Book Review (Children): A Tiny Itsy Bitsy Gift of Life, an Egg Donor Story by Carmen Martinez Jover

A tiny itsy bitsy gift of life, an egg donor story by Carmen Martinez Jover is the first children's book I've read to my daughters regarding egg donation. The book was a gift from friends we met through a RESOLVE support group; we had our first born children within months of each other and we shared the same concerns regarding how to best approach the subject of their conception with them. To this day, I can't thank them enough for their thoughtfulness. This is one of our favorite books.

 When I received the book, I was immediately excited about it and its message. I decided I would interject "our" story when I read it to the girls. My first reading to the girls was such a success they wanted me to read it over and over again. An amazing thing happened during the second and third reading; they started asking questions. The most memorable was, "Mommy, were you sad when the doctor told you that you didn't have enough eggs to make a baby?". Heck, this brought tears to my eyes as I recalled what I felt at that moment and as I looked at their sweet beautiful inquiring faces. I replied, "Yes, I was very sad although we were so happy that we found a wonderful woman who gave us her eggs and it was one of the happiest days of our lives when we found out you were growing in my tummy"; I then proceeded to tell them about the rest of their birth story, which they already knew (growing in my tummy, being born, etc.). Honestly, the whole conversation just came naturally with the help of this book and I felt a huge sense of relief. I know their little minds are constantly churning. No doubt, someday, they will ask more complicated questions but for now the story of the bunnies has helped us get past that first hurdle and we did it beautifully! I highly suggest this book to any parent looking for a way to broach the subject of donor egg conception with their child.

Product Description/Author's Note: 
A touching children's egg donor story about a happy couple of rabbits, Pally and Comet who have everything in life except a baby bunny, you accompany them in their longing for this child, the waiting and the moment the mother is informed she has no eggs to conceive. One day a good lady rabbit brings her a tiny itsy bitsy gift of life, which is the egg, the half, she needs to conceive. The rabbit s tummy then begins to grow and finally her baby bunny is born and the happiness of how this family is formed is shared. The book is very colourful and ideal for children even before they can read, because the pictures are so full of details it easily captures the child s attention. It is my intention that the book should be easy for parents to read to their child so that gradually, as the child grows they will begin to understand their origins, in an easy and amusing manner.

Egg Vitrification: Stop the Biological Clock

Egg Freezing is the hot topic this week. Thank you to Dr. Christo Zouves from Zouves Fertility Center of Foster City, California for this educational video regarding Egg Vitrification. Many don't  know how egg and/or embryo freezing is accomplished and Dr. Zouves explains Egg Vitrification and compares it to traditional cyopreservation. As a visual person, I appreciate this and hope it helps clear up the mystery of how freezing occurs. Another interesting thing about this video is that it includes an interview with a woman who needed IVF years ago to conceive her children. She and her daughter, now a young woman, are advocates of egg banking.

Mindy Berkson of Lotus Blossom Consulting Speaks About Egg Banking: A Great Option for Biological Birth

On January 18th, WSFL-TV's THE MORNING SHOW (Ft. Lauderdale) turned to Mindy Berkson of Lotus Blossom Consulting for insights into fertility treatments for those who may have delayed childbearing. Her insights about when fertility naturally decreases gives great pause to those who may think that 35 is the ultimate time to have a child. With sharp fertility declines from the mid 30's, Mindy provides information on one of the best new options, Egg Banking. Click on the link to see the interview with WSFL TV. 

I appreciate Mindy's positive approach to fertility alternatives. As mentioned in a past post, this option may be cost prohibitive to many young woman, although with continued success, education and awareness this option is priceless.
 

Egg Donor Spotlight - Binish 490665 (East Indian and Middle Eastern)

Heartfelt Egg Donation is proud to announce its Egg Donor Spotlight segment. We will bring this feature to you on a regular basis in order to draw attention to some of our very special exclusive Egg Donors.

We are delighted to introduce and highlight Binish 490665. Binish 490665 is a first time egg donor of East Indian and Middle Eastern (Syrian/Saudi Arabian) decent. She is 21 years old, married and attends college in pursuit of a degree in nursing. Her GPA is 3.42 and she tested 2150 on her SATs. She has received three gold and one silver Presidential Service Awards and was selected for Whose Who among American High Schools. She excels in English, Health Sciences, Foreign Language, and speaks Hindi, Urdu, Gujurati, and Spanish. She enjoys speech, debate, poetry, museums, yoga, pilates and aerobics. Physically, she stands 5'2" and is 115 lbs; her complexion is of medium tone. She is in excellent health and has an allergy to strawberries. Amazingly, multiple twin births run in her family and both identical and fraternal births have occurred. She has volunteered for the American Red Cross and Aga Khan Volunteer Corp. She is dedicated to her religion and taught Aga Khan Religious Education for 4 years. Binish has been described as "amazing". Her friends say she is a fiercely loyal friend and a very caring and charismatic person. Her mother says that when she is put in a room with children they flock to her.

Binish 490665 is available immediately and is willing to travel from New Mexico to help you. To learn more  and to see her detailed donor profile, please contact Suzanne Myers toll free at 866-223-0003.

The Drafty and Heated Resolution

My husband and I needed to have some extra insulation put in our home today due to a roof leak that destroyed an area of insulation. While the crew was up in the attic they discovered that there wasn't insulation above one whole room. For at least 5 years we've been wondering why our house is so cold and drafty in the winter and so hot in the summer. Hmmm, could this be the reason?! I'm happy to report that we now have insulation above that room and our heat hasn't kicked in once since it was put down. We even feel nice and toasty. As much as I can't stand the thought of knowing that our heating and air bills were so outrageous because of this ridiculous mistake, I'm thrilled to know we finally found the cause of our discomfort and won't spend the next 10 years complaining about shivering.
 
On that note, let's lighten it up a bit. It's Friday after all! I'll be showing this one to my kids tonight and think they will get a kick out of it. What about you?

Happy Friday and stay warm.

Minnesota Air Show - Watch more Funny Videos

Educational Piece - Young Women Open Your Eyes, You Are Not Fertile Forever!

Thank you to Pamela Madsen for bringing her appearance on Oprah 2002 to my attention. I leave you this week with this posting and video and hope that young women ponder the message and digest every single word of it. Don't be "blind sided by nature", open your eyes to the reality of fertility. Be fully aware that the ability to have children becomes more challenging in your late twenties and even more so in your early to mid thirties.

Countless couples and women I help need an egg donor to help them conceive because they waited too long to try to have a family and their fertility naturally declined to the point they weren't able to have children. Thank goodness egg donation is an option and there are younger women willing to help these women have children. Many of the egg donors I speak with tell me that they want to donate their eggs because they imagine themselves not being able to have children and they hope that if they are ever in the same situation someone would be willing to help them. Thank goodness for the kindness of human nature.

Crystal balls are hard to come by and the future cannot be predicted so I ask young women to educate themselves when it comes to their bodies and fertility and to be aware of the challenges that they may face if they do not have children sooner rather than later. 

Freezing Eggs: Kids on Your Time

Are you a young woman thinking about if and when you'll ever have children? Are you planning on getting your education, working, traveling and enjoying yourself before you find the "one" and settle down and have a family? Well then you may want to take a look at this ABC News Good Morning America Health segment with Rachel Lehmann-Haupt who wrote  "In Her Own Sweet Time". Rachel talks about the option of Freezing Eggs for when you are ready to have children on your terms and time line and has even gone as far as freezing some of her eggs.

As much as this procedure is very enticing and a wonderful option for some, I believe it is unattainable and unrealistic for most. Right now it is very expensive and a procedure that most young woman do not have the funds for. I hope that Egg Freezing can become a more cost effective option for younger women and those going through cancer treatments who will have their fertility compromised. There is no doubt that this technology will only continue to improve and I hope that the cost effectiveness also allows this to be an attainable option for many.

What would I have done 20 years ago if this was a viable option available to me and it was cost effective? If I knew what I know now, maybe I would have taken the chance and invested in Egg Freezing when I was 25 years old and at the peak of my fertility. Although you know what? I don't regret my family formation decisions one bit. I believe that my family came to me as it was meant to come to me and I'm so proud of the faith, determination and hard work. It all paid off.

Freezing Eggs: Kids on Your Time

Suggested Reading - All That Remains Or The Madsen Embyros Claimed at Last by Pamela Madsen

I just read Pamela Madsen's post from her blog The Fertility Advocate titled "All that Remains" or "The Madsen Embryos Claimed at Last".  Here she shares her personal journey with donating her embryos to research and I appreciate her emotion and honesty.

Pam is well known in the fertility industry. In 1999 she founded the American Fertility Association, a leading advocacy group. She launched her blog and is currently Director of Education at a New York Fertility clinic. I'm thankful to her for her insight, leadership and personal experience in the fertility world.

Pamela collaborated with Claudia Kalb from Newsweek for the online piece "All That Remains" that appears today. There is a wonderful video of Pam and her sons and I encourage you to read the article and watch the video; both are very informative and touching.

British Couple Finally Has a Family After 25 years of Fertility Treatments

Could you imagine going through 25 years of fertility treatments to have a family? Going through any time period of fertility treatments is emotionally and financially taxing enough but to endure treatments for 25 years is beyond words. Congratulations are in order for the perseverance of British couple, Neil and Monica Ward, who welcomed twin boys on December 29, 2009. 


Check out the full story:

http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/health/2010/01/19/2010-01-19_british_woman_gives_birth_to_twin_boys_after_25_years_of_ivf_treatments.htm

AFA Webinar - Egg Donation as a Family Building Option

You Are Invited

 The American Fertility Association Presents:

Egg Donation as a Family Building Option

 Tuesday, January 19th at 12 PM EST

Richard Grazi, MD, of Genesis Fertility, will lead a one hour discussion, addressing all aspects of egg donation. Questions like...What procedures are involved?...Who is a candidate for egg donation?...will be addressed.  A perfect opportunity to learn more about whether egg donation is the right option for you. 

 

You are invited to attend this very educational slideshow presented by Dr. Grazi on Tuesday, January 19th at 12 PM EST.

What:  Egg Donation as a Family Building Option Webinar

When: Tuesday, January 19th, 12:00-1:00 PM EST

Presenter: Richard Grazi, MD, of Genesis Fertility

Sponsor: Genesis Fertility & Reproductive Medicine

Register for WebEx Event

200+ Fans - Heartfelt Egg Donation on Facebook

Heartfelt Egg Donation has hit a milestone with our fan page on Facebook. I'm excited to share the news that we now have 200 plus fans. If you haven't already joined us, please become a fan at http://www.facebook.com/heartfelteggdonation.

Thank you for your support and interest in staying on top of the latest fertility news. Remember to suggest Heartfelt Egg Donation to industry colleagues and family and friends who may be in need of fertility support and/or family formation guidance. I look forward to seeing your comments and getting to know you.

Twins Meant for Adoption, But Surrogate Mom Keeps Them - ABC News

This story is just so unbelievable and incredibly heartbreaking.  How could something like this happen, you ask. It's about the Kehoe's from Michigan, parents unable to conceive and carry a pregnancy on their own, they decided to conceive through donated eggs and sperm and hired a gestational surrogate to carry their twins for them.The beautiful babies were born and the parents so happy to finally have the children they spent 9 years trying to have. All went terribly wrong.

What I'd like to know is why the parents aren't fighting harder. My guess is that their finances have been exhausted after  2 miscarriages, 5 failed IVFs, and then donor eggs and sperm coupled with surrogacy; they simply don't have the funds to fight the legal system. It's unfortunate that these parents, the surrogate family and the babies will suffer for the lack of laws regarding surrogacy contracts in Michigan. This is a hard lesson yet one that hopefully will help to change state law regarding surrogacy contracts. 

Please read more and watch the story by clicking on the link below.
Twins Meant for Adoption, But Surrogate Mom Keeps Them - ABC News

Fertility Advocates Take Note: MASSACHUSETTS MANDATE FOR INFERTILITY INSURANCE COVERAGE AT RISK!

I know clients, colleagues and friends who live in Massachusetts who are grateful for the fact they have insurance coverage for infertility treatments. Thank goodness they don't live where there is no financial assistance. I look up to Massachusetts for being pro-family and having this coverage available. Please take a moment to review this press release with valuable information. The overturn of the infertility mandate would be a disaster for those seeking care.

RESOLVE of the Bay State Opposes Bill Allowing the Overturn Of Landmark Massachusetts Infertility Mandate - Free-Press-Release.com

3D/4D Ultrasound-Guided Embryo Transfer

Thank you Dr. Robert Gergely for bringing the study of 3D/4D Ultrasound-Guided Embryo Transfer to my attention. How wonderful it is to know that pregnancy rates from IVF transfers can be increased and that multiple births can be decreased by using your method of targeting the "Maximal Implantation Potential Point" (MIP) in the uterus.

I'm including the press release link here (3D/4D Ultrasound-Guided Embryo Transfer) and feel this is wonderful educational material for IVF patients. What better way to be more informed and to have information at hand to ask appropriate questions related to embryo transfer procedures.

 I'm hoping that the medical community will embrace this method of transfer. Have a peak at this video for more of a visual of the MIP procedure.



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A New Year, New Hope and the Meyer Lemon Tree

I was sitting at my kitchen table this morning looking out the window at the cold gray skies thinking about my "to do" list for the day and my goals for the year. Just then, I looked over at the Meyer Lemon tree we brought in right around the first frost. The tree had lost most of its leaves at the time and I remember being upset that we might lose it. But then, I noticed the beautiful white blossoms that were opening and smelled so sweet with the scent of renewed life. I couldn't help but be reminded of the saying "when life hands you lemons, make lemonade". Many other analogies came to mind.

I know there are many women and men out there who are feeling very sad over a recent diagnosis with infertility, a failed IVF cycle, a miscarriage, news of a donor not passing medical screening or a failed donor cycle and many more other scenarios that leave them feeling an overwhelming sense of despair because their dream of having a child or building a family seems stalled or unreachable.  They don't know if their dream will ever come true.

I can remember the year my husband and I got the call from our Reproductive Endocrinologist telling us that my ovarian reserve was diminished and my husband's sperm motility was a little on the slow side. We were at my parents' house and had just celebrated Christmas. None of my family or friends knew anything about our struggles with trying to conceive or that we were seeing a specialist. I was devastated by this phone call. My fear was staring me in the face. Wasn't this the nightmare I had thought about when I was in my 20's; not being able to have children if I got married later in life? I was left numb after the call. Our Dr. suggested we come in and talk about options.  We did and we were quickly set on a different course for building our family.

I can't believe how different my life is now. I have three children. There were days when I thought I wouldn't have children. I know there are folks out there thinking the same thing I thought when I was at that cross road. The Meyer Lemon tree is a sweet reminder that life goes on, good comes from bad, dreams do come true yet they may come in blessings disguised.

I wish all those who are facing despair or uncertainty are able to find any little reminder of the miracle of life, to embrace change and to have hope and faith that better times are ahead and dreams do come true.

Happy New Year and blessings abound in 2010!

Recommendation: Path to Fertility Blog

I recently became aware of  www.pathtofertility.com and have been introduced to new friend, Lisa Rosenthal from RMA of Connecticut. Lisa is their featured blog writer and I suggest you take a look at this highly informative blog for more information and insight into fertility and pregnancy.

This particular blog entry is courtesy of Mark P. Leondires, MD: Medical Director of Reproductive Medicine Associates of CT. I'm posting it here because many of my clients have recently become pregnant for the first time and this is a great outline of what to expect once that pregnancy test reads positive.  

http://fertility-news.rmact.com/Path-To-Fertility-Blog/bid/24841/Pregnancy-test-positive-Fertility-specialist-gives-advice-A-to-Z