Katie Price's desire to have a child with husband Alex Reid is well documented in the tabloid media and women’s magazines. But what is surprising is that they recently revealed that they’d undergone not one but two unsuccessful IVF attempts in a bid to get pregnant.
Alex Reid has apparently confirmed in some media reports that they’ve both had all the fertility checks done, and that both are medically fine – so there’s no reason why they can’t get pregnant.
But it seems that the decision to go for IVF isn’t down to necessity for the couple – it’s down to timing. The pregnancy just isn’t happening quick enough it seems, so they turned to IVF in the hope that it would give them the baby they want sooner rather than later.
As they’ve found out however, unfortunately IVF isn’t guaranteed and isn’t an ‘instant’ ticket to a pregnancy. It’s a physical and emotional rollercoaster, with many ups and downs. Katie Price has herself admitted it was 'traumatic'. So why would anyone go through it, if they didn’t have to? All of the couples we treat at Manchester Fertility are here because they need help to have a baby – not because they just don’t want to wait for nature to take its course.
What is concerning is that people may read about Katie Price's IVF, and think that they may need it because they’ve not fallen pregnant as quickly as they would like. When in fact, they may just need to keep trying for a bit longer. Bear in mind that infertility is only medically diagnosed when you’ve been having unprotected sex for two years or more without falling pregnant.
It’s also important to remember that if you’re trying to add to your family, as Katie is, then you’ll most likely be older than you were during your first pregnancy. And as fertility declines as we age, this may also be a factor in why you’ve not got pregnant so quickly this time.
So don’t jump to IVF conclusions if you’re struggling to have a baby. As a first step, visit your GP with your partner. They may just advise you to keep trying, or if they feel it necessary, will refer you for simple tests that can identify any problems which may be stopping you getting pregnant. If needs be, you can be transferred for infertility treatment with a clinic like Manchester Fertility.
Last updated: 20th January 2020
