The Gift
After what seemed like an eternity of rigorous tests and dealing with the painful longing of wanting to hold a precious baby of my own in my arms, it happened; my dreams at long last came true. I was pregnant! But something happened; I felt my world come crashing down. The thought of bringing another life into this world terrified me.
After marriage, my husband and I immediately wanted to start a family. A year or so went by and still nothing, no baby. I decided to check myself out to see if anything was wrong. I went through all the normal tests to see if there were any problems. The doctors couldn’t find any concrete explanation why I wasn’t able to conceive. As a last resource, before getting into more invasive measures, my doctor wanted me to try a fertility pill called Clomid. Figuring I didn’t have anything to loose, I started taking the pills.
A few months after taking Clomid, I realized I was feeling a bit strange. I was more tired then I normally felt. I decided to take a pregnancy test. Assuming I was going to get the same negative result, I take the test, walk away and gather my thoughts. Hoping and praying for a different outcome that I had become accustomed to. I walked back to read the results. Expecting to see a negative test, I stare at the test in disbelief. Two pink lines! I blink my eyes to make sure I am not seeing things, it was true. A positive pregnancy test, some...
She wanted to go to the Lane Health Center, but it was Sunday and she knew it was closed. She looked on the Internet for information on what she thought was a “magic pill” and discovered she could still take it two days later. On Monday, she walked into the Lane Health Center and after waiting a few minutes, she was assisted by a nurse. After she nervously explained what had happened, she said she was given a survey that contained a series of medical questions. In addition to the emergency contraception pill, a pregnancy test was administered and she was tested for sexually transmitted diseases.
Maybe it’s the fact that I tend to stay in my room all weekend, which leads to people thinking I’m studying when in reality I am probably binge watching a TV show or maybe it’s my glasses, but most people who don’t know me too well assume that I am smart. Now that is a great thing for me because I don’t have to try as hard to impress them, but I end up finding myself in a bit of a problem. The problem is that everyone thinks I enjoy admiring school textbooks. But the truth is I’m usually admiring my Justin Bieber poster on my bedroom wall. Ever since I was in sixth grade I’ve been a huge fan of Bieber. His music always brought a feeling of calmness and back in the day his “never say never” motto, was what I lived by. I might still be living by that motto because I’ve decided to write this essay
Unfamiliarity, in the broadest sense, can evoke a feeling of fear or anxiety. However, my unique cultural upbringing has made me comfortable with unfamiliarity, and eager to embrace differences among people with compassion and tolerance. I am the product of a cultural infusion—I was born in the United Kingdom to an English father, but was influenced by the Turkish customs of my mother. While living in England, I grew up eating dinner on the floor, listening to Turkish music on the radio, and waking up to a poster of Kemal Ataturk. I spent every summer living in Turkey where I learned the language, saw the way different people lived, and became familiar with the practices of Islam. At 14 years old I was immersed in yet another culture when I
My husband and I had moved to the States from the Middle East when I was seven months pregnant. We never had a chance to take any child birthing classes. I was nervous. A very pleasant-faced nurse came into the room to talk to us. My unfounded fears were brushed away by her calm demeanor. A few hours went by, the contractions started to get stronger, and I requested an epidural. After I got the epidural I didn't feel any pain at all. I was excited. I told my husband if this was how child birthing is, I was ready to have a brood like the Waltons. Then my labor pains stopped completely. My dilation stopped at seven centimeters. The doctor came in to check me and said that it would be better if they induced me. So I got a dose of pitocin. I felt pain like I had never before. I couldn't bear the pain of the contractions anymore. Finally, after twenty two hours of labor, the doctors told my husband that they would do an emergency Cesarean section. By then I was oblivious to al...
It is assumed by most that we will all be able to grow up, fall in love, get married, and then have children of our own. This is not the lifestyle that all people choose, but it is still the view accepted by the majority of society. What happens when the unthinkable occurs and a happily married couple is unable to get pregnant? This is a reality for 7.1%, or 2.8 million, of the married couples in the United States (Lenox, 1999). Today, there are many people all over the world that decide to use fertility treatments to help them conceive a child, and this often leads to the birth of twins, triplets, or even higher order multiples. There are many risk factors that are involved in this type of pregnancy, and these issues have created a cloud of debate around this subject.
In most cases becoming pregnant brings happiness and excitement to the eager partners. Imagine showing up at a hospital, rushing, with all hopes of bringing another life into this world to only figure out that there was no baby in the first place. How would one feel devastated, hurt, depressed? Some women imagine she is pregnant, but soon finds out that the symptoms are not caused by a fetus but by a disorder called pseudocyesis. Pseudocyesis is a psychological disorder where the mind tricks the body and causes the female body to have symptoms of a pregnant woman. A women with this disorder have similar symptoms to a lady that is carrying a child; meanwhile, others have the exact same symptoms excluding the unborn. Some of the symptoms are swollen belly, enlarged breast, and sensations of fetal movement. One who feels the need to become impregnated, due to infertility, and miscarriages can cause ones body to fabricate indications of a pregnancy. Pseudocyesis can make a woman change mentally and physically; therefore, these changes can cause one to have depression, anxiety, and psychological disorders.
Growing up as an only child I made out pretty well. You almost can’t help but be spoiled by your parents in some way. And I must admit that I enjoyed it; my own room, T.V., computer, stereo, all the material possessions that I had. But there was one event in my life that would change the way that I looked at these things and realized that you can’t take these things for granted and that’s not what life is about.
Pregnancy can be an exciting and sometimes frightening experience for many women. It was a snowy Sunday afternoon, and I was not feeling very well. I remember all week long, every morning I felt nauseated. I was craving odd foods, and foods I normally would not eat together. I was on the phone with my best friend explaining to her how I was feeling. She said “It sounds like you are pregnant.” That thought never even crossed my mind until that moment. Sure enough she was right, I was pregnant for the first time. I was excited to have a baby and never realized how many emotions or complications can take place during a pregnancy. Everybody that I knew that had babies, had such wonderful experiences. Unfortunately, this happy moment became such a monumental, emotional and stressful time in my life. During my pregnancy, I went through many emotional experiences from almost losing my child, to the uncertainty of a birth defect and early delivery.
A calm crisp breeze circled my body as I sat emerged in my thoughts, hopes, and memories. The rough bark on which I sat reminded me of the rough road many people have traveled, only to end with something no one in human form can contemplate.
When I met Jane I had been deemed infertile by seven different doctors. I had suffered what they called a severely traumatized uterus in which later developed into endometriosis and a prolapsed uterus. I never had a chance of being what everyone called normal. Where I come from that is what you do you get married and you have babies. If you don’t have a child you are deemed unfit and looked down upon. I remember one time a lady told me " Well you must have done something to make God mad for him to take away the o...
We were in no way prepared for a child, and we weren’t even sure if we wanted one just yet, but we gave in to my doctor’s plan. When faced with such uncertainty, what can you do? I became pregnant after completing the first cycle of Lupron, and we allowed ourselves to get excited as a couple. Though we weren’t sure of how it would work, we figured it was a good sign. The false hope we had only lasted until the week of my first sonogram.
The rancid stink of rotten milk filled the small space. I stared at the wall across from me, brown chitin dully reflecting in the artificial light. I clutched my Arc Bolter in giant, armored hands, the tactile sensations transmitted through the suit, and into my hands, letting me feel every nick and scratch the weapon had. Sweat beaded on my forehead, quickly blown away by fans built into my helmet. A dark blue overlay sat over my vision, something I was still trying to get used to. The status of my shield, as well as the overheating status of my rifle sitting at the bottom left of my vision. A tiny map rested at the top right, the interior of the vehicle outlined in small white lines.
When asked what has sparked a period of self-growth one specific part of my life comes to mind; Pageantry. Growing up, I was always a “tomboy”. I played countless sports and hated the color pink. I became part of my towns travel softball team, Lady Lightning, where we played tournaments every weekend with some of my best friends having the time of my life. One practice, we were doing sliding drills when I rounded third base coming into the home base.
Additionally, the reason miscarriages are under recorded at times is because they occur before the woman even knows she is pregnant, so they may be confused as a late period. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), 10-25% of all clinically recognized pregnancies will end in miscarriage. What is referred to as a “chemical pregnancy” also falls in this category, which accounts for 50-75% of all miscarriages. Moreover, chemical pregnancies are given this term because they are pregnancies that end very soon after a positive test result. Imagine taking a pregnancy test one day and having a faint positive result and testing again a few days later and getting a negative result. This is an extremely early misc...
A lot of us women plan when we would like to have our children and for some of us it just happens. I don’t like to say that my last pregnancy was an accident because there is a reason for everything in life and having a child should always be a pleasant gift. I’d rather say: “I received a blessing unexpectedly.”