If you are close, by age, or by the symptoms that you begin to feel of menopause, you are in the premenopause, and you should know that you can still get pregnant. It is unlikely, true, but it is still possible. In this period the most common symptoms are hot flashes and night sweats, increased blood pressure and irregularities is the period. This means that pregnancy sometimes occurs and we attribute the delay to age disorders and not to an effective pregnancy.
As long as you haven't had twelve consecutive months without menstruation is not considered the end of menopause, therefore you can get pregnant if you experience a period before 12 months.
Can I get pregnant in premenopause or perimenopause?
The menopause stage is considered when you do not have your period regularly for twelve months, but you still have it, even if it is irregular, you have to be cautious when having sex. If you don't want to get pregnant, continue with the contraceptives, or take advantage of these opportunities if you do want to stay.
In premenopause, between the ages of 45 and 55, female sex hormones, estrogens, and progesterone decrease. But hormones are still being produced as for ovulation.
To know if you can still get pregnant you have to measure follicle stimulating hormone, if it is higher than 30 IU / L, there is no possibility of pregnancy. Otherwise, you should continue with the contraceptives.
Some studies speak that 30% of women over 53 years of age, who have not had their period in the last 6 months, have a hormonal analysis that did not diagnose menopause, that means that perhaps one of them could ovulate at some point. In addition, in the last fertile years, ovulations can accelerate, making different eggs coincide that can lead to twin pregnancies.
Either way, remember that from the age of 40, whether or not you are in the menopause period, pregnancy needs a series of special care so that it comes to fruition. If this is your case, take the instructions that the doctor is giving you to the letter and do not take it lightly, even if it is not your first pregnancy.
Menopause and induced pregnancy
In terms of conception, science and technology have advanced a lot and, although naturally without ovulation there is no pregnancy this can be given thanks to assisted reproductive techniques. The uterus does not age in the menopause stage and continues to have the capacity to host embryos, although a hormonal supplement must be administered.
Some of the methods for getting pregnant at menopause are:
- Donation of oocytes. The ovum is provided by a different woman than the one who is going to conceive, then it is inseminated. As in other assisted reproduction treatments, the expectant mother undergoes a cycle of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT).
- Retrieval of your own ovumso frozen embryos. It is a method similar to the first, a preparation of the mother's uterus is made and then the embryo transfer is done through in vitro fertilization.
- Embryo adoption. In this process, the mother's own embryos are no longer implanted, but those that offer a greater guarantee of implantation are selected.
Risks and contraindications
It should be taken into account that premenopausal or menopausal pregnancies can have more risks for the mother and the baby. These risks are mainly due to the age of the pregnant woman. The most common risks are:
- Greater chance of miscarriage in the first trimester.
- Increased risk of chromosomal abnormalities in the fetus.
- More complex deliveries.
- Increase in cases of low placenta.
- Development of high blood pressure during pregnancy.
- Gestational diabetes.
On the other hand, it has recently been shown that the father's age is also a risk factor even more decisive than that of the mother when it comes to getting pregnant.