After our fourth loss, I was searching for answers to the miscarriages and I wanted to arm myself with information before going back to see our infertility doctor. I found “The Infertility Journey” by Dr. Tarun Jain on an Amazon search, and I’m sure glad that I did. It’s a fairly comprehensive book that’s an easy and informative read – I’ve shared it with multiple friends going through infertility.
This book is broken up into eight parts, each with small chapters discussing a different piece of infertility. Each chapter begins with an inspirational quote (which I love) and concludes with tips, anonymous quotes from real infertility patients, and an illustration about things you want/don’t want to hear while going through infertility.
The first section, titled “The Basics”, introduces the reader to basic tests that your OBGYN can perform to see if there are any diagnosable causes of infertility. These tests include (Jain, 14):
- Blood hormone testing
- HSC to test the uterus and fallopian tubes
- Semen analysis
Starting at these basics and working my way through the other tests mentioned in the book, I found the tips to be helpful as many of them provided me with specific questions to ask my doctors.
The other sections discuss causes of infertility, treatments, relationships, the every day, unexpected paths, outcomes, and helpful extras. As I read each chapter, I took notes on possible tests or questions to ask at my doctor’s visit in September 2016. After reading this book, I felt more prepared to take my time to understand what each test was trying to find out and what each acronym meant as I was sometimes feeling lost and overwhelmed by all the medical terminology. At my doctor’s appointment, I brought my notebook full of questions and my doctor took the time to answer each and every one of my inquires. From that appointment, we did more blood work and a semen analysis (SA). The SA came back good, and my blood work showed a slight deficiency in Vitamin D levels. My doctor said that Vitamin D deficiencies didn’t necessarily equal higher chances of miscarriage, but that taking a supplement wouldn’t hurt. That answer was good enough for me.
When going through infertility or recurrent miscarriage, it can be hard to find answers for the reasons you can’t sustain a pregnancy. I know that there isn’t one right answer or explanation for our losses, but after reading this book, I felt better equipped to advocate for myself at my doctor’s appointments. Actually, I think I’ll re-read it before I go to my see OB in January!
Jain, Tarun. The Infertility Journey. CreateSpace Independent Publishing, 2016.
Pressing On 