So many women have had trouble either conceiving or being able to carry a pregnancy to full term. There are many reasons why this happens. First if we rule out pelvic diseases, hormonal insufficiencies, immune system problems, medications (such as antibiotics, insulin, and antidepressants), scar tissue, and premature menopause, then other causes could explain the difficulty. With all the things that could either be wrong or go wrong, it is a wonder people get to be born at all!

But say we're dealing with a perfectly healthy woman with regular menstrual cycles, and a normal production of fertile eggs, and the male has a high sperm count, but fertility is still an issue. There are causes that are not the first to be considered. One cause often overlooked is the presence of uterine fibroids.

These are considered to be benign tumors of the uterine muscle (that is if you view infertility to be benign). However, it's the size and location that are crucial here. Some fibroids are small and located in an area of the uterus that won't have any impact on the reproductive process.

The 3 usual locations for fibroids are: Subserosal which is on the outside surface of the uterus,

Intramural which is with in the muscular wall of the uterus, and the last ones are the Submucous fibroids which bulge into the uterine cavity. This one is the problematic kind of fibroid because it is located inside the uterine cavity. That's not to say that fibroids that are situated near the fallopian tubes or cervix aren't a problem. Those prevent the sperm or even the fertilized egg from reaching the uterus and implanting there. Sometimes they can even block the fallopian tubes causing no eggs to be able to get fertilized. Bottom line: uterine fibroids, bad.

But getting back to the submucosal fibroids. Large ones can disrupt the uterine lining as I mentioned before, making it difficult for proper implantation. They can also get in the way of the growth of an embryo which would increase the chances for miscarriage. If the fibroids grow even a little but under the endometrial lining in the uterus and then protrude into the uterine cavity, they can cause fetal deformities, premature labor, and other labor complications. This is just so awful.

Before trying to conceive, uterine fibroids are detectable by a pelvic exam or better yet a pelvic sonogram. But what if your doctor suggests surgery to remove the fibroids before trying to get pregnant (if you're lucky enough to find out before conception)? You should consider the fact that there can be a lot of blood loss and then of course the time needed for recovery to be ready to try to get pregnant again. Some surgeries, such as a myomectomy claim to be minimally invasive, but then they have to reconstruct the uterus after they remove the fibroids. Does that sound minimally invasive? Not to me it doesn't. Not only that, sometimes new fibroids can grow back later on.

Women in other countries around the world have all had to deal with fertility obstacles also, though statistically, not as much as in the United States. The difference is in their approach to a woman's overall well being and having the body function as a healthy organism as a whole. Their approach is more of a maintenance of uterine health to prevent these problems in the first place. You already know if you have some kind of gynecological problem. Chances are you'll experience heavy periods, even passing clots, have periods that last longer than usual, and have mind numbing cramps. I'm going to end this article on a very postive note. If uterine fibroids are the cause of your fertility problems, surgery and drugs are not the only answer. In Europe and Asia and now many in the United States are aware of certain enzymes and food based nutrients that have been effective in breaking down these fibroids. There have been so many women that have gone on to conceive after taking this proactive natural approach to significantly shrink uterine fibroids. It helped me and I had a bad case of "the invasion of the fibroids". If you want to be thoroughly informed and want to know exactly what has helped so many other through the decades, please visit the community in the bio box. The community is dedicated to all women who have gone through this but don't have to.