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Infertility is a syndrome that affects the reproductive organs of both men and
women. A couple is said to be infertile if they have been unable to conceive a
child after 12 months of regular sexual intercourse without using any
contraceptives. Infertility weakens one of the body’s most basic functions—the
ability to have children. A woman facing recurring miscarriages even after
having one child is also said to have the problem of infertility. Many people
are unaware of their infertility as they plan their reproduction. They might be
infertile even during their reproductive years. In this case, the chance of
pregnancy is just one percent.
Infertility can be further divided into three groups:
Primary Infertility: refers to women who have not achieved pregnancy in even
once.
Secondary Infertility: refers to women who have conceived and given birth to one
or more children in the past, but are having difficulty conceiving now.
Recurrent Miscarriage: Women are diagnosed of infertility if they experience two
or more successive miscarriages.
Conception is a complicated process that takes place on the union of healthy
sperm by the man and healthy eggs by the woman. The unblocked fallopian tubes
allow the sperm to reach the egg and fertilize it. The embryo (fertilized egg)
is implanted in the woman's uterus which grows over a period of nine months. For
the pregnancy to continue to full term, the embryo must be healthy and the
woman's hormonal environment adequate for its development. Infertility can
result when even one of these factors is damaged.
There are some infertility myths prevailing in the society. However, people have
to be made aware of certain facts like:
Infertility is not limited to women. It affects women and men equally.
Infertility can also occur due to unexplainable reasons.
Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system and is not all in your head.
It is not caused by avoiding conception due to some personal reasons. If not
wanting a baby was enough to cause infertility, then there would be far fewer
unplanned pregnancies in the world.
Infertility can occur even in case of people living a healthy lifestyle. It is
not just limited to unhealthy people.
Older age is not the only factor hampering fertility. However, infertility can
and does affect couple of all ages.
Ignoring infertility does not help, either. Infertility is not going to go away
if you just relax and go on vacation. It is incorrect and hurtful to just stop
thinking about infertility and rely on destiny. One or both of you may
experience feelings of blame, anger, guilt, self-pity or jealously which may
place stress on your relationship. Hence it is advisable to seek medical aid as
soon as possible once you are diagnosed of infertility. This increases the
chances of getting pregnant by 30-35%. Infertility treatments are a
rollercoaster, especially for patients who fail to become pregnant inspite of a
number of cycles. However couples are generally advised to be emotionally
balanced while going through these treatments.
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