Lifestyle
Motherhood and Career: Challenges and Choices in Fertility Preservation
Discover how to balance your professional aspirations with the desire to become a mother by making informed decisions about your fertility.
Modern women often face the dilemma between career and motherhood. This article explores the importance of fertility preservation and assisted reproductive technologies. Learn how to navigate social pressure and taboos, ensuring the right to decide when and how to have children.
In the "Inspira e Ação" (Inspire and Act) episode of Donas da Voz (Women of Voice), Livia Matos welcomes specialist Natália Milagre, commercial head of a renowned human reproduction laboratory. The conversation addresses a crucial topic for career-driven, ambitious women: fertility and assisted reproductive technologies, focusing on the lack of information and social pressure that impact decisions about motherhood.
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The Modern Woman's Dilemma: Career vs. Biology
Historically, medicine has focused on contraception rather than fertility preservation. As women dedicate themselves to their careers, many postpone motherhood. However, the female body does not keep pace with this social evolution: fertility significantly declines with age.
- The Decline of Fertility: The fertility rate begins to drop after age 35, and after 40, the natural probability of pregnancy is nearly 1%. This data underscores the need for information and planning.
- Social Pressure and Taboos: Society still imposes the idea that women "must get pregnant" and "have a family" at a specific age, ignoring individual choices and the desire to focus on other areas of life. It is crucial for every woman to know what she wants for herself and have access to reliable information to make her decisions.
Fertility Preservation: Options and Costs
One of the main solutions for those wishing to postpone motherhood is fertility preservation, which includes egg freezing. Natália Milagre explains that freezing eggs before age 35 can increase the chance of future pregnancy from 1% (after 40) to about 40%.
- Cost and Accessibility: In Brazil, approximately 95% of treatments are private. Egg freezing can cost starting from R$10,000, while a complete in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment can reach R$30,000. Public services exist but come with long waiting lists (a minimum of 2 years).
- Investment or Travel? It seems unfair to ask a young woman to invest in egg freezing instead of experiences like travel. However, this is a form of "insurance" for the future, ensuring the option to become a mother later, even without a 100% guarantee of success.
- A Gift for the Future: There are cases where parents, aiming for their daughters' well-being and freedom of choice, gift them egg freezing, recognizing the importance of relieving women from the pressure of the biological clock.
Assisted Reproduction for LGBTQIA+ Couples and Other Cases
Assisted reproduction offers various possibilities, including for LGBTQIA+ couples and for the prevention of genetic diseases.
- Female Couples: Can use donor sperm (acquired from sperm banks in Brazil or abroad) and an egg from one of the partners. It is possible to choose the donor's physical characteristics.
- Male Couples: Require a gestational surrogate; commercial surrogacy is not permitted in Brazil. A gestational surrogate must be a family member or a close friend who does not charge for the service. Additionally, donor eggs must be acquired.
- In Vitro Fertilization (IVF): This is the replication of natural conception in a laboratory. It includes ovarian stimulation, egg retrieval, fertilization with sperm (from the partner or donor) to form embryos, and subsequent transfer to the uterus. IVF can also be used for preimplantation genetic testing of embryos, offering security for couples with a family history or those of advanced age.
Breaking Taboos and Seeking Support
The assisted reproduction journey can be emotionally, physically, and financially challenging. It is crucial to break the taboo surrounding infertility and speak openly about the topic.
- Impact on Couples: The process can generate psychological stress, physical strain (due to exams and hormones), and high financial costs, even impacting the marriage. It is vital to have a support network.
- ABRAFE: The Brazilian Association of Assisted Reproduction (ABRAFE) offers free support through a multidisciplinary team (geneticists, embryologists, psychologists, nutritionists), ensuring reliable information without conflicts of interest.
- Gynecologists and Specialists: Although awareness about fertility preservation is still evolving in gynecology offices, there is a growing trend for referrals to infertility specialists. Women can and should question their doctors about this topic.
- Social Media: This is an important tool for disseminating information, but caution is needed. Seek reliable sources endorsed by societies such as the SBRA (Brazilian Society of Assisted Reproduction) or SBRH (Brazilian Society of Human Reproduction), avoiding miraculous solutions.
Motherhood is a personal choice. May women empower themselves with information and independence, deciding their own path without external pressures. Having the right to decide when and how to become a mother is true empowerment. Talk to your doctor, seek knowledge, and take control of your own voice and your future.
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