Jenni Saake's Tips For Coping With Infertility At Holiday Times...

Recently, I was thinking about how the holidays can be a particularly challenging time for infertile couples. With all of the holiday get-togethers (often with babies and small children present) and with all of the "holiday expectations" many face this time of year, I decided to contact Jenni Saake for ideas on coping tips for dealing with infertility at holiday time.

I didn't have an email address for Jenni, who I "met" online several months ago through National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week.


Find more videos like this on Illness-Disability-Healthcare-Caregiver Ministry Network


So I sent her a twitter message asking if she had any ideas for writing a post about coping with infertility at holiday time.

Jenni Saake is the author of:

Hannah's Hope: Seeking God's Heart in the Midst of Infertility, Miscarriage, and Adoption Loss



Here is a site with information on her book, referenced above:

Hannah's Hope

After contacting Jenni on twitter, she sent me several messages back with feedback on my question. I really appreciate her quick response and I'm including links she provided here. Hopefully they will help readers struggling with infertility (endometriosis-induced or otherwise).

Here are the links Jenni Saake provided:

1)

"Surviving 'Parent's Days': 101"

This is an article written by Jennifer Saake. [This article is geared for Mother's Day and Father's Day but may also help when coping with other holidays, per Jenni].

2)

The Road Less Traveled: A Journey Through Infertility

[This article written by Meridith at the cited link].

3)

Great Books For Christmas Gifts For The Reproductively Challenged Woman

[This article written by Barbara Winters at the cited link].

To contact Jenni Saake, you can click link below to visit her on twitter:

Jenni Saake (aka "Infertility Mom")

A few months back, there was a seminar on blogtalkradio talking about "Medications, Illness, Fertility and the Desire for Motherhood" with Jenni Saake. (Her seminar is available in the blogtalkradio archives).

Just click the "blogtalkradio" icon in the sidebar to access her seminar from last fall.

Related link:

Wednesday, September 10, 2008 Endometriosis Blog: National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week - "Medications, Illness, Fertility and the Desire for Motherhood"

Hopefully's Jenni's links above and her blogtalkradio seminar will be useful for readers coping with infertility at this challenging time of year!

THANK YOU JENNI!

This article was posted by Jeanne via "Jeanne's Endo Blog" at www.endendoat.blogspot.com.

Merry Christmas & Happy Hanukkah!! Happy Holidays!!

I have been trying and trying to figure out a special post for Hanukkah, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day but I am, frankly, too tired to write the type of post that I had envisioned. So I'm going to keep this short and simple.

In my house we celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah. So things have been busy lately.

We've been lighting the Hanukkah candles every night and we are preparing for Christmas visiting tomorrow.

I am currently sick and have not decided whether I'm contagious or not. So I may or may not be able to participate tomorrow with the Christmas visits.

I'll have to decide that soon but right now I'm just not sure exactly what is going on (i.e. allergies, virus, bacterial infection?)

If it is bacterial, I'm already on an antibiotic for an abscessed tooth but that doesn't necessarily mean I'm not contagious.

If it's viral then I shouldn't go & infect others... no matter what day it is.

If it's allergies, I can go.

The problem is that I don't think it's allergies. I'm still sorting it out based on many past similar "bugs" but I'm guessing it's viral. So I probably will not be going for our planned Christmas visits.

I do not want to be responsible for getting anyone else sick. I wouldn't want to make anyone else feel like I do now. I can't get caught up in what day is on the calendar. I have to listen to my body... for my own good and for the health of my loved ones.

This does make me sad but it's not the first time I've had to sit out Christmas at home. With my immune system, this is a tricky time of year.

With various family members being especially susceptible (i.e. people with asthma) and with my niece just getting over pneumonia, I am coming to terms with the fact that I will probably be home for Christmas tomorrow.

I have learned to accept such events as part of being chronically ill.

Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas! Being chronically ill can be especially hard at this time of year. Keep your chins up!

Sending everyone best wishes, peace, and joy!

So... Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Season's Greetings to everyone!

As we approach a new year, let's hope for healing and comfort for those who are in pain. Peace!

This article was posted by Jeanne via "Jeanne's Endo Blog" at www.endendoat.blogspot.com.