Hi all,

I'm new to this message board but was just reading some of the posts sent on the old CF board (especially the discussion on pregnancy & CF).

I'm 25 (female) and have CF. I was hoping to get some insights from people with CF who have chosen to have children biologically as well as people who have chosen to adopt.

Thanks for your help. The support is greatly appreciated.

Hi Ellie
I also have just come across this message board after reading the old one..where did everyone go?? Anyway, I hope this message gets to you even though it is a little late.
I am a 32 yr old female who has been trying to get pregnant for the last few years. If I have ever been an expert at anything, it would have to be infertility and adoption!!
I have so much to say I am not sure where to start! How bout' the beginning. When my husband and I started talking about having children of course we were a liitle worried. How would I feel? Would my lung function decline and so on..After talking to everyone at the clinic, looking at statistics etc. we were told everything should be fine. They did suggest I put a support system in place to help me when I was under the weather, which we had no problem with. Well off we went thinking we had everything under control...months went by, still not pregnant.After about one and a half yrs we decided maybe we needed some help. We knew that it was sometimes hard for CF women to conceive due to thick mucus around the cervix, so we thought an infertility clinic could help. We went through all the regular tests they give to ensure there are no other problems. Everything was fine. We then were advised to try artificial insemination-this procedure by passes any mucus where they are actually placing the sperm close to the egg. I was quite hopeful this would work as it sounded right. After 4 times -still nothing. We continued trying on our own for a few months and then were referred to another clinic who had worked with Cf before and knew all about it..Again, back on all the fertility drugs- we were up to two injections a day..talk about mood swings!! Months later, still nothing.At this point we were up to 2 yrs of intense trying. Not only is itexpensive but it is very time consuming for the female. When you are on thses drugs you must go to the clinic everyday from day 1 of your cycle until you ovulate which could be day 23! That is nearly the whole month. It stars to affect your work schedule and really your life.We were very disappointed and decided we needed a break.A few months later we realized maybe this was just not meant to be. Maybe fate was sending us a message. I immediately thought maybe it was a sign I could not handle a pregnancy. I have always been quite healthy and wanted to keep it that way. We then started to look at our options and adoption seemed a good way for us to still have a child. We realized our desire was to become parents but it didn't have to be our biological child. We felt we had so much to offer a child, so our battle continued. Adoption is a very long process. We started with a social worker who began our homestudy. This is when someone comes into your home, visits with you about 4 or 5 times and basically decides whether you will be fit parents or not!! They ask you all sorts of information from your family background,to how much you drink to how do you and your spouse communicate when there is friction in the house..oh yah, did I mention , how much money you make!!Can you imagine ..so of course I asked the question, what about all the other million people in the world who have children? Who puts them to this test?? To say the least, I understand they must make sure you are not ex-criminals but I find some of the topics none of thier business. We finally finished that after several months and then it is sent to the ministry for approval. That was the worst part..I thought, if this comes back denied I think I will scream!About six wks later we received the stamp of approval. Then the real waiting begins.We applied to a few agencies/lawyers who specialize in adoption.They put you on a list and you wait until a match is made. We have been waiting nearly eight months now and still no match. I am hopeful that it will happen for us and when it does I will be the happiest person in the world!! Sorry this is soooo long, but I have so much to say. Anyway, if you or anyone else have any qustions or comments for me I would welcome them..maybe you know something I don't..Who knows. I hope this helps!

Cheers to good health,

Tina
PS My email address if you want to chat in private is tina.wright@sympatico.ca