For someone who usually tries to stick to fiction, I've been reading lots of non-fiction lately. I first met Melissa Ford at the 2009 BlogHer conference in Chicago. Mel was one of the bloggers asked to read a post at the conference's keynote speech.I loved her sarcastic sense of humor! Mel writes an infertility blog called Stirrup Queens. I don't usually think of humor in connection with such a serious subject, but Mel managed to make us all laugh at her experiences, while expanding our sensitivity to the issues she was discussing.
She does the same thing in her book, Navigating the Land of IF (Understanding Infertility and Exploring Your Options). The book is laid out like a travel guide. Mel takes on the role of the tour guide for readers who have somehow landed on an island they never wanted to see -- The Land of If. She uses this same analogy to break down several of the different groups that can be found in this Land (Primary vs. Secondary Infertility, Biological vs. Situational Infertility, Infertility vs. Recurrent Pregnancy Loss, Female-Factor vs. Male-Factor Infertility, Unexplained Infertility, and Age-Related Infertility). From there, she discusses decisions that "residents" of the Land need to make (including whether or not to tell their friends and families), pregnancy loss, treatments, adoption options, third-party reproduction and living child-free after infertility.
Throughout all of these difficult subjects, Mel brings her own experiences, experiences of others collected through her online community, and medical information verified by doctors. With all of the medical information available from professionals and the all-knowing Internet, probably the most helpful part of this book is the first-person advice from people dealing with infertility. How do you deal with "helpful" advice from people you don't really know? Do you need to go to baby showers for others while grappling with these issues? What injections hurt less when given quickly versus slowly?
Bottom Line: I would definitely recommend this book as an excellent one for anyone dealing with infertility or with close family or friends dealing with infertility. Hopefully some humor from a writer who has been in the trenches can make you smile (even if it's only imagining what you'd like to say to Aunt Jane and her e-mail advice). Underneath the humor, the first person advice and resources are priceless!
She does the same thing in her book, Navigating the Land of IF (Understanding Infertility and Exploring Your Options). The book is laid out like a travel guide. Mel takes on the role of the tour guide for readers who have somehow landed on an island they never wanted to see -- The Land of If. She uses this same analogy to break down several of the different groups that can be found in this Land (Primary vs. Secondary Infertility, Biological vs. Situational Infertility, Infertility vs. Recurrent Pregnancy Loss, Female-Factor vs. Male-Factor Infertility, Unexplained Infertility, and Age-Related Infertility). From there, she discusses decisions that "residents" of the Land need to make (including whether or not to tell their friends and families), pregnancy loss, treatments, adoption options, third-party reproduction and living child-free after infertility.
Throughout all of these difficult subjects, Mel brings her own experiences, experiences of others collected through her online community, and medical information verified by doctors. With all of the medical information available from professionals and the all-knowing Internet, probably the most helpful part of this book is the first-person advice from people dealing with infertility. How do you deal with "helpful" advice from people you don't really know? Do you need to go to baby showers for others while grappling with these issues? What injections hurt less when given quickly versus slowly?
Bottom Line: I would definitely recommend this book as an excellent one for anyone dealing with infertility or with close family or friends dealing with infertility. Hopefully some humor from a writer who has been in the trenches can make you smile (even if it's only imagining what you'd like to say to Aunt Jane and her e-mail advice). Underneath the humor, the first person advice and resources are priceless!
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