3 Reasons Why PCOS Infertility Treatment Doesn't Work And What To Do About It Now
Are you going through PCOS infertility treatment? It's a lot to go through. And on top of that, do you feel like PCOS has stolen so much from you? Like having troubles with diabetes, hormone issues, weight gain, extreme fatigue, and of course, the infertility?
Do you just want to get your periods every month so you can ovulate and have your baby? You are in the right place.
There are a few common reasons why the typical PCOS infertility treatment doesn't work. Today I'm going to share 3 of them with you. After that, I'm going to share what to do next in order to help have the best chance at getting pregnant.
What Is PCOS Infertility Treatment?
PCOS affects up to 6 million women in the US alone and of those, around 80% have ovulation and fertility issues. So the medical community is working hard to come up with a PCOS infertility treatment that's effective and that works.
But here's why that is tricky. PCOS is a syndrome and a syndrome means that a variety of symptoms make up the syndrome. Syndromes like PCOS don't fit into a nice and tidy box. And in the conventional medical world, treatments make the most sense when there is a nice box to treat.
For right now, this is a common PCOS infertility treatment story. It typically starts with the doctor recommending a timed intercourse cycle along with a medication like letrozole or clomid. These two medications are ovulation-induction medications so they help the eggs release from the ovary.
If that doesn't work, then an IUI is recommended.
The doctor may recommend a few rounds of either timed intercourse or IUI. But because letrozole and clomid are only recommended to be used for about 6 rounds, after that? The doctor will recommend IVF.
If you want to know even more about PCOS fertility medications, head on over here to my blog that describes each of them.
PCOS Infertility Treatment: 3 Reasons Why It Isn't Working
Okay so now that you are familiar with the general PCOS infertility treatment plan, let's talk about why you're going through this and yet you still aren't pregnant.
REASON #1: The Root Cause of Your Fertility Struggles Haven't Been Discovered Yet
Finding the root cause of your infertility issues is a key step to help boost fertility. If no one is helping you figure this out, then how can you expect other fertility treatments to work?
Here's what I mean. If you are one of the people who have elevated testosterone as a part of their PCOS diagnosis, that is a part of the root cause that needs to get addressed. But if your doctor is only prescribing an ovulation-induction medicine like letrozole and telling you to try it for 5 cycles to see what happens, they are missing a big piece.
That elevated testosterone needs to be addressed because when testosterone is elevated, that shuts down ovulation.
So do you see how even if you have an ovulation-induction medication on board, how your elevated testosterone just keeps your chances of ovulating low?
REASON #2: IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT YOUR LADY-PARTS!
Fertility is so much more than just your lady-parts! Is your PCOS infertility treatment only focused on your lady-parts? Then you're missing out on an important piece of the fertility puzzle.
When I mention your lady parts, I'm talking about the organs and hormones that directly impact fertility. Those are hormones like estrogen and progesterone and organs like your ovaries and uterus.
Does that make sense?
Those parts of your body are of course important to help with pregnancy, but they aren't the only parts that are important to help with pregnancy.
Let's take thyroid for instance. The thyroid is an organ that sits up in your throat. The thyroids main job is to help increase energy and metabolism in the body. So it's not one of the main reproductive organs and it's not what's commonly referred to as your "lady-parts".
But you know what? It's an integral piece of the fertility puzzle.
The thyroid hormones talk directly to the ovaries. If the thyroid isn't working as it's supposed to, that creates a hormonal cascade that shuts down ovulation.
And looking at the connection between your thyroid and fertility is just the beginning! There is also vitamin D to talk about and cortisol. There is inflammation and gut health. Each of these things contribute to fertility in their own way.
If no one is helping you figure out if these are affecting your fertility story and helping address them, then you're missing out on an important piece that could be keeping you from getting pregnant.
REASON #3: Assemby-Line Medicine Doesn’t Work Well for PCOS
Assembly-line medicine is so commonly what happens with PCOS infertility treatment.
I'll talk about cars to help prove my point. The car moves down the assembly line and there is one robot working on the doors. Then once the doors are installed, the car moves down to the robot who is working on the engine, and so forth.
The car is built on this assembly-line where the same exact thing happens at the same exact time and there is no change to the process.
It’s similar with PCOS infertility treatment. In fact, you may have felt that way already.
It’s common to get diagnosed with PCOS, then get promptly put on letrozole. When that doesn’t work, then you go in straight for the IUI. And if THAT doesn’t work you are heading straight for IVF.
What's missing in this picture is an individualized look at your unique fertility needs. As I mentioned above, if your doctor or fertility clinic is just pushing you along the assembly-line of fertility care and not taking the time to figure out what other systems are getting in the way of you getting pregnant, that means you are getting assembly-line care.
PCOS Infertility Treatment Not Working? What To Do About It Now
Now you know that PCOS doesn't respond well to a one-size-fits-all approach. You also know that this one-size-fits-all approach is what's being offered most of the time. Does it make sense why so many women like yourself are struggling with PCOS infertility treatment not working?
So what needs to happen if PCOS infertility treatment isn't working?
The most important step is to get an individualized PCOS fertility plan. That is to work with a doctor or a fertility center who will help investigate the root cause of your fertility struggles. One that understands what other organ systems are affecting fertility and what to do about them. And how to help you improve fertility in an individualized way.
Alright, we have talked about a lot so let’s do a quick re-cap!
—>PCOS fertility treatments typically include a variety of medications and procedures.
—>The 3 things that are keeping you from getting pregnant even while you are doing fertility treatment
#1: The root cause of your fertility issues still haven’t been discovered.
#2: Fertility is NOT just about your lady-parts and there may be a different system in your body (remember, we talked about thyroid specifically) that may be reducing your chances of making a baby.
#3: Fertility medicine is frequently like an assembly-line and it doesn’t take into account your unique story and an important part of your health picture may get missed.
What to do about PCOS infertility treatment that isn't working is to get an individualized fertility plan. One that helps identify what's going on in your body that is keeping you from getting pregnant, addresses that and helps you with a straight-forward plan.
Are you working with a doctor who is helping you find the root cause of your fertility issues?
Is this doctor helping find different vitamin deficiencies and hormonal imbalances that could be contributing to your infertility?
If not, it’s time to make that step. Start by booking a free PCOS Breakthrough Session here.
During your free session, you will discover what’s been missing from your care that is keeping you from getting pregnant, how to turn around your biggest fertility frustrations and clear guidance on how to move forward so you can have the best chance at becoming pregnant.
Don't let these common issues with PCOS infertility treatment get in the way of you getting pregnant. Book today.
