3 Ways to Treat Secondary Infertility

1. Seek Medical Help

Many couples wrongfully decide not to seek treatment if they have difficulty conceiving after they've already had a child. They figure since they easily conceived with their first child, they should not have a problem with their next. However, secondary fertility is actually more common than primary infertility. After trying to get pregnant naturally for a year, you should seek counsel from a fertility specialist to see about treating your secondary infertility. Women over the age of 35 will want to see a fertility specialist about treatment after 6 months of trying to get pregnant without success. On your first visit, your doctor will evaluate you before deciding on the best course of treatment. He may consider the age and health of both partners as well as discuss any possible complications that arose during your first pregnancy and delivery. He may run some blood tests to determine how to treat the secondary infertility.

2. Ovulation Medication

Most specialists will start a woman on a course of medications to help treat her secondary infertility. Blood test results will guide the doctor on the right medications to give the woman. These medications help the woman ovulate every month in order to increase her chances of conceiving. One of the most popular ovulation assistance medications is Clomid. Clomid works by stimulating the pituitary gland to start the ovulation process. The medications Pergonal and Follistim stimulate the ovaries to get the woman to ovulate. If you're suffering from a medical condition that's stopping you from conceiving, your doctor will give you medications to treat the condition in order to help achieve conception.

3. Assistance with Assisted Reproductive Technology

When a woman suffers from secondary fertility, she may need assisted reproductive technology methods to help her conceive. During this process, a woman's egg is removed and then mixed with her partner's sperm in the lab. After conception occurs, the fertilized egg is put back into her body. There are several different lab methods used to treat secondary infertility. The most popular is in-vitro fertilization (IVF). After hormone therapy, a woman's eggs are removed from her body. After fertilization takes place in a lab, she'll get the egg replanted into her uterus. Another alternative, Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), involves injecting a single sperm into a mature egg and then placing it back in the uterus. In some cases, donor eggs or donor sperm may be used to complete the process.