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The American Fertility Association Blog
Beyond Sex Education: Teens Talk About Their Origins
December 11, 2007 - Tuesday
Posted by Pamela
One of the biggest problems I have as a Founder/Executive Director...is that I have been doing this work for most of my adult life...and sometimes even I forget what we have done in the past...and it is good to remember...and think about how we can be incorporating past ideas and programs into what we are doing now.
I have been looking through some of my older writings...past programs...and remembering...and boy oh boy did I shamelessly put my kids out there for “The Cause!” And my husband reminded me, the struggles that we had when we decided to let the kids do media on behalf of the fertility community. Kai was concerned that the kids would be tainted...that other kids would tease them. Was it fair for us to turn our kids into activists?
In the end...we decided that if we were frightened of our children being tainted in some unknown way by being known as IVF kids...then it was our job to let the world see these beautiful, articulate children that were indeed “Test Tube Babies”. We needed to put our family out here to change perceptions. And so we did.
In 2003, we put out this press release..and conducted a media tour with my oldest son Tyler as one of the spokespeople!!! And guess what I asked my poor teenage son to do? Read the headline!!! And the Press Release!!
Beyond Sex Education: Teens Talk About Their Origins
Teens born through Assisted Reproductive Technology speak about their perceptions of their conception
*New York, NY, April 25, 2003 *** In celebration of World Infertility Month, teenagers take sex education a step further and talk about how they feel about their high tech origins.
Tyler Madsen and Lily Johnson were conceived through Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) and they’re not afraid to talk about how they were conceived.
Since Louise Brown made her debut in 1978 in England, it is estimated that 1,000,000 children have been born though ART, said Karen Hammond, Chair of The American Infertility Association. These children, many of them young adults now, are telling us they’re comfortable, confident and secure with who they are. The news is that children born through ART feel no different than other children.”
AIA spokes-teen, Tyler Madsen, is a freshman at LaGuardia High School in New York City focusing on drama. Tyler has spoken in many public forums about his conception, including a press conference in Lucerne Switzerland and last year at the U.S. launch of World Infertility Month (WIM) at the United Nations. Tyler was conceived through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) in 1988, using his mother=s eggs and father=s sperm.
“Some people may think that my conception makes me different or special from others,” said Tyler Madsen. “In fact, I’m like any other teenager with the same concerns, the same goals and the same dreams. I think all kids are special and unique. It doesn’t matter how they were conceived. That’s just a technicality.”
Lily Johnson is 13, an avid swimmer, and in 7th grade at Las Colinas Middle School in Camarillo CA. Over the years, Lily has done many interviews about her conception including two documentaries with her brother, Chase, who is 9. Lily was conceived through surrogacy, using artificial insemination and a surrogate’s egg and uterus.
“I was born through surrogacy and I think it is excellent because couples can have children, even if they can’t biologically,” said Lily Johnson. It doesn’t matter how children are created, as long as they ARE created.”
I think it’s important that children born through ART talk about it, so that people will realize that they are just like everyone else and its nothing to worry about or feel funny about,” said Fay Johnson, Lily’s mother. Hopefully with teen role models, other kids born through ART can feel comfortable.”
In order to help parents talk to their children about their conceptions, The AIA created fact sheets for guidance; “Out of the Dish: Talking to Children About Their IVF Origins” and “Talking with Children about Ovum Donation” are available on The AIA website at http://www.americaninfertility.org or by contacting The AIA toll free at 877-917-3777.”
So...yes...a lot has changed! We are no longer called The American Infertility Association....and WIM is now WorldFAM (http://www.WorldFAM.org) ....The Co-Chairs are now Stuart Miller and Patricia Mendell...and Tyler....well he is now at Parson’s School of Design where is he is majoring in Technology and Design...and by the way...he still helps out The AFA...he helped implement this new website....in fact Tyler designed this blog for his dear old mom. And yes...I am shamelessly proud of him.
To see a link to one of the interviews that resulted from these press tours...please click here!!!. It is very cute...and you get to see pictures of much younger Tyler and Spencer.
Until Tomorrow,
Pamela
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