Help with Conception after 40

Women seeking to have children after the age of 40 face a special challenge. It's harder to conceive, and fertility specialist Dr. Buell Miller, M.D., of Coastal Women's HealthCare notes, "Over 50 percent of pregnancies end up as miscarriages after age 42 or 43."

To achieve pregnancy after 40, Buell suggests having intercourse four or more times a week. Avoid lubricants and oral sex, which harm sperm. And he advises the woman to remain in bed for 10 minutes after intercourse to avoid dislodging the sperm.

Miller, an OB/GYN who practices in South Portland, Me., has some advice for guys, too. They should avoid extraordinary heat, which is damaging to sperm. That means staying out of hot tubs and saunas. Also, cut out the marijuana, alcohol, and caffeine.

If a couple hasn't had success in six months, Miller says they should quickly seek help from a fertility specialist. Many in vitro fertility centers won't accept patients over age 42. Miller says the first step should be an FSH test to determine if a woman's eggs are senescent -- too old.

"In many cases, a combination of methods is needed to produce a viable pregnancy," says Katie Boland. She's founder and director of the Mind/Body Institute in Los Angeles, which specializes in helping infertile women conceive by teaching them stress management, meditation, yoga and self-nurturing.

"Infertility can also be a male condition" says Boland. Women who are having trouble getting pregnant should have their partners checked. She says, "It could be that the man has a low sperm count or low sperm motility, which means that the sperm doesn't swim as vigorously as it could."

A combination of methods worked for Lorna Doctorow of Malibu, Calif. "I meditated at least two times a day, did yoga, took the fertility drug Clomid orally and injected the fertility drug Pergonal." She spent a couple of hundred dollars a month on fertility medications until she had her first child after she turned 40.

Doctorow says, "I also got pregnant with the help of 'in-office insemination.'" She explains that her husband's sperm underwent a sperm wash, during which the less active sperm are removed and the remaining sperm are bathed in a solution that increases motility.

Acupuncture and Chinese herbs may also help women trying to conceive. Carrie Martin of Los Angeles went to a doctor of Oriental medicine for acupuncture treatments and Chinese herbal teas. Martin says, "I did the acupuncture and Chinese herbs for seven months before I got pregnant at 42."

Resolve, the National Infertility Association, is a good source for information on clinics, various medical procedures and physician referrals. facts on your sexual health with our Midlife Sexuality Assessment.