The View Blab Fest

Today’s episode of The View was dedicated to the topic of infertility. Now I have to admit, I have never had any issues with infertility. I’m the mother of 5 beautiful children, so I cannot imagine the heartbreak that comes with trying to have a baby. I have had a miscarriage and I imagine that feeling of loss is duplicated monthly for those who are trying to conceive. So my heart, thoughts and prayers go out to all of you who are dealing with this problem. I pray that you find peace, strength and love in whatever decisions you have to make about your situation.

Listening to Sherri and the other guests discuss the things that they have gone through in order to conceive just blew my mind. I didn’t realize the expense (monetary and emotional) that comes with infertility. For example, the average cost for Invitro Fertilization (IVF) is $12,400. And that’s not counting all the steps that you have to take before you get to that point. Most of these treatments are not covered by insurance, so this is out~of~pocket money. Wow!

Most people tend to think of infertility as a woman’s issue (or at least I did) because you almost never hear about the male side of infertility. So it was interesting to listen to Greg and Julie Wolfe discuss their struggles with infertility and how they felt when they realized that Greg was the problem. Julie even admitted to having “sperm envy” when she would encounter pregnant women. I love that they were able to take a relaxed almost humorous approach to such a stressful situation. I think the guests most people will be discussing will be Bill and Giuliana Rancic. I don’t want to beat this couple up, really, because I think her pronouncement was incredibly sad…

She and her husband discussed their problems with infertility and the steps that they’ve taken in order to conceive a child. Casually, Giuliana mentioned that the doctor told her that she needed to gain between 5 and 10 lbs in order to ovulate regularly and when asked if she had done so, she hesitantly admitted to gaining only 5 lbs. Her arguments against gaining more was her career, her assistant who brings her sample size clothing and the fact that her sister was skinny and got pregnant. Oy! I think this brings up deeper issues about body image, celebrity, unreal expectations of motherhood. Perhaps, Giuliana’s admission that she is willing to do everything except gain weight is an admission that she really is not ready for the sacrifices that motherhood demands.

What do you think? Am I being too hard on her? Or do you think Giuliana and, ultimately, Bill have other issues they need to work on before bringing a child into this world?

You can follow along, chat with and connect with other The View Brand Ambassadors every weekday morning at 11 AM EST on Twitter by using the hashtag #theviewmoms. Also, you can fan The View on Facebook, follow The View on Twitter and enter the sweepstakes at Mom Central for a chance to win a trip to New York City to watch a taping of the show. The sweepstakes is open until 28 February.

Disclosure: I am a participant in a Mom Central campaign for ABC Daytime and will receive a tote bag or other The View branded items to facilitate my review.

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