or stupid not to bother with contraception any more

[kentishgirl]

I'm crossing my fingers instead.

I'm 46 years old. Yes, I still get periods every month. I think I'm peri-menopausal, just. Yes, I know the official advice is that you need to use contraception until one year after last period. But realistically, what are the chances...? What do you do?

I found a quote online from Dr. Joshua U. Klein, medical director of Reproductive Medicine Associates of New York-Brooklyn.

"When you hear of people in the public arena who are pregnant in their 40s, the obvious suspicion is that they've availed themselves of fertility treatment, but aren't being transparent about it,"

What are my odds of getting pregnant at 46 naturally?

Not good, said Klein. "Natural pregnancies—when a woman is trying to get pregnant with her own egg—do occur in women in their mid 40s, but it would be nearly miraculous," he said. Even in women using the assistance of IVF (in vitro fertilization), there has never been a clearly documented case of a baby being born from an IVF pregnancy in a woman older than age 45 using her own eggs. Klein estimated that the chance of having a baby at age 46 without intervention is probably about 0.01 percent or less.

A friend of mine in her mid-40s just waved her first/only child off to university in October and had about a week of an empty nest before she realised she was pregnant (unplanned).

Get your tubes tied. Not a big deal, gives you pretty much complete certainty that you will never be pregnant again.

Librarymum, do you mean condoms? I thought they weren't 100% effective against pregnancy?

A friend of mine, having spent her 30s and early 40s having endless cycles of IVF with no luck, said that she and her DH had decided that it was not to be, and they should just get on with life. She had a baby, conceived naturally, when she was 50.

Condoms are more than 99% effective against pregnancy when used properly.

I'm just 50 and feel I have to use contraception as there is no way I could do the whole pregnancy, baby, toddler thing again at my age, in my financial situation and it's not fair to the child.
Jauntily saying you would have an abortion and be absolutely fine is absurd. You have no way of knowing how that would go.
Then again if I carried on with the pregnancy and my child had chromosomal problems related to my age..........
I got a copper coil.

My headteacher at primary school fell pregnant by accident in her late 40s, possibly even early 50s. She had a perfectly healthy baby. It can and does happen. Good that you've decided to take steps to avoid it :)

Here's the graph I was thinking of.

It has separate lines for decreasing fertility and for increasing miscarriage rate.

Wow The Woman! Actually, H's dad got another woman pg when they were first married and initially they were going to take the baby on as their own (this was early 60's) but the mother said no and moved away. I wonder how common that was, as I always thought that that was fairly uncommon.

G Grandma was massive apparently, according to Grandma she did suspect twins but the midwife told her she was being too lazy and should get more housework done

Had a baby at 46, and she was conceived during a "fallow bedroom action period", so she was a one hit wonder!. I had gone down the "well what's the chance" route of contraception.

Incidentally, the fallow bedroom period was because I was a tad busy looking after my twins, naturally conceived at 43.

Well I am thinking along similar lines but I am 50. Would not have risked it at 46 though , as I had my two dds very easily in my 40s, I also have several friends whose mothers were 45/46 when they were born, so it can and does happen. I have low FSH for my age, and so my GP said to be careful, but I really can't imagine anyone gets upduffed at 50, do they?

Oh! have just read the whole thread, so 50 year olds do get upduffed, and my GP is right. He said I was probably still ovulating with an FSH of ten, so I guess its caution for a few years yet.

Ruddy annoying though isn't it.

I wathed some daytime show with Gloria Honeyford telling me fertility started to drop at 30...so I thought I'd better start trying...and hey presto I had a baby nine months later, and another one a couple of years later without trying. What does Gloria know?

And yes, I know someone who thought she couldn't have children have a happy surprise aged 48!

50!! Shit the bed.

OP, use something. Even if the idea of abortion doesn't bother you, you can't deny that it is more complicated and higher risk than just using contraception. All operations carry risks.

I'm 46 and 34 weeks pregnant . We had got a bit lax with contraception a few years ago and I fell pregnant at 44.After the initial surprise we were delighted but sadly I miscarried at 11 weeks. We then decided to actively ttc, we felt there was definitely room in our family for another DC. I had my AMH level checked which was over 6, so low, but very good for someone of my age. My progesterone levels were good and I was cycling normally so we tried but I went on to miscarry again several times, which was utterly heartbreaking. I was told any pregnancy had a 50% chance of failing so we had decided to stop trying when this little miracle came along. I wont be able to relax till baby has arrived and is safely in my arms, but triple screening came back low risk for chromosomal abnormalities and all scans so far have been fine.
So it's certainly possible to get pregnant in your forties but pregnancy loss is very likely and unless you've been through it, it's hard to appreciate how difficult and painful miscarriage is.
Especially if you don't want any more DC, I wouldn't think it's worth you taking the risk OP.

In my family the women always seem to have a late 40s oops. I cannot count the number of aunts & cousins, not to mention my mum and my gran who have been caught out unexpectedly! We have a theory that we have one last boost before menopause. We all seem to have a sibling 10 years younger than the last youngest! If you wouldn't mind that then go without. If it would not be a welcome surprise then keep using something.

My nan and auntie both had babies at 48. If you are still having regular periods I'd no way assume I was menopausal!

Yabu yabu yabu yabu!

You can still get pregnant. You have no idea how fertile you are/aren't. I got pregnant naturally four times in 13 months between 42 and 43 (three miscarriages, one healthy baby).

I had DS (my third child) aged 44. Naturally.

I'm now just 47. Not using contraception since he was born ( but EBF till 6 months). My periods are still regular.

But I feel certain I won't get pregnant again. Can't quite say why. But if a pregnancy would be disastrous for you then probably you should.

I'm 46 and got pregnant last year at 45 basically because I thought I wouldn't. Be warned. Although I do now have a wonderful healthy baby boy.

PS I have been sterilised since!

What are my odds of getting pregnant at 46 naturally? ... Yes, I still get periods every month

About the same as anyone else then, as you are still ovulating.

But hmmm...some of you actually know directly people who did?

My mum did. She was 45. And using the withdrawal method.

She terminated & it broke her husbands heart & they divorced over it. (he was a lot younger & childless, really wanted a baby - she knew this.)

Can you not investigate sterilisation - best thing I ever did (tubal ligation)