Parents-to-be are facing a ‘fertility fear’ epidemic, new survey finds
Mums and dads-to-be are worried about not being able to get pregnant BEFORE even trying for a family, our new survey has revealed. And this ‘fertility fear’ means over 70% said trying to conceive (TTC) made them worried or anxious.
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To mark 40 years since the first IVF baby was born in the UK, we carried out a survey of 1,000 parents - along with mums and dads-to-be - about their experiences of trying to get pregnant.
A massive 65% of prospective parents admitted they were worried about infertility before they even start trying for a family.
Meanwhile, a quarter of parents said fears over conceiving put a strain on their relationship and 8% have had mental health support to help them deal with the stress of TTC.
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A quarter of parents describe trying to get pregnant as ‘stressful and difficult’ with a further 30% describing it as ‘harder than they expected’.
Yet in reality, just 5% found they couldn’t get pregnant and the majority of parents we surveyed conceived in five months or less.
Netmums Editor-In-Chief, Annie O’Leary, said: ‘We wanted to mark 40 years since IVF babies became a reality in the UK with a state-of-the-nation survey on couples’ experiences of conception in 2018.
‘We knew that trying to conceive was one of the most popular topics on Netmums’ forum due to the success of our recently launched TTC boards, and one in every four posts by users now being on this topic, but we were saddened that it's a source of anxiety for so many, with the fear of infertility creating stress before couples have even started trying.’
What's behind these fertility fears?
Over a third of the mums-to-be that we surveyed revealed their irregular periods or other menstrual problems made them worry about their fertility.
Meanwhile, 23% thought their age could affect them getting pregnant, and nearly a quarter worried about how their weight could have an impact on their fertility.
Nearly a fifth (19%) said seeing their friends struggle to get pregnant had made them worry about their own fertility.
From our survey, we found the most common reasons behind these fertility fears are:
- Experiencing irregular periods or menstrual problems (35%)
- The age of the prospective mother (23%)
- The weight of the prospective mother (21%)
- Their friend’s experiences of infertility (19%)
- Lifestyle/work stress (15%)
- Media coverage of rising infertility (13%)
- Family history (11%)
How to boost your fertility
When it comes to getting pregnant, it seems it’s the mums-to-be who are doing the most to boost their fertility. Our survey found 75% of prospective mums changed their lifestyle habits to get pregnant compared to just 35% of dads.
Over half of the prospective parents we spoke to said they’d have more sex to get pregnant. Just under a third said they’d cut down on the booze and 27% said they’d change their diet.
Annie added, ‘When Netmums users were asked what one piece of advice they would offer to prospective parents, the overwhelming response was that the stress wasn’t helpful and that they would advise other couples to, “Relax, stay positive and enjoy all the sex!”'
Our findings: the key ways couples hope to boost their fertility ...
- Have more sex (53%)
- Reduce/eliminate alcohol intake (30%)
- Change diet (27%)
- Weight loss (22%)
- Change sexual positions (19%)
It seems parents-to-be are also willing to spend money to increase their chances of having a baby. Nearly half (48%) said they bought ovulation kits, 85% said they bought vitamins or supplements and 12% paid for fertility tests.
The majority of those we surveyed - 87% - said they were open to trying fertility treatments if they couldn’t get pregnant. A massive 71% said they’d try IVF and 70% would think about taking fertility drugs like Clomid.
Where to get support for fertility problems
One in seven couples may have difficulty conceiving, according to the NHS. Yet our survey found 55% of parents and prospective parents felt there wasn’t enough support or information for couples trying to conceive.
One great place to get support is our TTC (trying to conceive) board in our Netmums forum with 68% saying it was their most trusted support group.
We also have a TTC Clubs board where you can chat to other mums-to-be who are trying to get pregnant.
Other places mums and dads-to-be said they turned to for support was their GP (64%) and the NHS website (58%).
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