It's Summer. Do You Know Where Your Eggs Are?

    by The American Fertility Association

     July 2012
    In This Issue
    ***Parents Seeking Children, Children Seeking Parents
    ***How to Choose an Infertility Attorney
    ***Mood Symptoms During Fertility Treatment: The Role of Hormones
    ***Gay Men's Tool Kit Now Available in Spanish
    ***The AFA's event calendar
    ***The AFA's Latest Tool Kits
     
    Quick Links
     

    Advanced Fertility Center of Chicago

    Superior success rates for the past decade. Have a baby from IVF or egg donation- or get your money back.

      

    Advanced Reproductive Care Inc. (ARC)  Making treatment affordable since 1998. Call 1-888-990-2727 - ask about ARC Refund Guarantee Program™ - get money back if no live birth occurs.

     

    New England Fertility

    20 Years of Fertility Expertise.

    Large Egg Donor Registry and Bank.  Internationally recognized IVF Program.  

     

    Annual ART Success Rates Report

     

    Pens That Communicate 

    Now supplying IVF Clinics in the USAwith a Custom Color Liquid Sperm Pensfor IVF Marketing.

     

    Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology 

    Annual ART Success Rates
    Report

    Every month in Connect, The AFA will feature a different list of supporters, professional members, and donors.  This month, we'd like to thank the following:

     

    Platinum Sponsors

    Fertility Centers of Illinois

     

    Fertility Physicians of Northern California

     

    HRC Fertility

     

    IVF Florida Reproductive Associates

     

    Long Island IVF

     

    Reproductive Endocrinology Associates of Charlotte

     

    Reproductive Medicine Associates of New York

     

    Shady Grove Fertility Centers

     

    The Ronald O. Perelman and Claudia Cohen Center for Reproductive Medicine of Weill Cornell Medical College

     

    Gold Sponsors

    Atlanta Center for Reproductive Medicine

     

    Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine

     

    Fertility Center of the Carolinas

     

    Fertility Specialists of Houston

     

    Genetics & IVF Institute

     

    Georgia Reproductive Specialists

     

    IVF New Jersey

     

    Law Offices of Julie M. Tavoso, LLC

     

    Reproductive Medicine Associates of Connecticut

     

    Reproductive Medicine Associates of Philadelphia 

     

    Reproductive Science Center of New England

     

    Silver Sponsors

     

    Advanced Fertility Care

     

    Angela Steliga, LICSW

     

    Apthorp Pharmacy

     

    Bethesda Fertility Center

     

    Cardone Reproductive Medicine & Infertility

     

    Center for Reproductive Health & Gynecology

     

    Conceptions Center for Ovum Donation


    Cynthia Fruchtman, Esq.

     

    Elite IVF

     

    Fertility & Surgical Associates of California

     

    Fertility Institute of Hawaii

     

    Fertility Center

     

    Fertility Treatment Center

     

    Future Family Starter

     

     IVF New Jersey

     

    Jennifer Fairfax, Esq. 

     

    Kings Pharmacy

     

    La Jolla IVF

     

    Law Offices of Steven W. Lazarus

     

    Law Offices of Victoria T. Ferrara, PC

     

    Metro Drugs 

     

    New York Fertility Services

     

    Northwest Fertility Connection

     

    Pacific Egg Donors, Inc.

     

    Pacific In Vitro Fertilization Institute

     

    Reproductive Resource Center of Greater Kansas City, P.A.

     

    San Diego Fertility Center

     

    Sperm Bank of California

     

    Success Meds, LLC

     

    Surrogate Alternatives

     

    The Center for Reproductive Medicine

     

    The Surrogacy Lawyer

     

    Tiny Treasures Agency, LLC

     

    Zavos Junker Law Group, PLLC

     

    Zouves Fertility Center

     

     

    Summer's Here!  Do you Know Where Your Eggs Are?

     

    teacher and apple 123rfHot, sticky weather is blanketing much of the country. The Fourth of July just passed, school is officially out of session, and some people are thinking about taking an emotional break and putting their family building plans on hiatus for a few months.  Not so for many school teachers however, who often wait for summer when they begin, or resume, their infertility treatment. 

     

    So many times when my kids were little, I would find myself being tentatively approached by a grade school teacher who knew I worked in the infertility field. Could I help, they wanted to know. 

    My daughter's kindergarten teacher, whom I adored, was scheduled for a hysterectomy by her gynecologist at the ripe old age of 28 when she came to me in tears.  I didn't let her keep that appointment and sent her to an RE who helped her conceive a chubby baby boy many years before she finally had to succumb to that procedure. I'll never forget that, or stop being grateful for being in the right place at the right time.

     

    Over the years at least four of my own kid's teachers sought my help for fertility issues.  I often thought how painful it must be for these young women and men to go to work every day, drying damp eyes and runny noses, staring into those little, upturned faces, all the while knowing they might never be parents themselves. 

     

    As thermometers climb and routines shift, we realize that summer represents a new chapter, full of promise.  A time to regroup and gain emotional equilibrium for some.  A time to begin a new treatment protocol, hopefully successful, for others. 
     
    Whether you're taking a break or pumping up the jam this July, the articles featured in this month's Connect will give you a head's up on information you may find yourself needing, on topics such as adoption, the legal aspects of third party reproduction, or depression related to hormonal changes and infertility treatment.

     

    Of course, The AFA's extensive library has much more info on family building issues from azoospermia to zift, so stop by and learn more whenever you feel the need.
     

    Here's to summer's promise whatever it may be for you, and to hopeful parents however they spend their days, be it the clinic or the beach. However you fill your days this summer, we hope you remember to smell the roses, enjoy the rainbows,and find time to spend with those you love most. Happy reading. - The AFA Editor    
    Parents Seeking Children, Children Seeking Parents

     

    By Kathy Ann Brodsky, L.C.S.W.

     

    mom and son reading google imagesAfter years of trying to conceive, adopting parents are so often disappointed they feel they may never find a child. They suspect they are competing with everyone else looking to adopt and worry they may not find the child they are looking for. Anxiety, impatience, frustration, doubt, and even anger can overshadow the adoption process. Read more
    How to Choose an Infertility Attorney

     

    By Naomi Cahn, Esq., and Heather Ross, Esq.

    scales of justice     

    As you undertake your journey towards a child, it may become appropriate to seek legal advice. In this column, we want to give you tools to help you decide about various issues that are involved in working with an attorney.

     

    Do you need an attorney? Read more. 

     

    Mood Symptoms During Fertility Treatment: The Role of Hormones

     

     

    By Piave Pitisci Lake, M.D., Member of the AFA Mental Health Advisory Councilwoman on a beach googleimages

     

    Fertility treatment often involves invasive, time-consuming tests and procedures, and complicated medication schedules-all of which add to the stress of the diagnosis.

     

    There have been many studies investigating the effects of infertility and its treatments that suggest an increase in distress as well as symptoms of depression and anxiety in infertile women. The psychological effect of the hormones women take during infertility treatment has not been adequately studied, despite the fact that mood swings and depression are known side effects of ovulation induction medications and that women undergoing ovulation induction often complain of psychological problems. Read more.

    Now Available in Spanish! Family Building Tool Kit for Gay Mendads and son googleimages

     

    For gay men who wish to be dads, surrogacy and egg donation are viable routes to parenthood. If you are thinking about becoming a dad and considering all your

    options, this is a very exciting time for you. Whether you are single or are part of a couple, the first thing you need to consider is if you wish to have a genetic link to your child. To learn more, and to order your Tool Kit en Espanol, click here. 

     

      
    The AFA's Event Calendar

     


    calendar google images

    There are events taking place across the country to help educate and support you on your family building journey. Please take a look through our calendar to find classes, discussion groups, workshops and emotional support groups on infertility, adoption, third party reproduction and LGBT family building.

     

    To learn about all of The AFA's support groups, including those for Mind/Body and Over 40 issues,click here.

     

       
    The AFA's Infertility Awareness Stamp
    and 
    Latest Tool Kits Are Now Available for Sale in our Store!
     
    Check Out  our Kits on LGBT Family Building, Secondary Infertility, Donor Egg, and much more here!
    AFA Infertility Awareness Stamp