Real-life stories from OvuSense users and essential information from fertility experts
As the world grapples with how to best control the spread of the novel coronavirus, one thing is consistent – we are all being advised to stay at home. Unfortunately, this means that many non-emergency medical appointments are also being postponed, including fertility treatments. If this is affecting you, we are so sorry for the frustration you may be feeling.
When you’re trying to conceive, even a delay of a few weeks can feel like an eternity. However, there are a few things you can be doing at home to be working towards understanding and improving your fertility until your regular care resumes.
After 10+ years of trying to conceive, and always being told that IVF would be their only option, Paulina and her husband had all but given up hope that they would be able to conceive naturally. But on their 14th cycle of trying, the universe had different plans. Read more about this couple’s journey to parenthood – expected October 2020 – and how OvuSense helped Paulina learn more about her cycles with PCOS!
I found out many years ago that I have PCOS with next to no periods and my husband had many issues with his sperm. After multiple appointments and over a decade of trying, the outcome was always the same: the only way that you would be able to get pregnant is through IVF. Over the years, I managed to lose weight (2.5stone) and managed to regulate my periods – all that was missing was “DID I OVULATE?” With Ovusense's help, it confirmed my ovulation every cycle as long as I didn’t miss a day.
Endometriosis Awareness Month takes place across the globe during the month of March with a mission to raise awareness of a disease which affects an estimated 200 million women worldwide. Similar to infertility, this condition can hold a lot of stigma so women are often anxious to speak openly about their experience. Additionally, it can be challenging to receive an official diagnosis for this condition.
Just as we look to bring a voice to women struggling with infertility, we would like to use this week’s blog to bring additional awareness to endometriosis, as this is a leading cause of infertility in women.
Celebrated on March 8th each year, International Women’s Day is an opportunity to recognize women who have made a difference in our past and continue to shape our society today. This year’s theme focuses on equality and raising awareness, and one of the biggest issues we’re working to raise awareness of at OvuSense is infertility. While infertility affects nearly 1 in 8 women, there is still so much taboo around infertility and barriers that remain in receiving treatment.
International Women’s Day is also devoted to the idea of ‘Collective Individualism,’ which is the notion that each individual action and story can have an impact on our larger society. By learning from other women and sharing our own experiences and strengths, we can have a larger collective impact than we could alone. As such, we wanted to take the opportunity to recognize a few women who are changing the dialogue about infertility by speaking out about their own experiences and advocating for others.
This week on our blog, we're sharing the experience of one of our users, Katrina, who recently started the blog "Optimistically Hopeful" to share her experience with infertility. Read on to learn more about her journey, why she decided to give OvuSense a try, and how it's helped her so far.
I experienced a miscarriage in October of 2018. Shortly after that, my husband and I conceived in February 2019. Unfortunately, we delivered our daughter at 20 weeks. After delivering our daughter it became challenging for me to track my ovulation which has made it hard for us to conceive again. It was then that I began my search for something that could help me along this journey.
By: Dr. Irfana Koita
Ovulation Induction is a type of fertility treatment that requires medication to encourage the ovaries to release eggs ready for fertilisation; either as part of a natural home conception or more commonly used within a tailored fertility treatment schedule such as IUI.
Ovulation Induction is usually recommended as a fertility treatment for women who:
If you’re trying to conceive, you likely spend a good amount of time thinking about what you can do to increase your fertility — external changes you can make in the hopes of impacting what will happen inside of you. The truth is that not only can your fertility be impacted by the environment around you, but going through infertility can have unintended impacts on other areas of your life as well.
To finish out our three-part series, we want to talk about the interconnectivity of all aspects of your life, including how your professional environment can impact your ability to conceive…. and what you can do to not let your relationships suffer during what can be an extraordinarily emotional time. Continue reading for some insight into how your surrounding and connections can impact your fertility journey, and vice versa.
Infertility can be an isolating experience, and one blogger, Carmen, recently broke her silence. While her blog, called Living Letter Home, usually covers her efforts making their 1980s house into their forever home, Carmen took a break from her regularly scheduled content to share her experience with PCOS and infertility, and provide support for others who might be going through the same thing.
Learning She Had PCOS
Carmen and her husband got married in 2012 and decided to start trying right away as they knew they both wanted kids. Immediately, she knew something was wrong, but her doctor encouraged her to keep trying for a full year before running any tests. After changing doctors and receiving a series of bloodwork to identify the problem, Carmen was diagnosed with PCOS in 2014. While her doctor assured her this “wasn’t a death sentence,” (in Carmen’s words) it did mean it would be harder for them to get pregnant.
If you are trying to conceive, it’s very likely that you have given some consideration to your current health. You may have prioritized your physical health — getting your body “baby-ready” with good diet and nutrition, regular exercise, or any number of vitamins and supplements. However, have you actually spent any time considering how healthy and fertile your mind is right now?
In the second installment of our three-part series, we hope to share some insight into how exactly your mindset impacts your fertility, and what you can control in order to reduce the stress along your fertility journey. Keep reading for some things to keep in mind (and some to keep out!) in order to preserve or improve your mental health while trying to conceive.
