, please request an appointment so we can determine which treatment works best for you and your partner. We look forward to supporting you on the wonderful journey of pregnancy and IVF.
For years there has been speculation that birth control pills and other methods of hormonal birth control harm a woman’s fertility to a point where extended use makes them less fertile. In reality, there is no science that backs this up. In fact, pregnancy rates among women who have used hormonal contraception are very similar to women who never have, suggesting that hormonal contraceptives have no effect on fertility. Instead, hormonal contraceptives–such as the pill, IUD, implant, etc–have some health benefits that can actually decrease the complications that lead to infertility.
Health Benefits Of Hormonal Birth Control
Numerous studies have shown that women who utilize hormonal contraceptives reduce their risk of ovarian cancer by nearly 50%. Today, these contraceptives are also commonly used as a preventative treatment for both ovarian and endometrial cancers.
Birth control doesn’t just help prevent certain cancers, though. Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is an ovulation disorder that affects 1 in 10 women. It causes extremely irregular periods and infrequent ovulation, which makes a woman less fertile. Hormonal birth control is typically the first treatment gynecologists and our North Houston fertility specialists recommend for PCOS patients because it regulates the cycle and corrects the hormonal imbalances associated with PCOS, thus promoting fertility.
At our North Houston IVF clinic in Kingwood and The Woodlands, we see several patients who suffer from endometriosis, which is an extremely painful disorder that causes tissues that line the uterus to grow outside of it. This often causes infertility, but hormonal contraceptives are an effective treatment for these symptoms and helps prevent this disorder.
Are You Having A Hard Time Getting Pregnant? Speak With Our North Houston Fertility Specialists
We understand that many couples do not wish to conceive until later on in their relationship, which is why many women rely on hormonal contraception. If you were taking birth control and stopped when you and your partner decided to conceive, and if you two haven’t succeeded yet, then we recommend you request an appointment with our North Houston fertility doctors. Since it likely isn’t your birth control causing these challenges, one or both of you may be facing infertility caused by other conditions. Because infertility affects both men and women, it’s best to come in together. We will begin by understanding your concerns and getting information about your sexual and medical histories. We will then proceed with fertility testing to determine which of our many fertility therapies (such as North Houston IVF or IUI, among others) may help you start the beautiful family you dream of having.
