We are asking if you have a fertility plan. We speak about birth plans. We speak of back up plans. Plans for after college…plans for summer…but how often do women have a plan once they have been told to have infertility? Probably never.
“You have less than 1% of conceiving. You have poor egg quality. You don’t have any eggs to freeze.”
Have you ever heard these words? I have. It’s always a shock, and I do this for a living. We spend most of our young lives try not to get pregnant, and then one day we think it’s going to happen like the snap of a finger. But what happens when it doesn’t happen? Chances are you’ve been told the worst-case scenario by friends and physicians; that the odds are stacked against you; that you need a certain type of doctor.
I assume that there was no backup plan. It’s kind of like being shipwrecked. You’re just standing there, in shock, wondering how you got there and what to do next. That is where your office visit with us will be different. We are going to help you devise a plan.
When you come to that initial visit with us we’re going to get to know your health history, i.e. medications and supplements, ask where you are psychologically and physically, have you had acupuncture or seen a physician? We are going to go review what you been doing so far to increase your fertility or odds of conceiving. We will discuss if you plan on doing the same thing and expect the same results. We are going to be compassionate yet frank. We are certainly help you devise a strategic plan on how to get to your goal. No more wandering aimlessly throughout the big scary forest of infertility. You need a game plan. How are you going to get there? What have you done so far? What you going to do and what are you willing to do? We are going to ask you what your time frame looks like. We are going to ask you if you want to do it naturally or with the help of science. We are going to ask you if you see yourself as a mother, and ask, “What does that look like?” Then, together, going to formulate a road map to help get you from point A to point B, which is not only conception, but motherhood.
There are some different factors that contribute to infertility. We are going to talk to you about your history, discuss possible testing such as hormone levels, nutritional levels, testing for heavy metal toxicity, or sub clinical chronic infections. We will discuss lifestyle, stress, and nutrition. We will discuss how long you want to try naturally to conceive. Zero months… three months… six months… forever. Do you feel more comfortable using a reproductive endocrinologist rather than trying naturally? The answer is up to you. We will discuss the doctors you’ve seen and if you feel that the right fit for you. We’ll come up with a list of items to address and address them. You see, we don’t really believe in unexplained infertility at our office. There is some reason why mother nature isn’t permitting this to happen. Our goal is to find out why it’s not happening, isolate the reason or reasons why pregnancy isn’t occurring, address those, and have you move forward with conception.
We don’t want your fertility or infertility to continue to be an aimless walk through unknown territory; hoping to magically find your destination. We want you to know the territory, know your options, get some direction, get a plan, and, ultimately, get answers. We will help you devise a fertility plan and strategy that’s best for you. Being lost and wandering aimlessly is no longer an option for you.
