(continued)

Three years ago we underwent $10,000 worth of testing to determine there was no readily apparent medical reason why I wasn’t getting pregnant (virtually all of that covered by insurance, thankfully). Then – because Aetna pays for diagnostics but not treatment - ?!?!) - we spent $50 out of our own pockets for five serophene pills and voila! One week later a sperm and egg finally underwent some pair bonding behavior, resulting in a Benjamin. And shortly thereafter – to the surprise of all parties involved – more pair bonding occurres, resulting in a Jonah.

(So they are both living proof that the generic is just as effective – or more! – than the brand name Clomid.)

After nearly two years, our story had a happy ending. But I’m well aware that it’s not so happy for many people. And, just like a Mom of twins, you have an instant bond with anyone else who’s ever gone through it.

And I mean actually gone through it. Not just listening to your story – that you, against your better judgment, decided to share – and then telling you they know exactly what it’s like… how they started to panic after two months, but then got pregnant on the third. Yeah, Former Arch-Nemesis…. cry me a river.

So naturally I wanted to read and review Maybe Baby by Matthew M.F. Miller when Parent Bloggers offered it up. I was curious to read about a couple’s experience from the man’s point of view. The book is really more of a life memoir – a life that just happens to include dealing with infertility.

Miller’s writing is candid, revealing, and entertaining – what more can you ask for in a memoir? Much of his identity is wrapped up in his no-longer-obese status. He blames their fertility problems on the damage done to his body by carrying nearly 500 pounds for several years. Dissecting each of your past sins to find a possible cause of your inability to conceive a child is familiar territory.

And besides commiserating with the author and his wife, I also learned that while Clomid increases your chance of having twins from 1 in 100 to 1 in 25 (which I knew), it does not increase your chances of having triplets, quadruplets, etc. Odd, isn’t it? Since essentially Clomid tells your ovaries: “Spit out more eggs, you slackers, and I mean NOW!”

Read the Maybe Baby book, read the Maybe Baby blog. Regardless of your childbearing status, you’ll learn things you never knew you never knew!