I'm new at this so here goes:
My boyfriend is a parapelgic. Everything is GREAT in bed but we have been having unprotected sex since October and I'm not pregnant yet. I have a son from a previous marriage and my boyfriend and I would like to have a baby. Has anyone else experienced any problems with fertility?

Hi chadzgirl. My husband and I tried to conceive for a year and half. I was just about ready to give up when my doctor mentioned to me that the best place to start would be for my husband to give a sample so that it could be checked first and foremost. Turned out things looked fine...just low motility, meaning his sperm was a bit lazy. With this knowledge, my doctor was then able to tell me that guys in wheel chairs tend to make an undesirable environment for sperm...the seated position these guys are constantly in create a warm area that the sperm do not like. His solution was for my husband to cool the area. He suggested an ice bag or a cold soda can....something to absorb the heat. My hubby would do this whenever he had the chance. Within a couple of months...I was pregnant, and we now have an amazing 14 month old boy! I do not mean to suggest that this is exactly what the issue is with you as my husband's level of injury is much different than your boyfriend's, but maybe have your boyfriend offer a sample that can be tested...then, you'll know where to go from there. Good luck to you!

well i have wondered the same thing. i got pregnant with my son while i was on birth control. i am pretty fertile. however my boyfriend and i are not exactly careful. i sometimes wonder why i have not ended up pregnant. with the sample how exactly do they give a sample if they can not feel much and don't really have any control over wither they "provide the sample"? can the drs go in and retrive it? my bf wants to get tested but is not sure how it would work

Yes, there is a procedure that allows a sample to be retrieved...although I am not familiar with it as we did not have to go that route. It seems like it is called vibrostimulation? or something along those lines. Y'all can go to the clinic, and if need be, you will be allowed to "help". Or probably, the best thing to do is speak with a Dr. I started with my own Gynecologist, and he sort of got us started in the right direction.

Yes, you're correct there is absolutely a "procedure". It's actually really simple and takes very little time. You simply use a vibrostimulator that is placed just under the tip of his penis for a short period of time and the body has a natural reflex to the vibration that will cause them to ejaculate. They are similar to what would be a female vibrator, but much more souped-up or "powerful, if you will".

Actually, I purchased one for home use called the ferticare vibrator just for the psychological satisfaction of "finishing" even though I can't necessarily feel it. It costs around $800 though and you have to get approval from your doctor. It has virtually 100% success rate only just can't use it too often or your body will lose the reflex and you need to give it a couple weeks before you can use it again.

Hope that helps.

Hi,
My husband (t10) and I are going thru all this fun stuff too. He has been taking Clomid to help increase motility of his sperm. The vibrater did not work for him. But something call electro ejactulation did the trick. No we have to do ICSI to help the slow swimmers get to the egg.

It sux that IVF/ICSI is sooooo expensive. We are going to try the procedure overseas to save about $10,000. When we get there, he will do a procedure where they try to get the sperm out using a needle. I pray it works!

Wish me luck and good luck to you!

Please don't spend $800 on ferticare. You can use a WAHL brand or even Conair (the massager with 5 different attachments - can be purchased at Wal-Mart) and it works just the same. Trust me as I am pregnant now.

Just wanted to add a note about fertility in sci men. Google the miami project...they are the only place I know of that really studies it or knows anything about it. Contrary to popular belief, it has nothing to do with sitting in a chair that causes low motility and viability. SCI causes there to be a sort of chemical imbalance in the semen. The latest research is that it is an inflamatory protein that is present and toxic to the sperm. They are testing an antidote to that. They've even added the seminal fluid of an sci man to the healthy sperm of a non-sci man and the motility and viability were drastically harmed. Not all SCI men have this problem, but it seems to be like, 90%. They also seem to have high dna fragmentation.

just fyi.

Paralization?--haha

Not to take away from the thread, but . . . .

Wow this thread has been very helpful. Me and my bf are planning on starting ttc this month and all this info has been very helpful.

We cant afford IVF or any of that stuff. I looked at a site that has a vibrator for $899 and I was like "WOW I only paid $98 for mines".LOL. I seriously doubt he would be willing to use it.

We are planning to go the "natural" route with the help of "Blue Diamond".LOL. I have no kids and he has 3 pre sci. I will be charting so we can try to increase our odds.

Please wish us luck !!!

Hi
I've just been reading this post and my fiance is C5/6 and we have been talking about fertility. I have recently been looking for a vibrostimulation device. Sorry if this is too personal a question but how did you get pregnant, how did you use the massager? Was a turkey baster invovled!! I'm presuming from reading this post that paraplegics can ejaculate and quadraplegics can't?!

When Laurie had his accident 13 years ago we were given no advice on sex or fertility, we were just packed off with viagara and figured it out for ourselves!!. We didn't want children back then so it wasn't an issue but I'd liek to explore something like what you are talking about even if it is just to experiment whether he can ejaculate.

Thanks
Sue

Quads can ejaculate, and it is a hit or miss situation for most SCIs. The most common sci level for ejaculatory absence are males with low injuries in the lumbo-sacral area. That is where the major erection/ejaculatory reflex center is located, and if damaged, erection and or ejaculation are highly unlikely.

My bf is a C5 Incomplete and he can get a erection sporadically or when he gets IC'd. As far as ejaculation he has no problems there either. We also use Viagara too

My boyfriend and I have talked about having kids in the near future. He has not ejaculated since his accident (over 10 years ago). He mentioned this to his Urologist, and he gave him some Viagra and told him that lots of SCI's who think they can't ejaculate can when they use Viagra. Obviously there are also lots of men who can't. He said if that doesn't work, go and see a specialist in Vancouver. I wish he had of maybe mentioned other options. I feel like now its either he can, or he can't and therefore we have to pay $10,000 to have a child one day.

I know there are other options, I was wondering if people had information on how to access these.

Also for those of you in here who are SCI and can ejaculate, how does it feel? My boyfriend can get certain sensations and says that it does feel different when on Viagra, but so far nothing has actually happened.

I almost feel guilty because he knows I REALLY want kids, and I think he feels pressure from it. Right now we're just having fun, we're not going to try for atleast 2 years. But we're also not using protection.

I just wouldn't mind stuffing as much information as possible into my brain before the time comes.