Making it all work: How do you balance a career and family planning?

For many women, the idea of juggling a career and motherhood feels overwhelming. The desire to succeed in your professional life may conflict with the ticking of your biological clock. Our Tulsa fertility center experts offer guidance to our patients as they chart their own unique paths forward and attempt to balance a career and family planning. For some women, the best answer is delaying motherhood through fertility preservation.

The societal and biological pressure on women

From a young age, women are handed baby dolls and Barbies, reinforcing the idea that their primary role is being a mother. For some women, that is their ultimate desire, and our Tulsa fertility center experts work to ensure those dreams are fulfilled.

In other cases, we have patients who want to experience career success before having children. The challenge for women to balance a career and family planning often lies in that fact that female fertility peaks in your mid-to-late 20s, decreases in your 30, and rapidly declines from about age 35 into your 40s. Our physicians want to provide relevant medical information, so that our patients can make informed decisions.

What about fertility preservation?

While we can’t slow down the passage of time, our doctors can help women prolong their ability to conceive though fertility preservation. At one time, freezing embryos was the only option, and was often used by couples who wanted to expand their families or individuals undergoing medical treatment such as chemotherapy. Thanks to a fast-freezing process called vitrification, our patients can now freeze their eggs at the optimal age and store them for later use, when the time is right to have a baby.

Tips for how to balance a career and family planning

Deciding the best way to balance a career and family planning is a personal choice. We are here to provide medical expertise and unwavering support as you make your decisions. Consider the following suggestions from our Tulsa fertility center experts.

• Evaluate your priorities
  There are no right or wrong answers about when to focus on your career and when to pursue motherhood. Only you can decide if you want to attain a certain career level, complete certain course work, or set a firm target date for baby-making to begin.
• Research your options
  Delaying motherhood could result in the need for fertility treatment. Learn about what is involved in fertility preservation, and look into medical care, maternity leave and what return-to-work looks like once a baby has arrived.
• Create realistic expectations
  You can meet all your goals, but probably not all at once. Having a career while being a mother may require sacrifices to make it all work.
• Build a support system
  No one is an island, so don’t try to do everything all on your own. Recruit friends, family and your partner, if applicable, to help you juggle your work and family responsibilities.

At Tulsa Fertility Center, our team stands ready to protect our patients’ dreams for parenthood. Our doctors can explain fertility preservation options in more detail and are happy to answer any questions. Call our office to schedule a consultation appointment with one of our Tulsa fertility center experts.