More than 1 in 10 couples experience infertility, finding themselves in a “desert”—lost and abandoned, hungering and thirsting, praying and waiting—for a child. Discover the direction, nourishment, and faith provided within this spiritual resource for infertile Catholic couples, their families, and friends. Personal reflections from Catholic women struggling with infertility evoke a heartfelt realism, while passages from Scripture and prayers from the Book of Psalms provide the comfort and hope to trust in God, the “Divine Physician.”

Surviving the challenges of infertility Often enduring years of heartache, couples with infertility number over 7.3 million. Enduring the daunting difficulties of treatment is something few women are prepared for. Based on the personal stories of 200 women determined to overcome infertility, this surprisingly upbeat survivors' guide gives the kind of hard-won wisdom essential to making it through the process. Not only does the book detail coping strategies, it also presents tips for strengthening stressed relationships and addresses the unique needs of single women and lesbians. An essential guide for women and couples, friends and family, and health care providers and therapists, this book offers the solace and strength needed to prevail even after years of struggle. Written by a therapist, consultant, and public speaker dedicated to the study of infertility and its emotional impact Other titles by Shapiro: When Part of the Self Is Lost and Infertility and Pregnancy Loss For any woman or couple who feel as if they're facing infertility alone, When You're Not Expecting is a must-have book. http://connieshapiro13.blogspot.com/

My girls aren't twins, though they look remarkably alike. They were conceived in the same month but born five months apart. Despite the years of pain we endured living with infertility and struggling to adopt, these girls are the miracle that happened when we gave in to God's plan. My journey to becoming a mother wasn't an easy one, and it certainly wasn't glamorous. I was nearly destroyed by miscarriage and equally as devastated by the adoption process. Our fight to become a family played out on the set of a local network news program every morning. I smiled through the pain as a TV anchor while my dreams of becoming a parent seemed to bleed away year after year. Infertility and adoption brought me to my knees, but that's where the Lord found me and taught me to stop hiding. 5 Months Apart is intended to help families come out of our society-imposed seclusion, to ask for help and to believe in the ultimate happy ending: a successful pregnancy and a blessed adoption. Throughout, the underlying message is faith, honesty, and enduring grace. Lindquist's story will show you that, no matter what path you're on, there is hope, healing, and even miracles when you give in and let God lead.

Welcomed as liberation and dismissed as exploitation, egg freezing (oocyte cryopreservation) has rapidly become one of the most widely-discussed and influential new reproductive technologies of this century. In Freezing Fertility, Lucy van de Wiel takes us inside the world of fertility preservation—with its egg freezing parties, contested age limits, proactive anticipations and equity investments—and shows how the popularization of egg freezing has profound consequences for the way in which female fertility and reproductive aging are understood, commercialized and politicized. Beyond an individual reproductive choice for people who may want to have children later in life, Freezing Fertility explores how the rise of egg freezing also reveals broader cultural, political and economic negotiations about reproductive politics, gender inequities, age normativities and the financialization of healthcare. Van de Wiel investigates these issues by analyzing a wide range of sources—varying from sparkly online platforms to heart-breaking court cases and intimate autobiographical accounts—that are emblematic of each stage of the egg freezing procedure. By following the egg’s journey, Freezing Fertility examines how contemporary egg freezing practices both reflect broader social, regulatory and economic power asymmetries and repoliticize fertility and aging in ways that affect the public at large. In doing so, the book explores how the possibility of egg freezing shifts our relation to the beginning and end of life.

Are you -- or is someone you love -- feeling derailed by the unfair twists and turns of infertility? Do the words -just relax- drive you crazy? Are you afraid you may never be able to have a baby? We get it. You're not alone. In Detours you'll meet a group of friends who have experienced practically every infertility setback and reproductive technology available. The authors share their incredible journeys and lessons learned -- in real stories. A -support group in a book, - these pages are packed with the help you need to navigate the infertility maze, cope with the stress of treatment, balance infertility and career, get (or give) the right kind of support, view challenges through a different lens, and find your resolution as you regain happiness. This unprecedented collection of inspirational journeys offers hope against all odds. The eleven authors, of both sexes, diverse backgrounds and different religions, met through the RESOLVE National Infertility Association of Greater San Diego. Their shared struggle bonded them together, and they become lifelines for each other as they faced roadblocks and setbacks on their infertility journeys. Hear the fears and jubilation as they begin and end a journey none imagined, littered with disappointments but resolving with joy. Celebrate with them as they rejoice solutions and share what they wish they had known when they were going through infertility treatment.

As a researcher whose work focuses largely on the causes and conse quences of unwanted pregnancy, I may appear to be an unlikely candidate to write a foreword to a book on infertility. Yet, many of the themes that emerge in the study of unwanted pregnancy are also apparent in the study of infertility. Moreover, this volume is an important contribution to the literature on fertility, women's health issues, and health psychology in general, all topics with which I have been closely involved over the past two decades. Neither pregnancy nor its absence is inherently desirable: The occurrence of a pregnancy can be met with joy or despair, and its absence can be a cause of relief or anguish. Whether or not these states are wanted, the conscious and unconscious meanings attached to pregnancy and in fertility, the responses of others, the perceived implications of these states, and one's expectations for the future all are critical factors in determining an individual's response. In addition, both unwanted pregnancy and failure to conceive can be socially stigmatized, evoking both overt and subtle social disapproval. Fur ther, they involve not only the woman, but her partner, and potentially the extended family. Finally, both of these reproductive issues have been poorly researched. Because both are emotionally charged and socially stigmatized events, they are difficult to study. Much of the early literature relied on anecdotal or case reports.