My own fertility was something that I had never really thought about - I’m young, active and healthy so why would there be an issue?
Out of curiosity I ordered a cheap sperm count test that works in a similar way to a pregnancy test to see whether my sperm count was good.
As part of the test you have to wait 15 mins for the semen to liquify. I was sat on my bed watching the clock and suddenly realised the potential implications of what I was about to find out. Before this point I hadn’t given much thought to the fact that this result could actually have massive impacts on my future but now I was thinking about every scenario possible. It was also in these 15mins that I realised I had no idea what I should do if I was to find out that I had a suboptimal sperm count - do I bother with another one of these tests, do I go to my GP, do I go to a fertility clinic?! I realised that it was something that I should have given more thought to and done some research, questions kept popping up in my head! If I am dating when would I tell a potential future partner? How would it affect my mental health? Who would I tell? What are the options for preservation of sperm?
After doing the test I then thought more and more about the process and whether it was the right thing for me to have done. Would I have actually preferred to keep going without knowing anything about my fertility until I reached the point where I wanted to put my sperm to good use or would it be best for me to find out and then make adjustments to my life to try to improve my fertility in the future. I came to the conclusion that it was the right thing for me to do. I would much rather know and be able to make lifestyle changes/ think about sperm storage etc. than deal with my fertility when I am am trying for children with a partner in the future.
Fertility is seen as a female issue which makes no sense at all. 40-50% of pregnancy struggles are due to the man and 1 in 12 men are infertile! Men being men seem to have buried their head in the sand on this one and we seem to think we will just deal with it as and when it raises its head. To me it doesn’t make sense! If we can do something quickly and easily from the comfort of our own home to then make plans for the future why wouldn’t we do that?