The Fertility Question

Plot

ReviewInfertile couples make up the largest silent minority in the world today, as one in six couples has difficulty conceiving. This well-written book gives excellent information on the problems an infertile woman may encounter, with a particularly good discussion on taking and interpreting the basal temperature. Understanding one's anatomy and physiology is of particular value for the infertile couple, and Ms. Nofziger's discussions on ovulation and the menstrual cycle are both accurate and easy to understand. I highly recommend this book for all persons interested in a brief, clear discussion of female infertility. -- From the Foreword by Dr. James F. DaniellProduct DescriptionThis book is a guide to infertility using the principles of Natural Family Planning to enhance the chances of conception. It also contains information on the medical infertility workup. The Fertility Question is a good companion on this difficult journey. Includes examples of temperature charting and a chapter of questions and answers.From the PublisherThis 1982 classic was taken out of print by the original publisher. Rights reverted to the author, Margaret Nofziger; and MND Publishing, Inc. purchased the remaining inventory and made this valuable book available once again. MND Publishing, Inc. will reprint future editions.From the Back CoverA Guide To Conception: Women are only fertile for about four days each menstrual cycle. Even so, many women become pregnant as soon as they decide to cease preventive measures, and conceive a child. But many women do not become pregnant when they make that momentous decision, and for them, the Fertility Question becomes a quest. Intimate knowledge of the female reproductive cycle, with its subtle signs and signals, can be an invaluable aid in this search.About the AuthorMargaret Nofziger is an author and free-lance writer on the subjects of fertility and nutrition. Margaret dealt with infertility of unknown cause for 8 years and ultimately was blessed with 2 children, now grown. She lives with her husband on a lake in Alabama.Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.Here you are, investigating your fertility. Your doctor or your own curiosity has led you to a detailed study of your reproductive potential. Your goal is conception, a process taken for granted by most, sought with passion by some. There is a "normal bell curve" of fertility. Couples are not simply fertile or infertile. Some are "super-fertile." Their high sperm count, very supportive cervical mucus, etc., makes them conceive very readily. Others have a combination of fertility factors leading to an "average" fertility, and others, to a reduced fertility....Often it is a combination of factors that predisposes a couple to have difficulty conceiving a child. We will explore in detail the female fertility cycle with its special road map, the basal temperature chart.Sometimes sperm are low in numbers. It only takes one sperm to fertilize an egg, but the sperm have a long and arduous journey to get there. Large numbers are simply killed by the ordinary acid environment of the vagina before they can reach the sustaining alkaline mucus of the cervix. The cave-like crypts of the cervix, which make the fertility-enhancing mucus, act as a sort of halfway house for the sperm, feeding and housing them on their journey. Once in the uterus, many more of the sperm never find the two openings which lead out of the uterus to the tubes. Many sperm will swim their tiny lives out, never finding the right door.In the beginning and end of the cycle, when the hormone estrogen is low, the mucus is scant, sticky and opaque with cellular matter. In the middle of the cycle, it changes to a fertile type mucus. As the estrogen level increases, preparing for ovulation, the quantity of mucus increases. It becomes thinner and milkier. Then with still more estrogen, it gets clear and watery. At the estrogen peak, right before ovulation, it get