Does it really gets hard to get pregnant after 35?

[Hupshup]

As the title, I am curious to understand if it gets really tough to fall pregnant after 35? I am 34 and on fence to have another one soon or try at 36.
I keep hearing all sorts of views from people on MN and outside. I have seen many women have children after 35, but still lots of pessimism around the age factor for women.
Please share your experiences.

I had 2 in my early 20s and 1 at 36, but had a miscarriage at 35 , however was pregnant again within 3 months

Impossible to tell whether it will be harder for you, which is what you really want to know.
I fell first time twice in my 20s. Took me 4 years from 35 to 39 for my third.
Friend same age fell first go at 39!
It's a lottery but the odds gradually go against you as you age

I got pregnant with my 2nd quicker age 36 then I did with my 1st age 29. Also friends have just had babies age 37 and 38, both conceived quickly.

Get your AMH tested if you want to delay. Lots of people posting on here have been successful by the looks of things, I have friends who have had babies late 30s with no issues too.

But none of that will tell you how things will pan out for you. I speak as someone who is facing no baby after years of trying. Nothing is guaranteed.

You are most fertile age 20-25. That’s a fact. 26-30 isn’t much different. Every year after 30 it drops off a bit, and starts to drop off faster around 35 and even faster still from your late 30s/around the 40 mark.

I wouldn’t put it off to be honest, not without very good reason. Not only for the how pregnancy goes as that’s only a small matter, it’s your energy levels and raising a child up to 18. There will be plenty of people who can vouch that they did, but biology says it is harder with age and nothing changes that whoever we are.

I had 4 attempts to get two health births after the age of 35. My first pregnancy ended at 15 weeks - dying in the womb with Pataus syndrome. My second - healthy - born when I was 36 was given a risk if 1in 20000 for risk of Downs or other syndromes after scans. My third ended in an early miscarriage. My 4th, which resulted in a healthy birth when I was 38, had a 1 in 250 risk of Downs or other syndromes.

It is of course different for everyone but yes risk factors increase overall for woman after 35.

I had a baby 3 months after I turned 36! Pregnant first time we tried

You are most fertile age 20-25. That’s a fact. 26-30 isn’t much different. Every year after 30 it drops off a bit, and starts to drop off faster around 35 and even faster still from your late 30s/around the 40 mark.

Studies show this is not the case.

What is the case then?

It's not about getting pregnant, it's about taking home a baby. Staying pregnant is the problem.
This Norwegian study seems quite large and reliable. Under the age of 30 your odds of taking home a baby are excellent. For every year after 30 they deteriorate at an increasing rate but the odds are just about still on your side (if you're an average Norwegian) until your mid 40s.

The increased difficulty of getting pregnant in the first place compounds these figures.

https://www.bmj.com/content/364/bmj.l869

daisytumble
That fertility between below 35 and those over 35 is a minimal difference and that the idea of a drop at 35 is a myth built from when life expectancy was 35-40 hence why records showed a drop in births from mothers between those ages.

Very very small difference in reality.
I had mine at 39 and 42.

It varies so drastically from person to person. Im 32 and needed IVF to get pregnant because my ovies are so depleted. They'll be empty by the time I'm 35+.

Assuming you're not using any form of birth cntrol and are still having regular sex, I don;t see why you shouldn't be able to get pregnant - assuming you're both in good health and have medical issues that would affect the chances of a pregnancy occurring.

I was told in 1990 when I was 35 that I was too old to get pregnant so there was no point in using contraception - this from my GP, a married lady with four children of her own ! Six months later that same woman GP was congratulating me on getting pregnant (March 1991) and I gave birth to my daughter in October 1991 when I was aged 36. I sailed through my pregnancy with no problems whatsoever and had an easy delivery.

I did find out later when my daughter was at junior school that I was older than the GRANDPARENTS of some of the children in her class 😁!

Just a small data point but the two people I know who sadly haven’t managed to have children are older women.

One has had multiple IVF without success.

The other has had several natural miscarriages and multiple failed IVF.

Yes I conceived naturally at at 29. Started TTC again age 32 had multiple losses and then infertile from ruptured ectopics by age 35.

I saw an article yesterday recommending all women freeze eggs by age 25. I'll be talking to my daughters about fertility from an an early age

I had my first at 36 & my second at 40.
I had lots of issues with losses etc at 36, but 0 issues at 40.

The average age for progesterone levels to start dropping is 35, which afaik is what can play into the difficulty of keeping a pregnancy even if actually conceiving isnt a problem

Statistically yes. Individually will vary

I conceived after 4 months with dd2 at 36. I know several families where conceiving prior to 35 was straightforward and afterwards did not happen however. Ultimately there are no guarantees, you know your fertility is declining gradually so it's up to you whether your life circumstances outweigh trying sooner rather than later. I waited until it felt right but I know that I've been relatively lucky for it to work out how I wanted.

This is spot on. It's not a cliff and the average woman under 40 can conceive within a year. Some lose their fertility sooner. If you want to be prudent it's best not to hang about, primarily because you never know how long it's going to take. If you start trying at 35 and encounter problems then it doesn't give you long to play with, or to get to the bottom of the issue and start appropriate treatments.

Talkwhilstyouwalk
What is 'not long to play with'?

Posts like this remind me of how snotty and unhelpful some people on MN are.. really no need for your comment!