{"id":91016,"date":"2020-04-03T14:59:40","date_gmt":"2020-04-03T12:59:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ivi.uk\/?p=91016"},"modified":"2022-11-03T17:27:40","modified_gmt":"2022-11-03T15:27:40","slug":"infertility-why-dont-people-talk-about-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ivi.uk\/blog\/infertility-why-dont-people-talk-about-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Infertility: Why don\u2019t more people talk about it?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Infertility <\/strong>sometimes seems like one of the last social taboos, especially in an era when every passing year sees a previously unthinkable opening up of \u2018private\u2019 topics for discussion. Conversations about money and financial earnings, unheard of in previous generations, become easy topics for social chit-chat. On a more personal level, sexuality and gender identity are no longer no-go areas of conversation and problems with mental health are acknowledged as a routine hazard of daily life.<\/p>\n

Why is infertility different?<\/strong> On one hand, male infertility<\/strong> has skyrocketed in recent years and yet we keep quiet about it. On the other, social pressures that lead women to delay motherhood<\/strong> for a decade or more compared with their grandmothers goes almost unremarked upon. Likewise, the term \u2018secondary<\/strong> infertility\u2019<\/strong> is not part of our everyday vocabulary and many people barely talk about it.<\/p>\n

We share a common assumption that, come the right time and if we want to, we\u2019ll go ahead and have kids. When it doesn\u2019t happen, or when it\u2019s confirmed that you, your partner or both of you have a fertility problem<\/strong>, that assumption takes a knock. Being diagnosed with infertility <\/strong>might come as a potential shock to the system for which we might feel quite unprepared. But the truth is that infertility is a common problem nowadays, and it affects many couples. Let\u2019s take a look at some of the real facts of life.<\/p>\n

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Male factor infertility is increasing dramatically<\/h2>\n

In 2017, a study published in Human Reproduction Update<\/a> found that male fertility in the developed world has decreased over the past few decades. Measured primarily by sperm concentration and total sperm count, the overall decline was 52.4% with an annual decline rate of 1.4% per year and the decline shows no signs of levelling off. More recently, these startling findings were reinforced by a 2019 study from the Office for National Statistics (ONS)<\/a> which reported that the England and Wales birth rate had reached a new low. This was later confirmed by our own study at IVI of declining male fertility.<\/p>\n

In other words, more and more men are experiencing fertility problems and needing help. In spite of a brief flurry of media coverage following the publication of these reports, men affected by low fertility often experience bewilderment, loneliness and possible relationship problems, as well as feel unsupported. Fortunately, there exists a wide range of organisations offering a lifeline in the shape of someone to talk to. As always in the UK, your GP is often the best starting point, but these organisations include:<\/p>\n