Continuing the Family-Building Journey After Failed Fertility Treatments

In many cases, IVF is the best fertility treatment to help infertile couples have a baby. But it doesn’t work every time. The live birth IVF success rate for women under 35 is 53 percent on average, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—which means 47 percent will not succeed in getting pregnant and delivering a baby from any given cycle. For most women the success rate on average is 20 to 35 percent, according to RESOLVE, the National Fertility Association.Anyone who has had a failed IVF cycle knows the grief and pain you feel when something you’ve invested so much emotion, time and money into doesn’t work the way you’d hoped. Should you consider IVF again? Do you have the emotional and financial resources to try again?

Why Does IVF Fail?

When the transferred embryo does not implant and grow, the IVF cycle fails. Most fertility specialists believe that failure to implant is due to chromosomal or other genetic abnormalities in the embryo, which make it too defective to grow. After a failed cycle, your reproductive endocrinologist should review your cycle with you and go over what was learned from this attempt. The ovarian stimulation protocol and the quality of the embryos will be discussed, and your doctor will explain what might be changed for a second IVF cycle to improve your chance of success. Some people consider changing to a different fertility specialist at this point. It’s not an easy decision, but if you are contemplating a second IVF cycle, you may want to look into whether to stay with your reproductive endocrinologist or make a change.

Should I Do Another Cycle?

Ask your fertility specialist for an honest estimate of your chances of succeeding on a second IVF cycle. A recent U.K. study found that your cumulative chance of success increases with each IVF cycle. For all ages combined, the success rate was 65 percent after six rounds of IVF, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. Six IVF cycles may be enough to give you the baby you want so much, but for many, the emotional and financial expense of six IVF cycles is daunting. For those who don’t wish to pursue additional cycles, there’s still hope in building your family.

Alternatives to Another IVF Cycle

What if you are unable or unwilling to do an additional IVF cycle with your own embryos? There are still other ways to build a family. If issues with the female partner’s uterus prevented implantation, surrogacy with donor eggs or her own eggs or embryos can make it possible to have a child.Another option is adoption or fostering to adopt. There are many children who need a home. Adoption can be a loving and compassionate way to build your family. Infant adoption usually is done through a licensed adoption agency. Fostering to adopt may take years, but it allows the family to build a relationship with a child over time and benefits the child because it isn’t moved from home to home.WINFertility provides support and care throughout your adoption or surrogacy journey, including education about the process and claim processing. The WIN adoption and surrogacy program provides referrals to experienced agencies, as well as nurse and behavioral health consultations for new parent(s).

Getting Support for Your Emotions

A failed IVF cycle can cause grief similar to that of a miscarriage. It’s common to feel anger, sadness, or depression when a cycle doesn’t result in pregnancy. WINFertility’s reproductive behavioral health-trained Nurse Care Managers can help you develop coping mechanisms to deal with the emotions and stress of a failed IVF cycle. Plus, if you decide to pursue additional fertility treatments, your dedicated Nurse Care Manager will be there to guide you through every step of the way

Taking Steps to Have a Family

If you’re ready to pursue IVF treatment, WINFertility can help. WIN’s Nurse Care Managers and professionally-trained Patient Specialists can help you find an excellent reproductive endocrinologist in your area and get discounted treatment packages and financing options. WINFertility provides lower than market-rate Treatment and Medication Bundles which combine medical services for a single IVF treatment, genetic testing and medications at a discounted “pay-as-you-go” price saving you up to 40% off the total cost of your treatment cycle. The bundle is tailored for your specific treatment plan, and you only pay for the treatment you need, unlike traditional multi-cycle discount plans in which you pay for up to 6 attempts that you may never need in order to receive a discount. Are you ready to take the next step? Click here to learn more.