National Infertility Awareness Week (NIAW) Supports the Need for Sperm Donation
Hosted by RESOLVE, The National Infertility Association, this year’s National Infertility Awareness Week [NIAW] will take place on April 24th – April 30th. To honor and demonstrate our support for NIAW, the Fertility Center of California seeks to highlight the substantial need and value of third-party reproductive services like sperm donation. Sperm donation is an essential part of modern family building for many couples and individuals, including those facing infertility, single women, and those from the LGBT community – particularly same-sex female couples.
#StartAsking
RESOLVE has declared that this year’s theme of NIAW is #StartAsking, which encourages members of the infertility community, as well as their family and friends, to take up the opportunity to raise awareness about infertility as a disease. So many couples who have struggled with infertility and come to the conclusion that using donor sperm is their best option to have a baby face questions from well-meaning family and friends that can be difficult to answer. Sometimes these questions simply lack sensitivity, and this is often due to a lack of education about third-party reproductive services, why they are used, and how much of an impact they can make for future parents.
Here are examples of some of the tough questions infertile couples using a sperm donor can face:
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Why is your sperm donor a stranger?
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Why can’t you just adopt?
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Don’t sperm donors only care about the money?
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Will using a sperm donor be expensive?
These questions may come from honest curiosity and concern, but from the point of view of someone who has struggled with an infertility diagnosis, possible unsuccessful fertility treatment and has chosen to use donor sperm, they can seem hurtful, even judgmental. NIAW strives to encourage those using third-party reproduction and fertility treatment services to spread awareness – within their comfort level. Helping to educate family and friends about the fact that infertility is a disease not just “bad luck” can go a long way toward opening further understanding of the condition and why you have chosen to use a sperm donor to build your family.
To learn more about how you can join the NIAW movement, including social media efforts, events held country-wide, and videos on how you can #StartAsking, please visit RESOLVE.
