The Importance of Communication and A Fertility Treatment Game Plan
The fact that men handle infertility problems differently than women is no surprise. When struggling to conceive, couples often have difficulty communicating their feelings and concerns with one another. Many men prefer to think alone, whereas women commonly want to discuss it openly and often. In order to avoid frustration, it is important to understand each partners’ different communication style. Settle on a way to communicate with each other that lessens the stress and frustration. Strike a deal on how often you want to discuss your situation so that each partners needs are met.
Most importantly, both need to realize that their fertility issue is caused by a physical condition shared by the two of you. While many women are ready to take it on as their own problem, lots of men prefer to wait and are hesitant to admit that there is a problem at all. “As a woman gets older, it is important to avoid spending too much valuable time trying to conceive,” says Dr. Hummel.
Both Drs. Hummel and Kettel suggest that couples sit together and create a game plan with realistic timelines and backup plans. Choose a time-frame, somewhere between 6 and 12 months, to achieve a pregnancy. Dr. Kettel suggests that when women are less than 35 years old they try on their own for 1 year, but if the woman is older than 35 shorten this interval to only 6 months in regards to when to see a fertility specialist.
Agree with your partner to explore fertility treatments if you are not successful within your timeline. Discuss how aggressive you want to be, but realize that your comfort zone may change as treatments are tried. It is important to exchange thoughts about treatment options available. Some couples will try anything to conceive, including sperm donation, egg donation or surrogacy. If you keep communication channels open in your partnership and your relationship with your fertility specialist, you’ll have less stress and more success realizing your dreams of having children.
