What are Infertility Symptoms?
If you and your partner are trying to get pregnant, you can easily become frustrated after just a couple of months of periods that aren’t missed or pregnancy tests that come back negative. Don’t despair, though, because you aren’t technically considered infertile until you’ve been trying – which means having frequent sexual intercourse at the right times – for a year. If you’re wondering what some of the infertility symptoms are outside of the actual lack of pregnancy, you’re in luck. While the reasons for infertility can be difficult to diagnose, there are a few symptoms that can clue you in on possible fertility problems before your year of trying is up.
Hormone Troubles
While the word “hormonal” is used more often for women than men, men actually have plenty of hormones in their bodies that control things like sexual function. For both men and women, when the hormones are out of whack – when there is either too much or too little of any one particular hormone in the body at a given time – the whole reproductive system can cease to function properly. In women, unbalanced hormones can mean lack of ovulation or simply ovulation at the wrong time, and for men, hormonal imbalances can cause problems with their sperm.
While the symptoms of hormone imbalances are many and varied, you may be able to notice some of them in yourself. For one thing, major changes in sex drive can signal hormonal changes, and many men with low levels of testosterone will experience a drop in sex drive and erectile problems. Women may become moody, have irregular periods, or experience significant weight loss or weight gain. Because men and women have the same reproductive hormones – simply in different concentrations – both men and women can have an overabundance of estrogen, which can cause emotional issues and things like bloating.
Sexual Issues
Obviously the more difficult it is to have sex, the more difficult it will be to conceive. Sexual dysfunctions like erectile issues and painful sex – for either men or women – can signal fertility problems later down the road, if only because a couple who is having problems like these is less likely to have sex at the right times to conceive a child. If you’re seeing any sexual problems in yourself or your spouse, it would be a good time to go to your doctor, especially if you’re trying to conceive a child.
Other Health Problems
While there aren’t any specific health issues that will certainly cause infertility, there are a lot of problems in both men and women that have been linked to infertility. Risk factors for infertility include being very over- or under-weight, smoking, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, and taking in too much caffeine. Also, people who have certain sexually transmitted diseases are at a much higher risk for infertility, as are people who are taking certain medications, are being treated for cancer, or are constantly exposed to a number of environmental pollutants.
What You Can Do
Trying to conceive a child should be a fun, exciting time in your life. The best way to up your odds of conceiving naturally is to stay generally healthy; if you notice major, unexplained mood swings or other indicators of hormonal problems, if you have problems having fun, if having sex is uncomfortable, or if you are dealing with other health issues, now is a good time to go to the doctor and get these issues checked out. Being at your absolute healthiest is the simplest way to ensure that your conception and pregnancy go as smoothly as possible, even if you do end up needing to use some assisted reproduction therapies to make it happen in the end.
