38years old: how fertile am I?

[QueenBeeBee]

Hi all,

I'm new to mumsnet but have started to read some fantastic threads.

I'm a little concerned about my situation. I don't have a partner (I am looking) but I really want to have children in the near future. As a 38 year old, I am starting to wonder what steps I need to take incase I don't find someone. My concerns are about whether or not i'm fertile and for how long and how many quality eggs I have left etc. I'm also thinking about what I can do now to preserve my eggs in the future.

So many questions and don't really know where to start. Can anyone out there help, I'd be eternally grateful.

It's impossible for anyone to know how fertile you are, apart from the appropriate medical professionals.

There do seem to be some tools and links available from the NHS on this topic eg on this page.

The NHS also have a fertility self assessment tool which you might find helpful.

If you have regular periods and no known issues relating to reproduction then there's no reason to assume you aren't fertile. But 38 is heading towards the territory of falling fertility, generally speaking.

Can you afford to go private for tests? That would probably allow you to find out more sooner.

Agree with previous posts, you need to get it checked out by professionals. I am 38 and started TTC in Sep 2013, got PG in Nov 2013 but MC'd in Dec 2013. Then again got PG in Jan 2014 and am now 21 weeks PG. So I am still very fertile (this will be my second DC) but I also have friends my age who are struggling.

You should get checked. My friend who is 30 and very fit has been told her fertility is rapidly reducing (nos of eggs) where another friend got pg fairly easily at 40 (a smoker too). I'd be worried that the tools made fairly sweeping assumptions.

I'm 30, very healthy and been ttc for 19months. Fairly sure that tool would have told me I was super fertile. I am clearly not!

Good luck!!!

Actually I think that the tools would suggest you see your GP, based on the information that you have provided, m33r. They are just a starting point to give you an idea of what the issues are. They also assume that you are actively ttc, so they aren't that relevant to the OP, but I thought she might find them interesting.