Read Creating Life Against the Odds The Journey from Infertility to Parenthood FACOG Ilona Laszlo Higgins MD 9781425730666 Books

Product details Paperback 238 pages Publisher Xlibris (November 3, 2006) Language English ISBN-10 1425730663

Creating Life Against the Odds The Journey from Infertility to Parenthood FACOG Ilona Laszlo Higgins MD 9781425730666 Books Reviews

• I have worked in pre and post natal education for a decade and have read many books of the subject of baby making. Dr. Higgins tells a lovely story of how her family came to have a beautiful baby via egg donation. Along with this story of love and family the reader finds a great deal of factual information and an easy explanation of how Artificial Reproductive Technology and donor egg IVF specifically works. I would highly recommend this book for anyone looking to use an egg donor or for anyone looking to understand more about the subject in general.
• This was a disappointing purchase. As a young (late 20s) infertile woman, I was hoping to gain another perspective on the winding path from infertility to confidently deciding to try ART with egg donation. Since the subtitle of the book is "the journey from infertility to parenthood" I figured it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to expect such an emotional arc to be explored.
  
  In actuality the author was a 49 year old mother of two who had never struggled with infertility in her life when she decided she wanted to be pregnant again. Since she was 49, egg donation was her best option, and it worked out well for her. I don't judge her life choices, but I would hardly consider that story to be one of infertility. I really found it very hard to identify with her emotions and struggles. She simply has never had to go through the emotional work of accepting that you will never have your own genetic child -- a process that I think results in a more complex treatment of the egg donation decision. She does pepper the book with stories of other people's experience of gamete donation, but 90% of the book is really all about her, so I felt like not identifying with her weakened the whole book for me.
  
  I also thought her relationship with her donor was just plain odd. Basically she first heard of her donor through her doctor, started wavering on the egg donation idea, and then the donor FOUND THE AUTHOR and asked if she could please be her donor. WTF? I could not understand the motivation/psyche of the donor from reading this story and it just seemed, well, odd. Definitely a total outlier in the world of recipient/donor pairs out there and therefore not too helpful for the rest of us.
  
  That being said, she does have information present that would be helpful if you are just learning about the world of ART and infertility. If you have read much of anything else in the past, it won't be new information to you. And I appreciated her nonjudgmental treatment of all flavors and varieties of family out there.
  
  I don't usually take the time to review books on , but given that all reviews thus far are glowing beyond glowing, I really felt the need to give a perspective buyer some warning!!
• This book helped me realize that I am not alone in feeling all of the horrendous emotions that come with infertility. With real life anecdotes, this author conveys what most of us have probably felt and dealt with in our struggles. It is filled with relevant experiences written in an honest and relate-able tone, while also sensitively conveying some very important information and factors to consider. Highly recommended for women over forty trying to form their family.
• After reviewing several other books, it was refreshing to find a book that addressed all aspects of egg donation. This book walks the reader through all stages - the decision making, the conception, through the birth and beyond. The author does a great job sharing both her stories and the stories of women and families that she has interviewed, giving a broad perspective. I also appreciated the author's section on appropriate language and talking to others about egg donation. Highly recommended.
• All of these words describe Dr. Ilona Laszlo Higgins' new book on the journey from infertility to parenthood. As a seasoned OB-GYN, and as a woman who herself longed for and gave birth to a child in the face of infertility, Dr. Higgins explores every aspect of this deeply human topic.
  
  What is infertility? When, and how, should one approach the decision to seek help in conceiving? Who are the experts? What are the options? How should one choose? How can people support themselves and their partners on this journey? How much does it cost? Do the procedures hurt? What legal, ethical and spiritual issues may arise? What are the experiences of donors? Surrogates? Siblings? Who are the "real" parents? What, when, and how should one tell about his/her assisted conception to the child? To family? To friends?
  
  In vivid vignettes, in Q and A, and in words that everyone can understand, Dr. Higgins interweaves her professional expertise with a true rainbow of first-hand narratives, to illuminate each of these topics and many more. Her information is up to the minute, and her perspective is both intimate and far-seeing.
  
  While this book speaks to anyone contemplating assisted reproduction, I believe it is an important resource for professionals as well. Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) is opening up entirely new paradigms in family building. The "traditional" models simply do not encompass this new reality. With extraordinary clarity and compassion, Dr. Higgins pinpoints areas in which the traditional terminology and concepts of family and parentage can diminish and distort the self-perception and lived experience of ART parents, their children and their families. The possible solutions which Dr. Higgins offers feel spot on. They are precisely reflective of both the biological and psychological realties of ART, they are inclusive of a broad range of cultural and lifestyle affiliations, and they rightly acknowledge the pioneering nature of this unique journey. For any professional advising ART candidates this is an excellent book to have in one's back pocket, and an excellent reference to offer to clients.
  
  While I read the entire book in an afternoon, its lively and humane prose invites the reader back for many return helpings. Two thumbs way up.