Parenting & Family Info

Whether it’s Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter; Rosh Hashanah, Chanukah, or Passover, family holiday gatherings can be emotionally difficult when you’re coping with infertility. If you’re feeling stressed out just thinking about your next holiday get together, here are some coping tips that may help.

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The female reproductive system is highly complex, and for everything to work just right, several hormones, glands, and organs must do their jobs in the right order, at the right times. Learn about the follicular phase in part four of this article.

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I think most people know that getting pregnant after 40 will not be as easily done as getting pregnant in your 20s or 30s.

However, it seems like everyone knows at least a few people who got pregnant after 40 without any trouble at all. Celebrities commonly get pregnant after 40, and while many of them use fertility treatments to get there, all of this leads to the false belief that age doesn’t matter that much.

This isn’t true. Age does matter. And even if you’re healthy, a good weight, workout, and live a generally well balanced life, you’re not guaranteed amazing fertility after 40.

So, what are your chances? Read more about getting pregnant after 40 here.

Getting Pregnant After 40 originally appeared on About.com Fertility on Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 10:28:47.

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I think most people know that getting pregnant after 40 will not be as easily done as getting pregnant in your 20s or 30s.

However, it seems like everyone knows at least a few people who got pregnant after 40 without any trouble at all. Celebrities commonly get pregnant after 40, and while many of them use fertility treatments to get there, all of this leads to the false belief that age doesn’t matter that much.

This isn’t true. Age does matter. And even if you’re healthy, a good weight, workout, and live a generally well balanced life, you’re not guaranteed amazing fertility after 40.

So, what are your chances? Read more about getting pregnant after 40 here.

Getting Pregnant After 40 originally appeared on About.com Fertility on Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 10:28:47.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Original post

I think most people know that getting pregnant after 40 will not be as easily done as getting pregnant in your 20s or 30s.

However, it seems like everyone knows at least a few people who got pregnant after 40 without any trouble at all. Celebrities commonly get pregnant after 40, and while many of them use fertility treatments to get there, all of this leads to the false belief that age doesn’t matter that much.

This isn’t true. Age does matter. And even if you’re healthy, a good weight, workout, and live a generally well balanced life, you’re not guaranteed amazing fertility after 40.

So, what are your chances? Read more about getting pregnant after 40 here.

Getting Pregnant After 40 originally appeared on About.com Fertility on Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 10:28:47.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

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An index of Profiles for the Fertility guide site.

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An index of FullReviews for the Fertility guide site.

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Does caffeine affect fertility? Is any amount safe? Find out more, and also, learn more about how stress can lead to trouble with getting pregnant in part six of this overview of the effects of stress and fertility.

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Jennifer Lopez will be staring in an upcoming movie, “The Back-Up Plan”, which tells the story of a woman who uses fertility treatment to get pregnant.

However, Lopez made clear in a recent interview with Elle magazine that she herself would never use IVF. According to FoxNews.com, she’s quoted in the interview saying, “I … believe in God and I have a lot of faith in that, so I just felt like you don’t mess with things like that. And I guess deep down I really felt like either this is not going to happen for me or it is. You know what I mean? And if it is, it will. And if it’s not, it’s not going to.”

There are a lot of people upset about her statement. So much so that the American Fertility Association has felt the need to come out with a statement supporting J.Lo’s “right to not use IVF”, just as they support those that do want to use IVF.

Now, of course, J.Lo can do (and think and say) whatever she wants. But I don’t think people are upset that she wouldn’t consider IVF, but upset with how she said what she said.

I think that when those of us in the infertility community read her statement, we took it personally. By her saying her faith in God is the reason she wouldn’t consider IVF, it felt as if she were saying that those that do use IVF don’t have faith, or don’t believe in God.

Plenty of those in the infertility community are big believers, and come from all walks of life and religions. And yes, some of us have religious objections to some fertility treatments, including IVF. It can be a huge struggle.

Those people with religious objections to IVF, however, may have other options, which they may or may not know about.

Some are worried about extra embryos, or fertilization outside of the body. For these women, a procedure like GIFT may be better. Or they may ask that the doctor create only one or two embryos, even if this may lower their chances of success.

Some couples may go through special screening and testing before treatment so that any leftover embryos can be donated to another couple. Or they may keep trying for babies as long as they have leftover embryos to use.

And some will decide that IVF or any fertility treatment is just not for them, for any number of reasons. And that’s fine.

But that doesn’t mean that those of us that choose to use IVF don’t believe in God, or have just as much faith as someone who doesn’t use IVF. Some of us believe that God would want us to use IVF to have child, just like God may want us to take medication to cure any illness or disease.

I also think it’s much easier for a person to say they wouldn’t use IVF or fertility treatments when they conceived without help. Since J.Lo says her twins were conceived “naturally”, I can’t expect her to understand where those of us who can’t get pregnant “naturally” are coming from.

But then again, J.Lo is only a celebrity – not a religious leader or politician. I don’t know if she intended to judge anyone else. She was just talking about her personal feelings – probably without thinking about the possible wide impact her words might have on those dealing with infertility.

What are your thoughts? Please do share, I’d love to hear from you!

Jennifer Lopez, IVF, and Why We

Jennifer Lopez will be staring in an upcoming movie, “The Back-Up Plan”, which tells the story of a woman who uses fertility treatment to get pregnant.

However, Lopez made clear in a recent interview with Elle magazine that she herself would never use IVF. According to FoxNews.com, she’s quoted in the interview saying, “I … believe in God and I have a lot of faith in that, so I just felt like you don’t mess with things like that. And I guess deep down I really felt like either this is not going to happen for me or it is. You know what I mean? And if it is, it will. And if it’s not, it’s not going to.”

There are a lot of people upset about her statement. So much so that the American Fertility Association has felt the need to come out with a statement supporting J.Lo’s “right to not use IVF”, just as they support those that do want to use IVF.

Now, of course, J.Lo can do (and think and say) whatever she wants. But I don’t think people are upset that she wouldn’t consider IVF, but upset with how she said what she said.

I think that when those of us in the infertility community read her statement, we took it personally. By her saying her faith in God is the reason she wouldn’t consider IVF, it felt as if she were saying that those that do use IVF don’t have faith, or don’t believe in God.

Plenty of those in the infertility community are big believers, and come from all walks of life and religions. And yes, some of us have religious objections to some fertility treatments, including IVF. It can be a huge struggle.

Those people with religious objections to IVF, however, may have other options, which they may or may not know about.

Some are worried about extra embryos, or fertilization outside of the body. For these women, a procedure like GIFT may be better. Or they may ask that the doctor create only one or two embryos, even if this may lower their chances of success.

Some couples may go through special screening and testing before treatment so that any leftover embryos can be donated to another couple. Or they may keep trying for babies as long as they have leftover embryos to use.

And some will decide that IVF or any fertility treatment is just not for them, for any number of reasons. And that’s fine.

But that doesn’t mean that those of us that choose to use IVF don’t believe in God, or have just as much faith as someone who doesn’t use IVF. Some of us believe that God would want us to use IVF to have child, just like God may want us to take medication to cure any illness or disease.

I also think it’s much easier for a person to say they wouldn’t use IVF or fertility treatments when they conceived without help. Since J.Lo says her twins were conceived “naturally”, I can’t expect her to understand where those of us who can’t get pregnant “naturally” are coming from.

But then again, J.Lo is only a celebrity – not a religious leader or politician. I don’t know if she intended to judge anyone else. She was just talking about her personal feelings – probably without thinking about the possible wide impact her words might have on those dealing with infertility.

What are your thoughts? Please do share, I’d love to hear from you!

Jennifer Lopez, IVF, and Why We