During a women’s normal menstrual cycle, several follicles develop within the ovaries.  Each follicle contains an egg.  As the menstrual cycle continues, only one follicle will remain which will produce the egg during ovulation.  After the egg has matured, LH levels will surge causing the egg to burst from the follicle thus causing ovulation.  Because women with PCOS do not normally produce enough female hormones necessary for ovulation, these follicles do not mature to become eggs.  Some follicles may develop into cysts.

PCOS may show up on an ultra sound as a “string of pearls” within the ovary.  This “string of pearls” are the follicles that have not developed.  The ovaries will typically have several small cysts covering the outside.  Because ovulation does not occur, progesterone is not produced which is what causes the lining of the uterus to thicken.

Some symptoms of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome include the absence or an irregular period.  As a woman gets older, PCOS can become worse.  Some women may ovulate irregularly as well as not at all.  Five to ten percent of women of childbearing age have PCOS.  Most women are unaware that they have it.  In fact, less the twenty-five percent of women with PCOS have been diagnosed.

Some women are lucky enough to conceive during an irregular ovulation cycle.  Other symptoms include increased hair growth on back, chest or face, thinning hair, obesity, high insulin levels or type two diabetes, acne or pelvic pain.  Symptoms for PCOS vary with each woman.  Some women only have an irregular period as a symptom.

Obviously PCOS affects a woman’s ability to conceive because of a lack of ovulation.  But, there are several steps that can be taken to correct the problem.  Some women can simply treat their PCOS by losing weight.  Weight loss can sometimes help to improve hormone imbalances.

Metformin is a drug that improves the body’s ability to absorb insulin.  It is considered safe to use on women who do not have diabetes because it affects insulin levels and does not actually lower blood sugar directly.  Clomid or other fertility drugs are often used in the treatment of infertility relating to PCOS.

Clomid blocks estrogen receptors in the brain.  With these receptors blocked, the brain thinks there are low estrogen levels.  Low estrogen levels trigger the body to produce more FSH and LH which signal the body to ovulate.  Even though Clomid is often successful at bringing about ovulation, only thirty to forty percent of the women who do ovulate from Clomid will actually become pregnant.

In vitro Maturation (IVM) or in vitro fertilization (IVF) is also options for women with PCOS.  In vitro maturation is a procedure where immature eggs are harvested early in a woman’s cycle.  The eggs are then matured in a laboratory and afterwards can be used for fertilization. In vitro fertilization harvests the eggs after they are already mature.   The eggs are then fertilized and implanted in the woman’s uterus.

IVF treatments also include medications that help the eggs develop.  IVM is helpful for women who do not respond to drug therapy.

• Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
• Improve chances to get pregnant with PCOS
• Infertility Statistics
• Getting Pregnant After Age 35

Couples with any age have only a 20% chance of achieving a pregnancy each menstrual cycle.  Active fertility charting and ovulation testing, however, will increase those odds substantially.  A woman who is trying to conceive in her 30’s have a chance of less than 15% to conceive.  The monthly odds of conceiving decrease as a woman age due to various physiological issues such as hormonal balance.  This means it is much harder to get a positive result that you are pregnant if you are in your 30’s.  To increase your odds in becoming pregnant, you should stay fit and stay healthy.  Predicting your ovulation is also important as well as charting fertility.  By knowing your ovulatory cycles, you will your days when to make love and increase your chances of conceiving.

As we age, the balance of hormones also decline and with this, our fertility also declines.  The balance between reproductive hormones is crucial for regular ovulation.  A woman’s egg and hormones do not flow with the same balance and stability when she is in her 30’s.  The quality of these eggs as well as the capacity to stimulate maturation also is affected.  Because of this, menstrual cycles are difficult to predict and sometimes, ovulation does not also take place.  The presence of cervical mucus also plays a vital role in fertility.  As we age, cervical mucus also declines.  This may be related to hormonal imbalances as well.  Tests such as follicle stimulating tests can be used at home to assess whether you have reproductive hormone imbalance as well as the condition of your ovaries in producing eggs.

To optimize your chance of being pregnant at the age of 35, the first thing you should do is to have a healthy mental well being.  To do this, calibrate your expectations and realize that you may or you may not get pregnant.  Note that even for someone that is in their 20’s, the chance of getting pregnant is only 20%.  Simply realize that you may not get pregnant in just one night.  Reducing stress or anxiety is the second step for boosting your pregnancy chances. The less you worry, the better your mind and body work together.

Along with healthy well-being, a healthy physical well-being is also important.  Maintaining the proper weight is crucial as being overweight or underweight can adversely affect hormonal balance and cycle regularity.  Eat a healthy diet as well as exercises like yoga can help you.  Taking prenatal vitamins also contribute to the success of you having a conception.

You should also chart your basal body temperatures.  Knowing when you are ovulating will give you a widened opportunity of getting pregnant.  If you know when you ovulate and can time intercourse for your most fertile days, your chances will increase.  However at age 35, guessing your ovulation period is not sufficient, that is why starting an ovulation calendar is important.  If you have some cycle irregularities, herbal fertility remedies such as red clover and raspberry leaves can help.

The best thing to do if your 35 years old or older is to arrange a preconception visit.  It is best that you discuss your medical history, health status, and medications that you are taking with your doctor.  You can clarify your doctor about conceiving tips as well as expectations and they will point you in the right direction.  Your doctor will likely see if you have any interfering fertility issues as well.

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• Acupuncture and Infertility

It is important to have some knowledge about one’s own body and its functioning in order to find out the probable dates of ovulation. The ‘post ovulation time’ or the ‘Luteal Phase’ is the period between ovulation and the first day of the menstrual cycle. This period consists of fourteen days and is the same for most women. After fourteen days of the ovulation the period starts. Now what one needs to know is the date due for the next period. By counting back twelve to sixteen days from this date, one is likely to get the days of ovulation. Generally, women who have a cycle of twenty eight days, ovulate on the fourteenth day. Since this is so important to know in order to get pregnant, the ovulation date can also be checked through the BBT technique or the Basal Body Temperature. This is a method that involves the recording of vaginal temperature every morning by a BBT thermometer (with a fine calibration). The thermometer displays a higher temperature on the day of ovulation that the other days.

To explain this fact in a simpler way, the egg starts developing from the end of the menstrual cycle and between the 8th to 12th days it is at its maximum. So the chance to get pregnant is the most if one has intercourse on the 8th, the 10th and the 12th day. This is the most effective time to get pregnant. One shocking fact related to getting pregnant is that the egg lives only for a period of 12 to 16 hours in a cycle! Many gynecologists are of the opinion that the life span of the egg ranges from 12 to 24 hours. But the fertility experts say that it is likely to wither away within 15 to 16 hours. So it is important to hit it at the correct time!

Now its time to shift the focus from the Woman to the Man!  If a couple has intercourse on regular basis, it is likely that the strength of the sperms may lack the desired force and the sperm count may also be less than it is required for the fertility level. In addition, the rate of sperm motility may also be hampered. Again, if the sexual union is not so frequent, there are chances that the sperms may become stale and old, making it lack its desired vitality. According to the opinion of the fertility experts, coitus should take place twice weekly for the best result.

It is surprising that tough the female ovum dies within such a short period, the male sperm survives and moves about from 2 to 5 days within the vaginal canal. Keeping this fact in mind, it may be fruitful to have intercourse a couple of days earlier than the date of ovulation, so that the sperm gets plenty of opportunities to hit the egg.

It is important here to point out that following all the above mentioned guidelines may not be enough for getting pregnant. For further assistance, one may turn to holistic remedies that helps find out the actual cause of a problem if there is any and then suggests a remedy that is accurate. These remedies are of a wide range that includes Chinese medications to acupuncture, from exercise to helpful herbs, from lifestyle changes to a healthy and balances diet. Unlike the age-old, conventional therapies which mostly fail, the holistic remedies almost always give the desired results.

Want to know what’s the best time to get pregnant?

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Most newly wed couples take adequate protection against having a baby too quickly. However, in a matter of months, even as the duo is still getting to know each other properly, the eagerness to conceive a kid increases. This is hardly surprising, given the natural instinct of motherhood in ladies. A wife always wants to become a mother, since that gives her a sense of fulfillment. Thus, even in a fiercely competitive world, where the cost of everyday living runs into thousands, the craving for a baby remains high.

However, the females need to know how to get pregnant in a proper, healthy manner. The welfare and healthiness of both the mother and the kid, who would be seeing the light of the world soon, is of paramount importance. Hence, a careful perusal of the following discussion is necessary:

• Women should start preparing to become a mother, at least 3 to 4 months prior to the actual delivery,
• Holistic measures for the maintenance of good health conditions is necessary for both the mother and child,
• A soon-to-be-mother should completely shun smoking and drinking habits,
• It is of paramount importance that no drugs of intoxication are consumed,
• Healthy, adequate nourishment is extremely necessary for women at these times. This is because both the pre-delivery and post-delivery periods are generally rather stressful for them, and
• For maintaining the desirable health conditions, minerals, proteins (that are easy to digest) and minerals should be consumed in adequate amounts.

It is also crucial to pay heed to some other important factors. Some such factors are:

? Thorough knowledge of one’s own body ? The period of ovulation in a woman is the ideal time for her to conceive a baby. Thus, she should be aware of the time of ovulation. There are, fortunately, many ways to find out what the time of ovulating would be. The ‘Post Ovulation Time’ (also termed the Luteal Phase) has to be estimated. This period, i.e., the time between ovulating and the date of commencement of the menstrual cycle, generally is fixed at 14 days in most women. The period starts after the length of the Luteal Phase, or 14 days after the occurrence of ovulation. There is an alternative way to find out the period of ovulation, which is based on the Basal Body Temperature method (i.e., the BBT technique). In this method, the temperature of the vagina is recorded by a specially-made BBT thermometer. This is done everyday in the morning. During the period of ovulation, this temperature rises significantly, and such increases can be easily tracked. For higher chances of conceiving a baby, sexual intercourse at these times is ideal.

? When does sexual union helps in conception the most? ? This information is necessary, since it ensures that the sperms of the best quality enter the female body at the time of ovulation. Sperms should have quick reaction time when a woman ovulates. Hence, fresh sperm is required to be present in the body of the female immediately before ovulating. However, there may occur certain problems in the sperm of the males too. In such cases, men should not be releasing sperms, for a minimum of 3 days before the scheduled day of sexual union. These data is extremely important, in case you are wondering how to get pregnant.

? The ideal frequency of lovemaking for higher chances of conceiving ? Among other factors, a correct estimate of the ovulation period in women and the overall physique of men determine the ideal frequency of sexual union. There is a school of thought that, sperm count goes down, with a resultant weakening of the male sperm, if intercourse is held everyday. Conversely, others tend to think that the male sperm becomes ineffective, old and stale (with much lower potency) if it remains within the testicles, due to prolonged periods of abstinence. It is generally recommended that, sexual union, during the period of female ovulation, should be held about once in every 2 days.

It is always better to provide holistic solutions to the question of how to get pregnant. Such an approach helps to gain an insight about the inner workings of our body, and the reasons for not conceiving earlier. It also comes up with several usable solutions to this problem, including medicines and herbs of Chinese origin as well as changes in eating habits and overall lifestyle. Suitable exercise methods and, if required, acupuncture is also recommended. Unlike the conventional methods, the holistic approach has no adverse side effects, and has a much higher chance of providing the desired results. Hence, in these cases, holistic approach works much better than conventional ways.

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