If Fertility Procedures Are Less In Demand, Have The Costs Lowered Too?

With the bad economy I have read that less people are trying to have babies and many are unable to attempt IVFs and other costly fertility procedures.  What I haven't heard is that these costs are going down.  Anyone that has researched knows that the Fertility Business is very lucrative - just look at what an IVF, FET, or Donor Egg Cycle costs overseas compared to here - so is anyone in the US lowering their prices?  

You Got Your Sperm Where - Newsweek Article

How could I not read an article that blazed across last weeks Newsweek "You Got Your Sperm Where?"  My first impression was "yuk" - fresh sperm from a stranger.  Come to think of it, I guess my second impression is also yuk.

As a professional sperm shopper (should I add that to my resume?) I have always preferred the frozen kind.  In the end it's the frozen kind that helped bring my miracle to life.  The fresh kind never did me any good on the baby quest, but that's a different story.  Anyway, above all to each his own and I get that frozen sperm is expensive BUT when you are trying to produce a child isn't quality and safety the priority?

New Colors - The Infertility Awareness Symbol

The original and unique Infertility Awareness Symbol has been changed to feature a pink and blue gradient tone. After many suggestions through the years, I am happy to introduce the new and improved symbol.  As was my original intent, my hope is that this symbol will be our 'pink ribbon' in the fight for awareness, compassion, and understanding of infertility.

Products featuring this design can be found at Cafe Press or Fertility Hope, LLC

Sperm Donor Documentary on Style Network

Last week my sister called to tell me a documentary special was airing about the children of sperm donors.  Through the Donor Sibling Registry two half sisters had met - I loved these two young women connecting and it warmed my heart.  From what the sperm bank told me, my son has around 12 half siblings out there.

I watched with trepidation though when a sperm donor met two of his offspring that were under the age of 10 born to a single woman.  He seemed like a great guy and understandably his fiance was not too happy about the whole situation of him wanting to meet his offspring (apparently over 70 kids in total.)  What I did like is no one ever referred to him as "father" in any context (ie donor dad, biological father, etc.) - I hate when people ask me about my son's "Dad".  My son has a nice man that was his donor.  Someday he may have a dad/father but right now he does not.

What I didn't like was how confused the underage kids that met the donor were.  They had fantasies that the mom was going to marry the donor and after they met him they talked about seeing him again.  For my son I chose an open id donor which means that when my son is 18 he will have the option to have some kind of contact (letter, phone, email, maybe meet.)  I thought it was important that he have that option.  However, an eighteen year old is much better equipped to get the concept of a donor than a child is and watching this show confirmed this for me.  If anyone watched it and has any thoughts to share I would love to hear some comments.

What Happens to a Woman's Fertility After 40?

Glad there is some coverage but it would be nice if SELF Magazine gave more information than this article. Good for the clueless, this doesn't help anyone dealing with infertility now. I read this and went "DUH."

Let's see more first hand stories . . . hello Self Magazine - call me!

http://health.yahoo.net/articles/womens-health/what-happens-womans-fertility-after-40

Payback Is a Bi$@%

This attorney treated me so rudely a couple years ago when I contacted her about a frozen embryo custody issue I was (and am) involved with my ex. Now I know why she had no interest she was too busy working a scam to sell babies and making tons of money.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-baby-ring-20110814,0,3021399.story

What goes around comes around and it's just nice when we see it.

The Baby Chase by Holly Finn

Thank you Holly Finn for such an honest, and witty portayal of what it is like to be a single woman in her 40's undergoing the brutal battle of infertility (http://byliner.com/originals/the-baby-chase).

Any woman that has fought the good fight of infertility will see themselves in Holly's story but as importantly anyone that is not infertile will get a glimpse of what it is like. As an advocate of Infertility Awareness this is a 30 page mini book that will help to create validation, awareness and compassion and that in itself will help the millions that battle infertility

Why Did Oprah Ignore Infertile Women?

I loyally watched Oprah and like millions of others, liked and respected her. Over the years I have had my share of "aha moments" but the one thing that always bothered me is her absolute lack of empathy and support for women suffering from infertility. She is such a champion for people struggling with addictions to food and drugs - valid struggles yet ones that people have much more control over than infertility. How many times did she litarally applaud and cheer women who lost weight? Hundreds, probably thousands of time, but on the rare occasion someone would bring up infertility or miscarriage, it was glossed over. She often said that motherhood was the toughest job in the world - certainly validating mothers. The few times I ever even heard infertility mentioned was when celebrities shared their stories (Holly Robinson Peete, Alexis Stewart, Celine Dion) and you could tell she had no interest in that part of their journey. I had never seen her as obviously judgemental and downright mean as she was when the "Octomom" was on her show to discuss her financial issues. While watching her behind the scenes show I noted how even her own producers thought she was 'harsh' with Nadja Suleman. Hey, I am not a fan of Octomom, but what is done is done and the bottom line is the woman is a human, not a monster and having Oprah be mean to you when you feel overwhelmed and bad was just disturbing to watch. Oprah was a bully to that woman. Disappointing, especially from a woman who made the following beautiful comment during her last show. "Everyone simply wants to be heard, to be validated. No matter the caliber of person, people want to know, 'I see you; I hear you, and what you say matters to me." My personal theory is her aversion has something to do with her molestation and resulting pregnancy at the age of 13 which was without uestion a horrible ordeal to live through and left an emotional scar.

Almost three years ago samples of all my pendants were requested by the Oprah magazine accessories editor. I overnighted them all and followed up dutifully. I thought that finally I would be blessed by Oprah's golden touch. Many follow up letters, calls, and e-mails later and nothing has happened (yet.) I can't help but wonder if this has something to do with an overall company dismissal of the issue of infertility. My hope is that whomever fills her space on daytime TV will give time and validation to the subject of infertility and it's warriors. After 5+ years and 13 procedures I gave birht to an amazing son, but I will always be an Infertile and my ordeal left an emotional scar that will never completely fad. I wear it as a badge of honor and I don't want to forget my journey to motherhood. Women suffering from infertility want to be heard, to be validated because this journey matters to us.

Meet Smumzie the Infertility Ninja

Do you remember that sensation when you are talking to someone new and the conversation is just bubbling because you share so many common views and you are thinking "this person is really smart and funny and cool!" That is how I felt when I started reading the blog by Smumzie
This woman is on her 20th cycle (yeah, I know, totally a I bow to you "I'm not worthy" moment.) Let that sink in for a moment. So that is admirable, but what makes her blog so freakin' cool is that she is a great writer and her recent post where she describes a cycle in the terms of gambling at a casino is brilliant.
She has also covered some celebrity and TV stuff that I have, but puts a really snarky, Kathy Griffin spin to it. Love It!!! Check out her blog at: http://smumziesplace.wordpress.com/

Giuliana and Bill Rancic Open About Their Infertility Battle

Infertility is a club no one joins by choice. The shame, stigma, and misunderstanding from this rollercoaster adds a great deal of heartache to the emotional, physical, and financial pain.
Some celebs have been open about their struggle - thank you Celine Dion - but many have not and sadly this secrecy does not help the awareness and understanding. This is why I am sending a big THANK YOU to Giuliana and Bill Rancic for being so open on their new show, Giuliana & Bill, on the Style network. They have shown doctor's visits, a diagnostic procedure along with discussions about their hopes and fears - so real!

On last night's show they took us on the journey of the aftermath of an unsuccessful injectible IUI cycle. Their doctor suggested IVF which they discussed on the show.

The best part of this show is they mix good humor with real emotion and excellent information - extremely rare when it comes to infertility on television. The two of them both talk about what they are doing and why in a way that would be educational to someone not familiar with infertility.

They are such a cute couple that although I wish they didn't have to go through it, they are doing a lot of good sharing their struggle. It took 5 years, a broken engagement, and 13 procedures for my miracle to arrive and everytime I look at my beautiful boy I know it was worth it all. Best of luck Giuliana and Bill - you will make great parents some how, some way, some day!!

When A Warrior Becomes A Mom

For any of you that have checked out the About page from http://www.lifemedals.com/ and/or watched the video piece on me, this is old news. For those of you that haven't . . . after 5 years and 13 procedures I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy late last year!! I didn't share this on the blog for a couple reasons: 1. After going through so much disappointment, I almost couldn't believe it and didn't want to 'jinx' my miracle. 2. This blog is intended to be a powerful advocate for women going through infertility and sometimes learning of pregnancies can hurt. So I waited.
Becoming a mom after infertility. For me it was an incredible gift, absolute magic. I loved every step, although I had some scary weeks in the beginning and most of the discomfort that pregnant women endure, it was totally overshadowed by my gratefulness of the miracle that was happening to me. The birth was not easy, but I soldiered through with only a little pain medication and within an hour of giving birth my sister asked if I would do it again and I replied "absolutely."
Certainly, the circumstance was not how I had always dreamed it would be. I am single and often wondered wistfully what it would have been like to have shared this with a man I loved. Sometimes that was very hard, my heart hurt, but I never regretted my choice - never. Financially the stress is intense as I still work to get publicity for Life Medals, but I hope that it will turn around some how, some day soon (hey anyone know Oprah??) Of course, I will do whatever it takes to provide for my little guy.
For all of you that are still fighting I will tell you with no hesitation that all the heartache, physical pain, financial pain, etc - it was worth it all. My son was worth the effort and worth the wait and he is my living, cooing, smiling lesson every day to NEVER GIVE UP!

Article In Curve Magazine

I am very excited to be featured in an article in the January 2010 issue of Curve Magazine entitled "Five Tips To Fight Infertility - The Infertility Warrior shares her top strategies"
Although I am straight, I remember breaking down while watching Rosie O'Donnell's documentary on her gay family cruises because I felt such a kinship with gay women and men that want to start a family. I realized that as an infertile woman I had much more in common with their obstacles than with straight men and women that easily conceived. I watched as two women got "the call" to tell them their last procedure didn't work and I cried with them, knowing that moment all too well.

As I have said before, just because it is more difficult for some of us to become parents doesn't mean we shouldn't be.