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2002-04-15 - 10:57 p.m.
There's this. None of this please? http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/1998/04/06feature.html
For most women Hewlett interviewed, childlessness was more like what one called a "creeping nonchoice." Time passes, work is relentless. The travel, the hours-relationships are hard to sustain. By the time a woman is married and settled enough in her career to think of starting a family, it is all too often too late. "They go to a doctor, take a blood test and are told the game is over before it even begins," says A.I.A.'s Madsen. "They are shocked, devastated and angry." Women generally know their fertil ity declines with age; they just don't realize how much and how fast. According to the Centers for Disease Control, once a woman celebrates her 42nd birthday, the chances of her having a baby using her own eggs, even with advanced medical help, are less t han 10%. At age 40, half of her eggs are chromosomally abnormal; by 42, that figure is 90%.
from time online. more follows.
. Last fall the a.i.a. conducted a fertility-awareness survey on the women's website iVillage.com. Out of the 12,524 respondents, only one answered all 15 questions correctly. Asked when fertility begins to decline, only 13% got it right (age 27); 39% thought it began to drop at 40. Asked how long couples should try to conceive on their own before seeking help, fully 42% answered 30 months. That is a dangerous combination: a couple that imagines fertility is no problem until age 40 and tries to get pregnant for 30 months before seeing a doctor is facing very long odds of ever becoming parents.
Ovarian Hyperstimulation
The first step in most assisted-fertilization techniques is to trick the
ovaries into producing a lot of eggs at once. But the hormones doctors use to do this are powerful drugs and in rare cases can cause serious complications, including blood clots and kidney damage.
Multiple Gestation
Not being able to have a baby can be heartbreaking. But having too many at once can be even worse. About 20% to 35% of IVF pregnancies produce multiple fetuses, usually twins. Having more than two or three babies at once is often a medical disaster. Babies that develop in a crowded uterus or are born too early are at risk for a lifetime of developmental problems, including mental retardation, paralysis and blindness. Trying to reduce the number of fetuses through selective abortion has its own problems, not the least of which is an increased chance of miscarriage.
Low Birth Weight
Twins and triplets (not to mention septuplets) often weigh less than
normal at birth. But a recent study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control suggests that even single babies conceived through IVF are more likely to be born underweight. Whether that also puts them at greater risk of developmental problems is uncertain. Birth Defects An Australian study published in March reported that IVF children are twice as likely to suffer birth defects � such as cleft palate, a hole in the heart or kidney problems � as children conceived the usual way. Several earlier studies have shown no differences between the two kinds of babies, so further research is needed. Even if the apparent increase is real, it might not be clear whether the birth defects are caused by the artificial reproductive technology or by whatever
underlying problem caused the infertility in the first place.
Even the most powerful techniques can turn back a woman's biological clock only so far. Women in their early 30s who want to use their own eggs have a better than 30% chance of delivering a live baby by artificial means. After age 43, the success rate drops to a forbidding 3%.
Yup. Thats why everybody needs a plan. a 5-year plan with a more vague 10 year plan. I'm great at sponetineity as long as I can fulfill my own and other peoples expectations of me. Thus I need to know them.
Yeah. My mom wants grandkids. got it covered chica. :)
on the other hand with people like this- card carrying NAMBLA (north american man-boy love association) member priest since 1978!! i'd be scared for kids. http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,230384,00.html I mean my god. first complaint is 1967. thats 35 years of abuse- generations of abuse. *shudder* I WANT priests to help people and shelter and protect and guide them. ugh
-bsg-
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