After having your first baby, you might think that getting pregnant a second will happen just as easily, but that's not always true. While many couples have no problem conceiving the second time around, millions of couples struggle with secondary infertility, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.
A woman's fertility declines with age; sometimes, it can be harder to get pregnant with a second child than it was with the first. When a woman has trouble getting pregnant on her own after a previously successful natural conception and birth, fertility doctors refer to this as secondary infertility.
What causes secondary infertility? Sometimes problems getting pregnant for a second or subsequent time are related to a complication that occurred in a prior pregnancy or prior to delivery, such as uterine scarring or damage to the fallopian tubes.
For some couples, conceiving baby number two happens just as quickly and easily as baby number one. But there can also be some speed bumps, which takes many couples by surprise.
45% of young couples (under 35) will conceive after three cycles of unprotected sex. 65% of couples conceive after six cycles of unprotected sex. 85% of couples will conceive within the first year of regular unprotected sex.
For most women, it's best to wait at least 18 months between giving birth and getting pregnant again. This means your baby will be at least 1½ years old before you get pregnant with another baby. This much time gives your body time to fully recover from your last pregnancy before it's ready for your next pregnancy.
Most couples will get pregnant within a year if they have regular sex and don't use contraception. But women become less fertile as they get older.
Secondary infertility is just as common as primary infertility. It affects about 11% of couples in the United States.
You can increase your chances of getting pregnant again if you are in good health. It is also important that your partner is healthy. A bad diet, smoking, drinking and unhealthy working conditions can affect the quality of sperm and prevent pregnancy happening.
If your menstrual cycle lasts 28 days and your period arrives like clockwork, it's likely that you'll ovulate on day 14. That's halfway through your cycle. Your fertile window begins on day 10. You're more likely to get pregnant if you have sex at least every other day between days 10 and 14 of a 28-day cycle.
Ovulation usually occurs about 14 days before the start of a woman's period — the beginning of her menstrual cycle. She is less likely to become pregnant from unprotected intercourse in the day or two following ovulation, but it's still possible.
The next time you have sex, the number of sperms is not as much as the first time, but the quality of sperm remains stable, and that quantity is enough for fertilization to occur. This proves that having sex twice in a row is still possible to get pregnant if there is no reasonable protection.
Some common reasons include stress, not timing baby-making sex with ovulation, residual effects of hormonal birth control, and certain health conditions. As much as we may try, pregnancy really can't really be planned—but you can increase your chances by being aware of common pitfalls.
What Causes Infertility? Problems with ovulation are the most common reasons for infertility in women. A woman's age, hormonal imbalances, weight, exposure to chemicals or radiation and cigarette smoking all have an impact on fertility.
Conception is most likely to occur in the first month of trying (about a 30% conception rate). The chance then falls steadily to about 5% by the end of the first year. Cumulative conception rates are around 75% after six months, 90% after a year, and 95% at two years.
There are some relatively controllable factors that may be slowing down a couple's ability to conceive. For women, they include being too overweight or underweight, eating disorders, excessive exercise, smoking and drinking.
While there are certainly couples who get pregnant after trying just one time, the reality is that most couples do not conceive right away. About 80 percent of couples get pregnant after six months of trying; roughly 90 percent of couples will conceive after a full year of trying.
Having Babies After 35 Is Safe
And while it's true that conceiving after 35 comes with an increased risk of complications—like preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, chromosomal abnormalities, and even miscarriage or stillbirth—many people go on to deliver healthy babies.
The transition from 1 to 2 kids is not easy but it's not horribly hard, it's just different and it takes time to adjust and figure it out. Handling the second baby feels easier than what it felt when I had my first.
A gap of 3 years or more greatly reduces the chances of sibling rivalry. By this time the older child is secure in him or herself and quite independent. In addition, the mother's body is fully recovered from the challenges of pregnancy and birth of the first child.
Dr Priti explained, “An unhealthy lifestyle, weight issues, high stress and confusion about the fertile period could be possible reasons for not getting pregnant.”
a lack of sperm – you may have a very low sperm count or no sperm at all. sperm that are not moving properly – this will make it harder for sperm to swim to the egg. abnormal sperm – sperm can sometimes be an abnormal shape, making it harder for them to move and fertilise an egg.
The volume of the first ejaculate was (2.0 +/- 1.4) ml, significantly higher than that of the second ([1.5 +/- 0.9] ml) (P = 0.007), although the numbers of motile sperm and grade a + b sperm of the first ([40.8 +/- 25.3]% and [30.9 +/- 22.4]%) were significantly lower than those of the second ([52.2 +/- 21.1]% and [ ...
The pull-out method is about 80% effective. About one in five people who rely on the pull-out method for birth control become pregnant.