Myths and facts about pregnancy in adulthood, like Claudia Raya – 09/23/2022

“Oh my God, I’m pregnant, how did this happen?” (Follow me there too .) Claudia Raya said this week when making the announcement on Instagram Tweet embed), who is expecting her third child, aged 55. With a mixture of celebration and bewilderment, this is also the question that many people are beginning to ask: How can an unexpected pregnancy occur at this age? Is it possible?

Although she had already announced that she underwent egg freezing a few years ago because she wanted to have another baby, Claudia hinted that the process in this case happened naturally, that is, without medical interventions such as in vitro fertilization. She is already too He said over here in 2020, who was taking hormone replacements to relieve menopausal symptoms.

First of all, it is necessary to understand that this is the stage when our ovaries begin to fail and drastically reduce the production of the hormones estrogen and progesterone. This does not prevent us from occasionally ovulating (and possibly even pregnant). But the fact is that the body is preparing to leave the reproductive stage. The period closest to the ideal state of pregnancy, according to medicine, will be when the woman is between 18 and 35 years old. We know that many women today are postponing motherhood and there are medical resources to make this possible. But there are also more risks and costs involved (which can be as high as a few thousand reals).

Is it possible to get pregnant during perimenopause?

“Yes, while a woman is in menopause, in the period of transition to menopause, which is imposed after 12 consecutive months without a woman menstruating, it can happen, but the pregnancy rate at this stage is very low. Women at this stage still need To worry about contraception, so there are no surprises,” says gynecologist at Hospital do Servidor Publico Isabella Barbosa. Remember that menopause and its symptoms such as hot flashes, insomnia and irregular periods can start up to seven or eight years before your period is completely gone.

As long as there is menstruation (and ovulation), a natural pregnancy can occur, but to give you an idea, a woman’s chance of getting pregnant in one year is less than 30%. From 40 to 44 years old, this percentage drops to 8%. And after 44 it drops further to 2%.

Is it possible to get pregnant after menopause?

In this case, it is impossible to get pregnant normally. After 12 months without menstruation, the woman completely stops ovulating. You can even stop using any method of contraception. But it is possible to resort to assisted reproductive therapy. “If a woman has frozen eggs when she is younger, it is possible to fertilize her partner’s sperm using these eggs,” Isabella says. “There is also the possibility of resorting to egg donation and embryo donation.” This means that in these cases, the woman will give birth to a baby from another woman’s egg or from an embryo that has already been conceived, because her body no longer produces its own eggs.

Is pregnancy in menopause safe?

In order for a woman in menopause to bear a child, the body and uterus must be prepared in advance. Also because the success rate of insemination also decreases with age. The doctor explains that “the rate of miscarriage at this stage is also higher. In addition, the rates of chromosomal change in women after the age of forty increase.” She says the miscarriage rate for women over the age of 44 is 60%. So the fact is that while it can happen, it has a high risk.

The bottom line is that if you’re still in perimenopause and don’t want to get pregnant, be sure to discuss the best birth control method with your doctor. Even if you are taking hormone replacement therapy, for example, you should use some form of birth control to prevent unwanted pregnancy. On the other hand, if you have a desire to manage a child, it is important to plan ahead. Pregnancy will not happen as it did with Claudia Raya. “It’s a very rare case,” Isabella says.

Here at Ageless, we wish Father Claudia and Garbas good health and joy in their new life.