Welcome to the online site for the book If At First You Don’t Conceive: A Complete Guide to Infertility by Dr. William Schoolcraft and his team at the Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine, one of the nation’s leading fertility clinics. This site is designed to provide a sampling of the information provided in the book and to supplement that with the latest news and developments in the sciences related to infertility and reproduction.
If you, your spouse or someone you care for is dealing with infertility challenges, we encourage you to read the book for in-depth information. Patients and their spouses should inform themselves so they can serve as their own best advocates. It is important to know the terminology and the basics of fertility treatment so that you can ask the right questions.
More than 7.3 million women and their partners in the United States are unable to have children because of infertility challenges, according to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. That figure represents nearly 12% of the nation’s reproductive-age population.
Yet, we can help nearly 75 percent of the women who come to us become pregnant using quite traditional fertility treatments. And if a patient is willing to consider IVF, egg donors, sperm donors or surrogate mothers, the rate of success moves much closer to 100 percent!
So there is hope. Still, men and women dealing with infertility need to arm themselves with the latest up to date medical science, as well as common sense practices to improve their chances. Too often, patients who come to us after years of failed efforts and disappointments say that they wish they’d had a greater understanding of “how it all works” earlier in their fertility fights. This frustration is reflected in the fact that the drop-out rate for patients undergoing infertility treatment is well over 50%.
The psychological stress for fertility patients has been shown to equal that of chronic pain victims. Unfortunately, sex education in the United States focuses mainly on how to avoid getting pregnant. There is precious little education on how to fight for fertility. Most women who fail to conceive begin their efforts to overcome infertility without understanding the there are more than 400 fertility clinics in the United States, but only a handful have high rates of success with assisted reproduction.
Our goal is to give you the information you need to make the best decisions for you and your particular challenges. On this web site, we’ve provided a sampling of the information from the book regarding symptoms and diagnosis for infertility related to endometriosis, fibroids & polyps, polycystic ovarian syndrome, advanced maternal age, recurring pregnancy losses, unexplained infertility, and male infertility. You will also find basic information on standard and advanced treatments for infertility, and the emotional aspects of dealing with the emotional stress.
We welcome your feedback for the web site and the book. Please let us know what more we can do to help you in your efforts. Keep in mind that time is the greatest enemy of fertility for women, so don’t hesitate to consult a reproductive specialist if your efforts to become pregnant aren’t working. Do not delay. The sooner you begin treatment, the better.
William Schoolcraft M.D. HCLD
Author of If At First You Don’t Conceive and founder of The Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine