What is the Best Age to Get Pregnant with PCOS?

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal condition that can make the journey to pregnancy a bit more challenging. This complex endocrine disorder causes hormonal imbalances that impact the reproductive system in a number of ways.

Not only can cysts form like the name of the disorder suggests, but PCOS can also disrupt ovulation, reduce egg quality, hinder implantation, increase the risk of miscarriage, and cause cysts to form. All this can significantly decrease your chances of getting pregnant. While fertility naturally begins to decline around age 30 for most women, those with PCOS may face fertility issues and complications even earlier. 

Now, I’m not here to pressure you if you’re not ready to start a family, but understanding the best age to get pregnant when you have PCOS can be a super helpful part of planning your future. Most importantly, don’t stress about the way PCOS affects pregnancy, there are many ways you can improve your reproductive health naturally!

In today’s blog post, I’m focusing on the ideal age to conceive with PCOS and sharing lifestyle changes to help you prepare your body for a healthy pregnancy when the time is right! 

What is the Best Age to Get Pregnant with PCOS?

Did you know that women in their 20s have the highest fertility rates? And guess what that includes women with PCOS! While there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to the best age to get pregnant with PCOS (because, let’s be real, life is full of factors like career goals, relationships, and more), most experts agree that your mid-20s is an ideal time.

This is when your body is naturally at its most fertile, giving you a great starting point if you’re ready to begin your pregnancy journey. Keep it on your radar, but remember, your timeline is uniquely yours. It is definitely possible to have a healthy pregnancy even after your 20s while having PCOS!

How Difficult is it to Get Pregnant with PCOS?

For many women with PCOS, fertility treatments are a common part of the journey to conception. With irregular periods and disrupted ovulation, it’s no surprise that PCOS can directly affect fertility.

In fact, research shows that about 70% of women with PCOS require medical assistance, often taking ovulation-stimulating medications to help boost their chances. For some, in vitro fertilization (IVF) becomes the next step if these medications don’t work. With that being said, natural approaches to reversing PCOS and getting pregnant are on the rise and becoming more popular as they have been very effective.

But, the journey doesn’t end with conception. PCOS can come with an increased risk of pregnancy complications, such as gestational diabetes and miscarriage. The good news? Working closely with fertility specialists and adopting healthy lifestyle changes to manage PCOS symptoms can help prepare your body for pregnancy with PCOS and significantly increase your chances of success.

It’s all about giving your body the love and support it needs to thrive!

How to Increase Your Chances of Getting Pregnant with PCOS

Maintain a balanced diet.

Maintaining a healthy weight through proper nutrition and exercise is one of the most important steps you can take to boost your chances of getting pregnant especially if you have PCOS. One of the root challenges of PCOS is insulin resistance, which affects up to 80% of women with PCOS. This condition causes your body to store glucose as fat instead of processing it for energy, making weight management more difficult. 

So, how does insulin resistance impact pregnancy? Insulin resistance increases your production of androgens, which are male sex hormones. Elevated androgens are one of the main reasons you experience disrupted ovulation and menstrual cycles. Plus, a high BMI can cause estrogen and progesterone to be off balance too, further negatively impacting your reproductive health and reducing your body’s ability to produce healthy eggs. 

If losing weight with PCOS has been difficult, I understand the struggle. Remember, PCOS makes it really hard to lose weight. So, don’t beat yourself up. We can get through this together. To get started on taking control of your PCOS, try some of my PCOS friendly gluten and dairy free recipes in The Cysterhood app. These recipes and meal plans are designed to help fix the root issues of PCOS to improve symptoms, including infertility! 

Regularly participate in low-impact exercises.

Working out can feel super intimidating if you have PCOS. Not only is reaching your goals difficult, but when you’re battling against fatigue, body aches, and mental health issues getting to the gym is a big undertaking. But here’s the thing: your PCOS body doesn’t need super-strenuous, high-intensity workouts to see results! Did you know that slow paced, consistent movement can be far more effective? The best exercises for PCOS are low-impact activities like walking, yoga, pilates, and slow-weighted workouts. 

One study even found that just 30 minutes of exercise three times a week can significantly boost the chances of pregnancy for women with PCOS who are overweight. Small, consistent steps can make a BIG difference! 

Ready to get moving? Check out The Cysterhood app for PCOS-friendly workout routines you can easily add to your daily regimen. 

Manage stress. 

We know that PCOS comes with its fair share of hormone dysregulation, and one of the biggest culprits is cortisol, AKA the stress hormone. Elevated cortisol levels are super common in women with PCOS and can throw reproductive hormones like progesterone, testosterone, and estrogen out of whack. This imbalance can lead to irregular periods and ovulation challenges two big hurdles if you’re trying to conceive! Plus, high cortisol can make weight management trickier by ramping up those cravings for sugary and fatty foods. 

But don’t worry; there are so many ways to tackle stress and bring those cortisol levels back down! Practicing yoga, meditation, and breathwork are amazing tools to calm your mind and body. Adding in a nature walk, picking up a new hobby, or simply doing something you love can also work wonders for relieving stress. To help boost your efforts, consider adding some cortisol-lowering supplements to your daily regimen too!

Track your ovulation.

One of the earliest signs of PCOS is irregular periods, which can make figuring out when you’re ovulating feel like a total mystery. And if you’re trying to get pregnant, knowing your ovulation window is SO important! For women with PCOS, tracking ovulation can feel like one more frustrating task but don’t worry, there are ways to make it manageable and even successful. 

Start by getting to know your unique menstrual cycle. Using period-tracking apps is a great first step. Regularly testing your luteinizing hormone (LH) and pregnanediol glucuronide (PdG) levels, as well as tracking your basal body temperature (BBT), can give you clear insights into when you’re ovulating. Ovulation predictor kids (OPKs) can also be a game-changer, taking the guesswork out of the process and helping you feel more confident on your journey to conception. 

Take fertility-boosting supplements.

Even when you stay consistent with all these lifestyle changes, sometimes you need an extra little boost when it comes to getting pregnant. Taking supplements to increase fertility can show great results, especially when combined with the other natural remedies on this list or even fertility treatments. 

NSF-certified supplements curated specifically for PCOS, like Ovasitol and Purely PreNatal, are excellent options to give your body the push it needs to help you get pregnant. In fact, Ovasitol has been shown to be MORE effective than common PCOS fertility medications like Metformin. Not only can these supplements help with fertility, but they can help improve many other PCOS symptoms when combined with other lifestyle factors like improved diet, sleep, and activity levels!

Getting pregnant in your mid-20s will give you the best chance at conceiving.

While your mid-20s might be the best age biologically to get pregnant with PCOS, that doesn’t mean it’s the right time for everyone and that’s okay! Even if you wait until your 30s, getting pregnant with PCOS is absolutely possible, especially when you follow a PCOS-friendly lifestyle that works for your body and incorporate fertility-boosting supplements into your routine. 

One of my all-time favorite supplements for PCOS and fertility is coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). That’s why I included it in Ovafit’s PreNatal bundle, the perfect starter pack for women looking to take control of their PCOS. Our CoQ10 features patented VESIsorb technology, which mimics your body’s natural fat digestion process for 300-600% better absorption compared to standard oil-based CoQ10 supplements. 

Ready to give your body the boost it needs? Grab your all-in-one PCOS supplement bundle today and start your journey toward improved fertility and better health!