Sharing the Gift of Life

Sharing the Gift of Life

In the field of assisted reproduction, most often, the news stories and articles we encounter are centrally themed around the controversies and challenges surrounding the process. We hear a lot about legal battles, ethical quandaries and scientific breakthroughs, but it seems infrequent that we actually hear the invaluable stories and lessons from the happy families that at the end of the day, are the objective of all of this activity and important dialogue. Here is one such story, which catches up with a family and the gestational carrier who helped them, 14 years later.

11 Tips on Saving Money for Fertility Costs

No one wants infertility treatment. No one begins saving money in their 20’s with starry-eyed hopes for their “dream cycle”. Yet, many of us need it, and it is there; for a price. And along with this price there is the ever-present tick-tick-tick of the clock. In many cases we can’t just “wait for a few years” until the economy normalizes, or our jobs feel a little more secure. This has never been truer than of late, with news of bailouts, stimulus packages and worldwide economic turmoil awaiting us with every glance at a television or newspaper.

This article features some interesting ideas as to how to make the infertility journey more affordable, attainable and less stressful.

Finding Family

Finding Family
For an ever-increasing segment of our society; our donor-conceived population, fun little anecdotes like “whose eyes I have” or “whose flair for the dramatic I inherited” are only one-half possible.
Ryan Kramer is exceptional for a number of reasons. He graduated high school and entered college by the age of 14. This month, at age 18, he will be graduating from with an aerospace engineering degree from University of Colorado at Boulder. He was also conceived through the use of sperm donor. Donor-conceived children, whether through egg or sperm donation, generally enter this world having one half of their genetic identity concealed from them; unwitting parties to contracts and non-disclosures they never agreed to.
Ryan like many donor –conceived children developed an intense curiosity about his biological father. He was not willing to accept the standard answers contained within the donor’s profile information. What began with a child’s natural curiosity, through diligence, dedication and an incredibly supportive mom, has resulted in Ryan not only locating his biological father and 6 half-sibling sisters, but has given over 24,000 people the ability to potentially connect to their “other-halves” someday.

Read on about Ryan and his amazing story.

A New Vision For Fertility Preservation

Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps down new roads armed with nothing but their own vision.- Ayn Rand

Few people are able to convert their challenges into opportunities for themselves, but fewer still are able to convert them into opportunities for others. Although the gender is off, we were reminded of this Ayn Rand quote while reading this piece on the amazing founder of My Vision, a non-profit founded by the amazing Alice Crisci, a breast cancer survivor who was diagnosed at the age of 31. Along the challenging path of her diagnosis, and subsequent fertility preservation treatment it occurred to her that there were few resources for those in her situation. What followed was a much needed mission, which will touch the lives of countless women and couples. Read on, and lend your support to this much-needed, growing organization.

"One Per Customer" approach to IVF gains renewed attention

Dr. William D. Petok, Ph.D, with AFA Mental Health Advisory Council writes about the intriguing new possibilities of single embryo transfer (SET) which will likely alter the standard practice of IVF. Advances in success rates weighed against the risks and disadvantages of multiple embryo transfers might soon make the association of multiple births and ART a thing of the past.

Read on for a fascinating glimpse into the future of our field.

Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick await twins via surrogacy

In case you've been under a rock the past few days, and haven't been following the "baby" news...we have yet another celebrity spotlight shining on gestational surrogacy. This week, Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick have announced that they are expecting twin girls this summer via a surrogacy arrangement. Looks like pretty soon Ferris Bueller is going to need more than just one day off!

Read on...

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20275425,00.html

National Infertility Awareness Week

This Friday April 25^th marks the kickoff of the 20th Anniversary of Resolve's National Infertility Awareness Week. National Infertility Week is a movement to raise awareness about the disease of infertility which affects 7.3 million Americans. This is a great opportunity to get involved in and help to support a great organization which has helped countless couples and individuals with their struggle through infertility. When you are in the midst of something as challenging and at times painful as infertility can be, there is no greater comfort than the company of others who are experiencing many of the emotions and perspectives.

There are seminars, peer support groups and professionally led support groups on topics such as egg donation, embryo donation, surrogacy and adoption. A great way to help yourself while helping others. www.resolve.org/takecharge

Talking with children about egg donation

After making the decision to work with an egg donor, Intended Parents suddenly become aware of an entirely new range of questions related to parenting. One of the most thought-provoking is the question of how they will discuss the issue with their child or children, if at all. The AFA (The American Fertility Association) has put together a tremendously useful, up-to-date and informative article and list of resources specifically for addressing this very important question.

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Talking with Children about Ovum Donation

Introduction

The first birth of a child conceived through ovum donation occurred in 1984. Since then an increasing number of fertility patients have used egg donation to become parents. As a result the number of children born via egg donation has increased every year. Although the exact number of children born from egg donation is not known, estimates are that between 1995 and 2007 there were 51,223 births recorded from fresh donor oocyte...

For full article, click on this link: http://www.theafa.org/library/article/talking_with_children_about_ovum_donation_2009/

The Surrogacy SOURCE- Special Announcement

Over the past few weeks the professional fertility community has been shaken by the revelation of the actions of a couple of surrogacy agencies, i.e. SurroGenesis and B Coming. Since then The Surrogacy SOURCE has been assessing the reported facts of these situations as they are unfolding with both anger and disdain for the alleged perpetrators, and sorrow for those who have been affected by this tragic situation.

Infertility and the subsequent journey to a baby can be one of the most emotionally and financially formidable challenges that couples and individuals will undergo. The fact that the irresponsible actions of a few may now make the decision to pursue surrogacy as an option for hopeful parents even more stressful and clouded in uncertainty is yet another tragedy created by this shocking series of events.

The vast majority of surrogacy agencies are led by dedicated, experienced professionals devoted to helping couples and individuals realize their dreams of a family, and most of them have useful and informative websites. However, Internet presence alone can be deceptive, and should never be relied on entirely when making a decision of such significance. Before choosing an agency, ask questions. Ask your IVF physician, or consult a support organization such as Resolve or The American Fertility Association. Also, there are questions that can be asked to help assess the professional caliber and standards of an agency's organization. Any reputable agency should be entirely comfortable with the following questions:

1. Has your agency ever been sued by a client, surrogate, donor or employee?
   THE SURROGACY SOURCE HAS NEVER BEEN SUED
   
   
2. What escrow company does the agency use?
   The Surrogacy SOURCE uses Allison McCloskey Escrow. Allison McCloskey has been in business since 1945, and is bonded and insured up to $5 Million.
   
   
3. What is the surrogacy agency's escrow process?
   The escrow process begins with the signing of escrow instructions by the clients (Intended Parents) and The Surrogacy SOURCE (TSS) staff, and the initial deposit is put into the escrow account. All surrogate fees and bills are paid from this account. Any requests for funds from this account will require two signatures from authorized escrow officials & TSS staff, and will be paid directly by the escrow company to each corresponding invoice. After all bills and fees related to the Surrogacy agreement have been paid, any refund due is issued to the client (Intended Parents) and the escrow account is closed.
   
   
4. What is the ownership of the company?
   The Donor SOURCE International (including The Surrogacy SOURCE) is owned by a collection of individuals, including some high reputation fertility physicians. The company is managed by Specialized Medical Management, whose president, Steve Masler, acts as the company's CEO. Mr. Masler is a CPA, has been connected with the fertility field for over 20 years, and has been CEO of Genesis Network for Reproductive Health and one of the founders of the Practice Managers professional group of ASRM.