This is the one part of the blog I did not look forward to, so I figured I might as well get it out of the way early. Here are some details on what is causing the fertility issues within me.
The Facts: The first, most important, and largest factor to me is my weight. While plenty of men heavier than me have had no fertility issues, my weight along with other factors has affected mine. While every doctor I have seen has told me that weight loss alone will not fix anything, it would definitely help.
By going public, I hope this helps hold me accountable. At times this year I have topped out just shy of 240 lbs. A month ago I was at 235 and I started Weight Watchers. As of last Friday I was down to 223 lbs already, this was very encouraging to me. But it has been a bit of a struggle. At Christmas I promised Veronica I would be down to 200 lbs by next Christmas. I think despite my late start I am on a pretty good track to get there. My current goal is to be below 210 by June 22. That is the day we leave for vacation in New York City, and I fully plan on adding 5 lbs while I am there. That would leave me at 215 with just under 6 months to go.
Aside from the promise though, this has become very important to me over the last few months. It make me feel terrible when I see something my wife wants so badly, and there is currently nothing I can do to give it to her and I am actually part of the reason why she can't have it. I find myself very guilt-ridden at times. I think the word inadequate would apply as well. I know this is not the attitude I am supposed to have regarding this issue. I am working on being thankful for the fact that I do have control over a lot of this, and praying for continues effort on my end to try and fix whatever I can.
So there is the weight loss part, like I said though, that is only part of the problem. The "boys" (I just don't like typing the other word) are the other part of the equation. I had to go in have my boys tested twice, and both times the results were less than good. There are three factors to consider when checking male fertility: Quantity, Quality, and Motility (movement).
The quantity is the concentration of the boys. A normal person has around 30 million quality boys, but really 20 million would suffice. During my first analysis, I only had 9 million; the good news is that on the second I was up to 19 million. Chalk the first test up to a ridiculous amount of nervousness about taking this type of test for the first time in my life.
Quality is really the shape of the boys and whether or not they are....quality. Normally, you would want at least 20% of them to be shaped normally, but again 15% will suffice. The first time I tested at just 1%. The good news is I doubled that the next time. The bad news was it left me at just 2%.
Motility, this is the most important one as it analyzes the ability of the boys to "swim" to the spot they need to go. They base it on a score, you need to be at 150 or higher. The first test I fell short, I tested at 100. Unlike the other two factors, my second test did not show improvement. Rather I dropped to 84 on this test.
The Cause: No one knows. The weigh is likely a small factor, but as the urologist told me I could drop 30 pounds and it wouldn't be enough to offset my numbers. With fertility, all they can really tell you is some guys have it and others don't. I have cut some other things out, things that I normally love, such as hot tubs, saunas, really hot showers, and sitting on the couch with my computer on my lap for hours upon hours. I actually don't love any of those things all that much so they have been pretty easy to cut out, especially considering what I am working towards. The doctor also told me to do whatever I can to keep my stress level down so I have to avoid watching Yankee games started by Phil Hughes and I generally avoid all communication with UK fans.
I was put on a drug called Fertile One and told to start exercising as activity can help improve quality and movement. Avoiding red meats, bad drinks, and eating a lot of high antioxidant fruits and vegetables can help as well. Also, taking a daily multivitamin can help but it cannot have soy in it. The problem is these things can only help the situation, none of these are guaranteed to fix it. I look at it as the more I do to help it, the better our chances are. I am also taking Zinc and CoQ10 in the mornings. I currently am popping 5 pills in the morning and 2 more at night.
When I get annoyed with little things like having to put a pillow between my lap and computer, taking a bunch of pills, taking a cool shower, and not eating bacon; I just think of how awesome it will be when our prayers are eventually answered and we have a baby. Until then I will keep praying and trusting God, but this is on me too. I need to be a man and do whatever it takes to get this done. I still struggle and would appreciate prayers for this aspect of our journey as well.
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