Is Hypothyroidism Affecting Your Fertility?

Has motherhood been eluding you?

Your thyroid gland could be the one to blame.

What is the thyroid gland?

It’s a small butterfly-shaped glad at the base of the throat – innocuous, seemingly harmless. Don’t be fooled!

That’s the thyroid gland and it pretty much controls how your body’s metabolism functions. In short, it had better be doing its job if you want to enjoy life in a healthy, meaningful manner.

Hypothyroidism

One of the most common thyroid imbalances is Hypothyroidism – when the thyroid gland produces less of the hormone called thyroxine than it should. Hypothyroidism leads to all kinds of health complications, one of which is difficulty in conceiving or, in extreme case, not being able to conceive at all.

Hypothyroidism and Its Impact on Conceiving

Unfortunately, hypothyroidism and low thyroid hormone levels can adversely impact many different aspects of menstruation and ovulation. Low levels of thyroxine, or T4 results in high prolactin levels. This can lead to either no egg being released during ovulation (or your fertile period) or irregularity in the egg being released, and so, difficulty in conceiving.

Late Motherhood Does Not Equal Infertility!

Motherhood came to me late, after I had been married for eight years. Those years of longing for a child seem like a bad dream now but they were painfully real when I was in the midst of them.

And, despite both my husband and I being reasonably young and healthy individuals, we went year after year waiting to give birth to our first child.

It was only when, after eight years of being on thyroid medication, that I finally conceived and delivered a perfectly healthy, normal baby boy, with absolutely no complications.

So, the big question: Can a Woman With an Under-active Thyroid Still Become Pregnant?

The answer is, yes!

Whether you have just been diagnosed with thyroid problems or have been on thyroid medication for a long time, the good news is that you, too, can conceive! Once you start on the thyroid mediation, your chances of being able to conceive dramatically go up.