Daily Life of Infertile Couples

Staying Healthy

Maintain a good nutritional diet.

* Vitamin A, B, E, and essential amino acids: good for virility and sperm ability * Vitamin C: especially important for the production of sperm * Vitamin A: eel; raw liver of cow or pig; egg yolk; sea squirts; spinach; leeks; and seaweeds * Vitamin B: eel; raw liver of cow or pig; meat; quail eggs; bacon; soybeans; and shiitakes * Vitamin C: grain, greenish-yellow vegetables; ginseng; soybeans and other beans; peanuts; sesame oil. * Essential amino acids: soybeans contain large quantities * Abstain from animal fat (e.g., bacon) and sweets. * Avoid obesity by exercising regularly * Women: losing too much weight and malnourishment can cause anovular menstruation. * The panniculus adiposus (layer of subcutaneous fat) absorbs critical female hormones. Hence, if there is too much of it then the hormones cannot function normally. * Men: Severe obesity can reduce sperm count. * Exercise to prevent congestion of the pelvis. (Move waist front to back and side to side.) * Abstain from drinking, smoking, and using drugs. * Reduce stress.


Encourage blood circulation

* Women should prevent congestion of the pelvis (i.e., venous blood is interrupted, causing blood to swamp the organs and tissue of the pelvis). * Avoid tight jeans and wear underwear composed of material with good air-permeability. * Dirty underwear should be changed to prevent the propagation of various germs. * Women must be attentive to air conditioning and heating settings. * Too much air conditioning interferes with blood circulation. * The entire body should be heated as evenly as possible. Partial heating interrupts blood circulation. * Bathing daily can help blood circulation, especially before intercourse. This quickens blood circulation and makes sex more enjoyable.


Conversation is important

* Trying to have a baby can be stressful. * Relax and talk honestly about expectations and each other's needs.


Experience love through sex

* Do not feel constraint and anxiety from the thought that sex is necessary for fertilization. * Do not use lubrication before or during intercourse or douche after intercourse. These chemicals affect sperm and cervical mucous. * Even if there is a need to void after intercourse, do not get up right away. Lie in bed or raise the buttocks slightly to help sperm reach the cervix.


Sexual relations when pregnancy is desired



* A good position to get pregnant is a position that allows semen to stay inside the vagina. * The missionary position (i.e., the man lying on top of the woman's stomach) is the most common. It is useful to place a cushion under the woman's back to raise her pelvis. * After ejaculation, the woman should maintain her position for 10 minutes to keep the semen inside her. * Have intercourse when chances are best for conceiving. o Chart ovulation using a basal thermometer. o The lifespan of sperm is 72 hours and for eggs it is 24 hours. Try to have intercourse the day before or on the day of ovulation. * There is no relationship between pregnancy and long abstinence or frequent sex. * After a normal ejaculation, it takes 2-3 days for the sperm count to return to normal, and 4-5 days if sperm generation is slow. * Intercourse must take place in a natural and nice atmosphere. * The uterus contracts during orgasm, drawing in sperm from the inside of the vagina. * The burden of trying to become pregnant and one-sided demands for sex interfere efforts to become pregnant.