Friday, June 29, 2012

Infertility Treatments Reach Success Close to Natural Conception


Women in their 30s-40s who go through multiple infertility treatments may be almost as likely to deliver a baby as women who conceive naturally, according to a new study.  The success of in vitro fertilization and other assisted reproductive technology (ART) was based on live births following a single treatment or cycle.  Now, researches have calculated the cumulative success rates for women undergoing several treatment cycles.


Here are links to chapter one of my book:

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Free IVF Contest Draws Critics

Fertility Clinic Offers Free IVF Treatment to Winners of a Video Competition


The Sher institute, a network of eight fertility clinics, announced that there are three winners of its video competition, not just one.  Couples are asked to make a video no longer than five minutes that captured their struggle to start a family.  The 'I Believe Video Journal Project' was entered by 45 couples and was part of the Institute's advanced fertility treatment, but who cannot afford it.






Time magazine reported that even some of the judges questioned the competition's ethics.  "It felt like playing God,' Erika Tabke told the publication.  "As I selected them, I thought, this is unfair."  Erica is the founder of IVF Connections, a website for people going through infertility.  She did, however, applaud Sher for his generosity, but doubts she'll serve as a judge again.


Here is the link.




Here are links to chapter one of my book:

Monday, June 25, 2012

Ignorance is Not Always Bliss

But it worked out all right in the end.

When I found out that I was pregnant with quadruplets, I was ecstatic.  I wanted a big family and with my age and our fertility issues, the only way to do this would be to have multiple children at once.  My reproductive endocrinologist warned me that the pregnancy would be difficult and, as I said before, he suggested that I reduce the pregnancy down to one or two babies.

I went home and looked up characteristics of successful quadruplet pregnancies.  Two things I remember was that the mother needs to be tall (I'm just shy of 5-9) and have had a previous full-term pregnancy (I had Gavin the day before his due date).  Oh, and my friend, Katie, got me in touch with her friend, Julie, (through Facebook) who had triplets at 35 weeks.   I thought that I'd be find.

(Anyone old enough to remember the TV show My Three Sons)

As you all know by know, I wasn't fine.  The pregnancy was the scariest roller-coaster rides I've ever been on, which isn't saying a lot, because I won't go on roller coasters...I HATE them.  However, I am writing this as my triplets and Gavin are playing house/barn (Owen insists on being a tiger) in the living room, I'd replay that horrific pregnancy over and over again, because of us, everything turned out wonderful.

Since starting this blog, I've met lots of women whose pregnancies didn't turn well.  I didn't know anyone prior to my pregnancy who didn't have great pregnancies.  Before the statistics were just numbers - not realities.  I'm a "math" person.  I took PhD statistics courses while I was at the University of Chicago.  The numbers should have represented real possibilities to me, if anyone.  But I was looking at them as a mother, a pregnant mother fiercely protective of her babies.



Sometimes, I wonder if I would have made different decisions at the beginning of my IVF cycle, knowing what I know now.  The truth of the matter is that I'll never know.  My heart is bigger, stronger now and I love being a mother.  I don't think I could just throw two embryos away, which was the choice presented to us.  However, maybe my journey and those of other women will help you make the insanely hard decisions that surround infertility and high level multiple pregnancies.

All the best,
Laura




Here are links to chapter one of my book: