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.
Please share your experiences.

According to research quoted in this article, it's not that tough for most people: www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/07/how-long-can-you-wait-to-have-a-baby/309374/#
However, I wish when I first read that I'd appreciated how rubbish it is to be amongst those that struggle and been aware that IVF is not a cure-all for age-related infertility and that IVF success rates decline dramatically from mid-30s onwards

I started ttc around age 35 and finally had a baby after 3 rounds of ivf last year, when I was 38.
Fertility tests aged 34 had shown I had a fairly good egg reserve, but these tests don't tell you anything about egg quality, which is a massive factor in declining fertility as we age

On average fertility decreases sharply after 35. Though I can't see 35/36 being the biggest difference. Some people are still very fertile in late 40s, some are having problems by early/mid 30s.

At the same time as fertility starts to decline risk of miscarriage and foetal abnormalities increases just as sharply as average fertility falls. So it isn't just getting pregnant that CAN become harder. It doesn't for everyone, lots of people go on to have babies at 40 healthy and easily.

You just don't know if you'll be one of them or one of the unlucky ones.

My mum had my sister & I at 37 & 38. No problems at all.

First cycle at 39 for DC2. But you’ll hear any number of anecdotes which may or may not be helpful.

I got pregant pretty much first cycle 5 times btw 37 and 40. But 3 were early miscarriages. Two children born when I was 38 and 41.

Fertility only reduces sharply over 40 (on average), over 35 its a gradual reduction. I got pregnant very easily at 36. I don’t think there will be any difference in a year or so, I wouldn’t let that be your deciding factor.

I was told by an ex colleague whose mum was a gynaecologist that the cut off point for women was 37. The ex colleague had been married and divorced and had met a new man and was planning to be married to him, so she did it fairly quickly at 35/36 then 2 DC at 37 and 6 months or a year after.

Yes fertility takes a nose dive after 35. Your chances of miscarriage and chromosomal abnormalities also increase a lot too.

Took 3 cycles for me at 36. 2 cycles at 30 so not much difference

had my first child at 30 (conceived at 29). I think they say that you’re more likely to be fertile later on if you already have children which is why I’ve mentioned my first child.

at 37 I conceived cycle 5 but was an early miscarriage

at 38 conceived 1st cycle after miscarriage but was another early miscarriage

then again at 38 I conceived 1st cycle after 2bd miscarriage my nearly 6 week old who’s asleep on me now

so no trouble conceiving but did have losses which may or may not have been because of my age

The truth is, it just depends! We're all different. But your fertility won't drop off drastically the moment you turn 35. I fell pregnant after 3 cycles at 34 and after 2 cycles at 37. Before you try, I recommend doing research - take vitamins months in advance, get all your ducks in a row. ☺️ Best of luck! It's exciting 🌟

I got pregnant at 37 on the third cycle. It also depends on your partner's age to a lesser extend.

I'm pretty sure the "fertility nosedives at 35" thing is an exaggeration:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/apr/10/fertility-cliff-age-35-week-in-patriarchy

It differs so much from person to person. I just had my third child at age 41 - we conceived the very first time we tried. However, I think a lot of that is because we had already had two children. If I had been trying for my first we might not have been so lucky. My best friend is the same age, but hasn't had any children and so far IVF isn't working.

I've read that if you want to secure your fertility then you should ideally freeze your eggs before 35.

I got pregnant after 3 cycles age 38, baby at 39. I have quite a few friends who also got pregnant with their first between ages 36-39.

In my NCT class, there were several IVF pregnancies - one lady age 30 and two aged 39 and 40.

I also had a friend who tried to conceive for 4 years with her husband then began IVF then fell pregnant naturally at 38! She's now pregnant naturally with her second at 40.

I got pregnant with my second child in second month of trying at 38.

Not in the slightest. But everyone’s different.

Technically yes. As you get older, particularly over 35 your ovarian reserve reduces, and for men after 40 their fertility also reduces.
however plenty of women get pregnant naturally between 35-45 and plenty of women under 35 struggle and need fertility support.
i had my first at 27, got pregnant on the combined pill. My DS2 I conceived at 30 after ttc for 6 cycles. I then had an ectopic pregnancy which was totally unplanned between coming off the pill and having a coil out in, sex once in a whole month and boom pregnant! I was 33 then.
then I ttc from age 34.5yr and it took 19 months and eventually had a chemical pregnancy immediately followed by a successful pregnancy which is where I am now and that was at 36.

bloods wise everything was normal, although didn’t do AMH as without follicle counting it’s not helpful. The only thing was I wasn’t ovulating regularly, possibly for close to a year after my first 3 Covid vaccines. Ovulating kicked again and 6months later I was pregnant.

It’s very individual. I fell pregnant with DC at 36 and am pregnant again at 38. We weren’t actively trying either time.

No one can answer that question , it's all down to your own personal fertility. Also a little bit of familiar traits ( my mum had an early menopause , I started mine at under 40 )
I have a friend who had her first at 36 without any trouble. It all comes down to luck of the draw and deteriorating fertility.

It’s luck of the draw I think - stats are at a population level so within that you’ll have the women who go through the menopause in their twenties to those having babies in their late 40s. So statistically it’s harder in your mid-late 30s than if you were younger. But you won’t know where you’ll fall in the spectrum until you try. I have 3 DC - I got pregnant first time at 34 (unplanned one-off!) and 36. Took 5 months at 39 and now at 42 am on HRT.

It's really hard to say in an individual level (as others have said). I got pregnant easily at 35, then it took much longer at 37 with one or two very early miscarriages.
I think it become much harder in your 40s. Yes plenty of women have babies in their 40s but I've seen women struggling to conceive or stay pregnant past 40.

It really depends. I started TTC at 29 and it took over 4 years, 2 early losses and 2 IVF transfers to get pregnant with my DD. If I had started at 36 maybe it wouldn’t have happened. IVF success rates clearly show the best success under 35, a dip for those 36-37, a bigger dip for those 38-39, and pretty poor chances over that age. On the other hand for those without fertility issues most women who TTC at 36 will fall pregnant within a year and have a live birth

I think it varies hugely. How late have other female members of your family conceived?

One dsis, it took 8 weeks from coming off the pill each time, at 35 and 37, and 16 weeks at 39.

I conceived at 44 having been told I was 'most unlikely to conceive'.

My DM had children at 34, 38, 42 and 44.

Two cycles for my first child at 39 and one cycle for my second child at 41.