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Questions and Answers About Secondary Infertility

This guest article is from our friends at Laurel Fetility Clinic, a local fertility practice with offices in Mill Valley, San Francisco, and Modesto. Visit them online at www.laurelfertility.com.

Secondary infertility is a growing issue among women. According to experts, in 2005 an estimated 3,000,000 people suffered from secondary infertility. Whether you’ve had one child or three children, mothers who are unable to grow their families after conceiving in the past are heartbroken. However, with the success of fertility treatments, more options are available today than ever before. Below is a list of common questions patients have asked at their visit to Laurel Fertility Care. We hope these will help you through your fertility journey before seeing a fertility specialist.

  1. What are my ultimate parenting dreams and goals? Understand what you want for your family. How many more children do you want? It’s not uncommon for hopeful parents to visit a fertility specialist only to realize that their expectations may be slightly different than thought. According to Dr. Collin Smikle of Laurel Fertility Care, “It’s important to check in with yourself and partner to ensure you’re on the same page. Asking questions as simple as “how many more children do we want to have?” and “how and whose schedule will need to change to accommodate for our growing family?” will help you save time and money with your fertility specialist.
  2. What does my insurance cover? In the state of California, all insurances companies are mandated by law to offer fertility options. However, employers have the choice whether to purchase the option to offer the coverage to their employees. Check with your employer and insurance company to see what they offer.
  3. What are my time expectations? If you’ve exceeded the amount of time that it took you to conceive previously or if you’re over 35, your time to grow your family becomes limited and it’s time to seek help. “By age 35, a woman’s ovarian reserve may be reduced by half,” reported Dr. Marlane Angle, lab director and lead embryologist at Laurel Fertility Care. “Your chance of conceiving after age 40 is one fifth the chance for success found at age 20. There is no snooze button on the fertility alarm clock either, so being pregnant or being on birth control pills isn’t protecting you. The sooner a woman gets the help she needs to better understand her fertility options, the better are her odds of conceiving.”
  4. What can I afford? As a parent, money may already be tight. Trying to pay for the fertility treatment is the start of another long journey of medical bills. Depending on insurance coverage, many parents with limited cash reserves may seek alternative funding options. Some hopeful parents have sought funding from friends or family members while others have used loans tailored for medical treatments such as Surgery Loans and My Medical Loan.
  5. How will these decisions affect my family? Deciding to grow your family affects everyone in your family, from your spouse to your child(ren). If you’re already trying for number two (or more) without success, how will adding fertility treatment affect your current situation? Financial constraints may force you to rethink your current child’s options (is private school or summer camp still a financially realistic option?). Emotional and physical tolls of fertility treatment must also be considered. How can your family work together to manage the additional stressors of fertility treatment?
  6. What treatments am I comfortable with? There are many fertility treatments available. However, given the financial, emotional, and physical constraints, patients don’t always realize what they’re getting themselves into. Before agreeing to all or a few treatments, read through each fertility option very carefully. Each treatment serves a specific purpose and includes benefits particular a woman’s condition. For instance, if a woman has problems producing good quality eggs, in-vitro fertilization (IVF) may be a more successful option than intrauterine insemination (IUI). However, if she has very few or poor quality eggs, egg donation may be a more realistic and cost-effective option.
  7. Does the opportunity to conceive another child through fertility treatments outweigh the other emotional, physical, and financial costs? Combining each possible toll of the fertility treatment process, is fertility treatment a viable option for you? Ultimately, the best decision is what you and your family. If you are unable to come to a sound conclusion, there is help. Between support groups online like DailyStrength.org, to a fertility clinic’s mind/body program, there is support to help you.