Monday, February 20, 2012

Infertility & the Church


I just read a pretty good article about couples dealing with infertility and some of the ways the church can be supportive. Here is the link (5 Things Infertile Couples Want Others to Know).

Church can be a very difficult place to go when you are experiencing infertility, but it doesn't have to be. One of the best (but also one of the hardest) things we did was to let other people in our small group know what we were going through. In some ways, I think it opened up doors for other people who were struggling with infertility and helped our class as whole be aware and sensitive to this issue. Some days it was still hard to go, but at least I didn't feel so alone about it.

One thing I would add to this article - this is strictly speaking for myself and not a blanket statement for all infertile couples - I also didn't want people to completely ignore the fact that people were having babies or talk about their children at all. Yes, sometimes it was painful, but I also felt like when people didn't talk to me or include me in these conversations, I was being left out of a big part of other people's lives (and isn't that what small groups are all about?). I know it's a tough road to navigate if you've never walked the road of infertility before, and there are many different ways couples can respond. The one thing you can always do: make yourself available to them. Don't shut them out for fear that you will hurt them. A friend who cares and who is there is better than no friend at all.

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