This just in from PRWire (see the part in bold)….
Front Range Primary Care Opens 2nd Family Medicine Clinic
Feb 262010
Angie Baker, 33, suffered eighteen miscarriages in thirteen years. Then came her little miracle, Raiya, born this past December.
This BBC article is sparing with details, and I want to know more of the story. Honestly, I don’t know how I feel about it. I mean, my first reaction is, “Wow. That is amazing. What a miracle. She must be so happy.”
Then I think she must have suffered so much, physically, emotionally, and relationally. How did she cope, and what drove her to keep trying? I, with my husband, suffer the painful waiting game of infertility, but we have yet to conceive, and I’ve never miscarried, so I can’t put myself precisely in her place. Does she have a husband or partner to support her? Why isn’t he mentioned in the BBC’s story? Continue reading »
Just found this new blog, Sweetening the Pill, which is all about spreading the bad news of the BCP, and empowering women to find something better.
Take her poll: Have you experienced negative side effects of the Pill?
Dec 082009
Three cheers for George & Eileen Finnin, Directors of the Philadelphia Area Natural Family Planning Network. Along with Wichita’s rock star NFP Coordinator, CCL Chicago Chapter and a handful of other fervent NFP advocates, they’re harnessing the power of the press release and letters to the editor! They published this Op-Ed piece in the November 28 edition of the Philadelphia Bulletin, which isn’t exactly the NY Times, but is a good example of using the media to get out the word. I challenge the Finnins and others to take the next step, using their ingenuity to take the op-ed/ letter to the editor to the next level, and sumbit it to a more secular newspaper or women’s mag.
- Have you seen any other inventive press releases or letters to the editor?
- What’s the best NFP-related writing you’ve seen out there, something that made you smile, think, or clap your hands?
Have you heard of Kathleen Slattery–Moschkau? She’s a mom, wife and former drug-pusher (her words, not mine) who’s reformed, and using her zeal against big pharma to promote all things healthy, whole and fun. She’s gone from rebel with a cause to writer, radio talk show host, and movie producer–still with a cause.
Well, one of her creative and great ideas is Prevention, Not Prescriptions Tuesdays, which is a jazzy blog idea to cultivate conversation, inter-blog promotion, and promote holistic and preventative health care.
Well, the outlook of Natural Family Planning and Fertility Awareness advocates definitely jives with Kathleen’s sassy and smart pro-woman, pro-wellness outlook, so I thought I’d spread the word. I’ll be doing my darndest to jump on the PNP Tuesday train. If you have a pro-fertility blog, whatever your focus is, I’d encourage you to consider it, and jump on board. Here’s the deal:
What is Prevention Not Prescriptions?
It’s a simple blog carnival held every Tuesday specifically organized around the idea of ‘Prevention Not Prescriptions’. It’s information and inspiration. It’s for the bloggers, doctors, journalists, moms, dads, teachers, alternative health practitioners and everyone else who has had it up to here! with the status quo of a society pushing and turning to prescription drugs as a quick fix for their bodies or their lives.
If it relates to healthier living, we want to hear it. Here are a few ideas of things you can post…
- Advice/suggestions
- Your personal anecdotes
- Commentary on related headlines
- Film/media reviews
- The politics of pills and health (as it relates to prevention)
- Fitness, stress, nutrition related information (and yes, even recipes)
- Anything that might get others fired up to think twice before they pop that next Rx pill
We’d love to hear from and offer up a variety of voices and topics. There are no weekly themes. And participation is super easy…
Here’s how it works:
If you have a blog entry or article related to healthy living that you’d like to share, email us the link at anytime. If your post is from your archives, please repost it so it’s a current entry on your site, or write a new entry directing people back to your archived post.
There’s only one hitch…you must include a link back here so that others can find out how to participate. If you don’t provide a link back to this page, you will not be included. We’ll compile all links that come in during the week into one blog entry that we’ll post on The Kathleen Show blog the following Tuesday.
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- Links must be received by Noon CT on Monday to be included in Tuesday’s post.
- And don’t forget to join the conversation. Create a personal Typepad profile and leave a comment about your post once it’s up. You’ll be able to find your entry and create a profile directly at The Kathleen Show blog the Tuesday after you submit your link.
- We’ll also have a running archive below where you’ll be able to find past week’s posts.
Oct 152009
Maybe if I put this journal article from the American Board of Family Medicine up in a weather balloon and claimed a child was in it, it would get a little more press and recognition. (H/T to Birth a Miracle blog for the journal link.)
It’s one of the better articles I’ve read, refuting point-by-point the major objections to Fertility-Based Methods of Family Planning (FABM’s) as a legitimate method of family planning and fertility treatment.
One of the strengths of the article–and NFP fans may disagree–is it’s honesty about the lack of data on the benefits of FABM’s: increased communication, enhanced intimacy (the honeymoon effect), increased respect for their partner and other psycho-spiritual effects. While there’s loads of anecdotal evidence, it’s true that the statistical evidence is lacking. This doesn’t mean that the positive effects don’t exist; I believe they do. However, as I stated in a previous piece on promoting NFP, more studies are needed, and those studies need to be published.
I might know statistics and a fair study when I see one, but I don’t know the name of the grants and publication game. Any med students, doctors or academics out there who have any suggestions?
One small step for NFP, one giant leap for NFP-kind. Keep it up, Drs. Pallone & Bergus!
In a forthcoming article in Family Foundations Magazine, I begin to break down what’s the deal with the credibility crisis in the world of natural family planning, and ask questions about the best way to market NFP. One thought is that we need to do a better job of capitalizing on the ills of contraception, and the benefits of NFP.
This article is perhaps not the most informative in the details section, but it’s a fantastic way to introduce and promote an NFP Class. Since the fastest way to get ignored in an article or press release is to say, “Natural Family Pla….[news station clicking delete]“, it’s a clever intro. Next time: a few more details or mentions of previous studies (the Mayo Clinic metastudy for example).
From Taking Charge of Your Fertility
Do you realize that a part of every single one of us resided inside our maternal grandmother’s uterus, even before our own mothers were born? Unlike male fetuses which contain no sperm, female fetuses already contain all the eggs that the newborn child will ever have. What that means, practically speaking, is that when your mother was just a fetus inside hermother, she already had developed one of the eggs that eventually became you.
Wow.
Jun 092009
Developed migraines since starting the Pill? Have you had a pesky blood clot go to your lung or brain? Those darn birth control Pills may have been at it again!
I just found this great web site, a feminist support site devoted to educating people on the dangers of the Pill, aptly named “Ditch the Pill.” About the group whose entire non-sectarian goal is to empower women:
DitchThePill.org is a non-profit organization dedicated to the understanding, research and treatment of women’s health concerns caused by the toxic side effects of birth control pills (BCP’s). It was created in response to what is becoming a growing epidemic of health problems in women over the last 50 years, beginning with the introduction of oral contraceptives.
DitchThePill.org strongly feels that women should have a vital part in managing medical decisions regarding their own health. Prescription medications, particularly in the form of oral contraceptives, have unknowingly caused an epidemic of health problems in women since the advent of the Pill in the 1960’s.
Have you been told that taking BCP’s are the only way to prevent your family history of ovarian cancer? Oops, that’s not entirely supported anymore.
What’s the alternative, to a hormone-free, pro-fertility, pro-woman approach?
Shockingly (!), I’m going to suggest natural methods of family planning. You’re going to have to go elsewhere from this site to find information on Natural Family Planning (NFP), because, strangely enough, they don’t know all that much about modern NFP. Guess who’s going to give them a call today? Maybe you should too (281-962-4264).
NFP/ Fertility Awareness Resources:
- Secular NFP, or Fertility Awareness Method (FAM)–this is a great book and educationally amazing for women, although it advocates the option of using barrier methods during a woman’s fertile time, which some readers may be opposed to.
- NFP Background info–religious base (same science)
May 032009
6.2 million women experience some sort of compromised fertility in the United States. Are you one of them? If you are blessed with your full fertility, chances are you know someone who struggles with or has struggled with it.
In this FertilityCare Consult episode, show number fourteen on Infertility, Dr. Thomas Hilgers talks about the major differences between the ordinary approach to treating infertility and the FertilityCare and NaProTechnology way. The ordinary way is to treat the symptoms, and if all else fails, try IVF. The NaProTechnology way is to begin learning about and charting your cycle through the Creighton Method of FertilityCare, then working with your FertilityCare Practitioner and Medical Consultant to identify and diagnose the underlying problem to the compromised fertility. Napro treats the disease, not the symptom, and with much higher success, lower cost and much less suffering.
Do you know the success rate of pregnancies achieved and carried to term with IVF? It’s in the low to mid 20 %. With the Creighton Method of FertilityCare (charting your cycle) and subsequent diagnoses and treatment, do you know what the success rate is? At the lowest, it’s around 35%, and at best 80%, depending on the underlying cause.
If you’ve been having difficulty achieving a pregnancy, or have had recurrent miscarriages, you’ll definitely want to listen to this episode. You may wish to follow up by listening to the episode on Recurrent Miscarriages. So many people have amazing stories of going through the IVF process, only to find disappointment or disillusionment. But there is hope. Please pass this on to any one who might be interested or find healing in new hope for infertility, as well as insight for women’s wellness.
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