Fertility and Hormones
By the time we make the connection between our fertility and hormone balance, we are usually sitting in a fertility specialist’s office.
I will help you make the connection between your hormones and your fertility as early as possible, maybe even providing you some information that may keep you away from the fertility specialist and welcoming a baby in peace and joy.
We are only fertile for about 48-72 hours a month. These few hours are directly connected to the time when we ovulate.
Ovulation occurs 15 days before a period so we never quite know when the blessed moment occurs. Ovulation indicators may help but the good old “basal temperature” thermometer is still the gold standard.
Ovulation usually occurs with one egg being pushed out of one ovary. Most women alternate the ovary that ovulates from month to month. Sometimes, both ovaries produce one egg and if we do get pregnant it could mean twins. Twins run in families so you can look around yours and get a fair idea what your chances are.
Ovulation leading to the creation of a fertile, healthy egg is the result of the interaction between multiple factors. Hormones, by far, are the most important determinants of the outcome.
To ovulate, you need to have an internal cycle of Estradiol and progesterone production that peaks at the proper time. The pituitary, master gland in the brain, supervises the whole process with its own hormone production that instructs your ovaries and adrenal glands to do what’s right for you.
The egg gets larger and healthier and more mature as ovulation nears and finally, when the hormone balance has caused the egg to become ripe enough, it will be extruded from the ovary.
From there the egg travels down the Fallopian tubes which are thin tubes that connect the ovary to the uterus. The Fallopian tubes are directly connected to the uterus, but are open at the ovary end allowing for the egg to possibly land in the abdominal cavity which will definitely not help fertilize it.
Once the egg arrives in the uterus, if it gets fertilized, it embeds into the welcoming uterine lining and with the help of estriol and progesterone starts its growth for the following 40 weeks.
Between ovulation and the actual start of the pregnancy, many things have to happen.
While the mechanics of getting pregnant are often overlooked, we need to realize that the egg has to get released into the Fallopian tube and travel down to the uterus to get implanted. Anything short of that path will only lead to ectopic pregnancy if the egg gets fertilized and implants into the Fallopian tube. These mechanics are also supervised by the hormones that determine our fertility.
We always focus on the estrogen and progesterone connections.
Progesterone is used by all conventional obstetricians to increase the chances of an already fertilized egg to get properly implanted and settle into the lining of the uterus. You too can help by taking micronized, bioidentical progesterone the week before your period to help increase the chances of getting the egg to implant in the uterus.
Another important hormone connection to your fertility is made by the thyroid. The debate over thyroid will continue for years but I can assure you that in my practice I have seen hundreds of women who were told their thyroid test all checked out fine and yet they could not conceive. The doctors told them they should try IVF or other infertility methods.
I found many of these women when placed on low doses of thyroid hormone (cytomel or armour thyroid) “miraculously” (or maybe not) got pregnant.
Finally, as you embark on your quest for improved fertility trying to avoid the need for invasive fertility drugs, make sure you manage your stress and you do not fall pray to scare tactics by doctors who do not yet know that the mind and the body are one and the same.
Give yourself time and gentle support. Try balancing your hormones and your life and see how normal getting pregnant may be. Do not panic and do not take in negatives. Set reasonable expectations and live your life in peace now.
When you’re struggling to get pregnant, it can be hard to know where to begin to identify the problem. One of the first things you should do is evaluate your hormone status. When your hormones are out of balance, your body is not able to function optimally. Learn how hormones affect fertility. Click on the button below to get Fertility Enhancement Guide: The Hormone Connection today.
