If you’ve been thinking about considering IVF to complete your family, there are too many questions that might lie ahead of you. However, the sheer volume of the information available from sources can be daunting, making you wonder where to start from. Although it is recommended that the first thing to do is to reach out to an experienced fertility specialist, one should have a clear picture of what to expec
What to expect when you’re expecting? – The IVF way
If you’ve been thinking about considering IVF to complete your family, there are too many questions that might lie ahead of you. However, the sheer volume of the information available from sources can be daunting, making you wonder where to start from.
Although it is recommended that the first thing to do is to reach out to an experienced fertility specialist, one should have a clear picture of what to expect.
Dr. Gautam Allahbadia, a Dubai-based veteran IVF specialist, and the Vice President of the World Association of Reproductive Medicine (WARM), shares with us the challenges couples face when starting with their journey into IVF. “Couples generally look to access certain parameters when choosing their fertility specialist. They want to learn about their record of success with patients, their approach to creating a personalized treatment plan, and the practices and technology used in their lab, as well as financing options.”
Although the above stated make for some of the vital questions that one must consider, people generally form decision based on the doctor they deem trustworthy. As this is a personal form of treatment, trust as an intangible factor holds a lot of value in forming a doctor-patient long-term bond.
Further talking about the right time for patients to seek infertility treatments, Dr. Gautam Allahbadia says that a couple trying to get pregnant with unprotected intercourse for over a year must get counselled and investigated. “There are various treatment options today depending on the cause and duration of infertility,” he advises. At times with conditions like blocked tubes or severe endometriosis or low AMH, IVF might be the only option.
What to expect when you’re expecting? – The IVF way
IVF is increasingly becoming instrumental in helping childless couples conceive. But before forming expectations, it is important to understand that the success rate of IVF depends on a number of factors including reproductive history, maternal age, the cause of infertility, and lifestyle factors. Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) like In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) can be very effective even in cases of unexplained infertility.
The IVF process undoubtedly requires consistent inputs by both the patient and the doctor during each phase of the treatment. These phases comprise of one IVF cycle, which starts with:
- Stimulation of ovaries through fertility injections and/or tablets
- Egg retrieval, where eggs are retrieved from the ovaries
- Sperm collection by masturbation
- Waiting for egg and sperm to fertilize in the laboratory(known as an embryo)
- The embryo transfer
- Final blood test to measure the level of hormone hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin), that determines if the cycle was a successful
Knowing about the entire process can help emotionally, mentally as well as financially prepare couples for the treatment. Dr. Gautam Allahbadia who has helped thousands of couples conceive through IVF says that intended parents, often looking for information sometimes might fall into a wrong loop. Having the correct information on the available treatments will, therefore, help you circumvent the pitfalls and prevent from wasting resources, while also providing the emotional sounding board that most couples require.
Trauma of being childless
The trauma of being childless has been acknowledged by medical reproductive sciences, and through technology, couples having discordance between fertility intentions and outcomes can have a strong chance at childbearing. Assisted reproduction techniques such as In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), have been able to remove the physical, cognitive and psychosocial consequences of infertility or unintended childlessness.
“Fertility treatment represents one of the great triumphs of modern medicine. Causes of infertility that were incurable just a generation ago are now readily corrected,” says medical expert and professor, Zev Williams.
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