Best chances to get pregnant at 42

[Lostat42]

I turned 42 a week ago, and my partner and I want to try for a child. I am aware age is not on my side, having stupidly put my career before starting a family.

I know it’s slim and probably won’t happen but to give myself the best chance what do I need to be doing?

Also I have been reading about IUI and IVF and am getting a bit confused and overwhelmed, should I just go to the doctors and discuss these options?

I’ve put off having children and now it’s too late, I’m kicking myself and just want to give it my all in case it could work.

TIA

May be worth seeking a fertility assessment of both you and your partner - just to rule out potential issues.

Generally try to be as fit and healthy as you can be. If you're not already familiar with your cycle, do so by which I mean look out for symptoms that ovulation is coming / fertile window to increase your chances. Ovulation predictor strips are helpful for this (can get them quite cheaply online or in poundland). After a while I started taking my basal body temperature too but that was more to reassure myself that I was actually ovulating rather than anything to do with conception. I took ubiquinol (Coenzyme Q10) & folic acid but whether it made any difference I don't know! A fertility check up as pp said is a good idea. Good luck xx

Yep healthy lifestyle including both of you limiting booze and stress. Ovulation kit and Preseed. Just start trying and see how you go.

Don't beat yourself up, you made the right decision for you st the time.

At 42 you have a 5% chance of pregnancy per cycle compared to a 25% chance in your 20s.

You need to get your hormone levels tested pronto! Find out your AMH and FSH to see if you have a chance with natural/IUI conception. If the levels aren’t good you will need to move swiftly to IVF.

Clinic results vary HUGELY especially in your age range - you can check out the success rates on the HFEA website. There are London clinics who do very well comparatively, ARGC has a success rate of 43% per cycle at 40-42 although some of these will be donor cycles. The lowest clinics have a 0% rate and the national average for 40-42 is 17%. A cycle at ARGC can cost £30k and many people dislike their aggressive approach.

I cannot stress how important time is in this. You don’t have time to wait for the NHS. Blood tests (This can be NHS) book in an IVF consultation. Bear in mind you may need donor eggs.

good luck.

I agree start taking coq-10 and folic acid asap.
i purchased the coq-10 300mg from Amazon.
I have been trying for 10 months now, I am 41 this week.
I waited too long to have my second child, we were saving for a mortgage. But we still haven’t got a mortgage so I wish I started trying years ago.
my daughter is 16. All the best. 💕

I'm almost 42. Started trying at 39. I did absolutely everything possible. Took all the vitamins recommended by fertility clinic (Impryl - very expensive, CQ10, Folic acid, vitamin D, Cod liver oil etc etc). Had some months I used PreSeed, some months didn't. Used ovulation sticks and temping. Had 2 very expensive rounds of IVF at ARGC with full immune testing and recommended treatment, both times had 3 embryos transferred which both resulted in BFNs. I've had one natural conception in that time as well which resulted in MMC at 6 weeks.
But there are many people who conceived naturally at 42 with no problems within a few months. You won't know which camp you fall into until you try unfortunately. It may work quickly for you without fertility treatment. Or you may have left it too late. There is no way to know until it either happens or doesn't happen.
Good luck with trying and I wish you better luck than I have had!

Download an app called "Flo" track your periods and have sex in your ovulation window so you don't miss it!. Starr taking folic acid. Or Pregnacare usually has it in.

Im 43 have had one MC in may and 2 x CP last one September. Am currently 4+3 hoping desperately this will stick. I’ve been taking ubiquinol, vitamin D & folic acid now for a couple of months also evening primrose oil up to when you ovulate. ( not after as can trigger MC) I also have 2 Brazil nuts a day (again no more I’m told) am still not sure which way this is going to go and am still on the list for fertility investigation. I haven’t told the doc yet for fear of this one going wrong and being taken off the list. I hope you get your BFP and wish you luck x

I'd get private fertility tests ASAP. I doubt you'd get any fertility treatment on the NHS, their guidance says "IVF should be offered to women under the age of 43 who have been trying to get pregnant through regular unprotected sex for 2 years." unless you lie about trying. The IVF success rate decreases with age as well, and it's a grueling process. I use Premom app and their ovulation tests.

NHS IVF rules vary by location. They have different age limits so worth checking what the situation is where you live.

Regardless of that I'd advise speaking with a private clinic as you will get dealt with immediately whereas the NHS can be very inconsistent.

I hope you find a solution that works. I too worked at developing a decent career before starting a family at a similar age. It was the best thing ever. The lack of financial worries makes things so much easier than it is for many younger parents. Good luck!

What I did at 45: ovulation tracking, then doggy style sex (sorry if TMI) and lying with pelvis up on a pillow for an hour after sex. No idea if that was what did the trick!

While you might end up at the fertility clinic, and wanting you now they’ll advise your best chance is donor eggs, I’d be having sex absolutely all the time.

Be your healthiest and all that, reduce stress, reduce hours, but lots and lots of shagging.

Think new lovers like bunnies. Honestly, all the time. That’s what worked for me at 39.5.

At 43 it is possible but very unlikely that you’ll conceive and carry to term a healthy baby with your own eggs, BUT it is still very likely that you would have a successful healthy pregnancy with donor eggs (from a much younger woman). So my advice to you is to waste no time, go straight to IVF clinic asap, they’ll give you drugs to stimulate your ovaries so you can hopefully create a bunch of your own fertilised eggs, but you will also find out fast if your ovaries simply can’t do much anymore and then you can begin the donor eggs process.

My IVF doctor told me that the body releases the best eggs first ie at age 12-13, and the problem is that by your late thirties / forties you are now releasing really poor eggs :( and the chances of miscarriage or birth defects are high.

Also, to maximise your chances: quit caffeine and alcohol, only consume organic dairy products (non-organic milk contains hormones), reduce stress, and do moderate but not too much exercise.

Good luck xx

I'm 41 in Feb and have been trying for 6 months for baby no.2. Baby 1 is 17 months now. With her we tried for five consecutive cycles, and I fell pregnant on cycles 1, 2, 3, and 5 (finally with DD). I'm convinced I would've also caught on cycle 4 were it not for a burst ovarian cyst. I was the wrong side of 38 then, 39 when she was born. Now, just over 2 years later, I have regular periods/seem to ovulate regularly but I can't seem to conceive at all.

So my advice would also be don't wait.

Get serious on everything you can do easily now (vits, cut out booze and caffeine, reduce stress, eat healthily etc), and book in asap to see GP. Also, start trying regardless of the state you're in! ;-)

Depending on where you live, you are entitled to a round (or more) of IVF on the NHS, but that will take heaps of time, so like others have said, if you have the funds, I'd skip straight to private fertility testing. Work out first if natural conception/conception by IUI is remotely likely, and if your numbers aren't great/are borderline, move immediately to IVF. Hell, if I were you I would probably just move straight to IVF given the increased risk of miscarriage at our age. There are obviously no guarantees you'll avoid that with IVF, but you'll have a better shot at making sure you implant healthy embryos at least. Start researching clinics, and consider what your max budget is.

I'm off to the GP next week. Expecting nothing more than a pat on the back and a good luck to be honest.🙁Our next step will be whether we want to move to IVF or whether we want to remain forever grateful for our DD and let that be that.

For various reasons I was 38 before I felt in the right place to be a parent. We went a few months just leaving things to chance and I quickly realised that without tracking my cycle the chances of anything happening were slim. I conceived on the second month of tracking my cycle and gave birth to my son aged 39 - easy, straightforward pregnancy with no complications. My younger sister on the other hand tried for 2:5 years before they conceived so I was really surprised at my own experience.
You don't know whether it's too late unless you try. You might be lucky like I was as you're not that much older. Start taking the right supplements to give yourself the best chance.