How to Save the Cost of Infertility Treatments?

In this post, I will be sharing how I save on the cost of infertility treatments.

Yes, my husband and I were among those unlucky couples who had to go through multiple infertility treatments before we are blessed with our baby.

Those were really tough years.

But something miraculous was that the pregnancy happened when we were taking a break from all the infertility treatments. Nevertheless, I believe the infertility treatments did indirectly contribute to my pregnancy.

Along our infertility journey of 6 years, I realized that there are many other couples facing infertility issues. Even after the arrival of our baby, I often hear stories of couples having difficulties conceiving.

Although not many couples openly share about their infertility journey, all I can say is that infertility is on the rise now. Thus, more and more couples seeking infertility treatments to have their own baby.

And one thing is for sure, infertility treatments are expensive.

Some treatments such as in-vitro fertilization (IVF) require more than RM15,000 for one cycle of treatment. My own IVF treatment cost me RM16,000.

For a wage earner like me, RM16,000 is quite a lot of money.

Thus, I am taking some space from this blog to share how I save on the cost of infertility treatments.

Table of Contents

• 10 ways to save the cost of infertility treatments
  • 1. Knowledge is power
  • 2. Take action early
  • 3. Seek advice and treatments from government clinics and hospitals
  • 4. Get second advice from trusted fertility specialists and fertility centres
  • 5. Get third advice from trusted traditional Chinese medicine practitioners
  • 6. Understand and focus on the source of the problem
  • 7. Prepare a budget for infertility treatments
  • 8. Develop and improve healthy eating habits
  • 9. Start exercising to improve physical fitness
  • 10. Take good quality supplements
• final thoughts on saving the cost of infertility treatments

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10 ways to save the cost of infertility treatments

As mentioned above, my husband and I had gone through 6 years of infertility treatments.

So, my sharing here will be based on our own experience.

Despite our effort to save the cost of infertility treatments, we still spent quite a lot on all these infertility treatments. Nevertheless, whenever possible, it is still best to consider saving costs on infertility treatments.

Here are 10 ways to save on the cost of infertility treatments.

1. Knowledge is power

The first on my list to save on the cost of infertility treatments is to gain as much knowledge about conception and infertility.

During the last 3 years of my infertility journey, I read and gather as much information as possible. My husband also contributed by sharing his reading from the local Chinese newspaper.

Because I realized that, to overcome the problem we must know the subject well. And to learn the possibilities of where the problem comes from.

Infertility is not an easy topic. Even for couples, this is a sensitive topic. Perhaps that is why not many are willing to openly share their infertility journey.

Therefore, read and learn as much as you can before starting the treatments.

When you have sufficient knowledge, you roughly know what to expect. This means that you are more prepared for any of the possibilities.

On top of that, when you are equipped with the right knowledge, you will not simply listen to others’ suggestions. Which, in some cases, might lead to the wrong treatments.

Always remember that not everyone out there is genuinely trying to help you to achieve your dream to have your own child. You need to filter and further process the information.

In other words, you need to learn to take control of the process. Instead of being fully dependent on others.

Thus, equipping yourself with knowledge will save you a lot of money, time and unnecessary stress too.

Personally, I love reading books on infertility treatments. I also enjoy reading personal blogs on infertility treatments. Some of these personal blogs are written by local Malaysians. While some are shared by Singaporeans, the US, the UK and other countries.

One thing in common is that we all facing some problems in the baby-making department.

Another website that I frequently visited was the Malaysianmotherhood forum where many Malaysians share their stories and journeys of infertility treatments.

I really learned a lot especially from the Malaysianmotherhood forum. Because based on their personal sharing, I have the feeling that their stories are genuine.

2. Take action early

Slightly more than 6 months into our marriage, when I still haven’t gotten pregnant, my husband and I went for our first fertility check-up.

I am glad that we took the action early. Because, the longer we wait, the higher the cost of infertility treatments.

The reason behind this is that the quality of female eggs declines as they age. Especially after the age of 35 years old. When the egg quality decline, it also reduces the chances of conception.

Thus, more medication and multiple treatments may be needed. This will definitely increase the cost of infertility treatment.

Even though I only got pregnant after 6 years of trying, I still feel that the early visit to the specialist has helped us along the way.

If we had delayed seeking help, perhaps it is a different story now. So, take action early to save the cost of infertility treatments.

3. Seek advice and treatments from government clinics and hospitals

To reduce the cost of infertility treatments, my husband and I also seek advice from the Obstetrics & Gynecology Specialist Clinic at Sarawak General Hospital.

Before we had our first appointment at this Obstetrics & Gynecology Specialist Clinic, we had to go to Klinik Kesihatan at Jalan Masjid for general evaluation.

Upon completion of the evaluation, the doctor at Klinik Kesihatan wrote a referral letter for our case to the Specialist Clinic.

While we were under the Specialist Clinic, we had gone through many health screenings, blood testing and physical examination.

We also had multiple Clomid treatments and two IUI at Sarawak General Hospital.

Other than the RM5 fee for each visit to the Obstetrics & Gynecology Specialist Clinic, there were no other charges.

We were informed that there is a limited number of free treatments for each couple. For example, there will be a minimal charge for the 4th IUI and above.

I would say, the procedure is quite long and time-consuming. But, it does help us to save on the costs of infertility treatments. Especially on health screening and many other fertility tests for both me and my husband.

4. Get second advice from trusted fertility specialists and fertility centres

During the tough 6 years, we also visited multiple Obstetrics & Gynecology Specialists around Kuching.

To be exact, it was four specialists. Among the four specialists, I highly recommend two of them. The first one is Dr CM Wong from CM Wong Specialist Clinic For Women. The second one is Dr Chieng from London Fertility Center Kuching.

Dr CM Wong genuinely shared that there is no big issue for both me and my husband. It is just that we need a longer time to have our own baby. But, my husband and I are quite impatient to wait. Furthermore, my age was catching up.

And I was feeling more and more stressed if I just keep waiting.

So, in the fifth year of our infertility journey, we had our IVF at London Fertility Center Kuching. I shared our IVF treatment cost and its procedure in another post.

Even though we failed our first and only IVF treatment, we were grateful for all the advice and treatment provided by Dr Chieng and his team.

I especially admire his sincerity in sharing all the important conception information with us. He explained to both of us in detail about the magical conception process.

During the first appointment, he already told us that the chances for positive pregnancy in the first IVF cycle are quite low, about 20% to 25% only.

With that information, we feel less tension even when the IVF treatment failed.

Even though I prefer female gynaes, I feel quite comfortable with him throughout the whole treatment.

I would say the cost of IVF treatment at London Fertility Center is much lower compared to those IVF treatments at private specialists in West Malaysia.

In total, we spent RM16,000 for that one and only IVF treatment.

5. Get third advice from trusted traditional Chinese medicine practitioners

If you read about successful infertility treatments, you will know that one of the best treatments is using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

For that matter, my husband and I also visited multiple traditional Chinese medicine practitioners in Kuching. To be exact, we visited 4 sinsehs in Kuching. We also consulted a traditional medicine practitioner from Penang.

Based on the 5 traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, you should know how many herbs we had consumed.

Even though there was no immediate result in a positive pregnancy, all these herbs did improve our overall health.

We spent quite a lot of money on these traditional Chinese medicine herbs. Especially for the traditional medicine practitioner in Penang.

For all these sinsehs, they were recommended by those we know. They also have many successful pregnancy cases.

We tried to reduce the cost of infertility treatments by filtering and visiting those sinsehs with good recommendations. Traditional Chinese medicine can be very expensive. Instead of simply buying the herbs from Chinese drug stores, it helps to bring down the cost by consulting these sinsehs.

And most importantly, I feel safer consuming those herbs recommended and prepared by them.

6. Understand and focus on the source of the problem

Another important way how to reduce the cost of infertility treatments is to learn to know where the problem comes from. Whether it is from the wife, the husband or both.

That is why all the health screening from a different specialist is very important.

Once the main issue is identified, couples can focus on the issue. It saves money and time.

In our case, upon all the specialist consultation, blood testing and other procedures, we learned that we both had some issues in the production department.

Instead of blaming each other, we worked together to solve the problems. Nevertheless, I have to admit that it has not always been smooth.

Thinking back, it is rather impossible to have a smooth infertility journey.

Because now and then, we have to deal with the questions from friends and relatives about when are we expecting a baby.

Again, I am glad that we both acknowledged the problems.

When the road was bumpy, we gave ourselves some time to cool down. Then, we talked about it. This somehow made us feel better. It also strengthens our bond.

So, knowing the root cause will help to bring down the cost of infertility treatments.

7. Prepare a budget for infertility treatments

To control the cost of infertility treatments, I also prepared a budget for all matters related to infertility treatments.

Having a budget helped us to prepare and gather the financial support needed.

Especially for advanced and high-technology treatments such as IVF and intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).

Other than the treatments, we also budgeted for traditional Chinese medicine herbs.

Those who consume traditional Chinese medicine herbs will know that the cost of these herbs can be quite high. Especially for high-quality herbs.

So, a big portion of our expenses went to the herbs and IVF treatment. All these expenses come from our own savings.

Infertility itself is already a tough and stressful situation. We don’t want to add more stress to the already stressful situation.

Thus, we avoid getting personal loans, using credit cards or borrowing from family members to fund our treatments.

Along the journey, I know other couples had to get a personal loan or borrow money from family members to fund the expensive infertility treatments.

I don’t judge them. I respect them for taking these bold steps to have their dream come true.

As of today, too bad that in Malaysia, no insurance provider covers infertility treatments. Compared to western countries such as the US which have infertility insurance coverage.

For this matter, I double-checked with both of my insurance agents from different providers. Both of them said that currently, they are not aware of any insurance company in Malaysia offering coverage for infertility treatments.

If any of you has the latest updates on this matter, feel free to comment below.

Nevertheless, couples in Malaysia can apply for full or part of financial support for infertility treatments from the following source:

• Tunku Azizah Fertility Foundation (TAFF)
• IVF Kasih

For further details, feel free to visit the websites for both programs.

8. Develop and improve healthy eating habits

According to some of the sinsehs that we visited, our bodies lack some nutrients. Thus, they offer herbs that can improve our health. Besides, they also emphasized I avoid cold drinks.

Somehow, there is truth when they said our body lack some nutrients.

Other than taking the herbs from sinsehs, I also started to incorporate more vegetables and fruits into our daily diets.

Besides, I also started to search online for food that improves fertility.

Among these foods are avocado, coconut oil, raw honey, salmon and some alkaline food. Some of this food such as avocado can be quite expensive. So, we save costs by comparing the prices at different hypermarkets.

Then, we stick to the hypermarket with the best price.

9. Start exercising to improve physical fitness

To save on the cost of infertility treatments, I also started regular exercises such as brisk walking and jogging.

Before bedtime, I had body stretching too.

The reason why I choose these exercises is that it is free and I can do them at my own convenient time.

To be honest, these exercises did help me to feel good about myself. It also relieves stress and promotes good sleep.

10. Take good quality supplements

The thing we did differently which finally gave us the good news was taking some good quality supplements.

When we failed our first cycle of IVF, we were quite frustrated.

Even though we were informed that the possibilities for positive pregnancy during the first IVF cycle were low, we were still hopeful.

A few months later, my husband and I started planning for the second round of IVF. But, for this round, I told myself that I must enhance my body to improve the chances of positive pregnancy.

Thus, I read more and more about food intake to improve fertility, especially female egg quality.

Based on the successful IVF stories which I read, I took the following supplements:

1. Fresh Royal Jelly from Eu Yan Sang (for both me and my husband)
2. Coenzyme Q10 ubiquinol (for me)
3. Chlorella (for me)
4. Folic Acid (for both me and my husband)
5. Vitamin C (for me)

My husband also started to take fresh royal jelly and folic acid.

Initially, we were planning to rejuvenate and prepare our bodies for the second round of IVF. Unexpectedly, about 6 months after consuming the above supplements, I found out that I got pregnant naturally.

Some of the above supplements can be quite expensive such as Coenzyme Q10 and fresh royal jelly.

To save on the cost of infertility treatments, I bought these items in bulk.

Nowadays, it is also cheaper to purchase these items online. Such as Coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinol) and fresh royal jelly. I also found out that it was not easy to get Coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinol) in local pharmacies around Kuching.

In case you wish to try the above supplements, bear in mind to try out a small portion of fresh royal jelly first, before deciding to continue. Because I have a friend who is allergic to bee products such as royal jelly.

final thoughts on saving the cost of infertility treatments

From my own experience, I can confirm that infertility is both stressful and expensive.

Unless you come from a wealthy background, where money is not an issue, you will need to have a proper budget to save on the cost of infertility treatments.

My husband and I are both wage earners. As mentioned above, all the expenses for infertility treatments come from our own savings. We lead a simple life and always be prudent.

For those still fighting infertility and hoping to have their own baby, please have faith in God, in yourself and in your partner.

I understand how tough it can be.

For one thing, please be kind to your partner who is diagnosed with an infertility problem. No blame game, please. Instead, support your partner and work together to have your dream come true.

Lastly, even though it is important to save on the cost of infertility treatments, remember to never settle for inferior quality products and services just because of cheaper price tags.

I hope my sharing above on how I save on the cost of infertility treatments can give you some ideas to reduce your financial burden. If you have any enquiries, feel free to leave your comment below.

Sending many baby dust your way.