Do you worry about your fertility?

ElleEm

I was just thinking of this recently.
A few lads I know/ knew (friends or exes) over the years have expressed concern over their fertility.

I remember an ex of mine being convinced that he couldn't have kids. I think it was probably just cos his friends had gotten girls pregnant (unplanned) but he genuinely thought he couldn't have kids. For no good reason, I might add.

The lads who have brought it up since were the same, no evidence to back up their concerns, but they just "felt" that they couldn't have kids.

Is this a common thing with men?

Otis Driftwood

It is something Ive thought about in the past tbh.Not because Ive not gotten anyone pregnant but because I really want to have kids some day and would be heart broken if I couldnt.No reason for it at all and Im sure alot of women would be the same too.

hairyslug

All of my friends have gone through a stage of thinking they couldnt have kids including myself, 2 kids later (and 1 more due in 13 days time) have put my mind to ease, i think its a thing most males go through

ElleEm

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

It is something Ive thought about in the past tbh.Not because Ive not gotten anyone pregnant but because I really want to have kids some day and would be heart broken if I couldnt.No reason for it at all and Im sure alot of women would be the same too.

I suppose with women, we have periods that at least tells us that our eggs are doing the right thing!

Otis Driftwood

I can ejaculate,doesnt mean Im fertile!

ElleEm

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

I can ejaculate,doesnt mean Im fertile!

Yeah, I suppose! I just meant that at least as a woman, you have evidence of your body releasing eggs and your womb reacting to them not being fertilised. Not having periods would be an indicator that there is something wrong, whereas men don't have that.

Pembily

ElleEm wrote: »

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

I can ejaculate,doesnt mean Im fertile!

Yeah, I suppose! I just meant that at least as a woman, you have evidence of your body releasing eggs and your womb reacting to them not being fertilised. Not having periods would be an indicator that there is something wrong, whereas men don't have that.

Eh nope, just cause you've a period doesn't mean you are fertile!?

Its something I think about and hope I can have kids... I would be devastated if I can't!

Pembily

ElleEm wrote: »

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

I can ejaculate,doesnt mean Im fertile!

Yeah, I suppose! I just meant that at least as a woman, you have evidence of your body releasing eggs and your womb reacting to them not being fertilised. Not having periods would be an indicator that there is something wrong, whereas men don't have that.

Eh nope, just cause you've a period doesn't mean you are fertile!?

Its something I think about and hope I can have kids... I would be devastated if I can't!

ElleEm

I never said periods meant that you're fertile. I said that at least we have evidence of our reproductive system working away. If I started missing periods I would know somethin was up. Men don't have an indicator of things working or otherwise. Women have a bit of an indicator-in that if they're not releasing eggs, they'll know.

Balfie

Hasn't entered my mind.. I haven't really slept with that many girls, and the ones that I have slept with has mostly been with a condom, one girl was without one anytime we had sex...

One girl a few years ago thought she was pregnant and told me about it, after being 2 weeks late, cause a condom split.. Haven't had a scare since, I'm only 23 and haven't really been in any long term relationships.

On a side note, a girl that I know asked me if I would try for a baby with her as she really wants one.. Even went as far as to say that I don't even have to be there for the baby if I didn't want. That freaked me out like crazy.. Why would any man want to make a baby with someone an then have them say, "Sure ya don't even have to be in the babys life"

Needless to say what the answer I gave her was!

amacachi

I do find it somewhat funny when people try for a kid for a few months and panic that there's infertility on one side.


Personally I don't worry about it too much, most things that would cause it have either come and gone and it's too late to worry about or they're things one can only do something about once it's been found.

superstoner90

Well my uncle cant have kids, at my cousins holy comunion (different uncles kid) My uncle and his wife spent most of the mass part of the fist holy comunion crying.

Samich

Sometimes, that thing I read before about having the laptop on your lap and it's supposed to effect it has made me think about it. I have the laptop on my lap for hours a day probably.

C81

i did,
but not now..

TouchingVirus

I don't have a girlfriend, nor have I any desire to have a child at this time. However, I think about this often enough. "What if I'm infertile?", "What if everything is grand now, but in 5 years time or whatever when I meet the right person there's something that's gone on in the intervening period (e.g. an illness) that meant I became infertile?", "Is there a sperm bank in Ireland?" - all of these cross my mind from time to time. I've no real need to be thinking like this but I think it's related to the fact that having kids is pretty high up my list. Not bad enough to start going for the one night stand, but if I bothered to sit down and write out some specific long-term life goals then having them would be at least in the top 3.

For all my thoughts about what ifs, I've never had a fertility test, I'm not in a position to/willing to spend the cash to bank some sperm, I've never had an STD and the plumbing is in PWO. It's illogical on the face of it then that I think about it at all, but that's how it is.

mood

ElleEm wrote: »

I suppose with women, we have periods that at least tells us that our eggs are doing the right thing!

Having periods doesn't mean you are not infertile. I know women who never missed periods and are having major problems conceiving.

seenitall

TouchingVirus wrote: »

It's illogical on the face of it then that I think about it at all, but that's how it is.

It may be illogical, but so is the bad luck of infertility in many cases. I have a friend who got married and they wanted to start a family. Only to discover after they were unsuccessful that his sperm count is zero, with no possibility of improvement; so they went for adoption. Most times people have no clue until they actually start trying to conceive, although my friend's hubby's case is a rare one.

ElleEm, you're right about periods in the main, but still, there are also such things as anovulatory cycles (most common at the beginning and the end of a woman's fertile years; and when there are fertility problems, of course).

Saila

mood wrote: »

Having periods doesn't mean you are not infertile. I know women who never missed periods and are having major problems conceiving.

but non having periods is a sign you are pregnant, I think that is the angle she was coming at it from. with guys its more whether you are infertile or fertile there is no way to know, you still come, its just the swimmers are weaker, and without a microscope [and even then] there is no layman way to know without tests

lecker Hendl

Samich wrote: »

Sometimes, that thing I read before about having the laptop on your lap and it's supposed to effect it has made me think about it. I have the laptop on my lap for hours a day probably.

:eek:

my nuts are roasting right now. The little fellas are probably cooked to bits by now

It is generally something that worries people more than it should. Me and the girlfriends decided to have a baby, with the older of the two for now and we started trying. We got into our healthy eating, gave up alcohol, invested in Folic Acid, the works. It took the best part of 2 years to concieve and now with a 15 month old daughter we have started to try for number 2.

Doctors in my experience generalally seem to tell you to come back after a year of trying before they will take the case seriously that you might need assistence. This would seem to suggest that they do not have any reason to worry if conceptions are not instant and some people simply take longer than others.

So generally rushing to the fear you might be infertile is inadvisable until you have been trying without results for quite some time.