As I write this blogpost, I recognize that there are many people in the world trying to survive dire circumstances. And I suspect that many readers who are infertility patients might be experiencing twinges of related discomfort.
For example, the other day I read a Facebook post from someone expressing a sense of guilt over how good her life is compared to people in places like Japan and Libya. She revealed her true feelings: that she was having a hard time enjoying the excitement of an upcoming, hard-earned trip to Disney with her family, because she was so acutely aware of the world's distress.
As you might imagine, her friends responded with comments supportive of her desire to be happy. As one posted, "Nobody in Japan wants you to be unhappy!"
With infertility, the pain you feel is most often hidden from the world. You don't want to be the one who brings sadness into a baby shower. You'd rather friends not see the hurt on your face while they chat about their little one's latest antics. The very fact that you keep grief a secret can compound your sense of isolation, which makes a little pain feel overwhelming.
On the other hand, just as we realize how much worse things can be for others -- as in the case of so much recent news from abroad -- you don't begrudge your friends' pleasure at being new parents.
The bottom line is that we are all human, and we all have drives, the strongest of which is to have a baby. We cannot all feel direct empathy for everyone, but we can strive to understand and be sensitive toward each other. In truth, we really do want everyone else to be safe, happy, and have their hearts' desires.
As many of you are, I am praying for people around the world, for peace and restoration in their lives and communities. I also continue on my personal path toward making life better for myself and for those directly around me, including my patients, because that's where it all begins.
Showing posts with label having a baby. Show all posts
Showing posts with label having a baby. Show all posts
Friday, March 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Safe Versus Affordable: Are Couples Forced to Choose?
This article on Australia-based News-Medical.Net reports that increasing numbers of twins and triplets are being born as a result of the global economic crisis.
The increase (in Australia) is due to more infertility patients requesting the transfer of more than one embryo in each IVF cycle. Essentially, in an effort to save money, couples are trying to boost their odds of pregnancy per cycle.
This is an unfortunate state of affairs, since studies have for a long time pointed to several related facts, including the bottom line that multiples and their mothers are at greater risk for numerous precarious health conditions.
Because of the many complex variables at play in each IVF cycle and in each woman's own reproductive condition and functioning, some patients must undergo more than one IVF cycle before successfully achieving a healthy pregnancy. In some cases, one treatment cycle is all that's required.
Now that the combined work of embryologists and reproductive endocrinologists has arrived at a point of making single embryo transfer a viable option for many, and certainly transferring only one or two more embryos to counteract some infertility-causing conditions, my recommendation for struggling couples is to take advantage of seasonal discounts when available.
Rather than boosting your odds per pregnancy, which in turn may boost health risks for you and your hoped-for baby, I encourage patients to time their treatment around clinics' occasional specials. For example, Houston Fertility Center is currently offering IVF for $7,950 per cycle, until June 30, 2010. We've long offered summer price cuts so that patients who typically vacation during summer months can fill their off-time with baby-making. (It's especially popular with teachers, we've learned.) At the discounted rates, if getting pregnant requires more than one cycle of IVF, you'll still be receiving affordable treatment and at a much safer embryo transfer rate.
I know the anxiety that many patients feel, about time passing, about affording treatment, and about possibly never having a baby. But I also know that all of my patients, to a person, want a healthy baby over everything else. Boosting the odds of pregnancy by narrowing down to one IVF cycle with too many embryos is not the safest way to fulfill their dreams.
The increase (in Australia) is due to more infertility patients requesting the transfer of more than one embryo in each IVF cycle. Essentially, in an effort to save money, couples are trying to boost their odds of pregnancy per cycle.
This is an unfortunate state of affairs, since studies have for a long time pointed to several related facts, including the bottom line that multiples and their mothers are at greater risk for numerous precarious health conditions.
Because of the many complex variables at play in each IVF cycle and in each woman's own reproductive condition and functioning, some patients must undergo more than one IVF cycle before successfully achieving a healthy pregnancy. In some cases, one treatment cycle is all that's required.
Now that the combined work of embryologists and reproductive endocrinologists has arrived at a point of making single embryo transfer a viable option for many, and certainly transferring only one or two more embryos to counteract some infertility-causing conditions, my recommendation for struggling couples is to take advantage of seasonal discounts when available.
Rather than boosting your odds per pregnancy, which in turn may boost health risks for you and your hoped-for baby, I encourage patients to time their treatment around clinics' occasional specials. For example, Houston Fertility Center is currently offering IVF for $7,950 per cycle, until June 30, 2010. We've long offered summer price cuts so that patients who typically vacation during summer months can fill their off-time with baby-making. (It's especially popular with teachers, we've learned.) At the discounted rates, if getting pregnant requires more than one cycle of IVF, you'll still be receiving affordable treatment and at a much safer embryo transfer rate.
I know the anxiety that many patients feel, about time passing, about affording treatment, and about possibly never having a baby. But I also know that all of my patients, to a person, want a healthy baby over everything else. Boosting the odds of pregnancy by narrowing down to one IVF cycle with too many embryos is not the safest way to fulfill their dreams.
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