Catholic Cysters Corner - Page 4

Lemonade Ladybug · 08-21-2006, 06:56 PM

Okay, Whew... I have a question for you all.

My doc who is also Catholic said again today that soon we will do clomid (sp?) and if that doesn't work, she mentioned other procedures, which I already know I will not be doing. ANYWAY...I was sharing this with a Catholic coworker who said clomid isn't a problem if you are seeking to stick in line with church teachings...can anyone tell me what is okay...where is the line? I assumed ALL fertility drugs were a no-no too...

I am still too 'sick' to even consider caring for a child right now much less conceive as I still don't OVULATE! EKKKK! But the conversations just made me realize that I need to know where the line in the sand is.

Happy Monday to you all.
LL

08-21-2006, 07:08 PM

LL~ You are totally OK to take clomid or any other fertility drugs. What you are not suppose to do is take the actual act of concieving outside the marital bed. So no IUI, AI, GIFT, IVF, etc. No procedure is ok that calls for the sperm to enter the vagina, or enter the egg in another way besides bding. HTH! I had wondered from a couple of your other posts if you werent clear on that. GL to you, its exciting to take that next step of the ttc journey!!

Lemonade Ladybug · 08-21-2006, 07:16 PM

Thanks Julieh for the clarification!

I knew the advanced stuff wasn't okay...but the fertility drug thing still gave me a bad vibe so I wanted to confirm. I was just confused as my Catholic doc was pushing it all and especially the IVF... lol... I have no clue what those acronyms in your post are... ha ha... and I guess I have no need to!

All the more reason Tam/Tigir needs to 'motor on' with her Catholic magazine. If I would have blindly listened to my doctor there is no telling where I would have ended up.

Swingin' Cyster · 08-21-2006, 07:50 PM

If I may offer some resources to my cysters trying to conceive w/i the teachings of the Church:
1. Pope Paul VI Institute - specializes in infertility
2. National Catholic Bioethics Center - could help with questions on fertility treatments
I hope those resources help!!
blessings,
Kara

08-21-2006, 09:08 PM

Swingin~ that site wont let me read anything w/o being a member. Am I looking at the wrong place??

jennynd · 08-21-2006, 09:55 PM

Julie put it well... the actually act of conceiving should still be left to you & DH so meds that regulate your hormones & assist you in ovulating aren't off limits. It might be worth mentioning, too, that certain methods of semen collection for semen analysis would be immoral too b/c it removes the "seed" from the marital act. I'll go into details if you wish

Also, just a word of caution with "Catholic" docs... I know many that prescribe bcps, do sterilization, do IVF, etc. which are definitely contrary to Catholic teaching so I think it is always best to be informed of the treatment you choose medically & morally before agreeing to what any doctor says.

Thanks Kara for the links too... this is info we could all use!

jennynd · 08-21-2006, 10:07 PM

Also, for anyone who is interested, you can find an NFP only physician at www.omsoul.com

To be included, docs must agree with all these statements:
I do not & will not prescribe or refer for... hormonal contraception or barrier forms of contraception.
I do not & will not perform or refer for... abortion, sterilization, or IVF

I had a terrible time with docs pushing bcps & ignoring my charts, symptoms, etc. until I found my NFP doc. He is seriously my gift from God!

kerr · 08-21-2006, 11:23 PM

DH and I thought of all these church stands before we did any fertility treatments. I kept on thinking to myself our marriage vow's. Accept children from God. If I am unable to ovulate how will that happen. I understand there is adoption. I am not ready to give up the thought of biological children.

I feel if God allows the technology to be there, then I have to use it. Also with a IUI, the doctor tells you to have intercourse for a few day's after the IUI, how do you know your child was not concieved with intercourse and not the IUI?

Also I feel I have been married for almost nine years. For 8 years before we did any infertility treatments, if God wanted to be involved in us concieveing without the use of technology he had his chance. Sorry if I offeneded anyone, that is just how I feel.

I think it is worse to have a termination, then it is to use reproductive technology. Abortion to me is the ultimate sin. The word abortion makes my hair stand on ends.

08-22-2006, 04:20 AM

Well, hmmm. I dont know exactly how to say this without it coming across the wrong way. I am not a judge of anyone. I have commited some pretty soul crushing sins before I was Catholic. I have known others who have committed even worse sins that were CCatholics. I even had artificial I before I converted and knew that it was wrong, in the eyes of the Church. Would I have had the procedure or gone even further if I wasnt blessed with my dd? Who knows, I would like to think not, but honestly, the desperation to have a child is unexplainable. But no matter how you break it down, these things are not acceptable in the eyes of the Catholic Church. You can find NFP docs, even Priests that will tell you that BC (as a contraceptive)is ok or IVF is acceptable (for example) but even then we have to understand that it is not OK in the eyes of the Church. If a priest OK's any of these invasive fertility procedures they are going against the teachings of the Church.

Again, I am not trying to make anyone feel bad and as I type this post I can remember how I felt when ttc dd. A little piece of me died everytime I got af that month. What I have posted are purely the facts and I mean them in no judgment against the choices anyone makes for themselves. I will continue to pray for all Catholic women that are faces with fertility problems and struggle to make the right choices. It is a horrible horrible thing to be faced with.

tigir · 08-22-2006, 07:03 AM

WOW - did I take a vacation or what?!? I can tell this is going to be an amazing year for my magazine material!

I can honestly tell you that matters of the heart could really care less what the Church says - it is a battle I think all of us go through at some point, maybe just on different levels. I have been there when it comes to wanting a baby so bad you hear them cry in the night. I even had "feelings" of being pg when I wasn't just because of my obsession. Black and White can become very, very gray during that time. That being said, I never considered any artificial methods beyond regulating my cycles - I have always been leery of some medical practices even before I was Catholic. My DH and I always said that we would adopt if we couldn't have our own (I would still love to, but DH is happy with us trying

) I am very, very fortunate that I was able to conceive all of mine naturally without even fertility drugs. I feel sometimes that I just have no room to comment on these topics because of that. I think it sometimes comes down to "Not my will, but THY Will". Hard thing to do and even harder to determine at times.

I just wish the very best for all of you cysters! Tons of that babydust!!!!

08-22-2006, 01:57 PM

tigir~ "Thy will be done" And thats what it boils down to for me also. It is so hard at deperate times to trust in him, but we have to find a way.

Umm, yea, I dont think you will have any problems getting articles in the fertility/paretning portion of your mag. hehe

Swingin' Cyster · 08-22-2006, 02:33 PM

I guess you have to become a member. I haven't used either of those sites much at (if at all) so I'm not a member. I'm also not trying to conceive as I haven't found anyone I'd want to have children with....

Those sources have been recommended by different people on our shows so I thought they could help you ladies as well.

CelticSpirit · 08-22-2006, 03:37 PM

I'll tell you all, Kara has helped me A LOT with understanding the fertility issues within the faith. As well as researching bcp's as treatment for PCOS with the church (THANK YOU!

) She's been one of the biggest blessings for me and I'm so thankful that I met her.

Lemonade Ladybug--I love your posts! You're an awesome person!

I'm so glad that this thread was started. I'm so very thankful to meet more Catholic cysters! You all are WONDERFUL people! My thoughts and prayers are with you every day!

ETA: Tam--I'm ready for your magazine when you get it published! I'd LOVE to have a Catholic magazine like yours to read!

tigir · 08-22-2006, 04:06 PM

LL ~ I know about the confusion when it comes to your Catholic Dr. pushing certain treatments. Mine always talks to me about bcp and I keep reminding him I don't want to prevent. The prometrium is working great so far!

Kerr ~ No offense taken here! The great thing about this board is that you can express yourself, opinions, beliefs, etc.

Kara ~ Speaking of......when are you going to post on us "Traditionalists" on the misconception board?

To Everyone ~ I am glad I mentioned my magazine here. I see there really is a need for it and I am excited to get it going! I will make sure you all get a complimentary first issue! Thank you so much for your support!!!

08-22-2006, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CelticSpirit

I'll tell you all, Kara has helped me A LOT with understanding the fertility issues within the faith. As well as researching bcp's as treatment for PCOS with the church (THANK YOU!

) She's been one of the biggest blessings for me and I'm so thankful that I met her.

Ditto that! Once my pea brain finally proccesses all your wonderful informative knowledge, LOL, it is nice to have someone to answer my questions.

Also Kara, you posted a radio talk show link a while back that was about fertility and what was acceptable in the church on the misconceptions thread. I listened to it and I enjoyed it. I will try to find it and post it here also, unless you beat me to it! hehe. It seems to me more cysters could bennefit from it.