National Infertility Awareness Week

If you are getting sick and tired of hearing me ramble on about infertility and IVF, then now is the time to unfollow me. It won't hurt my feelings! I know it's probably boring 99% of my readers to death but hey!, this is where I am in my life right now and I want to document it so that I can look back when I am [hopefully] on the other side of infertility.

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Did you know that this week is National Infertility Awareness Week? Probably not, unless you are battling infertility yourself. How ironic that we are in the middle of IVF during this week. 1 in 8 women are currently suffering from infertility or mourning a miscarriage. I guarantee you that multiple women you know are struggling with this and you have no idea. One of the hardest parts about this whole thing for me has been the elephant in the room when I'm around people that know what I'm going through. There has been an overwhelming amount of support from most people and an underwhelming amount from others. When it comes down to it, people just don't know what to say or do. It's awkward and uncomfortable. So in honor of National Infertility Awareness Week, here is my list of 5 Ways To Support Your Friend Struggling With Infertility:

1. Ask how she is doing.

Check in every few days with a quick text and ask how she's doing. That simple question isn't asked nearly enough. It's all about "how are the shots?", "how many doctors appointments do you have this week?", "when is your egg retrieval?". I very rarely get asked how I'm feeling physically and emotionally. It means so much when someone asks me this... It makes me feel like they truly care about ME and aren't just intrigued about the whole IVF process. This process is incredibly taxing, both physically and emotionally. It's lonely and most of the time I feel like I have no one to talk to about it. By asking how she's doing, you're letting her know that it's ok for her to open up and vent to you.

2. Take action.

If you are anything like me, hell will freeze over before you will ask for help. Never in a million years would I text even one of my best friends and ask them to bring me dinner or run an errand for me. Rather than saying "please let me know if there's anything I can do for you", say "I am bringing you dinner, is Wednesday or Thursday night better for you?" She will be forever grateful and won't feel guilty about having to ask for help.

3. Keep up with her appointment dates and ask how they went.

Yes I know, IVF requires a million appointments [tell me about it!] but when she texts you and says her baseline ultrasound is next Monday or her egg retrieval is next Friday, write those dates down in your planner so you can remember to ask how they went. It shows that you truly care and are walking this road with her.

4. Get her out of the house.

Sometimes we all just need a good, old fashioned girls night. Plan a small get together like dinner or a mani/pedi date and ask her when the best day is. Getting out of the house to spend time with my best friends is the greatest therapy. It gets my mind off things and reminds me that I have an incredible support group rooting me on.

5. Pray for her.
If you don't feel comfortable talking to her about it or asking how she is, at least pray for her. Pray for her health, her future baby, her marriage, her nerves, her doctors, her peace of mind. This is by far the greatest thing you can do for her. I truly believe in my prayer warriors and no prayer is too small for our God. I believe in His plan for us but having a few extra prayers sent up doesn't ever hurt!

If you have any questions about infertility or the IVF process, feel free to shoot me an email. I'm so very passionate about this and want to break the stigma that surrounds infertility.