Undergoing fertility treatment gradually increases uncertainty, as well as deepens anxiety in women. Most women await to hear that they are pregnant as ‘unexplained infertility’ is a common cause of failed pregnancy. After intrauterine insemination or IUI, the women who wait with the uncertainty ongoing for two weeks live unknowing whether they will have a baby or not.
The couples, after the IUI treatment, are concerned about the two-week wait for its results. They want to know what they should look at the post-IUI treatment to do to help while they wait for their chance to conceive. Here is what you need to do after the IUI treatment.
What Are the Key Dos and Don'ts After IUI Treatment?
After IUI treatment, it's important to follow specific dos and don’ts for the best chances of success. The best time to do an IUI is usually just before or after ovulation, as this maximizes the likelihood of sperm meeting the egg. After the procedure, things to avoid after IUI include strenuous exercise and activities that can increase the risk of infection, like swimming. It's also important to pay attention to your sleeping position after IUI treatment—sleeping on your side is recommended to reduce any pressure on the abdomen, following these dos and don'ts after IUI can significantly enhance the chances of conception.
What is IUI?
Understanding what intrauterine insemination is is essential to know after the treatment. The procedure by which the semen is implanted directly into the uterus for fertilization is IUI. While this process ensures the sperm’s journey to the egg into the uterus, it also guarantees that the sperm is placed at the ideal conception time. The chances of a successful pregnancy with these two aspects are higher than a normal pregnancy.
The woman's partner is required to undergo fertility medications to produce more eggs or induce ovulation. Nevertheless, a woman is administered fertility medications to increase her chances of conceiving after the IUI procedure. The healthy sperm has to join the egg at the cervix for fertilization. The fertilized egg develops and travels into the uterus through the fallopian tubes, where it implants in the lining or wall of the uterus. The embryo receives the required oxygen and nourishment from the cells.
What Are the Things You Should Avoid After IUI Treatment?
Having adequate bedrest after IUI to become pregnant is a myth, though doctors allow women patients to lie down after the procedure. This is not essential as the catheter helps place the sperm directly in the uterus, and this is performed without any sedation to the patient, who can carry out her usual activities. However, she needs to be careful as if she is pregnant. In case of successful implantation, she needs to meet the doctor for the medications.
Being a woman who has undergone the IUI procedure, you need to stay away from any strenuous exercise. Having taken fertility medications, you may have your ovaries tender and slightly enlarged and you have to protect them. Similarly, keeping your body temperature low will help implantation. Avoiding swimming after the treatment is advisable to reduce any chance of infection, which you may possibly get through the water.
What Should You Expect After IUI?
You may experience slight spotting after IUI, there is no need to get into a panic for it is because of the irritation of the soft tissue of the vagina and cervix. The initial spotting will stop by about three days. In case it is not and you experience cramping, you need to contact your doctor. Most women experience some vaginal discharge, which is common. It is cervical mucus and not leakage.
Following IUI, you can hardly expect any pregnancy symptoms as you will not become pregnant early in the process. If you experience any, you have to keep a list of the symptoms for some days to decide whether they are the normal ones for your body or not. On the sixth day after the IUI procedure, implantation occurs, and from then on, you need to monitor its signs. Any slight spotting should be taken care of as it could be implantation bleeding.
Nevertheless, most women do not have any symptoms or experience implantation bleeding on the sixth day. Rather some women experience symptoms or implantation after 11 or 12 days following IUI. Therefore, not experiencing any symptoms does not essentially mean that you are not pregnant.
Also, Read: best time to do IUI before or after ovulation
What are the Symptoms and Signs of Pregnancy:
Any signs of pregnancy are displayed only when implantation occurs and the fact is your body shows those signs after some time after implantation. Without implantation, it is not possible to receive a positive pregnancy test for the body produces HCG only when implantation happens. The early signs of pregnancy are not obvious, and if you monitor the symptoms and find any deviation from the normal body pattern, it could be the signs of pregnancy. Some symptoms of pregnancy are:
- Nausea and dizziness
- Vomiting
- Breast tenderness
- Constipation
- Exhaustion
- Stomach pain or discomfort
The above symptoms will become intense with the rise in HCG levels, and it is possible that you will receive a positive pregnancy test.
Also, Read: IUI Treatment Success Rate and Risks
When Should Take a Pregnancy Test?
To ensure whether the IUI treatment has worked or not, take a pregnancy test. You can take it after two weeks of IUI. Taking home tests may not give results, and it is advisable to perform a blood test at the hospital and get an accurate result.
