I know my resting heart rate, my fasting blood glucose, and my blood pressure. My iPhone even tracks how many steps I take every day. But I don’t know whether I will get pregnant when I decide to try.

Though I trained as a doctor, there wasn’t a significant focus on fertility. It wasn’t even a topic of discussion with my doctor during my annual exam.

Everything changed when I co-founded a fertility company. Along with the important scientific findings came the realization that fertility is a topic we don’t talk about enough. Because fertility is such an important part of women’s lives, part of our well-being and work/life balance, I decided to start a conversation that takes the fertility discussion out of the closet.

Today countless friends — men and women alike — reach out with questions:

  • How long can I wait to get pregnant? Am I too old?
  • What exactly is In Vitro Fertilization (IVF)?
  • How long should we try to get pregnant before we consider IVF? How much does it cost?
  • What do we do if we fail IVF?
  • How do we make sure our baby is healthy?
  • Should I freeze my eggs?

Some facts that might interest you:

1 in 6 couples struggle with infertility.

Definitions of infertility vary between countries like the US and Japan, meaning that women aren’t always sure when they need to seek help. Definitions enter around how long you and your partner have been trying to get pregnant, but age is also a factor. It’s always wise to seek out a doctor as early as possible to get the facts and explore options.

Most women have heard about the “biological clock” and therefore know that age is a primary risk factor when it comes to infertility, but the reality is even more nuanced — it’s the age and health of our eggs that matter. For example, obesity, smoking, and diabetes dramatically affect the health of our eggs even at a relatively young age.

IVF is still the primary standard of treatment for infertility. Most likely, someone you know is already going through IVF treatments.

Unfortunately, IVF fails 70% of the time — and most women go through 2–3 cycles of IVF at great financial cost as the procedure is typically not covered by health insurance.

Wellness and relaxation also play a role. Stress is a risk factor for infertility, and infertility understandably causes stress. Infertility challenges can take a toll on relationships and on a woman’s self-confidence.

I am passionate about opening the fertility conversation so that women and families can feel more comfortable and even proud to come out of the closet and join the discussion.

If you have a fertility journey or insight that you want to share, please join the conversation. I look forward to your comments and ideas.

Please stay tuned for more conversations on fertility, including:

  • The Sleep Cycle and Fertility
  • Diet and fertility
  • Exercise and your ability to get pregnant
  • Flexible work hours while you’re going through IVF
  • Maternity/Paternity leave
  • How to prepare for your doctor visit
  • IVF steps
  • Egg freezing
  • Hormones — the risks
  • New breakthrough fertility treatments

Michelle Dipp, MD, PhD

Co-founder, OvaScience

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Originally published at medium.com

Author(s)

  • Michelle Dipp

    Co-Founder and Managing Partner

    Biospring Partners

    Michelle Dipp, MD PhD is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Biospring Partners and has over a decade of private equity and venture capital expertise in life sciences. She currently serves on the Board of Abzena.   Prior to launching Biospring Partners, Michelle was a Managing Director at General Atlantic, a global growth equity firm based in New York. While at General Atlantic, Michelle launched their first life sciences investment platform and served as a member of the life sciences investment committee. Michelle served as a Board Observer for Ginkgo BioWorks and as a board member for PathAI and Immunocore.   Michelle was a Co-Founder and former General Partner of Longwood Fund, a leading healthcare investment firm based in Boston. As a General Partner in Longwood Funds I, II, III, and IV, Michelle co-founded several of Longwood Fund portfolio companies, where she held senior management and board positions, including Chairman of Axial Biotherapeutics and CEO and Chairman of OvaScience, Inc. Michelle served on the board of Colorescience and as a board observer of Bicycle Therapeutics and Pulmocide Ltd.   Before joining Longwood, she was GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) Senior Vice President of the Centre of Excellence for External Drug Discovery (CEEDD), GSK’s global business development group. Michelle also served as Vice President of Corporate Development at Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (acquired by GSK).   Michelle began her investment career at the Wellcome Trust after completing her medical training. She holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Oxford Medical School and a Doctor of Philosophy in Human Physiology from the University of Oxford.   Michelle currently serves on the Trustee Advisory Board for Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Advisory Board for the Women’s Foundation of Boston; Board of Directors for Life Science Cares; Rockefeller University Council; Advisory Council for the American Museum of Natural History; Co-Founding Member of the Bowman Fund, Brasenose College Boat Club, Oxford University; and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders.