INFERTILITY :WHEN TO VISIT YOUR DOCTOR

If you are facing infertility and unable to decide what’s the right time to ask for a doctors advice then this article is for you

First we have to understand what do doctors mean by infertility.

The medical definition is “1 year of unprotected intercourse without conception”.So the important facts to kept in mind are-

· If you are under 35 and have been trying for less than 1 yr, you can still wait.In the meantime you can try to concentrate on your fertile days,thus increasing chances of becoming pregnant.(I’ll talk about fertile days in my upcoming article).Remember even in completely healthy fertile couples chances of getting pregnant in any particular month is just 20-25%.So have patience,you are going to need lots of it when you succeed.

· Visit your doctor if its been longer than a year since you have been trying.

· But you may be thinking ,is that 1 yr rule a must for everyone……no dear,its not

· You don’t have to wait for 1 yr if you have trouble conceiving and you are

• above 35yrs
  
• Have irregular or infrequent periods
  
• If you have history of pelvic infection or endometriosis
  

· If you have any doubts or questions feel free to post,I’ll be happy to answer them.


Written by
Dr Deepti Gupta
(Consulting Gynaecologist)

www.resolve.org/main/national
Support for infertile couples

A Calender for every woman

A Calendar for every woman’s table

So much to do and so little time, so what are the things that climb the preference ladder and what the things that are left behind……I hope health is somewhere high So here’s a checklist to do things to keep yourself healthy

Every 5 years
Oh once in 5 yrs is really something infrequent, surely you can do something just ONCE in 5 yrs if it keeps you healthy and warns you about hidden enemies. So what can you do
.
Lipid profile assessment: Now what’s that? That a simple test to let the doctor know how honest were you when answering his questions about your diet and exercise .It measures your Blood cholesterol which can harden your arteries and can lead to so many things.
So if you are not obese and have no family history of lipid disorders you can wait up to 45th birthday and then get it done every 5 yrs.

TSH: It will test how well are the thyroid glands doing their work .The thyroid glands needs to take this exam every 5 yrs after the age of 50.

Every 3 years

Fasting blood glucose: With diabetes on rise we need to put a check on our glucose levels …every 3 yrs after 45
Clinical breast examination: I know you are religiously doing the breast self examination but let it be someone else’s headache once in a while. If you are in your 20s and 30s get them checked once in 3yrs and every year if you are in your 40s.

Every year
Some test which has to be done every year must be something very important for your body …I don’t think so you’ll like to miss it!

Pap smear: Yes the famous Pap smear, but the good news is that after the age of 30, you and your doctor can decide to do these tests less frequently if you have 3 consecutive normal tests.

Mammography: Women age 40 and older should have a screening mammogram every year and should continue to do so for as long as they are in good health.



Colorectal Cancer Screening: Once you are 50, ACOG recommends colonoscopy every 10yrs but if you don’t want something riding up your body you can take the option of testing faecal occult blood every year.

Every month
Such things are best done on a stipulated date or day every month like the 10th of every month or the 1st Sunday.

Breast Self examination : Do that once a month….doesn’t take long.Report any breast changes to your doctor right away.

Every day :
Exercise for at least 30–60 minutes on most or all days of the week.
Look in the mirror and say aloud ..Hi beautiful!



Written by Dr Deepti Gupta
(Consulting Gynaecologist)
References from American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists