If you have been diagnosed and are considering having a child, you may be wondering if fibroids and fertility problems go hand-in-hand. What you do not want is to go through months of trying to conceive, only to be unsuccessful and to then learn that you could have done something about it.
Fibroids do sometimes affect pregnancy, but certainly not always. Some women will conceive normally and go through their pregnancy with no complications at all,whereas for others, the situation is very different.
Fibroids are non-cancerous growths of muscle tissue which form inside or, more rarely, around the uterus. They are more common in women in their thirties or forties and can sometimes cause infertility. The growing tendency for women to have children later in life is the reason why fibroids are becoming a greater factor than before. There is little information around to teach women how to shrink fibroids, but they will reduce naturally during the menopause.
Before explaining a little about the specific ways fibroids can impact on fertility and pregnancy, I would like to relate the experiences of three women whose stories were told in a recent article about fibroids.
1. Eva wished that someone had sat her down at 30 and told her that she needed to have babies “now”. She had left it until later and now 40, has suffered 3 miscarriages as a result of fibroids. Incredibly, it was only after the third miscarriage that the fibroids were noticed on a scan. She sought private treatment and had 15 fibroids removed surgically and knew that the procedure could affect her chances of conception in the future. She felt she had no choice as she felt that although she was conceiving easily, she would have had another miscarriage.
2. At 37, Leona had fibroids and found that her treatment was unsatisfactory. She had asked her doctor, if there was a connection between fibroids and fertility as she was trying to conceive, and she had self-diagnosed. He was non-committal and she had to even fight to get a scan, as the doctor was dismissive. The scan found several large fibroids and these were subsequently removed. She described the experience as “the worst of her life” as she needed a blood transfusion afterwards due to severe blood loss. Then she caught three separate infections whilst in hospital, which required antibiotic treatment and was readmitted into hospital after going home with a burst abcess. Eventually, the infection cleared but she still hasn’t conceived and now fears that the operation has quashed her chances.
One doctor she has spoken to has said that if a woman wishes to achieve a pregnancy following fibroid surgery, the operation should be done by a fertility surgeon.
3. Diane, at 39 began to bleed when pregnant. Her local hospital told her she was having a miscarriage. Over a month later, she discovered that she hadn’t in fact miscarried, but had a fibroid which had began to bleed. However, she did miscarry a month down the line and had a scan. The doctor found a number of large fibroids which he said could prevent pregnancy or cause problems during the term if she conceived. At 40, she had a procedure to remove 17 fibroids and at 41 she conceived a child. During the cesarean birth, it was found that a number of left over fibroids were blocking the birth canal and these were removed during the procedure. However, she lost 6 pints of blood and was dangerously ill, although thankfully recovered.
The above stories are examples of fibroids and fertility problems.
In general, there are a known list of possible complications and issues and these are:-
* Fibroids can cause obstruction, blocking the cervix. Fibroids can also block the entrance to the fallopian tubes. This can cause problems with the passage of sperm and also delivery problems. The larger the fibroids, the greater the potential problems
* Fibroids located within the womb lining can cause the uterine lining to distort and cause a very early miscarriage
* “Unexplained infertility” is also an issue for many women with fibroids, even though after a scan has revealed that there is no particular reasons for any problems
Whilst there certainly can be a connection between fibroids and fertility problems, it should be remembered that most women will go on to have normal pregnancies. However, if you know you have fibroids and would like to minimize the impact, why not consider ways to shrink fibroids naturally rather than going through potentially dangerous surgery, which may not resolve the problem.
Please visit my website to see further comprehensive information about fibroids and fertility problems.
You can find full details of a 7 Step Plan for shrinking fibroids naturally at shrink fibroids.
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