Any Moms Out There Who Conceived a Baby in Their "MID" 40S..???

J.,
It took awhile for me to conceive my first when I was in my mid 30's. I was happy to find the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility (www.tcoyf.com) because I was able to see what was going on during my whole cycle. I no longer needed ovulation predictor kits to tell me when I was going to ovulate. I no longer needed pregnancy tests to tell me that I was pregnant (although I did use it to confirm I was pregnant). If I didn't ovulate that cycle, I knew. It really took a lot of stress and anxiety out of it for me. The best part was that I conceived on the 3rd cycle that I charted! I certainly can't guarantee those results for you, but you get what I'm saying. One other thing that was recommended to me was Evening Primrose Oil. I couldn't give you any scientific or medical info about it, but it does increase the quantity and quality of cervical fluid just before ovulation.
Hope that helps and good luck conceiving!

Hi J.,
I conceived my first child at 44 with the help of TCM (traditional Chinese medicine). I abhor needles, so only used the prescribed herbs. My husband had 1 needle treatment and took herbs, and, 72 days after his treatment, we conceived :-) Our son is nearly 5 yrs old and quite healthy, and a delight to have in our lives. At 49, I'm back on the herbs, and we're praying to be blessed with a second child. I highly recommend you consult a TCM practitioner who specializes in fertility. At 1.3 BILLION Chinese, you can't argue with success! :-D
- Cathi

HI J.,
You are well adviced to find somebody who practices HypnoFertility if you and your husband are medially cleared. HypnoFertility has many benefits and no negative side effects. One of the benefits is that it's non evasive, you avoid taking hormones and so on. Another is the very reasonable cost, each therapist sets their own fee, but generally it's around $150 per session.
Don't know where you are located, but you can find a HypnoFertility therapist by Googling HypnoBirthing. You will find therapists listed by geographical location.

Feel free to contact me if you want further information,
S.
____@____.com

Hi J.,I am 46 & now have a 4 yr old son.We tried for almost 5 years and decided that maybe it was not meant to be. I was very stressed with some other family issues . I needed to calm down. I was very sceptical, but decided to give it a try anyway. She used hypnotherapy for relaxation & used a tapping technique called EFT "Emotional Freedom Technique". It is very easy to use and can be done on your own. There is a great web site emofree.com. Within 1 month family and friends were telling me what a huge difference they saw in me.I was very calm & within 1 mo. I was pregnant. K.

Have you considered Natural Family Planning? We weren't having fertility issues, but our instructor was saying that a lot of her clients are there as a last resort after trying all mainstream attempts and she's had a lot of success helping couples with their fertility naturally and it's way less expensive. You can search online for an instructor. Look up Creighton Model. and Natural Family Planning. Not sure if you are near me at all, but if you are I can let you know who our instructor was.

Hi I am 40 and am 5 weeks try Maca and also vitex to increase fertility and you can watch your cycle so you know when you are most fertile-I do FAM-Fertility Awareness Method counciling-feel free to contact me.

Hi - I conceived at 43 using Chinese acupuncture and some progesterone cream on Day 17 of my cycle, after trying. We had a baby boy 1 1/2 months before my 44th birthday. Good luck! Drink lots of water, no caffeine, relax and stop "trying" and it might happen! :-) All the best,
A

My aunt had her only child at 48, but they used in vitro. Good luck!!

Hi J.,

I am pregnant with my second child at 42 (and was 42 when we conceived). I had my first at 36. We had been trying unsuccessfully to get pregnant for a couple of years, had both been tested to be sure there were no obvious medical problems. I did not want to use traditional medical interventions.

I recommend looking into chinese medicine. I had great success with acupuncture, but also used chinese herbs and modifying my diet. There are books available on the topic, and practitioners who specialize in fertility. Also, I took a leave of absence from work, reasoning that reducing stress would help regulate systems in my body.

Having kids in your 40s seems to be old hat around here. I have friends who conceived at 43 and 44 (first children in both cases). My aunt conceived her fourth child (a surprise) at 49.

Good luck,
S.

Hi,
I don't know if it counts as 'mid' forties, but I was 42 when I conceived my daughter, and 43 when she was born. We tried for six months, I took my basal temperature daily to chart my pattern of ovulation. I discovered that I consistently ovulated on day 12, not day 14 as I had when I was younger, so we were missing the window! Our daughter is healthy, and although I developed pre-eclampsia at the very end of my pregnancy, she has had no health problems whatsoever, and is actually hitting developmental milestones for kids a year or two older.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, I hope this helps a little!

Dear J.,
I didn't happen to me. I'm 45 and can't have more children. But I know plenty of other moms who had "luck" conceiving in their 40's. But they were more like, let's say, SURPRISES. Not that they ever called their babies accidents, but they already had teenagers and were not trying to have another baby. Maybe the trick is pretending that you're not trying.
I have a friend who, in her 30's, still had not been able to get pregnant. She had every test and procedure. She and her husband even travelled out of state to have numerous, very costly yet unsuccessful in vitro attempts. Finally, after years of all the agony, she was told that she would never be able to conceive. She was heartbroken. So, since they weren't going to have a kid, they decided to use the rest of their savings and bought a brand new house, new furniture, and brand new cars for each of them. Four months later, she was pregnant. JT was born with no complications.
So, maybe just have fun with your husband and don't consider it "trying".

I wish you a happy surprise!

P.S. I got two "surprises" 10 years apart after being told that I could never have children. I was 34 with the second one.

I conceived my (only) baby at age 43; I had been getting acupuncture & chinese herbal treatments for a few years, about once a month, to support my reproductive system and other stuff, but not actively trying to get pregnant (surprise!) so I don't know if that's what 'worked', but chinese medicine does have a good reputation for helping women conceive. Good luck to you! Don't worry too much about the statistics, b/c that's all they are.

I tried to conceive with IVF starting at 41 since I had blocked tubes, and never succeeded. I did a fair amount of research in the medical literature, and it appears that "older" women with limited ovarian reserve have BETTER luck trying naturally each month - I believe the IVF meds are too harsh at that age. Good luck!

If you don't have a history of having trouble getting pregnant, it is definitely possible for it to happen naturally even into your 40s.

I have one friend who was a post-menopausal accidental pregnancy when her mom was in her 50s. That is not all that uncommon. Our third was an accidental pregnancy when I was 40. I know of many other families that had the same thing happen! In fact, I read recently that abortion rates are highest in the 40+ age bracket.

Hello J.,

I hope this will help. We have trouble concieving in our family myself as well as my two sisters. I was married and did the fertility route with my first husband with nothing to show for it but a divorce. I remarried and about this time my oldest sister was trying for another baby as her son was 5 years old. She had been trying for a long time with no success. She went to a old time Doctor in her small town. He asked her if she got up to clean up after sex. Yes my sister stated doesn't everyone? He asked her how did she expect to get pregnate if she stood up and every thing ran down hill. He told her to take a damp wash cloth to bed with her along with a dry one. The dry one to put between her legs while she elevated her hips above her shoulders for at least 30 or so minutes and then to remove the dry one and to use the damp one to wipe herself down but not to stand up until the next morning. Then to put the dry one back and sleep this way She just laughed at him but did as he had recommended. It worked so when I remarried and was trying to concieve she told me about her little secret. It worked for me also. This may sound silly but hey it is worth a try and doesn't cost anything.

I'd definitely suggest giving acupuncture a try. I'm an RN in acupuncture school in san jose and one of my instructors specializes in infertility. Let me know if you want me to ask her for names of acupuncturists who specialize in fertility in your area.

Best of luck to you!

G.

Hi J.. I have not conceived in my 40s but I have treated many women who have - either using their own at home "rhythm methods" or acupuncture, herbs, and diet to help increases chances. I am wondering if you or your partner have been checked to just make sure all your chemical tests are in normal range. After about 1 year this would definitely be the next step so that you can make sure you don't keep trying if one of you is out of balance. And if something is out of balance- natural safe treatment is available without the invasive nature of some of the western treatments.

I hope this helps & good luck!

J. Stevens, L.Ac.
www.yourwholefamilywellness.com

Hi J.,

It took me a year to get pregnant with my second child. And that was a lot of tracking cycles, ovulation, etc. I was finally going to try accupuncture when I found out I was pregnant. I'll be 41 when I deliver my second.

My doctor in the begining told me that it typically takes a year...and that was after testing to make sure everything was good on my end. Good Luck.

i conceived at 42 and 3/4 and delivered well into 43. I'm still nursing (just barely) at 44 closing in on 45 and she's a very healthy little girl. Be patient. Visualize and expect the miracle to come your way b/c you and your family deserve it.

I was all about visualizing the baby coming to me before it actually happened.

Hope this helps.

Ann

I was in my late 30's when we conceived child #2. We used the Rhythm Method. Use it every day, religiously (no pun intended) and you should be able to track when you ovulate. It was quite accurate for me. Make sure you have a super accurate thermometer, I believe they are called Basal thermometers and take your temperature in the morning BEFORE you get out of bed. Worked for me. Good luck!

P. S. I have a friend who, after trying many traditional fertility methods, saw an acupuncturist. 1-2 months later, they conceived. Miles is a healthy little one. He is about 8 years old now.

Hang in there,
D. :-)

At 40, I had trouble too. I got acupuncture from a fertility specialist and was pregnant the first week. My guy is in Hercules if you want his name.

Hi J.,

There was a very similar question recently from another mom in her 40's who would like to conceive naturally, and you should check out all her responses. I conceived naturally when I was 38 and 41, and have two healthy, beautiful boys. I also had a co-worker who had two healthy babies when she was 42 and 45 without fertility treatments. But I have also have a few friends who had their first child easily and have had a hard time conceiving the second time in their 40's. Have you talked to your OB/GYN? I hope all goes well for you.

Make an appt with Jennifer at www.acupuncturefertility.org. She specializes in acupuncture for women who have hormone/fertility issues. It's a wonderful "natural" way to promote your fertility. (I gave birth to twins at age 39 w/o fertility treatment)
Good luck!