Ten Steps to a Successful Semen Analysis

1. Have your semen analysis done by a fertility doctor or a fertility clinic. Busy hospitals and labs can sometimes let samples sit too long before processing them, resulting in faulty results.
2. Don’t be afraid to price-shop if you don’t have insurance, but plan on around $200 for the uninsured, vs. a simple co-pay if you are insured.
3. It can be very uncomfortable for your husband to ‘retrieve a sample’ on site. Most places are fine with him getting the sample at home, as long as you can bring it into their office within 20-30 minutes.
4. Make sure you read all the fine print on the do's and don’ts, something that may seem minor could totally skew your results.
5. Use a water-based lubricant (obviously with no spermicide, but sometimes the labels are not that obvious) as recommended by your fertility clinic. NO SUBSTITUTES.
6. Don’t stress your hubbie out about getting a good sample! Give him space and let him get it over with.
7. Don’t try and cram it in on a lunch break. Make sure you have lots of time in a relaxed, familiar environment.
8. As part of number 7, fight for an appointment time that works best for you.  Ask the doctor’s office to plan it out ahead of time, or be willing to wait an extra week or two if it means you can have a more optimal time slot.
9. Be prepared to schedule and re-schedule, have back-up plans and dates. Sometimes all does not go as planned, and you need to be okay with that.
10. Finally, if you do have a result of low sperm count or low sperm motility, give it a couple months and then get tested again – our situation of an incorrect first verdict has turned out to be shockingly common as I discuss this with more and more women.