Parenting After Infertility

Highlights from July 15, 2009 Creating a Family radio show

Once you finally get your child, either through infertility treatment or adoption, infertility is over. Right? Unfortunately, infertility can and often does affect how we parent. Parenting after infertility can be difficult.

• Feelings of continuing to want to be pregnant and give birth after you have adopted.
• Ambivalence about a surprise pregnancy after adoption.
• Feeling guilty for sometimes feeling overwhelmed about parenting. Not giving yourself permission to have negative feelings about parenting since this is what you’ve worked so hard to achieve.
• Excessive worrying about this pregnancy, the health of the fetus, being a nervous wreck about this pregnancy for fear that you will lose it.
• Guilt over the health issues of twins born premature.
• Anger at husband for pushing for the transfer of 4 embryos.
• How to heal a marriage that has been damaged by the infertility struggles.
• Motherhood is not all that you had hoped it would be.  Problems don't go away once you finally become a parent.
• Being overprotective of child conceived after long struggle with infertility.
• Spoiling children conceived after long struggle with infertility.
• Grandparents show favoritism to biological child over adopted children.
• Who to tell that child was conceived with donor egg.