For some women, becoming pregnant is enviously easy. It feels like all they need is the mere thought of becoming pregnant and *poof!* within a few months, they are prized with the beautiful experience of pregnancy and motherhood.

Unfortunately, we’re not all built the same way and for some women and couples, becoming pregnant can feel like an impossible challenge. After years of attempting to do so naturally, many couples face the reality: pregnancy cannot be achieved without the help of professionals.

So what do you do when you’re just ‘not expecting’? Let’s delve into the world of in vitro fertilization (IVF), how it works, and how it can help what feels impossible – become possible.

What is IVF?

IVF is the medical process of fertilization of an egg by combining the egg with sperm in a laboratory dish, which is then transferred as an embryo to the uterus. This process increases the likelihood of a successful pregnancy as it’s done in a controlled environment and can decrease the challenges present to the couple.

Who gets IVF?

IVF is never the first step in the treatment of infertility. It’s generally only used in cases where other options have been unsuccessful in causing a successful pregnancy. This is largely in part because it can be a long process that includes hormone treatment and financial investment.

IVF is recommended for fertility problems like blocked or damaged fallopian tubes, sperm issues, when other fertility drugs have not helped, problems with ovulation, and when trying to conceive unsuccessfully for over 2 years without any explainable reason. Additionally, in cases where women have problems with their ovaries or eggs and cannot become pregnant using their own sex cells, there’s a possibility of doing IVF through egg donation.

How much does IVF cost?

The price of IVF depends on numerous factors, including the country, the number of attempts, and whether health insurance covers the costs. For example, in England, IVF can cost about £5000 per cycle, including medication and treatment. Depending on the number of cycles necessary to reach a successful pregnancy, a couple can spend tens of thousands of pounds in their attempts.

Other countries provide lower costs for the same treatment and cater to people from across the world. Invimed, for example, provides savings of up to 60% for IVF treatment in their clinics in Poland. These types of clinics focus on providing affordable IVF to UK citizens. Getting treatment overseas can be a smart idea – we wrote a simple guide about IVF treatments abroad to help in this process.

What is the IVF process?

A simplified breakdown of the process is like so: the first step will involve injecting hormones to produce multiple eggs per month. Eggs are then removed, mixed with sperm, and remain carefully observed in the clinic. Once the embryos are ready, the doctor will transfer one or more to the uterus. A successful pregnancy should result in a positive pregnancy test about two weeks later.

If IVF is a topic of interest to you, make sure to discuss it in great detail with your doctor or clinic.