{"id":918,"date":"2016-06-07T09:45:00","date_gmt":"2016-06-07T16:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.avawomen.com\/avaworld\/?p=918"},"modified":"2020-08-07T06:19:32","modified_gmt":"2020-08-07T13:19:32","slug":"cant-get-pregnant-again-secondary-infertility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.avawomen.com\/avaworld\/cant-get-pregnant-again-secondary-infertility\/","title":{"rendered":"When You Can’t Get Pregnant Again"},"content":{"rendered":"

The first one was easy, and now you’re ready for another. You keep trying, but it hasn’t happened yet. You know your body\u00a0is capable of getting pregnant\u2014so why isn’t it happening?<\/p>\n

If you conceived and carried your first child, it may come as a shock to receive a diagnosis of secondary infertility. Medically, the term refers to couples who, after 12 months of unprotected sex, fail to conceive another child, but most experts also include recurrent miscarriage in the definition.<\/p>\n

Nearly a quarter of couples seeking infertility treatment already have children. Yet parents are only half as likely to seek medical help for trouble conceiving as those\u00a0suffering from primary infertility. They’re often reluctant to seek help because they assume that their previous successful pregnancies are proof\u00a0that everything is in working order. But when it comes to fertility, past success is no guarantee of future success.<\/p>\n

Sometimes secondary infertility is simply a result of age\u2014by the time you have your second child, you’re older, and may not be as fertile. Other times, it’s the result of a new condition that wasn’t present before. In these cases, it’s worth exploring most of the same conditions that cause primary infertility as possible causes.<\/p>\n

Even if you got pregnant quickly the first time, it’s perfectly normal for the second time to take longer. Remember, even at the peak of fertility, a woman’s chances of conceiving during any given cycle are only 30 percent.\u00a0The amount of time you should allow before seeking medical advice depends on your age. If you’re under 30, give it a year. If you’re over 30, see a doctor after six months.<\/p>\n

If you do see a doctor, these are the most common causes of secondary infertility that they’ll check for:<\/p>\n

What Causes Secondary Infertility?<\/h2>\n

Egg Quality.<\/h4>\n

For most women, peak fertility happens between the ages of 15 and 30, with a drop-off after 30 and a plunge at 35 (by age 36, almost 25 percent of women may be infertile).<\/p>\n

Just one or two years can change the quantity or quality of your eggs. You may have conceived easily at 31, and be running out of eggs at 33. Even if you’re ovulating each month, the older you are, the more likely it is that your eggs are suffering from chromosomal damage. Damaged eggs are less likely to become fertilized or go to term.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, the decline in egg quality happens much earlier than expected. This is called premature ovarian failure<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Irregular Cycles.<\/h4>\n

If you’re cycles are irregular, it’s possible that you’re not ovulating, making it impossible to get pregnant. And even if you are ovulating, irregular cycles make it very difficult to track ovulation so you know the right time to have sex.\u00a0A variety of factors can disrupt the normal menstrual cycle, but some of the most common ones include:<\/p>\n