Conceivable Dreams Archives — Thrifty Mommas Tips

Advocacy Goals After the 2015 IVF Funding Program is in Ontario #ohip4ivf #onpoli

Paula — Sat, 13 Jun 2015 01:40:28 +0000

This week we had a Linked Moms conversation with patient group Conceivable Dreams about advocacy and the shape that can take after a major goal has been reached. With a 2015 IVF funding program on the way by end of year it’s important that patient advocates continue to brainstorm what their advocacy looks like after the program is in place. This is what that conversation looked like: [View the story “Thoughts From Conceivable Dreams Infertility Patient Advocates in Ontario AFTER The #ohip4ivf Program Arrives #onpoli” on Storify]

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What’s Next for Infertility Patients in Ontario? #ohip4ivf #onpoli Twitter Chat Live June 10 at 8 p.m. EST

Paula — Tue, 09 Jun 2015 18:13:37 +0000

How does a patient group like Conceivable Dreams evolve once they’ve met one of their biggest advocacy goals? This is the topic we’ll talk about on Wednesday night at a special Linked Moms twitter chat at 8 p.m. EST. Infertility patients in Ontario are invited to brainstorm what shape their advocacy should take next. In fact, this is an important topic for any advocacy group, charity or non profit. It’s not uncommon for a group to come together with one goal as a mission. But a successful group needs to consider the future too. Succession planning and remaining focused are crucial to long-term success. Right now infertility patients everywhere are feeling the considerable weight of the season. Mother’s Day and Father’s Day can be hard. Infertility Awareness Week or Month also leads into spring and summer when it seems like everyone is expecting a baby, or announcing a new baby on their Facebook page. For people who are still trying to conceive, the season is full of triggers. By this time next year we hope many Conceivable Dreams patient group members are the ones announcing their happy news, as a result of the success of the 2015 Ontario IVF funding program. But once the program is here and more healthy families are created what comes next? [tweetthis]If you are an infertility patient in Ontario chances are you have heard there’s an IVF funding program on the way #ohip4ivf #onpoli[/tweetthis] If you are an infertility patient in Ontario, then chances are you have heard the news that the Ontario government is working on an IVF funding program. First of all a few facts: [tweetthis]An Ontario IVF funding program has been committed to and funding included in 2 consecutive budgets. (2014 and 2015). #ohip4ivf #onpoli [/tweetthis] An Ontario IVF funding program has been committed to and funding included in two consecutive budgets. (2014 and 2015). The initial announcement that Ontario would develop an accessible IVF funding program stated that about $50 million a year would be committed. The Ontario IVF funding program 2015 is still on target to be ready in 2015 as promised all along. Members of Conceivable Dreams have been working behind the scenes on the advisory panel that is building the 2015 IVF funding program. [tweetthis]Conceivable Dreams members have been involved on the advisory panel helping to build IVF funding program 2015 #ohip4ivf #onpoli [/tweetthis] The program is likely to be one round of treatment which is also likely to be contingent on single embryo transfer (because single embryo transfer leads to lower health care costs and healthier moms and babies.) It is now almost halfway through 2015 and this program should be ready soon. It’s time for infertility patients to start asking what comes next? Do we need to stay active and involved as advocates? We have an accessible program, right? So what now? Is our job done? I have been writing about infertility and infertility funding programs for over 3 years now. Conceivable Dreams has grown over that time and they have evolved throughout their seven or more years of championing accessible health care for fertility patients in Ontario. They have met an important goal and soon will be able to recognize that and celebrate it. Many other countries and areas have IVF funding programs. Some have maintained their programs extremely well and crafted themselves into groups that are powerful. Some, like the group based in Quebec, were less active once they had been given a health care program. – Recently the Quebec program was dramatically altered when a new health minister targeted it and began implementing health care cuts. The Quebec IVF funding program is now a shell of what it once was. [tweetthis]What can infertility patients in Ontario learn from the ART program cuts in Quebec? #ohip4ivf #onpoli [/tweetthis] – In Australia, a patient group there has had exceptional success because they have maintained a high profile active membership. They have managed to celebrate each successful birth and bring babies created through the program into it as young members who can also advocate beautifully any time a new political party targets their program for cutbacks. Please join us Wednesday night for a twitter chat at 8 p.m. EST. The hashtags are #ohip4ivf #onpoli Please remember to use these to follow the conversation. Also please follow: @ohip4ivf @inkscrblr @downshiftingpro @linkedmoms @thexaviers

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Should Sex Education Curriculum in Ontario Also Include Infertility and Fertility?

Paula — Mon, 23 Mar 2015 10:52:29 +0000

Starting in September 2015, Ontario’s schools are working with a new updated sex education curriculum. I am happy to hear that the new Ontario school sex education curriculum will include topics such as transgendered people, homosexuality, sexting and consent. This conversation inside a school might make kids a bit squeamish while sitting through it, but it’s important for life. One morning before school this month, my daughter and I had an open conversation about transgendered people. She legitimately wanted to know something about someone she met while travelling one weekend to Mont Tremblant, Quebec, where we learned to ski. “Mom,” she asked, “was that a boy or a girl in the airport?” She gave me an opening and I took it. I started to tell her about transgendered people in relatively simple and age appropriate terms. These are the conversations we have, often in the morning before school. They infuriate my husband sometimes, because he thinks they do this on purpose to stall getting out the door and going to school. But I see it differently. Late slips don’t matter as much as building informed, smart, tolerant and compassionate children. I don’t ever mind an opening for a real conversation. When they throw a thread out there, I grab it and try to knit an answer together that leads to an educational exchange that also hopefully strengthens the fabric of our relationship long term. [tweetthis]What happened when my daughter asked me about trangendered people this month?[/tweetthis] Starting in September 2015, Ontario’s schools will be working with a new updated sex education curriculum. Transgendered people, homosexuality, sexting and consent will all be added to the lessons. This conversation inside a school might make kids a bit squeamish, but it’s important. Make no mistake, kids are young when they start to be sexually active and they are coming of age in a digital culture that is quite unlike the one I grew up in. The new Ontario sex education curriculum supports my approach to parenting and it will hopefully help build informed, smart, tolerant and compassionate children in Ontario. [tweetthis]Starting in September 2015 Ontario schools will implement a new sex education curriculum.[/tweetthis] Ontario’s Sex Education Curriculum is Revamped but is it Enough? Did you know, Ontario’s sex education curriculum was the oldest in Canada and hadn’t been revised for 20 years? It was almost revised in 2010, but religious groups spoke out against the changes and Ontario’s government backed down. This time Education Minister Liz Sandals, has said nobody is backing down because it’s time for the updates. I agree wholeheartedly and I hope too that this conversation happening inside a school will help to give kids the proper terms and the mentality for sex education and differences. Why We Need a Revamped Sex Education Curriculum in Ontario My kids know I answer their questions. Not every child in Ontario has that opportunity, or even has a parent around to help frame the conversation about healthy relationships, sexual education, healthy living, tolerance for others and human reproduction. Some parents might be uncomfortable talking about sex, sexting and transgendered people. Some might convey negative comments about homosexuality, or transgendered people. Believe me, I’d like to think we are all comfortable with everyone just being at home in their own skin, but I know from experience that parents and kids are NOT there yet. This year both of my kids have been asked at various points by bullies – “Are you gay? If you’re not gay how come you play with Jane so much?” By adding more information at the school level, all kids should at least have some common knowledge about consent, sexuality, gender differences and anatomy. [tweetthis]Ontario’s sex education curriculum was the oldest in Canada and hadn’t been revised for 20 years. [/tweetthis] Ontario has implemented some bold and smart family friendly policies that I support. A few years ago they began implementing adoption subsidy to help more children get out of care and into a forever family. It was a start. Full day Junior kindergarten, although not without issues, has helped many working parents. Last year, the Liberal government pledged $50 million to support funding for IVF (in vitro fertilization) for people struggling with infertility. That was a progressive policy that groups such as Conceivable Dreams applauded. Conceivable Dreams is hopeful and confident that the new policy will be sustainable and ready to access soon. [tweetthis]Ontario has some bold, family friendly, policies I support such as IVF funding. #ivf4on #onpoli[/tweetthis] The changing conversation in Ontario’s schools has been a long work in progress, but it is almost ready to implement. I support a more open dialogue in school about sex education. I am raising girls and I want them to know about consent and sexting and transgendered people and homosexuality. In fact, I hope that this conversation occurs alongside talk of cyber bullying and bullying. I am confident my children’s teachers will find the right ways to teach the language that helps kids understand – eventually – what is appropriate and inappropriate. This curriculum has solid support from smart paediatricians and child development experts. Talking about sex doesn’t make youth suddenly decide to have sex. It simply gives them more information about the facts. I support this new curriculum and I know many Moms and many members of groups such as Conceivable Dreams applaud education and family friendly policy. But, part of me wishes that Ontario’s curriculum had added more. When it comes to the topic of sexting and social media use I don’t think we are doing enough in schools. When I check my daughter’s school acquaintances Facebook status and I see some odd grade eights posting that they got drunk, it worries me (for several reasons). Social media and digital footprints follow you throughout life, just as sexting does. There is no such thing as being too cautious on social media when you are a kid. And I think we should also be building in more education about fertility and infertility facts. If you asked most adults, they would be at a loss to tell you the age at which fertility rates begin to decline. And, if you asked most adults how many people struggle with infertility I think that number would also be grossly underestimated. Ask the average adult what basic lifestyle habits impact male fertility and infertility, and I am pretty sure they would miss several of them. That’s a shame. [tweetthis]@ivf4on supports Ontario’s new sex ed curriculum #ivf4on #onpoli[/tweetthis] Denmark In Denmark, a country with several smart policies including public funding for IVF, the sex education curriculum in schools was recently revamped too. However, Denmark included information about infertility and fertility. Their approach to building healthy families helps in three ways: the school curriculum helps build infertility and fertility knowledge before people are actively ready to reproduce; then the policy of funding IVF helps to build families when there is an infertility diagnosis; and finally the combination of the two addresses declining fertility rates in the country in a more holistic manner. Ask any individual, or couple, in Ontario, Alberta, BC, currently struggling with infertility and you will often hear the same statement: nobody ever thinks they will have trouble having a baby until they are suddenly unable to have a baby. Unless you are currently an infertility patient, very few people know that fertility starts to decline at 28. Very few know what to do or where to go if they have a fertility concern. Very few realize that male factor and female factor infertility occur at almost identical rates – 40 % for each gender. [tweetthis]Very few people know that fertility starts to decline at 28 #ivf4on #onpoli[/tweetthis] When I went to school, the sex education and health education curriculum was basic. We were told about menstruation and back in those days the boys even went to a different room to learn about whatever it was that they learned about. We spent a lot of time being indoctrinated about not getting pregnant and I think obviously as a Mom of two girls there is a place for that. But there’s also a place for understanding how fertility and infertility works and occurs and what to do if, or when that happens. [tweetthis]Knowledge is power when it comes to sex ed in schools. #ivf4on #onpoli[/tweetthis] The topic of Transgendered people is not really an easy one to explain, but I think my daughter understood what I was telling her. Life isn’t always black and white and you can sometimes look one way and be another. In one way, that’s not unlike infertility. You can look like a healthy couple with a great home, stable marriage, and rewarding careers and you can do everything right and yet you still end up unable to conceive. [tweetthis]Next time the curriculum is revamped Conceivable Dreams hopes it includes info about fertility #ivf4on #onpoli[/tweetthis] Conceivable Dreams supports the new Ontario sex education curriculum, but we hope next time it’s revised that infertility and fertility facts are included as well. [tweetthis]If you struggle with infertility in Ontario, follow @ivf4on for support #ivf4on #onpoli[/tweetthis] You can also follow our conversation on Twitter where we often tweet with these hashtags #ivf4on #onpoli. Read what Gingermommy has to say about the new Ontario sex ed curriculum here. And you can see what Margarita has to say about talking about sex ed with your kids here too. I am Conceivable Dreams community manager and as such I am compensated. My opinion is all my own.

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We’ve Been Trying Since I Was 25: An Infertility Story #ivf4on #onpoli

Paula — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:34:00 +0000

Ashley and Brandon Powell Ashley Powell is 29, diagnosed with PCOS and she has exhausted most of her options trying to get pregnant. Ashley ’s infertility story starts back at puberty. She had her first period at 13. But it took a full year before her next period arrived. Her menstrual cycles have always been erratic and painful. Powell typically had only 4-8 periods each year and they were extremely painful. In college she was diagnosed with Polycystic ovarian syndrome and referred to a gynecologist. The doctor told her she might have trouble conceiving and that has been proven repeatedly. She married her husband Brandon in 2009 and they began trying to conceive immediately. Imagine having a health problem you knew how to solve, but the solution remained out of reach due to price. That’s the frustrating state of life for the Oshawa couple. “We’ve been going to the fertility clinic from the time I was 25 years old. With the IUI’s and the injection medications, it has been nearly impossible to save any kind of lump sum amount for the IVF we need.” Ashley’s husband’s sperm counts are just fine, despite a battle with testicular cancer and subsequent surgery. Because of these two factors, the Powells consulted fertility specialists early. They had planned to start their family young. In vitro fertilization is the medically recommended treatment for the Powells, and for many who experience infertility, but in Ontario the cost can easily be $10,000 with medications. The couple can’t afford that. Instead, they have exhausted every single option that is funded by OHIP. They have done IUI, intra-uterine insemination, timed intercourse and recently surgery called Ovarian drilling, to no avail so far. Because of the PCOS, she only ovulates a few times a year at most. During the recent surgery Ashley underwent, the doctor found that her Fallopian Tube had adhered to her uterus and twisted. Ashley says that may be due to scar tissue and the miscarriages they’ve suffered. Recent attempts to get pregnant were probably futile because the sperm was not getting through her Fallopian Tube. Almost five years later and ten rounds of different treatments and the Powells are financially and emotionally exhausted by their infertility journey, plus they still have no children. They are desperate for help and ready to tell their story so others understand that infertility is a battle and a health condition that can often be remedied with IVF. They believe funding IVF is good health care policy. Currently in Canada, the only province that funds IVF is Quebec. 1 in 6 Ontario couples struggle with infertility. 75 % of Ontarians support funding for IVF. Many patients here are advocating for Ontario to adopt a similar model to Quebec, or at least to consider cost sharing. Numerous countries in the world already fund in vitro fertilization. Australia is just one of those countries. Where IVF is funded and single embryo transfer is the standard protocol the rate of high risk multiple births drops dramatically saving health care costs resulting from lengthy stays in neo-natal care and maternal health issues. In the last two years the Powells have found support from a patient group called Conceivable Dreams. The Ontario based group advocates for public funding for in vitro fertilization. They can be found on Facebook and Twitter as well. I am community manager for the group Conceivable Dreams. As such I am compensated. My opinion is all my own. An abbreviated version of this story appeared in Metro News this past week.

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