"Dr. Lonny Higgins and I were OB/GYN residents together at Tufts New England Medical Center in Boston. Though our paths have been different, we both share a life-long commitment to women's health and empowerment. In Creating Life Against The Odds, Lonny tackles the subject of assisted reproductive technology (ART) and how to negotiate this area with maximum access to one's inner guidance with information and self-knowledge. She has done a magnificent job with a challenging subject!" -- Christiane Northrup, MD, author of Mother-Daughter Wisdom (Bantam, 2005), The Wisdom of Menopause (Bantam, 2001), and Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom (Bantam, 1998)
"For a long time I have felt that my field was in desperate need of a book written for the general reader that was accurate, included reliable information, was balanced, and, most importantly, presented a lot of the provocative issues surrounding the treatment of the infertile couple. There is no question that Dr. Higgins has achieved this and much more. Her unique perspective as a physician and a mother who has journeyed along with her patients gave her the knowledge, both professional and psychological, to write this informative and emotionally exciting book." -- Christos Coutifaris, MD, PhD Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Director of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility and Center for Reproductive Medicine and Surgery President, Society for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility
"Dr Higgins combines her personal and professional experience into a sound book, one that makes both good science and good sense. It presents an excellent balance of the cognitive and emotional perspectives, and I recommend it highly." -- John F. McDermott, MD Professor and Chair Emeritus, Department of Psychiatry John A. Burns School of Medicine University of Hawaii
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing.,
By ThatsWhatSheSaid (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Creating Life Against the Odds: The Journey from Infertility to Parenthood (Paperback)
This was a disappointing purchase. As a young (late 20s) infertile woman, I was hoping to gain another perspective on the winding path from infertility to confidently deciding to try ART with egg donation. Since the subtitle of the book is "the journey from infertility to parenthood" I figured it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to expect such an emotional arc to be explored.
In actuality the author was a 49 year old mother of two who had never struggled with infertility in her life when she decided she wanted to be pregnant again. Since she was 49, egg donation was her best option, and it worked out well for her. I don't judge her life choices, but I would hardly consider that story to be one of infertility. I really found it very hard to identify with her emotions and struggles. She simply has never had to go through the emotional work of accepting that you will never have your own genetic child -- a process that I think results in a more complex treatment of the egg donation decision. She does pepper the book with stories of other people's experience of gamete donation, but 90% of the book is really all about her, so I felt like not identifying with her weakened the whole book for me. I also thought her relationship with her donor was just plain odd. Basically she first heard of her donor through her doctor, started wavering on the egg donation idea, and then the donor FOUND THE AUTHOR and asked if she could please be her donor. WTF? I could not understand the motivation/psyche of the donor from reading this story and it just seemed, well, odd. Definitely a total outlier in the world of recipient/donor pairs out there and therefore not too helpful for the rest of us. That being said, she does have information present that would be helpful if you are just learning about the world of ART and infertility. If you have read much of anything else in the past, it won't be new information to you. And I appreciated her nonjudgmental treatment of all flavors and varieties of family out there. I don't usually take the time to review books on Amazon, but given that all reviews thus far are glowing beyond glowing, I really felt the need to give a perspective buyer some warning!!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One Of The Best Books On 3rd Party Reproduction Ever!,
This review is from: Creating Life Against the Odds: The Journey from Infertility to Parenthood (Paperback)
This author has beautifully written a book in language we can all grasp, appreciate, and understand about a topic that for years has been secret, taboo, and uncomfortable to talk about. Lonny Higgins has also gathered numerous first hand accounts from individuals from all over the world who have come forward to share their infertility frustrations, experiences, and stories so that we all might gain better insight -- and perhaps take the word 'scary' out of the entire journey. While I may not be a professional book editor, I gave a great sigh of relief when I read this book because it not only validated me and my feelings regarding my experience with ART -- but it also helped me gain a different perspective regarding other people and their own personal journeys. It's a must read for anyone going through the DE process.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Recommended Reading For Anyone Considering Third Party Reproduction,
This review is from: Creating Life Against the Odds: The Journey from Infertility to Parenthood (Paperback)
This book should be recommended to ART moms to be by all assisted fertility clinics nationwide, especially to those prospective parents who are considering third party reproduction. Most of the literature available to such parents comes from the paradigm of adoption, but ART has its own special nuances that the adoption literature is lacking. This book contains very comprehensive and over-arching information about all types of assisted reproductive technologies and the vocabulary necessary to talk about ART with others, both professional and personal in nature. As ART becomes more commonplace and widespread, the need for this kind of manual becomes more apparent. The author comes from a very unique background of philosophy, medicine (she is an OB/GYN), and experience (she is very open about her use of third party reproduction), that enables her to communicate very well some of the most current issues surrounding the choices necessary by couples considering using such technology. Perhaps most important is her discussion of appropriate vocabulary for all the nuances of third party reproduction, especially the ramifications of such language in defining legal precedent. This is a very important book that is groundbreaking in its approach to a very complex and ever growing field. Hopefully it will set the stage for many discussions of ART to come. I recommend this book highly for anyone interested in third party reproduction.
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