DHEA increases chances of a successful IVF Aging is not the only proces that causes fertility to decline. As a consequence of a mixture of lifestyle-related factors, such as environmental toxins and exposure to oxidative stress, the ability to conceive naturally declines over time. The progressive decline in women’s fertility after the age of…
There’s a difference between folic acid and folate, do you know what it is? If you had to answer the question, which vitamin would better prevent that your baby develops a neurological disorder, folate or folic acid, would you know the answer? Don’t worry if you wouldn’t. Many doctors can’t tell the difference either and…
What REALLY happens when egg fuses with sperm cell Honestly, I never really wondered what exactly happens in a moment when egg and sperm unite. I assumed, science would know all about it; for such an important event one would expect tons of literature describing every millisecond of it, right? Or at least a handful of studies…
Five over-35-fertility-news items I thought you may like to hear about Sometimes I love to tell long stories and take a lot of time to research one single topic. Some other times I come across smaller news items related to getting pregnant after 35 which are not big or interesting enough to develop into articles,…
Alcohol and making babies too many false alarms? Alcohol exposure in pregnancy carries risks, sure. It has been known for decades that alcohol use while trying to conceive and later in pregnancy can lead to a variety of effects on physical, mental and behavioral development of babies. However, how much alcohol at what time…
Fertility bloodwork: 7 hormones which are most important for fertility This happens to me often: a woman writes to me and tells me all about her fertility journey and asks a ton of questions. Then I say: all right, but could you please send me your recent bloodwork? Then the woman sends me a ton…
How to know if your guy wants to commit and have a baby with you When I coach women over 35 there is the side-effect that I get to hear a lot about their relationships. Eventually I noticed that some patterns repeat quite often. In this post I would like to address the mistakes which women…
Diagnosed with low ovarian reserve? A little story about how this blog started. Getting pregnant always looked like something that happens easily, so I’ve spent decades believing that (and doing everything possible to make it not happen). When I only think of all the sex I did not enjoy because I was subconsciously busy calculating…
Extra-weight does decrease your chances of getting pregnant I will start this post by telling a little secret. In my counseling sessions, I sometimes insist on having video chats on Skype, for the reason that I like to see the women I’m talking to. Why do I need to see them? Because even when they’re…
What is fertility testing? In reality, fertility of a women is a continuum and not something that categorizes well. A certain value from a blood test can cause feelings of panic by placing you in a particular category (“low responder”! “high FSH”! “diminished ovarian reserve”!) whereas in reality there is very little difference in fertility…