Getting Pregnant After 40 - The Cost of Fertility Treatments
It is devastating to realize that you may be infertile. However, if
you are infertile, this does not mean you cannot become pregnant. It
just means you have been trying to conceive for the past 12 months
without success or six months if you are 35 years of age or older. In
addition, if you can get pregnant but have trouble staying pregnant,
you would also be considered infertile. This devastation can lead to
anger and resentment along with sadness. This is absolutely normal.
You have every right to feel this way but eventually, you will need to
make a decision on what to do. If you decide you can live without
having a baby and raising a child, then good for you. Enjoy your
freedom and lavish yourself with your hard earned money. If, however,
you decide that you still want to have a baby despite this set back,
you are going to realize that there are many options available to you.
Once you make this decision, you should head to your doctor's office.
Your doctor will perform a physical examination of both you and your
partner as well as take both of your sexual histories. With this
information, your doctor will recommend the best course of action.
Before going any further, this is a good time to mention that you and
your partner should decide how far you want to go with fertility
treatments. Though medicine has come a long way, there are many
couples that still cannot conceive. Undergoing fertility treatments
does take an emotional toll for, not only the woman, but also her
partner. It can put a strain on the relationship as well as strain
your mental health. The emotional aspect aside, there is also the
monetary strain.
If money is of no concern, good luck getting pregnant. But if it is a
concern, you should check with your insurance provider to learn what
your policy will cover and not cover or if it covers anything at all.
As you can imagine, the costs can be quite daunting. Not taking into
account the visit to the doctor and all the costs associated with
that, the popular fertility drug Clomiphene typically runs about $50
per month while injections of gonadotropin will run $2,000 to $5,000
every month. The use of fertility drugs is usually the first thing
that you will be prescribed. However, they have a success rate between
20 percent and 60 percent. If fertility drugs do not yield a
successful pregnancy, you still have other options.
Women typically state that taking fertility drugs are not a hassle and
do not take an emotional toll. This is especially the case when the
woman moves on to other fertility treatments that are more invasive.
Generally, the more invasive the procedure, the more expensive it is.
For example, if your doctor believes surgery can correct your
fertility problems such as clearing a blocked fallopian tube, removing
ovarian cysts, or removing scar tissue, surgeries like these can run
from $3,000 to $10,000. Surgery is only good if it is shown that you
do have a blockage or scar tissue that hinders ovulation. If you do
not show signs of having any of these conditions, artificial
insemination is a well-known procedure. This is when sperm is injected
directly into your uterus in the hopes that the sperm will have an
easier time fertilizing the egg. Be prepared to pay between $300 and
$700 per treatment. Once this procedure does not provide the desired
result, this is where things can get really expensive. In vitro
fertilization (IVF), Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT), and Zygote
intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) will each cost approximately $8,000 to
$15,000 per attempt while Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) will
run about $10,000 to $17,000.
The use of donor eggs and embryos is also an option for you however
this will cost anywhere between $10,000 and $20,000 which does not
include compensation for the donor. Then, there is the use of a
gestational carrier. A gestational carrier is a woman who agrees to
carry your embryo to term, and then once the baby is born, will sign
away her parental rights over to you. Using a gestational carrier may
cost anywhere from $15,000 to $50,000 depending on the legal fees set
up by lawyers and/or an agency.
There are many options that are at your disposal but, as you can see,
these options can get quite expensive so it is well worth repeating
that before you decide you want to undergo fertility treatments, it is
a good idea to decide how far you and your partner want to take it.
The emotional toll and the financial toll cannot be overlooked and it
is only up to you to decide where to draw the line.
you are infertile, this does not mean you cannot become pregnant. It
just means you have been trying to conceive for the past 12 months
without success or six months if you are 35 years of age or older. In
addition, if you can get pregnant but have trouble staying pregnant,
you would also be considered infertile. This devastation can lead to
anger and resentment along with sadness. This is absolutely normal.
You have every right to feel this way but eventually, you will need to
make a decision on what to do. If you decide you can live without
having a baby and raising a child, then good for you. Enjoy your
freedom and lavish yourself with your hard earned money. If, however,
you decide that you still want to have a baby despite this set back,
you are going to realize that there are many options available to you.
Once you make this decision, you should head to your doctor's office.
Your doctor will perform a physical examination of both you and your
partner as well as take both of your sexual histories. With this
information, your doctor will recommend the best course of action.
Before going any further, this is a good time to mention that you and
your partner should decide how far you want to go with fertility
treatments. Though medicine has come a long way, there are many
couples that still cannot conceive. Undergoing fertility treatments
does take an emotional toll for, not only the woman, but also her
partner. It can put a strain on the relationship as well as strain
your mental health. The emotional aspect aside, there is also the
monetary strain.
If money is of no concern, good luck getting pregnant. But if it is a
concern, you should check with your insurance provider to learn what
your policy will cover and not cover or if it covers anything at all.
As you can imagine, the costs can be quite daunting. Not taking into
account the visit to the doctor and all the costs associated with
that, the popular fertility drug Clomiphene typically runs about $50
per month while injections of gonadotropin will run $2,000 to $5,000
every month. The use of fertility drugs is usually the first thing
that you will be prescribed. However, they have a success rate between
20 percent and 60 percent. If fertility drugs do not yield a
successful pregnancy, you still have other options.
Women typically state that taking fertility drugs are not a hassle and
do not take an emotional toll. This is especially the case when the
woman moves on to other fertility treatments that are more invasive.
Generally, the more invasive the procedure, the more expensive it is.
For example, if your doctor believes surgery can correct your
fertility problems such as clearing a blocked fallopian tube, removing
ovarian cysts, or removing scar tissue, surgeries like these can run
from $3,000 to $10,000. Surgery is only good if it is shown that you
do have a blockage or scar tissue that hinders ovulation. If you do
not show signs of having any of these conditions, artificial
insemination is a well-known procedure. This is when sperm is injected
directly into your uterus in the hopes that the sperm will have an
easier time fertilizing the egg. Be prepared to pay between $300 and
$700 per treatment. Once this procedure does not provide the desired
result, this is where things can get really expensive. In vitro
fertilization (IVF), Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT), and Zygote
intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) will each cost approximately $8,000 to
$15,000 per attempt while Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) will
run about $10,000 to $17,000.
The use of donor eggs and embryos is also an option for you however
this will cost anywhere between $10,000 and $20,000 which does not
include compensation for the donor. Then, there is the use of a
gestational carrier. A gestational carrier is a woman who agrees to
carry your embryo to term, and then once the baby is born, will sign
away her parental rights over to you. Using a gestational carrier may
cost anywhere from $15,000 to $50,000 depending on the legal fees set
up by lawyers and/or an agency.
There are many options that are at your disposal but, as you can see,
these options can get quite expensive so it is well worth repeating
that before you decide you want to undergo fertility treatments, it is
a good idea to decide how far you and your partner want to take it.
The emotional toll and the financial toll cannot be overlooked and it
is only up to you to decide where to draw the line.
Source...