A new study has found that nearly half of women feel “societal pressure” to have children – but some also feel too uncomfortable to ask for advice.  

The FertilityHQ commissioned a survey interviewing 500 men and women aged 20 to 45.  

Some 44% of Irish women felt “societal pressure” to have children, compared to 34% of men.  

FertilityHQ founder Dr Roisin O’Loughlin said these findings raise questions about different treatment of men and women.  

“I think the conversation is opening up about fertility amongst men and women with their peers as well their family members,” she told The Pat Kenny Show.  

“Women were feeling significantly under more pressure to have family or to have a child than their male counterparts.” 

The study found that women experience direct questioning about their plans to start a family and reminders about their “biological clock”.  

Women also reported feeling pressure from friends and family who already had children.  

Discussing fertility

Dr O’Loughlin said most women feel comfortable discussing their fertility with their GP or close friends – but one in five women feel insecure discussing fertility and believe it is a taboo topic that should not be openly discussed. 

“Fertility is complex, and every woman has their own specific questions which they want to be addressed,” she said.  

The FertilityHQ introduced at-home fertility hormone testing to give women privacy in learning about their health.  

“We wanted to make this test very accessible, we understand women nowadays are very busy juggling careers and family,” Dr O’Loughlin said. “This allows women the time to do it on their own terms.” 

Take-home tests

The test measures egg count, egg development and thyroid function to test fertility, possibility of egg freezing and risk of early menopause.  

“The test is very simple and easy to use,” Dr O’Loughlin said. “It is a simple finger prick blood sample. We send this test kit out to you; you take the blood sample and then you send it back.” 

“I then send you a personalised profile of your test results which is explained in layman terms, and then you have an option for a virtual meeting to dive into your results.” 

Any patient with negative results is directly contacted and encouraged to attend meetings with The FertilityHQ. 

“We set up The FertilityHQ to empower women to plan their future and have a more proactive approach to fertility than a reactive approach.”