Real Talk 4th August 2021 by Denise Curtin

Finding Out About Your Fertility With ReproMed

STELLAR PROMOTION: The first step to solving a problem is speaking up about it, and fertility issues are no different.

One of Ireland’s leading fertility care clinics, ReproMed, recently undertook an awareness campaign aimed at those in their 20’s and early 30’s. The #letstalkfertility campaign seeks to educate, empower women and afford them the opportunities to take their fertility health and future into their own hands. With life, work, relationships, friends and family all vying for attention, the one thing you can do is take control of your fertility.

The topic of fertility/infertility does not often come up in general conversation, but it can be incredibly difficult for those who are going through it. And the more that young women speak about their fertility future plans, the less stigma will be associated with it.

According to Ciana Moorcroft, fertility nurse with ReproMed, the clinic is seeing an increase in younger women accessing egg freezing and AMH testing (following a consultation with a doctor). The availability of the AMH test which analyses your ovarian reserves, and the growth in egg freezing are both testament to the increased desire of women to give themselves a safety net for the future.

Some key things to know if you are keen to investigate your fertility

• Age is the biggest factor to consider when you’re studying your fertility as it starts to naturally decline in your early-mid thirties. The monthly reminder that your fertility is finite should not be ignored. A particular discussion that most women will have at some stage in their lives is whether to have a baby or not, and although you may spend your 20’s and early 30’s trying not to conceive, this is actually the optimum time for your ovaries and overall fertility health.

• Don’t get to the panicky stage of disappointment and frustration, and give yourself that comfort blanket knowing you have not only checked your AMH levels (which test your ovarian reserve) but if you decide to proceed with egg freezing, you are freezing young, healthy eggs which will have a greater chance in the future if you need to resort to fertility treatment.

• Be as healthy as you can be. Try and maintain a healthy weight, don’t smoke, cut down on alcohol, get some exercise and take folic acid routinely.

Real life story: Hillary Murphy, her husband Eanan and baby Arya Raymond

At 28 and 32, having tried to conceive for more than two years, in the summer of 2018 Hillary and Eanan were referred by her GP to ReproMed in Galway, when her AMH came back normal. After the usual testing, many scans and a hysterosalpingogram, the couple were diagnosed with unexplained infertility. Unexplained infertility is when there is no underlying cause for the inability to conceive and it can affect as many as one in three couples who are having problems conceiving.

They did three rounds of fertility treatments between October 2018 and February 2019. at February, Hillary’s eggs were collected and Ayra was a grade A, day 5 blast who was transferred on February 26th 2019. The couple had a confirmation scan at 7 weeks and it was then when they finally saw a heartbeat on the screen. Unfortunately, Hillary got hyperemesis and every complication that could come with that, so the pregnancy was a difficult one, but at 39 weeks and 6 days Ayra Raymond Murphy was born by elective C-section and a after a quick stay in NICU, has been just a dream ever since!

Follow ReproMed on socials for more information! 

@repromed.ireland / www.repromed.ie

Tags: