Any couple who has tried to have a baby without success knows the emotional pain associated with infertility. Many people mistakenly assume that infertility problems always are problems in the woman’s body. The truth is, however, that both women’s infertility and men’s infertility can cause a couple to not be able to conceive a child. One aspect of infertility, which is perhaps the most devastating one, is miscarriage. Miscarriage refers to a pregnancy in which the mother is unable to carry her baby to term, and the baby is born too early and does not survive. Miscarriage carries with it serious emotional issues for both the mother and the father. Many couples are comforted, however, in the fact that miscarriage is common and usually does not mean that the couple is going to be infertile. Most couples who go through a miscarriage are able to successfully conceive a baby later on. Some couples, however, are not able to conceive at all, or may have miscarriage after miscarriage in an attempt to have a baby. There are options to help both women’s infertility and men’s infertility. Of course, many couples who are infertile choose to adopt a baby, but this is not always an option. Other options include artificial insemination, infertility drugs, and in vitro fertilization. Fertility drugs are usually the first recourse when attempting to treat infertility. Many fertility drugs are used in an attempt to increase ovary production, giving the sperm more ovaries to potentially fertilize. This can treat problems with the mother or even low sperm count in the father, because more eggs present at the time of conception means a higher chance of success. Many women are able to successfully conceive when on fertility drugs, and sometimes they conceive multiples! Artificial insemination refers to medically placing the father’s sperm into the mother’s vagina. This treatment involves a catheter inserted into the cervix and filled with sperm. This treatment is often used for women who are having trouble conceiving due to their cervical mucus. Also, if a low male sperm count is the problem causing the infertility, artificial insemination can help. In vitro fertilization is another infertility treatment option. A woman seeking in vitro fertilization will start preparing for the procedure in the cycle prior to when she wants to conceive. Her doctor will prescribe a series of fertility drugs to help calm her ovaries. The goal of in vitro fertilization is to know exactly when the body ovulates, so calming the ovaries first gives the doctor needed control over the procedure. The ovaries are then stimulated through different fertility drugs in an attempt to cause the body to produce multiple follicles which will develop into mature eggs. These follicles are monitored on an ultrasound, and harvested when they become mature eggs. The eggs are then fertilized outside the body with the father’s sperm. These embryos are monitored daily and some are implanted into the mother’s uterus a few days after the eggs were harvested. This procedure is similar to a vaginal exam and is not painful. The couple then has to wait two weeks, while continuing to take fertility drugs, before they can test. If the pregnancy test comes back positive, it means the in vitro fertilization procedure was successful! In vitro fertilization often results in multiple births.