So you've decided to become a mum! But how do you go about it? Hopefully this section will give you a headstart..
IVF: Ivf involves an egg being surgically removed from the ovary and fertilised outside the body. This involves the woman taking fertility drugs to stimulate egg production once this is complete the eggs are removed from her ovaries and she is then given hormones so her uterus can prepare for pregnancy meanwhile the eggs are fertilised with sperm in a laboratory. The fertilised eggs are then put back in the womans uterus and all going well she will experience a normal pregnancy. The national institute for health and clinical excellence (NICE) advises the optimal age range for IVF is between 23 and 39yrs of age.
Self insemination: Sperm is collected in a clean glass or plastic container it will remain active for up to 2 hours if kept at body temperature. Sperm becomes more liquefied after around 20mins and it is easier to wait till this happens before you suck it into a syringe. To inseminate its best to insert the syringe into the vagina and locate the cervix (some women use a speculum to assist them) do not inject the sperm directly into the cervix as this can cause cervical shock.. After insemination lie down for 30+ minutes with a pillow under your hips. To maximise your chances of getting pregnant inseminate at least twice and preferably three to five times in each fertile period.
The donor should be tested for sexually transmitted infections at a (Genito-Urinary Medicine) GUM clinic, Including tests for HIV he will need to have two tests three months apart as an HIV test may not show HIV positive intil three months after infection.
Knowing your fertile time:
Once you've made your decision about how you are going to conceive you will need to know your fertile times, the number of days in your menstrual cycle is calculated from the first day of a period to the day before the start of the next period. The first day of your period is known as day one of the cycle, your fertile time is 10 to 16 days into your cycle, you will also notice your vaginal mucus becomes thinner, wetter, and stretchy almost the colour and feel of raw egg. After ovulation your vaginal mucus will go back to being thick and sticky.
Maximise your chances:
To maximise you chances of getting pregnant its best to stop drinking alcohol and smoking, try to eat as healthily as possible to ensure that you get all the vitamins and minerals you need.
Take a daily supplement of folic acid. You should take 0.4mg (400 micrograms) of folic acid from the time you start to conceive or as soon as you find out you are pregnant, until week 12 of pregnancy. Folic acid is needed for a baby’s development in the early weeks of pregnancy. It helps to prevent serious abnormalities of the brain and nerves (such as spina bifida). You can also eat foods that contain folic acid, such as green leafy vegetables, and breads and cereals with folic acid added to them.
You should start and keep up, regular exercise when you are trying to get pregnant it will improve your health and help reduce stress, The more active and fit you are the easier it will be for you to cope comfortably with pregnancy.
The earliest sign of pregnancy is usually a missed period, if you are pregnant you may have a lighter or shorter period than normal. You can take a pregnancy test from the first day of a missed period, if you take a test earlier than this it may not be accurate, for some women the test does not show positive until the period is at least a week late.
Legal before conception:
You should now be thinking about the legal side of things. If you use a known donor i.e. friend, someone off the Internet then you would need to make a legal agreement that is signed by both parties. This will protect both the donor and recipient from problems that could arise, If there is no agreement the donor will still have legal rights even if he is not on the birth certificate, he would be jointly responsible and could also be made to assist financially in the child's upbringing, he could also apply for custody.
With an agreement the recipient would have sole legal parental control over the child and the donor would have no rights even in the event of the recipient's death. If you use sperm from a fertility clinic the donor is completely anonymous and has no rights over the child.