Infertility’s Identity

“You’re here to see the doctor about your infertility, right?” The nurse asked a seemingly casual question, but deep inside me it stung. It hurt. It burned my spirit with a searing brand of bitterness. It was the first time I had been labeled “infertile.” Up to that point my doctor visits had been pretty normal, except that we were having a hard time getting pregnant. And because my husband and I were both healthy, my doctor had not been too worried about our inability to conceive.

But this visit, it wasn’t about routine tests and checkups. We were there because we still were not pregnant. And the nurse was right: we were there to see the doctor about our infertility.

That diagnosis, that label brings with it a crazy mess of emotions, doesn’t it? In a way there was a sense of relief: our doctor made a diagnosis and we would finally get on track to finding answers and making a plan. But on the other hand, there was a deep sense of loss and grief: something was wrong and we didn’t know what. Everything about making a baby, starting a family was unknown to us. How long would it take? How much money would we spend? Would we ever conceive a child? How would we tell our parents?

For me, the label of infertility became my identity. It wasn’t just a diagnosis, it became who I was.

And infertility’s identity is many:

…fear

…grief

…unanswered questions

…waiting

…the unknown

…needles

…doctor visits

…broken dreams

…tests, tests, and more tests

…heartbreak

And while these all describe the journey of infertility, there is one important aspect that we must never forget: HOPE.

When the days ahead are dark and filled with grief and questions and the unknown, we must hold onto the fact that our journey is one of hope. Unwavering, resilient hope.

So often our focus is on the painful, frustrating parts of infertility. So often we hone in on all of what we don’t have, and we fail to realize the driving force behind our journey – the passion that keeps us going – HOPE. And we have it in spades.

Infertility is many things. But most importantly, infertility is hope.

I want to share this printable with you today, feel free to download and print it – maybe it will encourage you as much as it has encouraged me.

What does infertility mean to you? How do you hold onto hope?

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Amanda

In 2012, after opening up about her three year journey through infertility, Amanda decided to combine her desire for connecting like-minded women with her passion for story crafting and launched a Christian lifestyle blog, A Royal Daughter. Facing unexplained infertility wrecked her in the most painful, yet glorious way, and gave her a platform to share what so many infertile women want to say, but often don't. Her desire is to offer to those who do not know the pain first hand an inside look at infertility and to encourage those who face the frustrating struggle to do so with grace and dignity. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Religion, has an eye for graphic design and a keen interest in personal branding. She and her husband live on a small farm in Texas where they enjoy pursuing a semi-sustainable lifestyle by ranching and gardening.

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