Because of delayed parenthood due to life and career choices, many women--who are otherwise healthy--are finding that conceiving and carrying children is more challenging than they expected. If you are unsure that your family is complete or you would like to start a family in the future, it is important to discuss your overall health and choices with your OB/GYN. If you do so before your 35th birthday, you may like the answers you get a bit more.
Do Normal Hormonal Fluctuations Make It Harder To Conceive Or To Have A Healthy Baby?
Although it may not seem like a big deal, the limited number of eggs you were born with can become a problem as early as your mid-30s. Even a woman with healthy eggs might not become pregnant as easily as she would have a few years before.
In addition, your remaining eggs might not be the healthiest eggs. That means that you are at a higher risk for having a child with genetic abnormalities, like Down's syndrome. After you do conceive, your obstetrician may suggest prenatal screening to make sure the baby is healthy.
That is not to say that you cannot or should not get pregnant. But before you try to conceive after age 35, talk to a doctor, like Triad OB-GYN PC, about ways to get healthy and stay healthy during pregnancy.
Do You Want Two Or Three Kids At The Same Time?
The limited number of eggs that you have left can also be the gift that keeps on giving. In addition to the possibility of infertility, women in their 30s have a higher chance of conceiving fraternal twins. And of course, you probably know that if you need a little medical help to get pregnant, the medications you get from your doctor will also increase the likelihood of an extra bundle of joy. It is thought that as you age, your hormone levels vary, so you are more likely to drop more than one egg each month. If you need fertility assistance, your ovaries can rev up enough that they release extra eggs from certain treatments.
Fortunately your doctor can perform regular ultrasounds to check on how many eggs you release if you want to avoid fertilizing more than one egg. It is more challenging to find a doctor that offers frequent ultrasounds when you are not an infertility patient, but it is possible--especially if weight, race, family history or other factors puts you at additional risk of multiple births.
In conclusion, pregnancy after 35 can be both joyful and challenging. If you are 35 or older and have been trying to conceive for six months or more without any luck, you should speak with your OB/GYN to see what options are available to you.
Share10 January 2015
Having a daughter comes with a number of challenges. One challenge that you will one day need to tackle is determining when to introduce your daughter to the gynecologist. Do you take your daughter to the same gynecologist that you see or take her somewhere else? Do you wait until she gets her first period or do you take her in to learn about the menstrual cycle from the doctor? There is a long list of questions you likely have about introducing your daughter to the world of gynecology. Having gone through this twice myself, I have learned quite a bit and have included a lot of helpful information in my site to help other parents get through this complicated time a little easier.
