With the rising rates of infertility in the country, a good number of fertility clinics have sprung up all around Nigeria.
Here on Mamalette get women asking for recommendations for fertility clinics in various parts of the country. However, while many fertility clinics have been able to help thousands of Nigerian couples conceive children, others may simply want to sell their services due to the need to make money. Here are 7 things that most fertility clinics would not tell you.
1. We can’t change basic biology
A good number of women who resort to fertility treatments don't usually have age on their sides. Post by Mamalette.com.
The truth is that women are most capable of conceiving in their mid-20s. A subtle drop in fertility begins in the early 30s and the decline accelerates around age 37 and then more sharply after 40. Most fertility clinics should tell you that the chances of you having any success with a treatment decline with age.
2. You might be using the wrong drug or the wrong doctor
A couple is considered infertile if they don’t conceive after a year of regular intercourse. At this point, women under 35 who are in good health i.e. without an underlying condition that could affect their fertility, are advised to see a reproductive endocrinologist, the medical subspecialty of obstetrics/gynecology that handles fertility treatments. Women between 35 and 40 are advised to see a specialist after trying for 6 months while those over 40 shouldn’t wait more than 3 months before seeing a specialist.
For a number of reasons, many women wait too long to see a specialist and in some cases, they may be spending too long taking fertility drugs under the care of their obstetrician/gynecologist. (While only reproductive endocrinologists conduct highly specialized procedures such as in vitro fertilization or IVF, ob/gyno prescribe fertility drugs that help stimulate egg production and maturation.) Once the right dose has been determined, women should generally not stay on fertility drugs for more than 6 months, experts say. Yet it’s common to hear stories of women continuing with the drugs for much longer.
3. You will spend a lot of money
The average cost of an IVF cycle in the Nigerian is N1 million, but that’s hardly the sum total even for a woman who succeeds on her first cycle. By the time she reaches the stage where she’s trying IVF, a woman has likely spent millions of Naira on fertility drugs and less invasive treatments such as intrauterine insemination, a type of artificial insemination where sperm is inserted directly into the uterus.
Other expenses include those for blood tests and ultrasounds. While a healthy baby is a priceless gift, doctors must be upfront about the projected costs involved, experts say. Fertility clinics have traditionally quoted prices cycle by cycle and former patients say they sometimes don’t give women an accurate sense of their likely need for multiple treatments.
4. There are health risks to using fertility treatments
Some of the health risks involved in fertility treatments are well known to doctors. These include the risk of multiples. While most Nigerian women would love to have twins, it is important to note that, twins face an increased risk of complications, including preterm birth and it complications, such as cerebral palsy; low birth weight and even stillbirth.
Complications increase further with triplets and beyond. To the mother, risks in carrying multiples include pregnancy-induced hypertension, postpartum hemorrhage, prolonged bed rest and diabetes.
5. It is important to have the support of family and friends
While there is still a cloak of secrecy around the use of fertility treatments in Nigeria, most experts recommend that couples undergoing fertility treatments have supportive people around them. Infertility can cause a lot of stress, hence you need all the support you can get, but unfortunately, you may not receive much at all, for a number of reasons. Infertility in Nigeria is frequently a disease of secrecy with many people hesitant to tell even close friends or family members about their problems. This is understandable.
The truth, however, is that you may not be receiving the support you need because your friends and family members have no idea of what you may be going through and how to support you. Having emotional support is so important and people who feel supported—whether by close friends, family members, or religious organization members—tend to cope better.
6. You should be aware of our success rates
While some fertility clinics may publish their success rates, this information is usually presented in a clinical language, and lacks answers to questions that most women want to be answered: What is my individual likelihood of getting pregnant, and how many cycles will it take? Many women are under the impression that IVF works more often than not—after all, it’s a highly sophisticated technology. Yet even among women under 35, less than a 50% of the cycles succeed.
7. We think it is time you stopped treatments
Sometimes fertility treatments may not work for a couple. However, many clinics appear more concerned with keeping couples in treatment—in other words, selling them on additional services—than in helping them understand that nothing seems to be working. Most of the time, the decision to stop the physically, emotionally and financially taxing fertility treatments lies with the patient. Doctors simply make more money when women undergo more treatments. Patients are best served when they are given a frank assessment of their chances, the risks involved, and support if they decide to stop treatment, infertility experts say.
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