I’ve asked someone (an OB/GYN, specializing in REI) about the different infertility treatments available. The first thing she said is that there are quite a lot of them! So we’ll just cover some common basic ones for now.

Clomid

This drug enhances release of a hormone called FSH, resulting in minor hyper-stimulation of the ovaries. This typically can kick start ovaries into releasing eggs. However, occasionally this works too well and more than one egg is released. This is why the chances of conceiving twins in increased.

Gonadotropins

If Clomid doesn’t work, physicians commonly prescribe injections of FSH. Like Clomid, this causes increased stimulation of the ovaries in an attempt to increase egg release.

Intra-Uterine Insemination

This is a technique that can be used with either Clomid or Gonadotropins. A small catheter is used to inject semen into the uterine cavity. I always call this the “turkey baster” method. This circumvents the need for the sperm to cross the formidable barrier of the cervical mucus. This often increases the concentration of sperm which comes into contact with the egg.There are many more techniques available, but these three are a couple of basics. Also, these methods are only used in patients with anatomically normal tubes (no tubal blockage).