Infertility For Dummies » (REV)

Sharon Perkins has spent the last twenty years working as an RN, raising five children and spoiling two grandchildren. Following her Air Force pilot husband from state to state, she’s lived from Arizona to South Carolina, and still enjoys traveling from Arizona to Texas to Michigan to Virginia to visit kids, grandkids, and mom.

Sharon’s ambition to be a writer dates back to grade school, if not earlier, and her desire to be a nurse (okay, she originally thought it would be nice to be a doctor but changed her mind) goes back at least that far. Amazingly enough, she found a way to combine nursing and writing in a way she would never have dreamed possible, thanks to a patient (Jackie) with the persistence and drive to make it happen.

Jackie Meyers-Thompson is managing partner of Coppock-Meyers Public Relations/JD Thompson Communications Inc. and a “professional” fertility patient (seeking “early retirement” however!) It’s been said that we make plans . . . and the gods laugh. Jackie has heard that laughter often. It took her longer than she expected, and yielded more than a few laughs, and tears, before she met her husband-to-be, Darren Thompson. But by 35, she was newly married and deliriously happy and felt that the rest of the story would soon fall into place . . . Jackie can be a slow learner.

Nonetheless, she can also be an industrious worker. She loved writing and, as a result, carved her path in marketing and public relations. She had a loving husband and a successful business, so the only things left to add were a few cherubic children and her own Great American Novel. Three years and a slew of physicianslater, Jackie had more than a few doubts whether her future would ever include children. But her persistence and focus paid off. Infertility For Dummies is, in part, Jackie’s story of the journey that landed her a book and her beautiful baby daughter Ava Rose, who at 31/2, doesn’t want to be called a baby anymore. When not writing, working, or watching her daughter grow, Jackie spends her time making plans. Some things never change.

Are you having problems becoming pregnant? You’re not alone; over 7.2 million Americans are facing the same challenges of infertility. Though some non-experts say that it’s all a matter of relaxation or taking medication, you need clear, straightforward, and trustworthy answers from healthcare professionals without feeling insulted, humiliated, or scared.

Written with compassion as well as professional knowledge, Infertility for Dummies combines comfort and expertise to walk you through your journey to becoming pregnant. This plain-English guide explains how infertility affects both men and women, while covering the latest treatments. It covers all key areas, including:

• Determining if you are infertile
  
  
• Maintaining a healthy relationship with your partner
  
  
• Making healthy pre-conception lifestyle changes
  
  
• Understanding the male and female anatomy
  
  
• Techniques for timing your conception
  
  
• Different ways to diagnose infertility
  
  
• Dealing with early pregnancy loss
  
  
• Finding the right doctor
  
  
• Different types of alternative insemination
  
  
• New advances and concerns in infertility
  
  
• Improving your chances of conceiving
  
  

Infertility for Dummies includes strategies for dealing with family and friends — what to expect from them, how to deal with inappropriate comments, and understanding that they are just trying to help. This book also provides the names and profiles of fertility medications and where you can find them.

Part I: Are We There Yet? Wondering Why You’re Not Pregnant.

Chapter 1: Where, Oh Where, Can My Baby Be?

Chapter 2: Understanding Your Anatomy.

Chapter 3: Practicing Positive Behaviors — Before Conception.

Chapter 4: Struggling with Secondary Infertility.

Part II: Stepping Up Your Efforts.

Chapter 5: Trying Simple Techniques in Not-So-Simple Situations.

Chapter 6: Considering Special Circumstances.

Chapter 7: Seeing a Doctor — and Keeping Your Cool.

Chapter 8: Taking Supplemental Steps on the Road to Baby.

Chapter 9: Are We Having Fun Yet? Trying to Conceive and Your Relationship.

Part III: Asking for Directions: Finding the Problem.

Chapter 10: Finding the Problem: Testing 1, 2, 3.

Chapter 11: All About the Boys.

Chapter 12: When the Beginning Is the End: Early Pregnancy Loss.

Part IV: Moving Up to High-Tech Conception.

Chapter 13: A Little Help from Dr. Specialist: Intrauterine Insemination and Fertility Injections.

Chapter 14: Welcome to the Big Time: In Vitro Fertilization.

Chapter 15: Let the IVF Cycle Begin!

Chapter 16: The Care and Feeding of an Embryo: Amazing Teamwork in the Lab.

Chapter 17: Waiting, Waiting: Surviving the Two-Week Wait after an IVF Cycle.

Part V: The Road Less Traveled . . . So Far!

Chapter 18: Challenges of Third-Party Reproduction.

Chapter 19: Moving On.

Chapter 20: Hello, Dolly! New Advances, New Concerns in Fertility.

Part VI: The Part of Tens.

Chapter 21: TheTen-Plus Most Annoying Things to Hear When You’re Trying to Get Pregnant.

Chapter 22: Ten (Okay, Seven) Groups of Fertility Medications and Where to Find Them.

Index.