I am sure you are wondering what on earth Jennifer Aniston and I have in common… I’d like to say our flat toned abs or big bank account or celebrity status but unfortunately not! One thing is that we both have our own personal stylist… admittedly mine is still learning! Another is that we are both single and childfree.
Finally the third is that we have both been through IVF. It is all over the news this week Jennifer Aniston’s IVF journey. One thing that jumped out at me from the article in Allure is that Jennifer said:
” I would’ve given anything if someone had said to me, ‘Freeze your eggs. Do yourself a favor.’ You just don’t think it.”
I do remember being at the pool with a friend years ago, probably when I was 40ish and she told me she had frozen her eggs. I don’t remember thinking maybe I should too, I did think maybe I should check out the situation and speak to my GP about it. When I brought it up with my doctor she offered me an AHM test which tells you your ability to produce eggs, but I said I didn’t think there was any point in knowing if I wasn’t going to do anything with the information…. oh dear if only I had been more educated or my doctor had been more forceful on the matter…..
Even if I had frozen my eggs at 40 there was no guarantee that they would have been any good, but they definitely would have been better than trying to harvest my eggs at 45 which is what I did.
What amazes me about Jennifer Aniston’s IVF story is that someone with all the money in the world (well ok not ALL the money, but you know what I mean) still didn’t get the outcome she wanted. I know that I am making a BIG assumption here, but she says in the article that it was in her late 30s and early 40s when she started trying and there are a lot of things that can be tried before giving up, but, obviously much comes down to the individual woman’s body. I think ultimately as a woman Jennifer wasn’t aware (or made aware) of the potential situation that might befall her.
No One Talks About IVF
It is becoming more acceptable now, but it is still not common in many circles, both men and women often feel some sense of shame in admitting that they can’t procreate, and yet no one (or not many) feels the same about other ailments like arthritis or underactive thyroid. IVF is now over 40 years old, this is not brand new, but it is only when celebrities like Jennifer Aniston open up about their IVF journey that it becomes more acceptable for society to also talk about it.
This is why I talk about my journey because I think that women should be more aware of their own fertility, the ticking clock, the potential issues and what can be done. Meanwhile, I think I need to go and do a few more ab exercises as there is currently no way that when I reach 53 I will look as amazing as Jennifer, even with my junior stylist!!
What do you think? What were you told about your fertility growing up?
