Well, I'll be 39 years old in 3 weeks and my husband and I are 9 weeks pregnant with number 2. We tried for this baby ONCE. One try and it happened. I guess the varicocele surgery was not a fluke. It really worked and fixed our problem.
Update: I'm about 6 months pregnant now and all is going well. I'm probably not going to be updating this website very much or very frequently now that our problem is solved. Gosh, how often in life do you get to say your problem is solved? Our problem was infertility and now we have a baby and one on the way. We are very lucky and very blessed after our many years of infertility due to low sperm count and low sperm motility. I hope that anyone who stumbles across this blog finds our story and advice helpful. Blessings to you all.
Monday, February 4, 2013
Monday, July 9, 2012
Conceiving Naturally with a Low Sperm count and Low Sperm Motility
If you are reading this, I am hoping that some of these tips can be helpful to you.
Things that I Learned:
1.)REs know nothing about penises. They don't understand varicoceles and will always tell you that it doesn't work. They have very little insight into male infertility issues and really will only look at the woman. The gestalt of it just isn't there. Your man and his cup is the only thing that an RE is interested in. You can ask them for their opinions, but really, they are very well versed on female hormones and reproductive system, but trust a urologist and/or a male fertility specialist when it comes to sperm.
2.) REs are in a hurry to get you pregnant and now. They are on a biological time clock and they don't think that a varicocele fix is a good idea because it takes time. Mostly their logic is, "by the time this works, you could have a baby..."
3.)Get your FSH and hormone levels checked. If it looks good, there's no reason to rush into IVF, unless you absolutely want to be pregnant immediately.
4.)Don't let someone tell you there's something wrong with you. Get a second, third, fourth, fifth opinion.
5.)Go with your gut. Even though everyone said varicocele surgery would only make things worse and IVF was the only way to go, I deeply felt that it was the way to go.
6.)Keep those cell phones away from your husband's testicles.
7.)Vitamins might have actually really helped. My husband's total motile count did go from 2.4 million to 8.4 million before doing any surgery, just by taking supplements.
8.)Peeing on sticks can make you crazy. If you've been peeing on sticks, you know roughly when you ovulate. Don't do the every other day thing. A few days before you think you ovulate, start having sex. Do it every day until you're sure that you're done.
9.)Have sex when you know that you're definitely not ovulating. Baby making sex is awful and you need to make your sex life fun. Fertility issues are a bitch and you need to release stress and tension. You need to bond with each other and remember that sex can be fun. Putting your legs behind your neck can be for fun rather than gravity.
10.)3 daily cups of Green Tea, Vitamin B-6, and 3000 mg of Evening Primrose Oil from Cycle Day 1- Cycle Day 13 can really help your cervical mucus.
11.)Meditation and Yoga and guided visualizations are super helpful as well. One to try.
*List of Supplements My Husband Took:
1.)Vitamin E (one pill)
2.)Acetyl L-Carnitine (one pill)
3.)L-Carnitine Fumarate (one pill)
4.)Folic Acid (800 mcg)
5.)Fertile Aid For Him (The instructions say 3 pills, but my husband only took 2 because he said they were gross)
6.)New Chapter Everyman Multi (one per day)
7.)L-Arganine (2 pills)
8.)CoQ10 (400 + mg per day. Super important for motility- My husband did the chewable ones)
9.)B-Complex (one pill)
10.)D3 (2000 IU's per day)
So, I hope that this can help someone who is going through the same thing that we were a year and a half ago. If you have any questions for me, just leave them in the comments. I'm happy to check back and answer.
Good Luck and Baby Dust...
*These vitamins are all linked to Amazon, but we just got all our vitamins from Whole Foods. You can do that, or Target, or Walgreens, or Costco or whatever.
Things that I Learned:
1.)REs know nothing about penises. They don't understand varicoceles and will always tell you that it doesn't work. They have very little insight into male infertility issues and really will only look at the woman. The gestalt of it just isn't there. Your man and his cup is the only thing that an RE is interested in. You can ask them for their opinions, but really, they are very well versed on female hormones and reproductive system, but trust a urologist and/or a male fertility specialist when it comes to sperm.
2.) REs are in a hurry to get you pregnant and now. They are on a biological time clock and they don't think that a varicocele fix is a good idea because it takes time. Mostly their logic is, "by the time this works, you could have a baby..."
3.)Get your FSH and hormone levels checked. If it looks good, there's no reason to rush into IVF, unless you absolutely want to be pregnant immediately.
4.)Don't let someone tell you there's something wrong with you. Get a second, third, fourth, fifth opinion.
5.)Go with your gut. Even though everyone said varicocele surgery would only make things worse and IVF was the only way to go, I deeply felt that it was the way to go.
6.)Keep those cell phones away from your husband's testicles.
7.)Vitamins might have actually really helped. My husband's total motile count did go from 2.4 million to 8.4 million before doing any surgery, just by taking supplements.
8.)Peeing on sticks can make you crazy. If you've been peeing on sticks, you know roughly when you ovulate. Don't do the every other day thing. A few days before you think you ovulate, start having sex. Do it every day until you're sure that you're done.
9.)Have sex when you know that you're definitely not ovulating. Baby making sex is awful and you need to make your sex life fun. Fertility issues are a bitch and you need to release stress and tension. You need to bond with each other and remember that sex can be fun. Putting your legs behind your neck can be for fun rather than gravity.
10.)3 daily cups of Green Tea, Vitamin B-6, and 3000 mg of Evening Primrose Oil from Cycle Day 1- Cycle Day 13 can really help your cervical mucus.
11.)Meditation and Yoga and guided visualizations are super helpful as well. One to try.
*List of Supplements My Husband Took:
1.)Vitamin E (one pill)
2.)Acetyl L-Carnitine (one pill)
3.)L-Carnitine Fumarate (one pill)
4.)Folic Acid (800 mcg)
5.)Fertile Aid For Him (The instructions say 3 pills, but my husband only took 2 because he said they were gross)
6.)New Chapter Everyman Multi (one per day)
7.)L-Arganine (2 pills)
8.)CoQ10 (400 + mg per day. Super important for motility- My husband did the chewable ones)
9.)B-Complex (one pill)
10.)D3 (2000 IU's per day)
So, I hope that this can help someone who is going through the same thing that we were a year and a half ago. If you have any questions for me, just leave them in the comments. I'm happy to check back and answer.
Good Luck and Baby Dust...
*These vitamins are all linked to Amazon, but we just got all our vitamins from Whole Foods. You can do that, or Target, or Walgreens, or Costco or whatever.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Help for Low Sperm Count, Low Motility, Varicocele, Varicocele Surgery Success Rates,
Update: I am just 2 days shy of 40 weeks pregnant! I'm so happy to be able to come back and say that we got pregnant naturally. When I first found out about DH's sperm issues back in 9/09, I was devastated and found that there was very little information on the internet. I started this blog back then to document our journey. I was hoping it would end with a natural BFP and it did. Good Luck and Baby Dust to you all, and I hope that my advice below can help some people out.
Hello,
Today I am 7 weeks pregnant. I am very nervous because it's still so early, and I've had some bleeding, mostly spotting, but some heavy bleeding. That was very scary. But we saw the fetal pole and the heartbeat, and the fetus measured perfectly a few days ago.
Anyway, I wanted to do a round up here.
I started this site in September 2009. The reason that I started it was because I found very little information about sperm issues on the internet. It seems that few people know much about it. I also found very few success stories of spontaneous pregnancy, it seemed that everyone jumped to IVF with ICSI for MFI.
Let's start from the beginning.
The Facts:
December 2008:
My husband and I began actively trying to conceive. I was 34 years old at the time and I assumed that I'd get pregnant immediately.
July 2009:
After no luck, I went to the doctor who checked me out. I was fine at that time, low FSH and good Estradiol levels and great Thyroid function.
September 2009:
My husband got checked and his counts were horrible. His sperm count was under 1 million (.8 million) and the motility was 12%.
I started him immediately on vitamins. He went into a urologist who diagnosed him with a varicocele. At that point, his sperm count was 16 million with 5% motility. I don't think that the vitamins did anything, the first test was probably a fluke.
We got him on a vitamin regimen and decided to get a second opinion from a Reproductive Endocrinologist before we did anything. She seemed to think that we could get pregnant easily with sperm wash and IUI.
January - April 2010:
When we did our sperm washes with her, she stated that his sperm count was up to 49 million with motility at 65% and that we should definitely not do a varicocele fix. So we canceled our surgery appointment.
We did a few IUI's with her, some natural, some clomid cycle and some natural clomid cycles. Nothing worked, and she stated that obviously something was wrong with me since his sperm count was so perfect. She said the only possible way that I would get pregnant was IVF. This was no longer a sperm issue, but an egg issue.
May 2010
We decided to get another opinion from a renowned Bay Area Reproductive Endocrinologist. He diagnosed me with PCOS and put me on metformin. Other than that he said it was a sperm issue, not an egg issue and that the only route for us was IVF with ICSI. He said to absolutely not get a varicocele surgery, that it would only make things worse, and it might prevent us from ever getting pregnant.
June 2010
We went back to the urologist for another opinion. He did a semenanalysis and his sperm count was 13 million with 17% motility. No big change there, though the motile sperm count did increase by 400%
As we talked to the doctor he said that he didn't know what was best. He knew that the chances of getting pregnant with IVF were 35% and the chances of conceiving after a varicocele surgery were also 35%. He said that we also knew that there was a sperm issue, we had a known variable there. It was a good conversation, not pushy and no agenda. Unlike the RE's who really told us that IVF was the only option. IVF was $22,000-$28,000 and varicocele surgery was $5,400.
July 2010:
My husband went under the knife and got the varicocele microsurgery.
We decided that we'd give the surgery the rest of the year to work, but then we'd go back and reconsider IVF.
December 2010:
Still no positive pregnancy test. My FSH has gone up to 8.6 and my estriadol has decreased. I'm getting nervous and we decide to check and see how his sperm is doing. My husband continues his vitamin regimen.
We get a semenalysis and the results come back 30 million sperm count and 14% motility. Though the count has improved the motility has not. My husband's urologist suggested that he not carry his cell phone in his pants pocket. He stopped completely.
January 2011:
We start the IVF process at yet another fertility clinic. This one we liked, Pacific Fertility Center. In preparation for IVF, my husband gave up alcohol 100%. He was meticulous about not keeping his phone in his pocket and he was very good about taking his vitamins. We just wanted IVF to finally work. We had it planned for March.
February 2011:
I start my infertility support group. We begin the process of IVF, sign up for our injection class, my meds are ordered and we figure out our finances, loans, etc for IVF.
We wait for my period to come as we are going to do one last IUI in February as we get them free from our insurance.
My period never comes. I get pregnant naturally!
Hello,
Today I am 7 weeks pregnant. I am very nervous because it's still so early, and I've had some bleeding, mostly spotting, but some heavy bleeding. That was very scary. But we saw the fetal pole and the heartbeat, and the fetus measured perfectly a few days ago.
Anyway, I wanted to do a round up here.
I started this site in September 2009. The reason that I started it was because I found very little information about sperm issues on the internet. It seems that few people know much about it. I also found very few success stories of spontaneous pregnancy, it seemed that everyone jumped to IVF with ICSI for MFI.
Let's start from the beginning.
The Facts:
December 2008:
My husband and I began actively trying to conceive. I was 34 years old at the time and I assumed that I'd get pregnant immediately.
July 2009:
After no luck, I went to the doctor who checked me out. I was fine at that time, low FSH and good Estradiol levels and great Thyroid function.
September 2009:
My husband got checked and his counts were horrible. His sperm count was under 1 million (.8 million) and the motility was 12%.
I started him immediately on vitamins. He went into a urologist who diagnosed him with a varicocele. At that point, his sperm count was 16 million with 5% motility. I don't think that the vitamins did anything, the first test was probably a fluke.
We got him on a vitamin regimen and decided to get a second opinion from a Reproductive Endocrinologist before we did anything. She seemed to think that we could get pregnant easily with sperm wash and IUI.
January - April 2010:
When we did our sperm washes with her, she stated that his sperm count was up to 49 million with motility at 65% and that we should definitely not do a varicocele fix. So we canceled our surgery appointment.
We did a few IUI's with her, some natural, some clomid cycle and some natural clomid cycles. Nothing worked, and she stated that obviously something was wrong with me since his sperm count was so perfect. She said the only possible way that I would get pregnant was IVF. This was no longer a sperm issue, but an egg issue.
May 2010
We decided to get another opinion from a renowned Bay Area Reproductive Endocrinologist. He diagnosed me with PCOS and put me on metformin. Other than that he said it was a sperm issue, not an egg issue and that the only route for us was IVF with ICSI. He said to absolutely not get a varicocele surgery, that it would only make things worse, and it might prevent us from ever getting pregnant.
June 2010
We went back to the urologist for another opinion. He did a semenanalysis and his sperm count was 13 million with 17% motility. No big change there, though the motile sperm count did increase by 400%
As we talked to the doctor he said that he didn't know what was best. He knew that the chances of getting pregnant with IVF were 35% and the chances of conceiving after a varicocele surgery were also 35%. He said that we also knew that there was a sperm issue, we had a known variable there. It was a good conversation, not pushy and no agenda. Unlike the RE's who really told us that IVF was the only option. IVF was $22,000-$28,000 and varicocele surgery was $5,400.
July 2010:
My husband went under the knife and got the varicocele microsurgery.
We decided that we'd give the surgery the rest of the year to work, but then we'd go back and reconsider IVF.
December 2010:
Still no positive pregnancy test. My FSH has gone up to 8.6 and my estriadol has decreased. I'm getting nervous and we decide to check and see how his sperm is doing. My husband continues his vitamin regimen.
We get a semenalysis and the results come back 30 million sperm count and 14% motility. Though the count has improved the motility has not. My husband's urologist suggested that he not carry his cell phone in his pants pocket. He stopped completely.
January 2011:
We start the IVF process at yet another fertility clinic. This one we liked, Pacific Fertility Center. In preparation for IVF, my husband gave up alcohol 100%. He was meticulous about not keeping his phone in his pocket and he was very good about taking his vitamins. We just wanted IVF to finally work. We had it planned for March.
February 2011:
I start my infertility support group. We begin the process of IVF, sign up for our injection class, my meds are ordered and we figure out our finances, loans, etc for IVF.
We wait for my period to come as we are going to do one last IUI in February as we get them free from our insurance.
My period never comes. I get pregnant naturally!
Friday, February 25, 2011
Finally Some Good News!
I'm finally pregnant! 6 1/2 months after my husband's surgery! No IVF, No IUI. Au naturel. I think that the varicocele surgery is a good idea. All the doctors told us not to do it, except the urologist. I am so happy we did it! I'll have the real numbers available next week.
Friday, December 24, 2010
5 months post varicocele surgery
So, my husband has his varicocele corrected on July 23rd. We went in a week ago for a semenalysis and though his count went up to 30 million per/ML, his motility is only 14%.
Unfortunately, it looks like it's IVF for us. I'm devastated. The cost is prohibitive and yet, we have to do what we have to do. We will be taking out loans. I'm distressed, depressed, anxious, and stressed. I feel alone and unhappy.
Unfortunately, it looks like it's IVF for us. I'm devastated. The cost is prohibitive and yet, we have to do what we have to do. We will be taking out loans. I'm distressed, depressed, anxious, and stressed. I feel alone and unhappy.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Friday, June 18, 2010
All these months later and still nothing...
Sorry to report, nothing. My husband went to do another semenalysis on Thursday. I guess we'll see what happens. Went to IVF doctor. It's all stressful.
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