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If you’ve decided that you’re ready to expand your family, but you’re living with endometriosis, you may wonder what that process will look like for you. When you have endometriosis, the tissue that lines your uterus (endometrium) starts growing in places it isn’t meant to, such as your ovaries, fallopian tubes, and pelvis.
While it’s certainly possible to become pregnant and have a healthy pregnancy when you have endometriosis, studies suggest that up to 50% of women who have endometriosis struggle with infertility.
If you know that you have endometriosis and are ready to become pregnant, it’s good to prioritize expert-level obstetric care every step of the way. And that’s exactly what our team at the Center for Women’s Health in Sugar Land and Richmond, Texas, is here to do.
In this month’s blog, we discuss how endometriosis affects fertility and how our team can help.
Endometriosis and fertility
As stated above, endometriosis is a condition that causes endometrial tissue to grow in places outside your uterus.
In the early stages of this condition, the abnormal tissue growth can cause inflammation. When places like your pelvis have an inflammatory environment, it makes it incredibly difficult for a sperm and an egg to meet.
If the condition continues to progress, enough endometrial tissue can build up in your fallopian tubes and ovaries that prevents eggs from ever being able to meet with sperm. The scar tissue and inflammation can also cause DNA damage to unfertilized eggs.
Is getting pregnant possible?
The short answer is a resounding yes. In fact, it’s very possible to become pregnant and have a healthy pregnancy without any medical assistance.
However, this may not be the case for everyone. Endometriosis can increase your risk for infertility, and you may need to seek out assistive reproductive technology to successfully conceive.
Having endometriosis also increases your risk for complications during pregnancy and childbirth, such as gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and preeclampsia.
How can you increase your chance of a successful pregnancy?
You can increase your chances of conception and a healthy pregnancy and delivery by reducing inflammation in your body. Endometriosis causes high inflammation throughout your body, which is part of what makes getting pregnant so difficult.
Ways to naturally bring down inflammation include maintaining a healthy weight for your body, eating a nutrient-dense diet that prioritizes high amounts of plant-based foods, and doing moderate exercise regularly.
In addition, it’s important to see our team regularly for well-woman visits and obstetric care when you’re ready to start trying to conceive.
If you and your partner aren’t able to conceive on your own, in vitro fertilization (IVF) helps a healthy egg and sperm meet outside the inflammation and structural blockages that endometriosis causes.
To get started with expert-level care for endometriosis and pregnancy, schedule an appointment with our team by calling your nearest office location or using our online booking feature today.