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The American Fertility Association Blog

From the Outside, Looking In

June 18, 2009 - Thursday
Posted by admin

The questions, statements, and facts surrounding infertility prevention never cease to amaze me. Each time I hear something on the topic which I’ve heard a dozen times before, it still drops my jaw. Tuesday evening we had a delightful group of 27 women take part in a discussion about infertility prevention, led by Dr. Brian Acacio, of Acacio Fertility Center in Laguna Niguel. It was the latest, in a string of very successful Manicures & Martinis events, The AFA’s national infertility prevention series.

Questions asked at previous events were asked Tuesday night; the discussion went well past sixty minutes; and the women (including and especially the manicurists) were enthralled with Dr. Acacio’s wit and sense-of-humor used to deliver information on such a serious topic. So, besides the obvious, like the speaker and location, what made this one different from the rest? There are plenty of differences which, frankly, are hard to explain. But, a few come to mind: one being Joanne Brown. Ms. Brown enjoyed a Fertilitiini™, enjoyed a manicure, and enjoys life. You see, she struggled with infertility and is now the proud mama of a five month old baby boy, thanks to Dr. Acacio’s help. Her reason for attending was to make herself available to the group of young women for questions. You could tell she has a strong and unique bond with Dr. Acacio and his staff. Whether it’s Dr. Acacio or another fertility specialist - she was there to reassure the ladies there is help out there, when and if they need it. Hopefully they won’t.

Most grandparents (and parents, of course) proudly display photos of their prized possessions on their desk, or in this case on their manicures station. When the event was over one of the manicurists raced over to Mary Garbarino of Acacio Fertility Center with a large picture frame in hand, housing a photo of a beautiful young boy and girl, and said, “these are my two frozen embryo grandbabies,” as her eyes welled up with joy.

Or how about the couple Dr. Acacio mentioned hearing about. The couple attempted intrauterine insemination (IUI) five times, only to discover it was male factor infertility which accounts for some part in 40% of all infertility cases. A tremendous amount of money which could have been saved, had only the guy gotten a simple a simple sperm test (a whopping fifty bucks).

Joann, the manicurist, and the IUI couple have already been there, done that. Their stories not only provide hope, but their experiences also serve as an incredibly valuable educational tool. Furthermore, The AFA is committed to making sure you’re well aware of all facets of family building. I provided live Twitter updates throughout the evening with some tidbits of information I’ve heard a dozen times before, but never cease to amaze me (if you missed them, check out our twitter page at http://www.twitter.com/amfertassoc). Since my wife and I aren’t trying to have a child yet, the infertility prevention series is of incredible value to me - each time I attend. At this point, I’m simply an outsider looking in, and by doing so from this vantage point, I may one day look back and think this is the best lesson I’ve ever learned.

Categories
Family Building • Fertility • Fertility Preservation • Frozen Embryos • Infertility • IUI

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Adventures of a Thirty Something Married Man… at Manicures & Martinis San Francisco

June 10, 2009 - Wednesday
Posted by admin

A brilliant idea set forth and put into motion late last year by our Program Director (and frequent blogger) Corey Whelan. I must admit, at first, I was reluctant to support having the staff devote the time and energy necessary to make these things work. I was wrong, but then again…I’m a guy…who’s married…so I’m used to it. What guy is going to walk into a room full of people to discuss infertility? Chances are, I wouldn’t, and I know my buddies wouldn’t - instead we’d have a Bromantic getaway to the Rave 12 Cinemas to see The Hangover (great flick guys). I’m not a woman, so it’s hard for me to judge their perspective as it is for most husbands.

The AFA’s Manicures & Martinis Infertility Prevention Series targets young women; though anyone can attend…and they do. I had the honor and privilege of hosting Tuesday night’s event at Nova Nail Spa in San Francisco, where Dr. Marcelle Cedars of UCSF spoke to 37 young women and one man. That one man stood at the back of the house and observed. It wasn’t until the end he asked if I organized the event (don’t tell Corey I said “Yes”). After speaking with him for a few minutes he opened up. His wife was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and the chemotherapy she went through probably harmed her ability to conceive a child naturally. The two already have a son. His wife was too shy to come; so he came for her - not wanting a manicure or martini, but simply three minutes with Dr. Cedars. He got it. Now that’s true love. Facing not a room of men talking about std’s, how hot tubs affect sperm, and the issue of why the testicles hang outside of the body, but rather a group of women talking about these exact topics…in detail nonetheless.

Dr. Cedars managed to captivate the crowd for a complete hour and fifteen minutes. Not a soul in the room let out a peep; some took notes; most asked questions. Questions ruled: ranging from exercising during pregnancy to whether endometriosis causes infertility to how ‘water tobacco’ affects fertility. This event was really like nothing I’ve ever seen. The only other Manicures & Martinis event I have attended was the debut event in Manhattan several months ago, but that was our first and we’ve learned and improved a lot since then. At this event, the attendees wouldn’t stop thanking me, praising Dr. Cedars (who stuck around for an extra full thirty minutes afterwards to answer personal questions, by the way), and asking when Manicures & Martinis would return to San Francisco. With the wait list in excess of 15, it’s probably safe to say we’ll be back. The one man, you ask? Well, he’s planning to tell his wife more about the event and is even considering the drive South to Laguna Niguel for our next event on Tuesday, June 16th, which is filling up. I promised to save two seats for him and his wife.

Clearly my ‘Manicure & Martini reluctance’ has completely diminished. The success of this program leads me to believe this series should hit every US city with a population of more than, let’s say…200,000. By the way, I managed to drag my wife to The Hangover last week and the answer is ‘Yes,’ I would absolutely attend Manicures & Martinis in her place. I might even go so far as to recommend guys attend this event of their own free will. Really.

If you haven’t been to Manicures & Martinis, please do. You’ll have the chance as it’s on the way to a city near you.

Brian Armentrout
Communications Director

Welcoming Jesse

May 27, 2009 - Wednesday
Posted by admin

By: Sierra Hansen

When my partner announced 7 years ago she wanted to start a family, I was speechless. We never really talked about getting pregnant because we knew it would require money and effort and we simply weren’t ready to initiate the whole process. She was 37 and I was 31, so it was obvious she would go first. We announced our plans to get pregnant to all of our friends, asked for tons of advice, found a friend willing to be our donor, and tried to get pregnant.

And tried, and tried, and tried. We adopted a laissez faire attitude because like many women our ages, we thought as soon as we decided to get pregnant, it would be a snap. It wasn’t. After 7 years, we used 6 different sperm donors (known and unknown), underwent ~30 IUIs, 18 which were medically assisted with drugs, and finally one IVF procedure which culminated in a happy 9 month old boy.

At first, we were giddy with excitement every time we tried to inseminate, and we held our collective breath for the two weeks between trying and the first pregnancy test. After a year, we began to wonder if we shouldn’t talk to a specialist. We did, and it was eye-opening. We thought we were well-informed and educated about our fertility. Boy, were we wrong. So, we initiated a much more strategic, medically-assisted plan with a great physician who shared the startling truth about reproductive health. He brought up concerns about my partner’s age, and suggested we only try 6 IUI’s before we consider IVF or switching to me. We began to dread the two week wait, especially when our friends were constantly enquiring how the baby-making was coming along. We finally told people that no news was bad news, and most got the hint.

Meanwhile, we watched a number of our straight and gay friends have one and two babies. We rubbed pregnant bellies and babysat as much as possible hoping some good luck would rub off on us. After the 6 IUI’s with our doctor wrapped up the second year of trying, my partner had given up and it was my turn. She tried to keep her chin up, but I knew she was devastated. I did my best to support her, and we turned our hopes to my getting pregnant quickly. We took a few months off to recoup our energy and spirits and started again.

When I started, we didn’t tell anybody except for our closest friends. We just couldn’t handle the monthly barrage of questions, and the seemingly inevitable “No news is bad news” response. Our best friends tried to be supportive, but after 11 cycles of drug-assisted IUI’s, we began to isolate ourselves from them. One day, about 2 months before we knew we would have to make the decision to go forward with IVF or remain childless, we invited our neighbors who were walking by in for a glass of wine. She announced no wine for her because she was expecting, patting her belly to reinforce the announcement. A month earlier they were not even sure they wanted kids and all of a sudden they were pregnant. I wanted to yell at them, slam the door, crumple into a ball and cry. I didn’t. Somehow, I found the courage to invite them in, offer her a glass of water, and toast their good fortune. We did pull back from them, and our close friends, after letting them know we were really struggling with the inability to get pregnant. Our friends understood when we crawled into our shells.

When we initiated the IVF, our physician was incredibly optimistic. The most optimistic he had been in a long time. While my inability to get pregnant via IUI stumped him, he thought I would be a good candidate for IVF success. He was right. After all the shots, pills, ultrasounds, and blood tests, my doctor harvested 21 eggs, fertilized 14, and eventually 5 made it to blastocyst. We froze three, and two were transferred. One took, and when a beautiful 8lb, 6oz baby boy was born 9 months later, we named him Jesse. I had the easiest pregnancy in the world and Jesse is an amazing baby. Today we feel very lucky and grateful that we have a child with big blue eyes who sleeps through the night. However, we try to educate our friends who seek information about getting pregnant at every opportunity. If our experience can help shorten the time it takes another couple, we’ll consider it a bonus.

Best,

Sierra Hansen

To read more about Gay Moms Doing Well Despite Prop 8, click here

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-gregory/gay-moms-doing-well_b_207455.html

Sierra Hansen and her partner, Barbara, have been together for 14 years, and last August she gave birth to a baby boy. She is currently a graduate student at the University of Washington researching on infertility genetics, policy, and law.

Categories
Donor Sperm • Family Building • Fertility • Fertility Drugs • Frozen Sperm • Gay and Lesbian Family Building • IUI • IVF • LGBT • Pregnancy • Sperm Donation

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Cloning

May 7, 2009 - Thursday
Posted by admin

By: David Kreiner, MD, Director, East Coast Fertility

IVF News - Fertility doctor denounced for claims of human cloning
Source: http://www.ivf.net
Fertility doctor denounced for claims of human cloning

First Octomom and now this. I get the impression there are fertility specialists out to ruin the reputation of IVF for the rest of us. In the case of octomom, there is some question as to how the patient was counseled. We focus on high success with least risk as possible. It is unfortunate that a few others aspire to something other than their patient’s best interests. It is very difficulty for a fertility specialist to deal with patients who insist on using up all their embryos in one attempt. We share with the patient a desire not to discard embryos but retain responsibility for not allowing for potentially dangerous outcomes.

Cloning is an ethical dilemma yet to be solved by society. Until then we do not participate in cloning since we are unsure whether to do so is ethically sound. Benefits of modified forms of cloning have been proposed. Multiplying high quality embryos in patients would theoretically increase their success rates. Women who had poor quality eggs (cytoplasm) could have their nuclei transplanted into the egg of a healthy young woman. Again, theoretically, this can improve success rates. Another proposed clinical use is to produce tissue for transplantation say in a child with cancer who requires chemotherapy.

The form of cloning that usually comes to mind however, is the creation of an identical being whether it be to replace a loved lost child or in our common vernacular a “minime”. It is this possible use of the technology that causes almost universal disdain in our society. We have yet to figure out whether there is a place for any of the aforementioned forms of cloning that is potentially more palatable.

IVF, is a clinically useful form of technology that is allowing for greater than 40,000 more babies to be born each year who may otherwise never have been given life. But, as with all technology there are risks and potential downsides that need to be considered. Today, cloning as well as high ordered multiple embryo transfers moves the IVF technology beyond our comfort zone with our assessment of the potential risks and downsides. Let us not distort the relative benefit vs. risk of IVF technology by wrongfully applying it to cloning or high order multiple embryo transfer.

Categories
Fertility • IVF

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And Apparently Women Lie As Well

May 1, 2009 - Friday
Posted by Lisa

Not me of course.

Evidentally the blog entry that I wrote on STD prevention, as it is discussed at The AFA’s Manicures & Martinis Infertilty Prevention Events, hit a huge nerve out there. The blog name is “Men Lie”, you can read it a few entries down. I got emails from a lot of people about this blog. Mostly from women who kinda knew this stuff already. But I also got this one, from a disgruntled reader:

“Yeah and women lie as well. All men must always wear condoms—unless they want to wind up paying 18+ years of child support and effectively becoming a slave. All by her choice.

You see… Sometimes women “forget” to take the pill—without telling their partner. Women also “forget” a whole lot of things, like most of their sexual history, including unprotected sex…
--
“A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human history--with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.”
- Mitch Ratcliffe, _Technology Review_, April, 1992”

Well, there you go. While the sentiment varies, the take home message from both this reader and The AFA, is to some extent the same.

If you want to protect yourself, your health, and your fertility, use a condom.

So dear reader, you know who you are. I don’t disagree with a lot of what you have to say. If you would like to write back to me, cool. Please do so. I request that you use this public forum so that we can invite others to join the conversation. Because it’s an important conversation. And I thank you for your input.

Always,

Corey

Categories
Fertility • Fertility Preservation • Infertility • Reproductive Health

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