Im 51 years old, one ovary, still have tubes, no periods. Can I get pregnant?

Hi, Kathi, and thank you for your question!

One question: Are you wanting to get pregnant, or wanting not to? My answer changes a little depending on what you want.

If you are wanting to get pregnant, you possibly could, since you have one ovary and your fallopian tubes. You would have to undergo some sort of hormonal treatment to get your cycle going again. However, since your periods have stopped and any remaining eggs that you have are 51 years old just like you, there is only a very small chance that it would work. Your body has stopped its natural cycle of building up its endometrium in the uterus and sloughing it off during a period. In fact, if you go four more months without a period, you'll be in official menopause. If that's the case, the only hope for you to be pregnant would be to undergo hormone therapy and then in-vitro fertilization.

If your hope is to NOT become pregnant, i.e. you're wondering if you can have sex without birth control and not worry about pregnancy, here's the thing: It's actually possible that you'd have a cycle next month! When I was in perimenopause I'd gone ALMOST a year without a period -- I think it was actually 11 months -- and then I got one. So I'm assuming I had ovulated that month and could have gotten pregnant if that egg had been fertilized.

Your chances are very slim, but it's possible. Safest bet is to wait until it's been a year and you're in "official" menopause -- or ask your doctor what she or he would have to say about your possible fertility right now.

Does this answer your question?