Are you thinking about in vitro fertilization (IVF)? If you’ve already been working on your fertility with your regular doctor and other methods haven’t been successful, then IVF might make sense as a next step.

If you are interested in IVF, you can start by talking with your gynecologist or obstetrician about IVF and asking for a recommendation on which clinics in your area perform IVF procedures. Glow Pages also has valuable resources, both in the Glow app and on the Glow website. 

Fertility Clinics

IVF is performed by a reproductive endocrinologist in a fertility clinic, sometimes affiliated with your local hospital. 

Fertility clinics help couples and individuals with a wide number of procedures and interventions to help initiate pregnancy. That said, IVF is the most well known and most common form of assisted reproduction.

For those considering IVF, it’s best to look for a provider that is part of a major, quality medical center—one that will have high standards of care and the most up to date information and tools and equipment.

With the popularity of IVF, some smaller, less-established clinics have started to provide the procedure. If you consider smaller facilities, make sure you prioritize finding a provider based not only on cost, but also on reputation, quality of care, and success rates.

Who Is involved in IVF?

You will likely meet with reproductive endocrinologists, embryologists, sonographers, nurses, and fertility counselors throughout the IVF process. These individuals will evaluate your situation, and help personalize your care and guide you through the process.

What is Involved?

So what happens once you decide to have IVF treatment?

1. You will have an initial interview, physical exam, ovary/semen analysis, and blood work.

2. You will be taught how to give yourself fertility medication injections at home.

3. You will visit the clinic every few days to monitor your progress.

4. Your eggs will be collected by doctors when the timing is exactly right.

5. Your eggs will be combined with sperm to create an embryo.

6. You will have a procedure to have the embryo inserted into your uterus.

7. You will continue fertility medications and clinics visits to monitor your progress.

The last step? A pregnancy test. Believe it or not, this can be the most daunting part of the procedure!

IVF takes 4 to 6 weeks of work, and often times it takes more than one round of IVF to achieve success. Women 35 years and under have a 41-43% chance of pregnancy per IVF round, and that percentage lowers with advancing age.