We are now firmly into November, football season and turkey preparation, so it’s time to look back on October in the Attain Fertility community. Now pardon me while I hijack my own summary post for a minute….
In beautiful Southeastern Virginia, where we live among sand and surf, we just packed our shorts away at the end of October. For me, it hasn’t just signaled the end of the warm season, but the end of another unsuccessful pregnancy. There is good news though. I can’t think of my most recent miscarriage without remembering the overwhelming support that all of you in this community offered to me. Although what happened was horrible, it really showed me exactly what the Attain Fertility community is all about – people, some amazing people.
Thank you, to every one of you who left me a comment, sent me a message, offered me a virtual hug or even sent me good thoughts. It was all felt and appreciated more than you can know. You all rock!
Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming….
October was Breast Cancer Awareness Month and we shared the awe inspiring story of one couple’s journey to parenthood after surviving cancer. We also met a new friend, Brittany, a new blogger in our community who will be sharing her story with us on a regular basis!
Dr. Lowell Ku shared wonderful information about our biological clocks and how age affects fertility; gave some well deserved praise to the pioneer of IVF and recent Nobel Prize winner, Dr. Robert Edwards; and added the term fireballs fibroids to our vocabulary, guaranteeing that I will giggle every single time I hear the word fibroid for the rest of my life. Heaven help me if my elderly neighbor starts telling me about her fibroids over the fence in the backyard!
We also added some wonderful new informational videos to our YouTube channel, including one about how frequent miscarriages really are, a subject that hits close to home for me.
Sharon, from the Attain Fertility Call Center, shared a bit about how much the Attain IVF program costs and how the programs work.
Shelly Galvin talked about finding her way back to her happy place, a reminder all of us need at one time or another. And we all got a bit disgusted at Octomom all over again!
On Facebook. we shared some happy news about a success story in our community and celebrated Jacqui’s baby shower. Jacqui gave birth just a few weeks ago and we’re all thrilled for her, no matter how bittersweet the feeling. On Facebook we also talked about every fertility topic under the sun, including PCOS, donor eggs, and a new 4 hour genetic screening test for IVF!
October has been a month of lows and highs, but I still can’t wait to see what November brings us! We have some exciting stuff planned for all of you, including the Great Expectations Fertility Trivia Challenge. You’ll have the chance to test your fertility knowledge and win some fabulous prizes! We’re also working on something special on Twitter to get you through the holiday season while trying to conceive. Last, but certainly not least, we have another wonderful blogger joining our community soon. November will be a great month … as long as you aren’t a turkey!
2 Comments
Wow! What a retrospective on what was an incredibly busy month. I’ve been so focused looking forward that I neglected to reflect on the journey that got us here. The outpouring of support this month was so incredibly special and uplifting. Thanks for all you do for us, Stephanie.
Again, thank you for having me! I am looking forward to sharing my journey and to meeting so many other wonderful people!