Is IVF success guaranteed?
A lot of people are under the impression that IVF is a shortcut and guarantee for pregnancy. They think ~ I’ll do IVF, they’ll harvest a bunch of eggs and sperm, create a bunch of embryos, genetically test them, and then transfer a grade A embryo that will certainly result in a successful pregnancy and baby.
That is a great idea. But unfortunately, in reality, that’s not actually true.
Now, before I go further I want to say that IVF is a wonderful technology, and I’m really glad that we have it, some people really do need it, and I have so many clients who now have lovely babies thanks to IVF. They are beautiful and healthy and I’m so glad that it all worked out. Thank goodness for IVF when you really need it. We’re lucky to live in a time when we have choices. There are things that you can do when you need heavy intervention to get pregnant, and these technologies are really useful.
But what I see is that a lot of people are pushed into IVF too early or through fear, and they’re using IVF to circumvent rather than solve problems. There’s this idea that IVF will resolve everything is not realistic. It actually has quite low success rates, relatively. And solving and addressing problems is usually a really good idea.
What are IVF success rates?
Based on data from the CDC, the national average success rate of an IVF cycle for a woman younger than 35 is around 40%. And it takes an average of 2-3 cycles for IVF to work. IVF does not mean a guaranteed sure-fire pregnancy.
Many of my patients have been told that if they don’t do IVF they'll have a less than 1% chance of getting pregnant or something like that. Which is really scary to hear. But the truth is, no one knows that. No one can know that for you, an individual (you're not a statistic).
Many pursue IVF because they see it as the only other option; many assume that it's the faster and quicker method (or maybe that’s what they’re told by their doctor. But as you can see the average is 2-3 cycles, so it doesn’t sound faster and quicker to me and 35% success rate doesn’t sound faster and quicker)
The truth is.. it may not be!
Why does IVF often fail?
IVF can do nothing to improve chromosomal issues; it can only screen for them. Clomid and IVF cannot substitute for poor egg, sperm, and cellular health.
IVF does not address underlying reproductive health, rather it is a technology that tries to go around the problem.
The idea is that if you harvest a ton of eggs and embryos with IVF stim drugs, then the chances of getting at least one viable embryo are better than in any given month with just one egg being ovulated.
But, here's the thing, IVF only has to work with the raw materials that you have to give it – the quality of your eggs and sperm.
If you take the time to boost your egg quality first, your chances of getting good quality embryos are higher.
I believe that this is why roughly 90% of clomid cycles and 60-70% of IVF cycles fail. People are usually not preparing their bodies properly and allowing enough time to resolve their fertility naturally, instead incorrectly assuming that IVF will just take care of everything.
You could pay thousands more than necessary, endure more pain and spend precious time and it still may not work.. because… your body may not be ready for pregnancy.
How to support the chances of IVF success?
So this goes to show you how important it is to prepare. And this is the best way to support IVF success - to prepare.
Here’s what I recommend you do to prepare for IVF success:
Take 3-4 months to prime your fertility and epigenetics – based on the science and biology of folliculogenesis and spermatogenesis (how eggs and sperm growth and mature) that’s how long it takes to successfully impact sperm quality and ovarian function (which is another fancy way of saying egg quality). Don’t rush into fertility treatment, first prepare your fertility. It’s like preparing the soil of your garden before you plant your seeds.
Spend this time nourishing your fertility with a super healthy diet, quality supplements, balance stress and hormones, get lots of rest. And make sure you are as fertile as possible before you begin IVF.
The Becoming Mama Framework
Together these 10 Steps provide a complete blueprint to holistically improve all the factors that affect your fertility.
You rinse and repeat these steps every cycle, and every cycle gets more and more fertile, until you're pregnant.
Plus a keep-the-faith mindset so that the stress of TTC doesn't affect your relationships, happiness, and fertility.
This is exactly what I walk you through how to do in the Becoming Mama program. It gives you a complete blueprint for restoring and improving your fertility. If you’d like really detailed specifics and recommendations, meal plans and supplement recommendations, acupressure protocols, and more... to do all you can do to support IVF success rates... then this is for you. You can learn more about it here.
I hope you have a beautiful day, and remember, your fertile health is a daily practice.
Katie
You might be interested in these articles:
So, how can I help you?
