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Why You Should Keep a Fertility Journal
Infertility treatment can make you feel like you’re Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and your house just fell on a witch in a foreign land. From the moment of your first visit…
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The Latest and Greatest Infertility Treatment Break Through
Louise Brown, the first IVF child conceived, is now an adult and a mother. So much has changed since her conception and birth – and yet so much has stayed the same. When…
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LGBTQ and Wanting a Family
Studies have clearly demonstrated that children of same-sex parents are as well adjusted and happy as children of heterosexual parents. Same-sex parents have the ability and freedom to create parenting roles that are…
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What is Infertility?
What is Infertility? • Infertility is a disease that results in the abnormal function of the reproductive system. • Infertility prevents people from creating a family – one of the most fundamental and…
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Let’s Hear it For The Men!
We like to think of ourselves as enlightened, capable of intelligent discussion and rational thinking. Few things will put those admirable qualities to the test as male infertility. Mention male factor at a…
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Infertility: Separating The Fact From The Fiction
Few diseases have as strange and unhappy a legacy of myths as infertility. In every culture around the world those of us coping with reproductive difficulties have to stare down the barrel of…
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National Infertility Awareness Week: State of The ART
It’s impossible, the doctor said. You’ve got Kleinfelter’s Syndrome and you don’t have sperm. You’re too old and so are your eggs. I’m sorry , we don’t know why but you’ll never get…
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IVF and Cancer?
On February 18th, Reuters reported a new study that is a relief to many patients struggling with infertility, and considering doing IVF. It is the concern that doing IVF could someday increase their…
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Fertility Lifestyle Tip Sheet
So it’s your year to have a baby! Congratulations! How do you get started on getting your body ready for making a baby? Start with eating healthy foods, getting plenty of rest, and…
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Infertility in Black Women
Minority Couples’ Infertility Issues As a fertility advocate, I get a lot of press releases. And sometimes, I really love them. Especially when they actually have more to tell me than why I…
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Waiting For Pregnancy
We live in an instant society. We can get our movies on demand, pay our bills online, and there is an app for everything. We have lost our ability to wait. And the…
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Male Fertility Part Three: The Physical!
A good urologist who specializes in male infertility will give you a thorough going-over. It’s important because the exam can detect conditions such as a varicocele. Varicocele Treatment Varicocele dilated veins around the…
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The Semen Analysis Test: Magazines or Video?
Chances are, you or your man may have already had a semen analysis either at the doctors office, or perhaps you have used SpermCheck, the first over the counter semen analysis kit. Or…
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Fast Facts on Fertility and Age
Infertility is not solely a woman’s problem. In fact, infertility affects men and women equally. People are often surprised to learn that 35% of infertility cases are related to the male, and 35%…
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Are You Stressing About Infertility?
I find the entire conversation about the links between stress and conceiving a baby – frankly very stressful. And the advice changes like the weather in San Francisco: if you don’t like it…
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Is 2013 Your Year to Have a Baby?
Let’s say that the calendar doesn’t stop after December 23, 2012. You are still right here, and really want a baby! What then? What’s your action plan? And perhaps the bigger question is…
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Tips on Eating For Fertility
When couples are having difficulty conceiving, they often feel like there is very little that they can control. After all, they can do “everything right” and still not achieve a pregnancy. It’s the…
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Remembering Male Fertility When it Comes to Conception!
Perhaps you are in that very uncomfortable situation where you have done every “trying to get pregnant” tip from standing on your head to taking your fertility temperature. You might even have bought…
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Retreating in the Midst of Infertility
Infertility treatment can feel like all out of war. My fertility clients are constantly working with their calenders and schedules. All they want to know is how quickly they can get into their…
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That Red Hot Anger of Infertility During The Holidays
I don’t talk a lot about anger. But anger happens. For me, it can climb up and fill a void in my chest. Quiet, defeated anger that guaranteed me the right to my…
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Are IVF Raffles Done Out of Compassion or Marketing?
On April 9th 2009 I wrote my first blog about the practice of IVF Centers offering “IVF Raffles” as a marketing incentive to attract couples to their centers. That is almost three and…
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Keiko Zoll is Pregnant: Happiness, Jealousy and Survivor’s Guilt In The Infertility Community
When I first heard that Keiko Zoll known as The Infertility Voice was pregnant I shouted a great big “YES”!!! from my chair! You can learn about all of the best and worst…
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The Infinite Practice of Waiting During Infertility
The hardest thing for me to do in life is wait. And infertility is full of waiting. The waiting for an appointment, for your period, for the results of blood tests, the waiting…
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Egg Factor Docu-Series and Discounted Donor Egg!
Egg Factor is a ground breaking docu-series being produced to shed some much needed light on the world of infertility & egg donation. A world which exists below the radar of most yet…
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Healing The Body: During and After Infertility
One of the biggest causalities of infertility can be our relationship with our own bodies. The feelings of betrayal and the unfortunate link to our sexuality. Going through infertility, whether we end up…
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Boosting Your Own Fertility By Getting In Touch With Your Pelvis!
I spent Saturday at a woman’s fertility retreat. I kicked it off with a mind/body visualization of our female bodied reproductive center. The meditation I led was based on my audio CD, “Shameless…
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Conscious Conception: Self Nurturing Retreat
I know, you don’t have time. You are in pain on so many levels, and you just feel stuck. Besides all that is associated with TTC, infertility and medical treatments – you just…
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Why I Hate Mother’s Day
I am coming out. I hate “Mother’s Day”. It’s just not a comfortable holiday for me. It is so loaded for so many people. It’s hard to wish people a “Happy Mother’s Day…
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IVF Center Moving The Focus Towards Infertility Prevention
One of the biggest issues facing women who want to have a child, but are not ready for various reasons is the race against their own biological clocks. Many women don’t want to…
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Interpreting The Red Flags, Flashing Lights and Other Warning Signs of Infertility
Conventional wisdom has it that if after a year of unprotected sex , if a couple hasn’t produced a pregnancy, they’re officially “infertile”. It’s an okay rule of thumb, if you’ve got a…
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African American Women & Infertility: It’s About Education
I love press releases. Especially one’s that remind me of important truths. Like; “Infertility affects one in eight couples or 7.3 million people in the U.S. 12% of women of reproductive age experience…
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Easter Eggs, Bunnies and The Passover Seder
Well, to state the obvious – bunnies and eggs are symbols of fertility. And while the bunny does not appear at the Passover Seder – both holidays for Jews and Christians involve eggs….
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Second Opinions Can Be a Game Changer
I found out that I was having infertility when I was 24 years old. Three years later, my husband and I welcomed our first born son, Tyler into our lives through IVF. Infertility…
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March 18th is Goddess of Fertility Day!
I love press releases sometimes. The latest let me know that March 18th is Goddess of Fertility Day! According to the press release, it is traditionally celebrated before the Spring Equinox. This ancient…
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Attention Ladies: Trying To Conceive is Not Just All About YOU!
I have watched women assume all responsibility for conception for over 20 years in my role as President and Executive Director for RESOLVE NYC, as the Founder of The American Fertility Association and…
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Coming Clean About Eating Disorders, Infertility and Sexualty
I am a woman that talks about everything, and when talking about it is not enough – I write books and blogs! One of the hardest things for me to talk about is…
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“My Husband Won’t Get His Sperm Checked”
The woman’s voice at the other end of the line is teary and frustrated. She is on her third cycle of Clomid and she is sure that the third time is not the…
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Tips for Surivivng Your Girl Friend’s Pregnancy and Children
I think the hardest thing for me when I was going through infertility was when my girlfriends got pregnant. And it didn’t matter if they got pregnant after infertility either. I wanted to…
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Cervical Health Awareness Month 2012
The hope is that every January women from around the world will pause and remember that they have a cervix! The fact is that many women have never seen their own cervix, and…
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“Honey, It’s Time!” The Male Side of Baby-Making Sex
Sex is not a dirty word, and it is one of the words that is the least spoken in the world of infertility. Ironic isn’t it? I mean, everyone knows that babies are…
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“The Short End of The Stick”: Infertility, Gifts, and Inheritance
It happened again the other day. A woman struggling with infertility posted on Facebook that she always gets “The short end of the stick” because she does not have children. I believe her,…
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Thinking of Getting Pregnant in 2012? Or Are You Still On The Conception Fence?
One of my coaching clients is a single woman who started to see me because she wanted to have a better relationship with her sexuality and her body. Fertility was an issue for…
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Child Free Vs. Child Less
The other day I wrote a blog called The Choice NOT to have a Baby, Even When You Really Want One, inspired by a blog post by Savvy Auntie, Melanie Notkin. This inspired…
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The Choice NOT To Have a Baby (Even When You Really Want One)
This week in one of my fertility coaching sessions with one of my clients, we explored the possibility of not moving ahead with IVF, and what it would be like to stop infertility…
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Don’t Wait Too Long For a Second Opinion When TTC
People tend to find The Fertility Advocate blog or call me for fertility coaching when they are feeling stuck, or frightened on their infertility journey. I become their beacon of light during what…
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Are You Waiting For a Holiday Conception Miracle?
Dear Readers: It it is time of year that I am bring out all of my most favorite blogs! This is one of my all time favorites. What do you think? With Love,…
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Do You Imagine Your Child To Be?
Dear Readers: Every year around November I post my most favorite personal writing about my own experience with infertility. I have to be honest. I love this entry as much today as I…
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Sexual Pleasure Can Increase Conception
The other night I spoke to a group of women who were trying to conceive in Connecticut. It was a wonderful evening filled with laughter and information. I got the feeling that no…
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Auntie Up!
I love Melanie Notkin, and her creation Savvy Auntie which is a website and now a book. What touches me so deeply about Melanie is how she took what could feel like an…
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The Infertility Mid-Life Surprise
I was walking with a new friend at a retreat center. I was there researching my new book on Re Charging your life. When the conversation turned to what I did – and…
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Does Infertility Make You Feel Sexually Discarded?
Once upon a time, I felt sexually discarded. I didn’t feel like anyone noticed me anymore as a sexual being. Maybe it was the years of infertility treatment – the bloating from hormones,…
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Can You Fix The Human Egg?
Louise Brown the first IVF child conceived is now an adult and a mother. So much has changed since her conception and birth – and yet so much has stayed the same. When…
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Egg Freezing for Many Is a Gamble Worth Taking
Elizabeth Cohen, the Senior Health Correspondent for CNN just published a wonderful article on egg freezing called “Freezing Your Eggs – The Costs and Other Realities” on CNN’s Empowered Patient” Blog. It is…
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Get Your Free Donor Sperm!
Did you see the cover of Newsweek? The headline is “You Got Your Sperm Where?” I have been up and down the world of fertility for over two decades – and they got…
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The Vulnerbility of Being a Patient: The Importance of Having an Advocate
It was one of those days that one does not think about very much. My husband and I got up early. I had to go have root canal – and I have been…
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Is Menopause an Evolutionary Relic?
The big buzz in the world of fertility this week is not a new story – but the provocative cover art of a naked pregnant 60 plus year old woman on the cover…
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Putting Yourself First While Going Through Infertility
Sometimes we get lost in a quest. I don’t care whether it is the desire to conquer infertility and have a baby or something else. We can get so wrapped up and single…
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One Simple Tip To Survive Infertility
I know infertility. I survived it – and not because I reached my dreams of having children. There is so much to survive when you come up against infertility – and I survived…
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Gays, Lesbians and Unmarried People Accessing Reproductive Medicine More and More!
I had a rip roaring fight with a woman in a Starbucks the other day. A gay couple came in with their baby, a gorgeous little girl around six months old and they…
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Infertility Does Not Have To Wreck Your Sex Life and Self Image
One of the hardest part of trying to conceive is what it can do to your sex life. I remember being told that I had “Hostile Cervical Mucus”…..now isn’t that hot? “Come on…
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Legal Questions Answered on The Baby Selling Scheme
Thomas Pinkerton, Esq of The Reproductive Law Center read my blog, called The Theresa Erickson Baby Selling Ring: The After Shocks Are Just Beginning and offered to answer the questions that I raised…
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The Voice of The Surrogates in The Theresa Erickson Baby Selling Scandal
Andrew Vorzimer Esq just posted an incredible blog on his site The Spin Doctor where he gives insight into what has been going on for the surrogates in the Theresa Erickson baby selling…
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The Theresa Erickson Baby Selling Ring: The After-Shocks Are Just Beginning..
My day yesterday, and now today has been filled with being a media resource for print and television around all things Theresa Erickson: “baby selling”, Surrogacy and egg donation. This is not…
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Made To Order Babies: When Reproductive Medicine Breaks the Law
I have known Theresa Erickson as a distant colleague for years. She joined the board of directors of The American Fertility Association after I left the organization that I founded as the first…
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Can Your Sex Toys Cause Infertility?
Do you have a vibrator, dildo or any other rubber sex toy in the house? Are you trying to conceive? Then you need to read this post – actually even if you are…
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What Gay Men and Lesbians Need to Know About Egg Donation and Surrogacy
I have been doing more and more fertility coaching for Gay Men and Lesbians who are looking for support in building their families. LGBT Family Building is not new – but I am…
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What You Need to Know if You Are Thinking About Becoming a Gestational Surrogate?
My blog yesterday about recipient couples giving thanks to their sperm, egg, embryo and surrogates brought in a lot of private quires to my fertility coaching practice. Most of the interest was from…
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The Importance of Being a Donor or Surrogate
There is a Facebook Page up dedicated to gathering thank you letters to egg donors in the United Kingdom. It’s called “Letter to Our Donor” . The purpose of the initiative is to…
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Resources for Living with Uncertain Outcomes
Life is just filled with uncertainty. You have heard the expression “Life can change in a heart beat!” – and we all know that to be true. One moment – we are sailing…
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Why Understanding Sex is Important to Conception!
When I worked in the non profit fertility world – it took a lot of pushing to bring sexuality to the agenda. I love telling the story of being at some professional sexuality…
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Are You Considering Egg Donation? What Your Doctor May Not Be Telling You!
This week I got a crash course on donor agreements – and what I learned shocked me. If you are considering doing egg or embryo donation to build your family – or donating…
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Want Some Baby Making Mojo? Read This!
One of the most important lessons I have learned in over two decades as a Fertility Advocate is as much as we understand the science of conception – and baby making – we…
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What is a Fertility Coach?
I am sitting in a living room in Chicago – having brunch with a group of 30 something year old women. I was there to talk about sexuality (one stop on my fabulous…
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Zestra: A Big Bang In A Bottle!
Perhaps this blog should live on my “Being Shameless” site – because it is a pretty shameless post! But I decided to put it here – because it is about one of those…
Egg Donation Can Help You Reclaim Your Dreams
Pamela Madsen, The Fertility Advocate, and Founder of The American Fertility Association talking about how egg donation can help you heal the wounds of infertility, by helping you reclaim lost dreams.
Pamela’s Vlog! There Are So Many Ways to Give Birth!
There are so many ways to give birth! Hear my little introduction to one of my favorite Blogs You can read that right here!
Back To The Basics!
Today’s Vlog was inspired by fellow blogger, Lisa Rosenthal who did her own Back to The Basics Blog today! She reminded me that I haven’t talked about how long to wait before seeking…
Vagina Anxiety, Climate Change, and ProBiotics Oh My!
Welcome to my very fist “Vlog”! I don’t look very glamorous, but it’s early in the morning and I am trying to figure out the web-cam! I am talking about my newest blog…
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