The Specifics: Veronica

After detailing the issues with Mike, it’s my turn.

Age
Yes, we’ve discussed my age, which does factor into infertility. I have had a couple breakdowns when doing research a few months ago. It’s so depressing to hear how pregnancy after 35 is such a risk. Such things as endometriosis, increase in birth defects, fewer number of eggs, increase in stillbirth, and higher risk of miscarriages are all part of TTC after 35. The chart below shows how getting pregnant goes down with age.

What a drastic change from early 20s to mid-30s! I could get more into all of this, but I won’t. I’m taking my prenatal vitamins, eating foods high in folic acids, and trying to remain as healthy as possible. I can whine as much as I can about being 35, but it isn’t going to change anything.

PCOS

As mentioned previously, I found out that I have polycystic ovarian syndrome. Women develop PCOS when they have too many male hormones and not enough female hormones, making ovulation rare or irregular. As far as we know, I am ovulating, which is a very good sign. The doctor suspected I had this after checking out my egg cells and a blood test confirmed it. The normal level of testosterone for a woman is 45 and I tested at 49. I like to joke that this explains why I enjoy sports so much and love hanging with the guys at a poker table!

My doctor prescribed the insulin-sensitizing drug Metformin, which helps many PCOS women ovulate on their own or respond to drug treatment. Roughly 70 to 90 percent of women with PCOS who take fertility drugs ovulate, and of those, half go on to conceive within six to nine months. Unfortunately, one in five of those pregnancies miscarries. I have been on Metformin since the beginning of April. My doctor said it can cause severe nausea and diarrhea and some women can’t handle it. So far it’s only been mild to moderate nausea, something I’m kind of getting use to. It’s recommended to take twice a day, but I had trouble with that, so we’re only going with once a day for now. I plan to suck it up as we get closer to insemination and go with twice daily.

PCOS left untreated can lead to diabetes and heart disease at a later age. Although it sucks to have, I am thankful that I found it. If we hadn’t been going through infertility, it may never have been caught. So this baby has already blessed me.

About half of women who have PCOS are obese and have excessive hair growth on their face, chest, and lower abdomen. Other symptoms are nonexistent periods, acne, depression, and difficulty conceiving. I didn’t have any of the physical symptoms, but I clearly was having problems conceiving. I assumed our problem was related to bad sperm, but now we had another issue.

To sum it all up: It just really stinks. We have two big strikes against us. Both of us have issues that cause infertility. It would be so much easier to deal with just one of us. However, we still have God on our side and every day I pray that He takes charge of this. Regardless of all the planning, pill-popping, doctor visiting, and blogging, we are helpless without Him.

This is what the Lord says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the Lord.” – Jeremiah 17:5