I speak with so many women about their uterine and cervical health, and it's no surprise that many are dreading - or even terrified of - their next Pap smear. It can be an uncomfortable procedure, and the topic of why we need them and how often seems to be riddled with misinformation and fear.
If you are among those who are terrified of getting their next Pap smear, I hope I can offer some tips that will make it a not-so-terrifying experience.
Read MoreWith so many women choosing to have children later in life, egg freezing (or its fancier name, oocyte cryopreservation) is becoming more and more popular. Even with its gain in popularity, I find women's views of the process tend to be riddled with misinformation and myths.
Often considered a feminist beacon of hope, egg freezing can allow women to have more control over their reproductive options, extending the window they would normally be able to get pregnant, and allowing more flexibility for when they choose to build a family. Yet so few women are accurately informed about what the whole process actually looks like, who it works best for, and how to improve their chances at successfully conceiving.
It's my mission to clear up that misinformation, debunk those myths, and give women real, actionable information about their options. That way, they can feel empowered to make informed decisions about their health.
Read MoreWhen I talk to my patients about which foods most dramatically affect their fertility, sugar and simple carbohydrates are one of the first topics we cover, especially because blood sugar imbalances can easily lead to endocrine and hormone imbalances. With Type II Diabetes is on the rise and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (which often involves Insulin Resistance) being the most common cause of infertility in America, I'm seeing more and more cases where diet and blood sugar levels make a huge impact on whether a woman can successfully conceive.
So let's talk about what causes these blood sugar and insulin imbalances, and what can be done to treat them.
Read MoreWe hear a lot about vitamin B9 (aka folic acid or folate) for fertility and pregnancy, and it’s for a good reason. It's necessary for DNA synthesis, and therefore is considered key for proper egg development and ovarian function, as well as embryo and fetal growth.
In fact, a budding embryo needs higher than usual levels of vitamin B9 before you even know you’re pregnant, and deficiencies are serious enough they can actually result in infertility, miscarriage, or birth defects. Being that B vitamins get depleted with stress and poor diets, many people tend to run deficient on this critical nutrient.
If we know how important it is, all we've got to do is take a supplement. Problem solved...right?
Well, with this vitamin in particular its not quite that simple. What form, the dosage, how our body metabolizes it, even a common genetic disorder, all play a huge role in the amount of vitamin B9 available. But not to fret! I'm going to break it all down for you here.
Read MoreWith more and more women postponing motherhood by choice, compounded by a society that puts very little value on reproductive health education, I see so many women who find themselves in deep distress and panic about their fertility and/or family planning. It’s super common for issues surrounding fertility to cause anxiety, depression, anger, resentment, relationship issues, panic attacks, even secondary stress and anxiety symptoms, such as hives, insomnia, digestive upset, headaches, or chronic pain.
Especially if you are in your late 30s or early 40s, or if you’ve been diagnosed with some form of infertility, then fertility panic may have set in suddenly. Even for those who previously were convinced they didn’t want kids, a crisis may seemingly come out of no where and can be a confusing and painful experience.
If you are currently feeling yourself in the depths of a freak out, please know this: you are not alone and you are not broken. This is incredibly common, just age or a diagnosis alone does not mean you can't get pregnant, and even if it does, your worthiness is not dependent on your reproductive capability alone. If your panic is centered around the not knowing if you want kids or not, know that with time and introspection - and hopefully some therapy - the answer will come to you. Your path will light up before you in time, you don't have to figure everything out right at this moment.
Having supported several women through such crises, I can tell you there's no magic trick to make it all disappear, and there's no one-size-fits-all answer as to what to do. Every journey to build a family, or the decision not to, is unique to those who experience it. But I can tell you there are several things that may support you during and help you through this difficult time.
Read MoreEven if you're super familiar with fertility terms and reproductive health, secondary infertility doesn't get talked about all that much, so you may not have heard of it. Primary infertility refers to when someone has trouble getting pregnant the first time, while secondary infertility effects those who have already had a child and are having trouble conceiving again.
It may seem like a confusing scenario, if someone could conceive once, why can't they conceive again? But it's actually quite a common condition that I treat regularly.
Read MoreEmbryo transfer is part of the In vitro fertilization (IVF) process, it involves transferring 1 or more embryos that have been grown for 3-6 days back into the uterus in hopes of pregnancy resulting.
The day of embryo transfer is a big day, it's the day you could potentially become pregnant! Especially if you've been through a long journey of trying to conceive and going through IVF, sometimes it can be nerve racking to go into the next procedure not knowing exactly what to expect. But I'm here to tell you, it's not that bad!
Especially if you've already gone through egg retrieval(s) or IUI(s), you'll find the embryo transfer procedure itself a breeze. But being that it's such a crucial day in the IVF process, there are a few things you can do to prepare for, stay comfortable during, and increase the odds of success for your embryo transfer.
Read MoreWomen are born with ovaries full of all the eggs they'll ever have, unlike men who produce sperm non-stop for most of their lives. It's been the popular belief up until recently that women's eggs age as they do, and somewhere between the 35 and 45 they lose much of their viability. But, much to our surprise, recent research has actually proven much of that to be wrong!
Chromosomal abnormalities and poor egg quality are no longer a pre-determined diagnosis for women of "advanced maternal age." We know now that there is much to be done to improve how our hormones and ovaries function, and therefore produce healthy eggs, even over the age of 40!
Read MoreWhether you're trying to conceive naturally or with Assisted Reproductive Technologies such as IVF or insemination, implantation is a crucial point in the conception process. Implantation happens when a developed embryo (at that point it's called a blastocyst) adheres to the wall of the uterus, usually 7-10 days after ovulation.
While implantation can happen all on its own without any support, many women who have had trouble conceiving want to do whatever they can to optimize their chances of getting pregnant. In fact, I get asked from my patients all the time, "what else can I do to encourage implantation?"
Of course moderate exercise, plenty of sleep, and stress management can help, but many of my patients who are trying to conceive already do that - so what else? Diet is another big factor that can effect conception. Let's take a look at all the foods that can help your little blastocyst lay down some roots.
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