Ten Tips For Couples Trying To Get Pregnant - Whether Or Not The Male Partner Has Varicocelectomy

There may be special situations in which a varicocelectomy is still a good idea. Only you and your doctor can determine this. But the counseling that is given to couples who do not opt for varicocele treatment is also valid for those who do. Here are 10 suggestions for couples trying to get pregnant who are concerned about the male partner's varicocele.

1. Keep your blood vessels flexible by making sure you control high blood pressure.

Controlling high blood pressure is not just important for your cardiovascular health. Controlling high blood pressure is also important for your reproductive health.

Keeping blood pressure down helps veins and arteries remain more flexible so the testicular and renal veins retain less blood, sending it up the body and back to the heart.

2. If you use a mountain bike, get a hornless seat.

Mountain bikes, far more than street bikes and exercise bikes, place extreme pressure on the groin that can injure the testicular vein. Injury to the soft tissues around the vein can interfere with circulation. If you use a mountain bike, take the pressure off your privates with an oval, hornless bicycle seat.

3. Avoid constipation.

Occasional irregularity is extremely unlikely to have any effect on male infertility. Any kind of blockage in the gut, however, can place pressure on the veins that drain the testicles. Avoiding constipation may not have any direct relationship to sperm count, but it may make pregnancy more of a possibility.

4. Wear boxers, not briefs.

Boxers allow the testicles to hang down, away from the body, keeping them cooler. Since, theoretically, the major problem with varicocele is overheating of the testes that causes sperm to die before they enter the semen, wearing boxers would reduce this effect of varicocele.

5. "Save up" semen for intercourse intended to conceive a baby.

More semen means more sperm. When the sperm count (which is measured in terms of millions of sperm per milliliter of ejaculate) is low, increasing the amount of the ejaculate compensates by providing greater volume containing more sperm. Avoiding intercourse when the female partner is not about to ovulate and avoiding masturbation increases the likelihood of conceiving a baby. It is not necessary to avoid ejaculation indefinitely. Most men only accumulate semen in the prostate for 1 to 4 days.

6. Time intercourse with the female partner's fertility.

An amazing number of men do not realize that women are not fertile 365 days a year. Conception is only possible before and at the time of ovulation, the approxiimately mid-point of a woman's menstrual cycle when her ovaries release the egg. Since the sperm take 1 to 3 days to "swim" from the cervix to the openings of the ovaries, it is necessary to have intercourse before ovulation. Various kinds of monitoring devices, such as the ClearBlue system, help determine the right time to have intercourse in order to conceive a child.

7. When having sex to conceive a child, do it in the missionary position.

Positions during sex do not make a difference unless the female partner is at the right point in her menstrual cycle. When she is near ovulation, however, it is best to have sex with the man on top. This position forces the erect penis further into the cervix, giving sperm a shorter path to the uterus.

8. Avoid compromising sperm quality by avoiding excessive alcohol and street drug use.

The few men who are more likely to become fathers after having a varicocelectomy are those who have problems with sperm quality, not sperm count. Another way to maintain sperm quality is to avoid excessive consumption of alcohol and street drugs. There actually is very little scientific data to show that sperm quality is actually influenced by alcohol, drugs, or smoking, but if you want to become a father, you probably do not want to take that chance.

9. Be sure to get omega-3 essential fatty acids in your diet.

Omega-3 essential fatty acids are the "good fats" found in fish oil, and that the body can make from certain healthy plant oils, especially flaxseed oil. Small amounts of these oils, as little as 1 gram a day, help the body to regulate and limit inflammation. Since inflammation of all kinds places pressure on the testicular vein, reducing inflammation increases circulation and may increase the likelihood of conception.

10. Don't try any single intervention indefinitely.

Don't just "keep trying" to have a baby more than 12 months without seeking medical advice. The older the partners get, the harder it is to conceive and carry a baby to a healthy birth. While all the advice here applies to couples trying to conceive at any age, couples who do not achieve a pregnancy within a year should seek medical intervention. Both the male partner and the female partner have to participate in treatment.