Anne Brown, MD, is board certified in in obstetrics and gynecology. She is currently the medical director of the Women’s Health Service Line for Inova Loudoun Hospital. Read Dr. Brown’s Profile.
The decision to start a family is usually an exciting one. But if you have trouble conceiving, that excitement can quickly turn to stress and frustration. Whether you’ve just gotten into the baby-making game or have been at it for a while, it helps to know there are options for dealing with infertility.
What Is infertility?
Officially, infertility is the failure to get pregnant after one year of regular, unprotected intercourse. How can you know if you might have trouble conceiving? As I tell my patients, you don’t know until you try.
Still, certain factors could increase the likelihood of infertility. Those factors include:
Tracking and Testing
If you’ve been trying for a baby and haven’t had any luck, I recommend using ovulation predictor kits. These kits help couples time intercourse for the days when a woman is ovulating. Some women also choose to track their basal body temperature, which helps them pin down their most fertile time of the month.
Still no luck? We can perform a series of tests to identify problems. Those tests include:
What’s Next? Exploring Treatment Options
Sometimes the tests identify a treatable problem. Many times, though, the cause of infertility remains a mystery. In either case, we often refer couples to specialists called reproductive endocrinologists (REs), who can help patients figure out the next steps.
If you need help getting pregnant, there are two common ways REs can help:
The good news is that more and more insurance companies are covering infertility testing and treatments. Still, struggling to have a baby can be stressful for a couple, and it is important to take care of yourself and your relationship during the process.
We combine skill and sensitivity to help couples explore their options. To make an appointment, visit Capital Women’s Care (formerly Loudoun Physicians for Women).
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