Only sex open to life required to ensure pregnancy?

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Banterisland

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When it comes to marriage & children… How far do you have to go to ensure pregnancy?.. It has been many months… At first I was desperate but now I just don’t care… All sex is open to life but when it comes to visiting the doctors to ensure everything is working fine, and possibly prescribing meds, eating certain foods, taking pre conception multivitamins, certain exercises to improve chances of conception etc are you obliged to do these things? Or is just open sex enough?
 
The Church requires you to take reasonable care of your health, such as eating a reasonably healthy diet and seeing a doctor if you think you might be ill.

The Church does not require you to take steps beyond “sex open to life”, such as eating certain food, taking certain vitamins, or doing certain exercises, in order to increase your chances of getting pregnant. Many couples choose to do these things because they want very much to conceive, but it’s a choice, not a requirement of the Church.

If you are having trouble getting pregnant, then it’s a good idea to get checked by a doctor to make sure there is no serious underlying health issue that could affect your health in other ways beyond just not getting pregnant. If there is an underlying health issue, then the focus would be on treating that condition as needed to maintain your general health, not specifically to get pregnant.
 
Are you trying to get pregnant? The rule of thumb is to see a doctor after a year of non-contraceptive sex, unless you’re 35, then no longer than six months.

Most fertility treatments are compatible with the Catholic faith, for instance medications.

However, if you don’t care if you get pregnant or not, you don’t need to see a doctor just because nature is taking (or not taking) it’s course.
 
Banterisland said:
All sex is open to life but when it comes to visiting the doctors to ensure everything is working fine, and possibly prescribing meds, eating certain foods, taking pre conception multivitamins, certain exercises to improve chances of conception etc are you obliged to do these things?
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No, you are not obligated to seek medical intervention. Certainly seeing the doctor and following advice on general health and well-being is prudent, and doctors can diagnose and treat conditions that might be interfering or causing difficulty. But you don’t have to take medications or do anything to “improve chances” of conception.

You can morally work with a doctor with procedures and techniques that assist, but not replace, natural intercourse. But you aren’t obligated to do so.
 
I would consider taking folic acid as a supplement because it helps most in the first trimester, often before women find out they’re pregnant. It reduces the chances of having a child with spina bifida. But you will have to read more of this. I would also avoid all alcohol. Again, unborn children can suffer from alcohol and develop Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders even before a mother knows she is pregnant.
 
Lara said:
I would consider taking folic acid as a supplement because it helps most in the first trimester, often before women find out they’re pregnant. It reduces the chances of having a child with spina bifida. But you will have to read more of this. I would also avoid all alcohol. Again, unborn children can suffer from alcohol and develop Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders even before a mother knows she is pregnant.
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This is pretty important to women wanting to become pregnant
 
Yes this is my point… We don’t have any children and I don’t care anymore if I get pregnant… I know I can get pregnant because I got pregnant the first month trying but unfortunately miscarriaged… Since then no luck… It is nearly a year and like you said they recommend doctors… . But I have lost interest… I’ve stopped ovulation testing, pre vitamins, omitting certain foods, drinks… all the jazz and bazz of the conceiving world…and have stopped focusing on it all and am currently enjoying being child free and focusing on the positives of this… We have daily sex which is open so pregnancy can result… But I don’t want to be thinking about it until I miss a period and get 2 lines.
 
Yes I take normal vitamins with folic acid but I refuse to take anything specifically pregnancy related… I drink alcohol when needed but again I’m not giving up alcohol for an incase chance unless I miss a period.
 
I have put you on my prayer list and am asking St Gerard Majella’s intercession for you…and, of course, Our Blessed Lady’s too.

Christ’s Peace be with you…
 
My doctors never recommended I avoid all alcohol before pregnancy, even when I was trying to conceive. The way the baby gets nutrients very early in the pregnancy is different and drinking before you know you are pregnant is not generally a cause for concern, especially if you avoid drunkenness.
 
No you aren’t obliged to do any of that from a Catholic moral standpoint. In addition, there is a lot of quasi-quackery out there that exploits women with unexplained infertility.
 
The teaching is to be open to life, not to go out of your way to be pregnant as often as possible. If you’re all right without children and aren’t doing anything forbidden, then that’s fine.
 
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I’m sure you know, but just putting it out there in the thread— out of the entire month, there’s generally only a 24-48 hour period where conception can happen. Fertilization happens only in the fallopian tubes, and the egg is only in the fallopian tubes for a relatively brief window, although sperm can survive inside the body for about 5 days.

That said— some people who aren’t able to have biological children for whatever reason, but are interested in opening their hearts to a family, have other avenues that can be pursued. I recently went to a funeral of a man who had spent the last 50 years in a wheelchair, and wasn’t able to have his own biological offspring, but they had opened their hearts to adopt four or five children and made an enormous difference in their lives. Likewise, a block away, there’s a nice couple who have adopted. And this past week I was chatting in the office with another guy who has his own biological teenager, but just got finished wrapping up the formal adoption of a kid they had been fostering for a year or two now-- and he and his wife are already fostering another.

I’m happy that by “don’t care anymore”, you’re not under the stress and pressure of having to conceive, especially after the first miscarriage. I’m very sorry for your loss. Please don’t put your physical or mental health and safety at risk. But I hope that you and your husband are able to figure out your path, and find something that brings contentment to your hearts, whether it’s bio-kids, helping out with a relative, or opening your door to help a kid in need. 💙
 
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