Infertility

INFERTILITY

Infertility or secondary infertility, whether medically “explained” or not, can wreak havoc on the lives of both mothers in waiting and married couples.  The CDC notes that about 10% of women between the ages of 15 and 44 will experience infertility.  Infertility rates in men are listed at 9%. (www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr067.pdf)

As with the loss from a miscarriage, infertility is also often overlooked or not spoken of in American society. Why is that?  With so many silently suffering, it’s essential we realize the need to support those who are hurting and to let them know they are NOT forgotten!

Infertility can greatly affect a woman, and it can also cause much heartache for a man.  Walking down this difficult path can be very painful, especially if you weren’t expecting life to go that direction. Infertility may be a cause of shame, lead to frustration in a relationship, or bring on long-term guilt, despair or depression.

Often, individuals feel they are alone during this time of sorrow and confusion.  Sometimes, they are given “words of encouragement” by well-meaning family and friends that do more harm than good.  These words can add insult to injury!  Looking back now, we can laugh (a little) at some of the remarks people made to us to include sure-fire suggestions that would “guarantee” a successful pregnancy.

After our miscarriage, our medical team told us we would have “no problem” getting pregnant in the very near future.  However, God’s plan didn’t quite match.  We both underwent medical exams (several times over) and all of them came back with the same response: “There’s nothing wrong with either of you”.  After several years on this long road, we decided God was leading us to pursue adoption.