infertility Archives

A Self-help Guide for PCOS

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects roughly 5 million people worldwide, making it one of the most common causes of infertility in women. September is dedicated to PCOS awareness, but we’re willing to bet there’s some stuff even you armchair experts didn’t know about its detection and treatment. Check out this helpful infographic, compiled from the newest edition of Marilyn Shannon’s Fertility, Cycles and Nutrition, available digitally and in print next month!

Sts. Monica and Augustine, Persist with Us

Yesterday was the feast of St. Monica, the mother of persistence, and today we celebrate the feast of her brilliant and influential son, St. Augustine. These feasts are timely, arriving in the midst of religious uncertainty and crisis. This woman — whose persistent prayers converted the hearts of her family and produced one of the…

A Novena for Pregnancy

Young St. Philomena has been such a powerful intercessor, she’s actually the only saint who was canonized on the grounds of intercession alone. While miracles have been reported regarding a whole span of requests, she’s known as the patroness of babies, infants, and youth. It’s unsurprising, then, that she’s taken a special place in hearts…

An Infertility Book for Catholics

From the Family Foundations archives. **** When Angelique and Richard López first began experiencing infertility, Angelique went looking for a Catholic book on the topic but came up short. A few years later, her best friend, Carmen Santamaría, started down the same road. These Miami CCL volunteers decided to pool their research and write the…

Infertility 101: The Basics All Couples Should Know

From the Family Foundations archives. An excerpt from The Infertility Companion for Catholics: Spiritual and Practical Support for Couples, by Carmen Santamaria and Angelique Ruhi-Lopez, reprinted with permission from Ave Maria Press. **** What causes infertility? About a third of the time, infertility can be traced to a cause within the woman. In another third…

Infertility in Advent

Infertility is one of the worst pains that can befall a couple. And for those couples struggling to conceive, Advent — an entire season dedicated to the hopeful anticipation of a long-awaited birth — only highlights the aching they live every day. To all those couples reading this: we see you. Advice is probably not…

The Continuum of Fertility: Breastfeeding

An excerpt from Marilyn M. Shannon’s book, Fertility, Cycles & Nutrition. **** The experience of a nursing mother — as she follows a continuum from complete infertility to normal fertility — is instructive for non-nursing women with irregular cycles or unexplained infertility. At the beginning of breastfeeding When the hormones of ovulation — FSH and LH…

Asking All the Wrong Questions

Recently, the Washington Post released a heartbreaking article featuring an in-depth exploration of Bayer’s controversial, permanent contraceptive device Essure. It’s essentially a thin metal coil — about the length of a sewing needle — filled with fibers intended to stimulate the growth of scar tissue. When implanted in the fallopian tubes, the tissue growth around…

NFP Helps You Know the Best Time to Conceive

Trying to avoid or trying to conceive? It’s a pretty common question among those who use NFP since it’s a conversation that needs to be had every month. However, for couples who are contracepting it may seem like a crazy notion that you can use the same method of birth control to either avoid or…

Adventures in Charting for NFP

By Leah Darrow Life can’t always be planned, and natural family planning hasn’t always been a perfect process for my husband, Ricky, and me. Don’t get me wrong: I actually love the idea of planning, organizing, making lists, Post-It notes, Ikea and The Container Store. But the reality is that I am president of the Procrastinator’s…