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.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
IUI Number 2 Done
We did our second IUI yesterday. My husband had 48 hours of abstinence and with that, we still had 21 million motile sperm after the wash. Great numbers. My husband is convinced that the first 3 tests were a fluke. He won't admit that the vitamins and the boxers helped. Oh well. But yet, he still agrees to take them. So that's good, so he might on some level believe that it's helped.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Today I feel a bit better
So, I sent this email to my husband yesterday:
I'm so fucking pissed off. There is absolutely no reason why I should have to be on hormones. My body works perfectly and I'm totally screwing it up with all this stupid shit.
I have horrible cramps--I never get cramps. My period is barely coming. I'm in a horrible mood.
fuck this shit.
stupid ass annoying money sucking asshole stupid fucking babies aren't worth it. fuck our future babies. they can suck it because I AM NOT DOING THIS STUPID SHIT.
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK.
I HATE EVERYONE.
I have horrible cramps--I never get cramps. My period is barely coming. I'm in a horrible mood.
fuck this shit.
stupid ass annoying money sucking asshole stupid fucking babies aren't worth it. fuck our future babies. they can suck it because I AM NOT DOING THIS STUPID SHIT.
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK.
I HATE EVERYONE.
Husband called home immediately and listened to me cry. And then told me that we didn't have to do anything. He was so great. I called my doctor and told her that I didn't want to do the clomid. But this fertility thing is such a roller coaster. I hate that this is so medical. I hate that I'm on clomid. I talked to my Dr. yesterday to understand why I'm on clomid. She said that trying to get pregnant for over a year, and being that I'm 36 means that my egg quality is quickly declining. I just hate putting shit into my body. So I started clomid last night and could barely sleep. It was annoying. It was weird though, they said on day 2 of a full period, but then, my period hasn't been full until this morning. But my doctor said to go ahead and do it yesterday. So, here I am.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Continuance...
And we march on with the pro pregnancy issue. First thing my RE asked was "How do you feel about twins?" Um. Not good. Not that I'm anti twins, but wow. My family is on another coast, and my husband can't really support himself plus me and the kiddos. I'm sure he could if we didn't have to live in the most expensive city in the world. But, it is what it is.
I wonder why I am trying so hard to have children. I've never had that urge that I hear from so many other women, that intense urge for pregnancy. I do want a family though. I guess we'll see.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
I really thought
I really thought that the first IUI was going to work, especially with the fact that my husband's sperm count had gone up so much. I was so upset yesterday that I screamed "fuck" and threw the negative pregnancy test at the wall. The cap fell off and the pee end of the stick hit my husband in the head. Thank god he's understanding. Then I sat in our bedroom crying and crying and crying. I hate this. And as it gets longer, more and more and more of my friends are getting pregnant having kids, having their second and in some cases their thirds and in one case their fourth. I am so over this whole thing. Today I hate my husband and I hate San Francisco. Stupid expensive city.
IUI didn't work
So our first IUI did not work. Not good. My doctor wants to put me on clomid, with an HCG trigger plus injectables on the back end. It sucks. It's the male factor infertility yet I am the one who has to be pumped up full of hormones. I'm not happy about that.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
What's been going on.
So, my husband was diagnosed with a grade 2 varicocele. A varicocele is basically a varicose vein in his left testicle that heats up and kills off his sperm.
There are a few options for this:
1.)varicocele repair
2.)IVF with ICSI
Nothing is covered with insurance.
Varicocele repair costs $6000 with the doctor we wanted
to go with.
IVF is expensive and complicated.
Anyway, a few positive things have happened.
My husband made some changes, began some supplements and his sperm count has been steadily rising.
In September the first result that we got was .8 million (800,000 sperm count) with 12% motility
That is when we began to make some changes.
in October it went up to 16 million with 5% motility
in November it went up to 20 million with 37% motility
in January it went up to 49 million with 55% motility! Yay! Normal without drugs or surgery!
We decided to go to a reproductive endocrynologist who suggested an IUI plus varicocele repair.
So we scheduled his varicocelectomy and did an IUI a few days ago. My husband had a sperm count
there and found that his sperm count had gone up to 49 million with a motility of 55%.
Amazing.
Anyway, hopefully that did it. I really want to be pregnant already. I'll find out in two weeks.
This is what we did.
1.) My husband changed from boxer briefs to regular boxers
2.) He cut down on alcohol.
3.) He began taking vitamins and supplements.
This is what he took:
1.) New Chapter Mens Vitamins - you have to take 3 at a time. There is also a one daily but my husband
couldn't stomach it.
3 each evening
1 each morning
1 each morning and 1 each morning
4.)Fertilaid
The dosage is 3, but my husband could only stomach 2 each morning.
Anyway, I hope that I am pregnant. And I hope that this information can help some other people.
I'll post when I find out.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
The Whole Story
I was 34 when we actually first started trying, just a couple of months shy of my 35th birthday. But I figured that we'd try before the dreaded 35th birthday. We tried faithfully each month. I have a clearblue easy ovulation predictor computer. After about a year of trying, we decided to get tested, go to Hawaii, relax and have a vacation. Before we left, I got my blood checked. All my hormones came out normal, my FSH was super low, and I was feeling psyched, that maybe we needed to just relax and that our trip to Hawaii would help us to get pregnant. However, my doctor suggested that we test my husband too. Before we left, he went to the lab to get tested. Poor guy, he's so shy and the test was totally humiliating and traumatizing to him. He practically cried when he came home. And to top it off, he cut himself on the side of the cup. I felt so bad for him.
Anyway, we went to Hawaii and just 2 days into our week long trip, at 6am, my doctor called to tell me that the reason that I'm not getting pregnant is that my husband's sperm count and sperm motility is low. Exceedingly low. Anything under 20 million sperm per ML is low, and his were 800,000. -- Not even a million. His motility, which needs to be at least 50% was 12%.
I was so freaked. I started crying. And needless to say, it ruined our trip to Hawaii. Though, not really. We tried not to think about it.
I was really upset. I was hysterical and would start crying out of nowhere the first few days. My husband would barely talk about it with me. I felt awful. I was so upset but I had no one to talk to. We were both trying to process this, but he wouldn't process it with me. He just wanted me to change the subject and try to enjoy our vacation. Point taken. But I continued to be upset.
When we got back to California, we looked around for urologists. Not simple, most don't bill insurance and charge $500-$600 for a consultation! And it's billed as infertility which most insurance doesn't cover.
Anyway, my husband finally talked to a urologist specializing in male fertility. He felt relieved and happy to talk to him. And I spoke with his patient coordinator who was friendly and spent a long time talking to me on the phone.
My husband has to wait for some lab orders, get his blood drawn and then we can go forward with our first appointment.
Meanwhile I'm ovulating so I've pushed my husband to take guaifenesin and I've been taking it too. I figure that if he only has a couple of sperm, there's no reason not to thin out all those viscous cervical and seminal fluids in order to give the little buggers a fighting chance.
I'll keep posting as I learn more. I'm hoping to help other couples to have hope and information as I continue to find out more as it relates to our particular case.
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