The next online chat via Skype will take place on Tuesday 31st October at 7pm. The topic will be ‘Selection of Donor Sperm’ and our guest speaker is Jill Martin from the London Sperm Bank. Jill will discuss the selection process, the screening process and the successful choice of donor sperm followed by a Q&A session.
The session will last for approximately 45 – 60 minutes.
To join the call please email your Skype username to hannah@fertilitynetworkuk.org
Gillian is an FNUK support volunteer, and she is organising a fertility open evening at her local complementary therapy clinic to raise funds and awareness on November 1st.
This is Gillian’s story …
Seven years ago, I never gave my fertility a second thought, until my husband and I started trying for a baby. I came off the pill… months went by, no period and no BFP (that’s “big fat positive” in fertility land!)…
#100FertilityFaces
Rachel is raising money to support NFAW by selling these gorgeous Handmade necklaces, designed especially for little girls. It’s called the Princess range. Rachel will be donating money for every necklace sold.
Perhaps a perfect xmas gift?
Go to her website HERE
Here’s why…
One day 15 years ago, during our final cycle of fertility treatment, I felt desperate. What if this failed? How could I go on? Somewhere I had seen information about Fertility Network UK and their helpline and I called. To have someone just listen, to tell me I wasn’t being stupid/overreacting/feeling sad for no reason was such a relief. To know I wasn’t alone. To be told I could call again – as often as I wanted – helped me get through a very dark time.
We emerged from 5 years of treatment without a child but FNUK have always been there. I have a wonderful, fulfilled life even though we don’t have the children we hoped for. Now I volunteer for FNUK – and they look after their volunteers as well as they do their members.
Thank you for donating. I am so grateful.
PLEASE SUPPORT DEBORAH – JUSTGIVING
During NFAW Susan will be donating £10 for each new challenge she can complete. Susan has said she will be including ‘4 new elevate classes, an evolve cycling challenge, new relaunched body combat, swim one mile (can’t do any more than that!), run 5k (ha!), clean off my bike and start cycling again and then Pilates’
Good Luck Susan !!
Bourn Hall Clinic is hosting its second Fertility Fayre on Saturday 4 November at its historic Cambridge clinic to coincide with Fertility Awareness Week.
The event is aimed at people wanting to know more about how to get themselves fertility fit and give themselves the best chance of getting pregnant. There will be a range of wellbeing advice on offer as well as medical advice on aspects of fertility and treatment.
Stalls will include exhibitors from Access Fertility, Camquit, Fertility Nutrition, Genesis Genetics, Lotus Reflexology, Proxeed and Weight Watchers. Bourn Hall’s own experts will be on hand to explain about the common causes of infertility and what fertility health and wellbeing tests can tell you about your own reproductive health.
The event follows on from Bourn Hall’s first Fertility Fayre held last year which received very positive feedback. Visitors reported that they appreciated the relaxed and informal atmosphere which allowed them the opportunity to spend time talking to a range of health support groups, complementary therapists and fertility experts all under one roof.
This year’s event is entirely free of charge and will run from 10am to 3pm at Bourn Hall Clinic Cambridge, Bourn CB23 2TN. There is plenty of free parking on site.
To see what happened last year follow this link.
Bristol Fertility Support Group is an informal group that aims to create a space where people with infertility issues can meet. Open to anyone who is having fertility issues or going through fertility treatment. It is free to attend and is open to new members. Meetings take place between 11am – 12 midday.
Meetings take place at Yanley Court, Yanley Lane Long Ashton – BS41 9LB.
To reserve your place and for more details please visit the Bristol Fertility Support Group page.
Next meeting:
Saturday 4th November – National Fertility Awareness Week special meeting.
For most people visiting this page, you’ll know that my amazing Hubster and I long to be parents and have been trying to do what comes very naturally for most people for over 9-years, 5-years of which have involved numerous rounds of IVF costing £thousands. Life has been difficult that’s for sure.
We’ve managed to get two confirmed Big Fat Positives thanks to our amazing consultant (Anil Gudi). He is the only person to have listened and investigated thoroughly, he adapted my treatment plan to make those pregnancies happen. Unfortunately, both IVF assisted BFPs resulted in two heartbreaking miscarriages. We’ve also managed to do this naturally twice, unfortunately, those two have ended in what the medical profession call a ‘chemical pregnancy.’
Thanks to my amazing consultant, we conducted every test under the sun to get to the bottom of ‘why?’ It turns out I have a very rare genetic disorder – the exact term for it is – ‘balanced reciprocal translocation of chromosomes 10;19’ I won’t go into the science but in short, it means it’s nigh on impossible for me to make a biological baby of my own. Despite having 8-embryos this year, all morphologically of fantastic quality (thanks to my egg pimping regime I literally turned back time and amazed my consultant but it turns out you can’t fix faulty genes), all 8-embryos returned bad results and weren’t viable with life – there’s about a 1% chance of this happening. My genes have blocked the pathway to natural parenthood for my Hubster and me.
To help navigate my way through this pain and work out what to do next, I am running! Having hung up my running shoes 6-years ago (for fertility reasons) I am dusting them off and raising money for a crucial charity for people battling with infertility – and one in desperate need of funds – this is the Fertility Network UK.
It’s National Fertility Awareness Week from 30 October – 5 November and I have signed up to the #FertilityCycle campaign, where I have committed to raising a minimum of £100 to help them continue to do the amazing work they do. So I’m running a 10k with not a lot of training, but I know with your help and your support you can help me do something amazing in what has been a pretty rubbish year. Good needs to come of bad!
Please dig deep and help me break the infertility taboo and raise money for this little charity that helps people like my Hubster and me navigate a path through this pain. We all deserve the right to try and as NHS funding for treating this disease dries up (as infertility is a disease and not a lifestyle choice) forcing people into debt, loneliness and isolation as they try to become parents, there is a greater reliance on the Fertility Network UK for guidance, answers and most importantly support and care. Please help me, help them and sponsor me to run like the wind.
Thank you and much love xxx
PLEASE support Johanna and visit her JUSTGIVING Page
Antonia says,
National Fertility Awareness Week aims to raise awareness and change the perception of fertility issues, as well as fundraise so that Fertility Network UK can continue to do its amazing work. It supports those struggling to conceive and highlights the unequal access to treatment caused by the postcode lottery. 1 in 6 couples and others struggle every day.
As a trustee of the charity I see first hand not only the charity’s total dedication to its work but also how, year on year, it faces the challenges of breaking even to be able to continue its work. And this is against a backdrop of Government grants reducing every year.
So here I am. Fundraising. I am no athlete, and I cannot compete with a previous trustee who swam the Channel 🙂 But I can walk. We’re aiming for 20 miles, but it may be more 20 km. But success isn’t defined by how many miles you walk, but doing your best & taking part.
So please sponsor me. And I can assure you the charity will continue to do the best it can helping those struggling to conceive. On their behalf, I say thank you. You have made a difference!