Bloggers

Reproductive Tourism – Is It for You?

a blog by Theresa Erickson, Esq.

We’re hearing and reading a lot about fertility tourism these days. Fertility (or reproductive) tourism refers to patients (parents-to-be) traveling to countries where they can obtain medical treatment cheaply even if the levels of medical technology, safety, and privacy regulations are low. Often, they take advantage of package tours that include hotel, transportation and medical care, and, of course, some sightseeing. Couples from the U.S., the U.K., Spain, France, and Ireland (to name just a few) are traveling to places like India, Thailand and the Ukraine to find surrogates to have their babies.

Sperm Banks Help Grow Your Family, Not Design a Baby

a blog by Michelle Ottey, PhD, Director of Operations, Fairfax Cryobank and Cryogenic Laboratories, Inc. August 26, 2010

There has been a lot of talk about designer babies in the media in regard to using donor sperm. The subject of genetically engineered or designer babies will often be mentioned in articles discussing donor selection and assisted reproduction.

Talking with an Infertility Counselor

a blog by Ellen Glazer, September 2, 2010

“I’ve never been in therapy before — I don’t know what to expect.“

I hear this fairly often from people who come to me for the first time, and my response is usually the same. Although there are some people who have complex and longstanding problems that extend far beyond their infertility, most of the people I see for infertility counseling are not looking for a therapist. What they want — I think — is someone who can help them feel less isolated, more “in control” and who can assist them in coping with challenges ranging from a younger sister’s pregnancy to how to deal with intrusive questions. I see myself more as a counselor/consultant/coach than a “therapist.”

Let's Talk about It

a blog by Gina Paoletti-Falcone, RN, BSN, August 27, 2010

Infertility is finally getting some coverage in women’s magazines and I do mean reputable women’s magazines. In the August 2010 issue of SELF, “This woman has a secret” highlights the private struggle that one in eight American couples face when trying to start their family, often alone and in silence. A recent survey showed that 61percent of couples hide their struggle from family and friends and find it easier to tell people they don’t intend to have children than to share their troubles.

Immunologic Causes of Recurrent Pregnancy Loss

a blog by Joseph A. Hill, III, MD, Fertility Centers of New England, September 1, 2010

Our immune systems evolved to protect us from non-self, genetically different tissue, also known as allogenic tissue. Immunity can be either innate (inborn) or adaptive (acquired) depending on the molecule that causes an immune response, also known as the antigen.

A Response to “Eggsploitation”

a blog by Amy Demma, Prospective Families, September 1, 2010

I am writing today to prospective parents considering egg donation, to the parents of donor-conceived children and to donor candidates. I want to address the claims made by and in support of Eggsploitation: The Infertility Industry Has a Dirty Little Secret, a documentary recently released and soon to be screened on Capitol Hill by the Center for Bioethics and Culture.

Sounds of Peace

a blog by Tami Quinn, Pulling Down the Moon, August 27, 2010

Since our recent flood, my work space at Pulling Down the Moon has moved from an isolated back office in the old location to a desk in the midst of the open loft space of our temp location. As a result, I am interacting much more these days with the Moon’s therapeutic environment.

What 'Hope' Feels Like

A blog by Tori Emmons, August 25, 2010

The last couple of months (maybe a few months) have felt hopeless. I’ve been unmotivated to write, unmotivated to work — pretty much just plain old unmotivated.

The World Keeps Moving

Naked And Unashamed

A blog by Mrs. Tiye, founder of The Broken Brown Egg, August 24, 2010

If anyone asked me what the most annoying and hurtful thing about infertility was, I would have to say the inability to plan.

What, No Wheat?

a blog by Cindy Bailey of the Fertile Kitchen™, August 20, 2010

Wheat is in everything. If I give it up, what will I eat? Do I really have to take it out of my diet?

This is a common response I get from some when I tell them that they really should eliminate wheat while trying to conceive, and I understand how they feel. But here’s why it’s important—and also why it’s not as hard as you think in this modern day to go wheat-free.

It's a Fact: Stress and Fertility Are Not Friends

a blog by Joanne Verkuilen, Founder, Circle+Bloom, August 20, 2010

Good news! We are one giant step closer to understanding more about our female bodies.

Lifestyle Advice for Couples with Infertility

a blog by Eric Levens, M.D., Shady Grove Fertility Center, August 19, 2010

Modifiable lifestyle practices have an important impact on a couple’s chances of having a healthy child. Diet, weight and other lifestyle habits, including alcohol consumption and caffeine intake, have been shown to directly impact pregnancy chances.

Isn’t It Ironic?

a blog by Infertile Naomi, August 17, 2010

Don’t you think? Yes. I really do think.

This week in celebrity fertility news, Alanis Morissette tells US Magazine that her pregnancy with husband Mario "Souleye" Treadway was a complete surprise. "The pregnancy wasn’t planned at all,” she told the magazine excitedly. “It was a wonderful surprise.”

Stress and Infertility

a blog by David Kreiner, M.D., F.A.C.O.G., East Coast Fertility, August 17, 2010

The old fertility legend about a couple who had failed fertility treatments, adopts a baby and then all of a sudden gets pregnant is one we have all heard.

Jennifer Aniston vs. Bill O'Reilly on Choice Motherhood

a blog by Mikki Morrissette August 16, 2010

I still get surprised when people equate having a child on your own with deciding that men are not important. I understand why there can be the confusion. I’m just always a bit taken aback that so many people choose to blur that line in their reaction.

Silence and Infertility Don’t Mix

a blog by jennandtonica, August 13, 2010

Maybe it’s because I’m a talkative person who is terrible at keeping her own secrets, but I never once considered keeping the details of our fertility treatments a secret.

Quote of the Day

"Nature has got it all wrong: When you are younger, it should be harder to get pregnant, and as you get older it should be easier. When you are so ready, you can't do it to save your life. And when you are 21, you are so not ready, but you are ripe as could be. The eggs should become more developed the older you get, not die slowly from the day you're born. That's one thing God got wrong."

Halle Berry to Jonathan Van Meter
Vogue Magazine
September 2010

Race for the Family

Thought all our friends in the Maryland/D.C. area would like to know that the 5th Annual Race for the Family is Sunday, September 26, 2010 in Rockville, MD.

The race is presented by Shady Grove Fertility, and benefits the Cade Foundation Family Building Grant, which provides up to $10,000 per funded family to help with costs of domestic adoption and medical fertility treatment.

Moving On

a blog by Deborah Moore, August 9, 2010

Goodbye, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodnight!

It has been a long two years of building hopes, postponing out-of-town vacations and juggling morning schedules to get to the clinic, but my husband and I have decided to move on from fertility treatments.

Overweight Women and Fertility Treatment

by Rachel Gurevich, June 29, 2010

Lovely Rita Weighs Her Options With Humor

a blog by kathleen puls andrade, July 14, 2010

A while ago I sent out a mass email to several media outlets to garner interest in my show. Someone forwarded my email to a friend and we became infertility pen pals of sorts. We found a common bond in that we both deal with our infertility with humor…sometimes silly, oftentimes bittersweet. Here’s an excerpt from one of her emails to me.

Is Your IVF Cycle a Daily Grind?

by Stephanie Fry, The IVF Companion, June 22, 2010

As a new or not-so-new infertility patient you may be surprised and a bit overwhelmed by the amount of time and attention a treatment cycle actually requires. Taking multiple medicines, going on frequent monitoring appointments, receiving daily instructions, mentally gearing up for procedures and the long wait to follow can take a lot out of you.

As the physical, hormonal and emotional pressures combine with your every day obligations even small things can begin to feel stressful and it can be easy to lose yourself in the daily grind of cycling. Creating a few positive rituals that you practice regularly throughout your treatment is a great way to add a little positive energy to your cycle and to make sure you are remembering the all important rule of taking care of yourself.

“Leaving” Infertility?

a blog by murgdan, June 15, 2010

He’s here.

My miracle is here. I can hold him in my arms. I can touch him, feel him, and hear him breathe softly in my ear. (Or scream loudly in my ear depending on the time of day or night). In some ways it feels like the nightmare of infertility is finally over. I’ve woken up and it was all just a bad dream.

And other people view it that way too. I’ve been congratulated a million times over, and some of those congratulations include messages such as, “Congrats on finally leaving the land of infertility!” Some people have asked, “How does it feel to no longer be an infertile?”

Granted, I’m no longer part of "the struggle." Alas, I don’t know that I ever will be a part of the struggle again. There are no future baby plans; no final thoughts on re-entering the baby-making pool.

Have I left infertility behind?

Has God (and the Church) Forgotten Us?

a blog by lashaundra, June 1, 2010

The other day, I was sitting in church thumbing through the church program, when I realized there were at least a dozen support groups, but none of them touched on infertility. At this rather large church, there were support groups for divorcees, single parents, the unemployed, those experiencing recent deaths in their family, groups helping members get out of debt, and groups for members with cancer or other terminal illnesses. Not a word was uttered about women or couples experiencing infertility, a condition that can sometimes leave the person wondering if God has forgotten them.

Diet and Your Fertility

a blog by Marie Lee, Mar. 30, 2010

I’ve been following the work of Dr. Weston A. Price, a dentist who went to all sorts of different countries to try to figure out why so-called “primitive” people (without dental care) had no cavities. Dr. Weston collected a lot of data about a natural, unprocessed diet and its correlation to health. One thing he noticed was that lots of cultures use fish eggs as a fertility booster, often feeding them to young girls as they approach their menses.

This may have something to do with Vitamin A (which eggs are full of). Vitamin A promotes better cervical fluid, making it into a sperm-nourishing, plentiful, fertile consistency. Vitamin A also helps YOUR eggs, by ensuring that your follicles develop properly. Your follicles each hold an egg and one follicle releases an egg every month. The follicle then produces hormones that aid the egg in implanting in your uterus. Without enough Vitamin A, the follicle doesn't mature properly.

To IVF or Not To IVF

a blog by liz, Mar. 29, 2010

I’ve lost count of the number of people who have recently wished IVF on me. They’ve complained on my behalf that the National Health Service was dragging their heels in offering it to me.

I’d murmur something that could be construed as agreement but, in reality, I was glad I wasn’t having IVF.

World Health Organization Defines Infertility as a Disease

a blog by Pamela Tsigdinos, Feb. 2, 2010

Barren. Unfruitful. Infertile.

These words offers up many shades of gray, don’t they? They certainly did for me, in particular, "infertile." I still remember the first time I saw the term in a brochure in an OB-Gyn office. I was much more naïve and younger then. My brain didn’t know how to process it -- going from “what’s that?” to “oh, not me!”

In time, I became embarrassed and shamed by the word. It wasn’t discussed openly. It was whispered about. Accordingly, I felt guilty about it. Condemned by it.

Society seemed most comfortable keeping the word shrouded in stigma. Until one day -- that being November 30, 2009 -- it was brought out of the closet. Held up under a different light and with the stroke of a pen it moved from a shadowy term with judgment hanging in the balance to an altogether new category:

Infertility = Disease

Yes, it was on November 30 -- just a few short months ago -- when the World Health Organization stepped forward to declare for the very first time that infertility is a disease.

My New Identity: the Parent-to-be.

a blog by joy, Dec. 28, 2009

Two people in the last week have asked me if I’m excited about having a baby. And it wasn’t “Aren’t you excited?” It was more like “Aren’t you excited?!" The first friend to ask told me that I never sound excited when I talk about having a baby. I told her that when you’ve been through what I’ve been through, you sort wait for that other shoe to drop. She told me to “get over it.” This conversation really bothered me, so I decided to talk to other friends about it. Another friend said she “could see how someone might think that” about me.

Holy crap. People think I’m not excited? Am I excited? The truth is, not all the time.

An Interactive Q&A with Stirrup Queen Melissa Ford

> ABOUT THE BOOK
> ABOUT MELISSA FORD
> READ EXCERPTS
> BUY THE BOOK

We're willing to bet that you already know Melissa Ford. Well, you may know her by her moniker, Stirrup Queen, or by her nom-de-type, Lollipop Goldstein, but anyone who's dealt with infertility for a nanosecond has come across Stirrup Queens and Sperm Palace Jesters, Melissa's popular blog.

Melissa's also recently written a book, Navigating the LAND of IF: Understanding Infertility and Exploring Your Options (Seal Press 2009). It's an excellent "how-to" that will help you confront the options (and obstacles) you face when dealing with infertility. We've read it cover-to-cover and have invited Melissa here to discuss it with you.

Dirty Little Secret

a blog by Brenda

How about a little Confession Time!! I’ll go first.

• I "hide" plastic eggs filled with treats for our dogs every Easter (and on other occasions throughout the year when I am home alone with them).

• I claim to hate all reality TV, but am really a closet addict of The Hills.

• My husband and I went out for “dinner” this week … to Dairy Queen … and we both had Blizzards.

• I have not told my family about our infertility.

Gasp. Groan. Sigh. Moan.