Natural Procreative Technology – a natural approach to infertility
After trying artificial insemination, and considering and rejecting in-vitro fertilization, Val Archibald jumped off the infertility treadmill. She downshifted into a journey to figure out why she couldn’t conceive. While it means Archibald likely won’t get pregnant because of her age, the 41-year-old and her husband decided the end didn’t justify the means.
“I remember walking into the waiting room for my IVF consult. There were at least five other couples. I felt like I was part of this desperate group of people. I thought, ‘This is not what I want. This is unacceptable. I want something else.’ “
What she found is Natural Procreative Technology, a so-called natural approach to infertility based on Roman Catholic teachings that is gaining a small following in Utah.
One of the possible downsides of this technique is that it focuses on improving a woman’s health first which can take years, time that older women don’t have. Patients are told it may take 24 months to get pregnant, compared with IVF, which may work in months. NPT also won’t work for men who have very low sperm count and women who can’t ovulate or have blocked fallopian tubes that can’t be repaired.
An upside of this technique is that we may learn more about possible solutions to some infertility problems. Some feel that IVF not a solution, but an expensive means to an end.