Hey friends! Today marks the official start of the 2018 National Infertility Awareness Week. It’s a week to raise awareness about the disease that affects 1 in 8 couples of childbearing age in order to shed stigmas and help increase knowledge so those who suffer feel supported and less alone. I’ve got lotsa content commin’ at ya later this week but for starters I wanted to put together my usual Sunday links post with a fertility twist. I’ve been gathering these links for awhile, so forgive me if they aren’t up-to-the-minute current, but they are still 100% worthy of sharing. Even if you aren’t working through the challenge of infertility right now, these thought nuggets should still be interesting. So read on, and learn something new!

Fertility Health & Technology

• Endometriosis is a debilitating disease that many women suffer through monthly with no known cause or cure. It can affect general health, mental health and even a woman’s fertility.  This is a look at one woman’s struggle.
• Speaking of endometriosis, Vogue recently did an article on Lena Dunham’s struggle with the disease that you can read here. It’s candid, raw and emotional.
• The technology of 3D printing has produced 3D printed ovaries that may be the future of helping women with infertility. Fascinating!
• Late last year a woman who’d had a uterine transplant became the first woman in the US to birth a baby after this procedure. This brings new hope for those with uterine factor infertility.
• A report released from FertilityIQ showed an increase in employers offering coverage for infertility. Let’s hope this trend continues!
• As the 40th anniversary of the first baby to be born through IVF approaches this July, here’s a look back at the milestones of this incredible technology.
• In light of the recent disaster at a fertility clinic in Cleveland where many couples lost their frozen embryos due to a storage tank malfunction, this article takes a broader look at the technology of freezing and the unpredictability of it.
• A breakthrough stem cell treatment that reverses symptoms of early menopause raises hopes that women affected could still have children naturally.
• PCOS is a very common condition that many women suffer with that affects fertility. Here’s a look at how one woman overcame it naturally.

On Infertility & Motherhood & Being a Woman

• Here’s to the IVF mothers! (and yes, they are mother’s too; even those without a physical baby in tow)
• Yes, there should be a name for babies conceived after IVF, just as there is the name “Rainbow Baby” for those conceived after loss. Any suggestions?
• 14 Important Reads for anyone struggling with or who knows someone struggling with infertility.
• It’s often crossed my mind what a child would think of being conceived through IVF. This is an answer to that questions from one of those children.
• Grief is heavily intertwined throughout the infertility process as loss after loss it compounds. While this response to grief isn’t about infertility specifically, it’s still very relatable and helps put things into perspective.
• Speaking of greif, this blogger has been inspirational to me as she went though and finally decided to end infertility treatments and is now grappling with the ensuing grief. This is a raw and real look at the feelings that follow.
• And one more on grief: How to talk to those struggling with this feeling.
• This author aims to shed the stigma of miscarriage by putting an end to waiting to announce a pregnancy. What do you think? Should it still be “advised” to wait until it’s “safe”?
• Much of the infertility process is waiting, so much waiting. Here is a fantastic compilation of ideas to fill that waiting time and make it more bearable.
• It’s incredibly hard to trust the universe in this process but here’s a look at why trusting in that devine timing is important.
• This ad by American Greetings shines a light on infertility and really portrays the feelings well.
• What to say and what not to say to someone going through infertility.

Pure Fun & Inspiration

• You need this uterus emojis app!
• This artist puts a humorous twist on situations that are often not humorous at all. Of course some of what she shares takes on a more serious tone, but for those of us working our way through infertility, they are all entirely relatable.
• Did you all catch #Beychella last weekend?? SO AMAZING! This has nothing to do with infertility/fertility but it does have to do with being a fierce female and owning it.