Feeling Different

When I was going through fertility treatments, I often felt out of the loop. Most of my friends were already parents. When they would talk about different things that interested their children, I was completely clueless. I had no idea who "Blue" was or why he was off looking for clues. The equivalent today would be not knowing who lives in a pineapple under the sea or why High School Musical is such a big deal. Until you are a parent, you have no reason to watch Nickelodeon or the Disney Channel.

Unfortunately, when most of your friends are already parents, you can feel out of the loop in a number of ways. Your friends are part of a club that you remain unable to join… [more]

When my husband and I were struggling with our fertility, we felt like we did not fit in anywhere. We were in our early thirties before we finally became parents, and most of my friends became parents in their mid-twenties. This meant that I stayed in a different stage of life than most of the people I knew, which made me feel like the "odd man out."

Most of my friends followed the same pattern: They married in their early- to mid-twenties and then had babies a couple of years later. My husband and I were married for almost 9 years when we became parents, so we did not fit into any group for a very long time.

The only people we knew… [more]