Infertility Treatments

[blackdiamond]

I am interested to hear other views/beliefs on fertility treatments and the Biblical ethics that goes along with it.

For a little background, my first child was the result of in vitro fertilization (IVF) with intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ISCI) where the conception was done with a microscopic needle in the lab and then the embryo was implanted.

For the most part I'm at peace with our decisions related to this process, but sometimes I wonder where the limits are for allowing science to "play god."

Against all medical odds our second child was conceived naturally in a very short time and we consider this to have been a huge blessing bordering on a miracle give the results of the testing for our first child.

I think the feeling that I have relating to fertility treatments is the selfishness of working so hard to have a child that is genetically "mine" when there is a world full of children that need a good home. Unfortunately, the process for adopting is often just as costly and even more emotionally difficult than fertility treatments.

I guess I'm just opening this discussion as a bit of an open forum.

[phkrause]

First let me say, welcome to C/A. I hope you get some good answers to these question. I don't know much about the experience you and your wife went through, so wont comment on it. As far as the Bible not sure it says much about it. So as I say, I do hope some can give you there thoughts on this. Mine would be, I see no problem.

[Jeannieb43]

Congratulations, Blackdiamond. I have (second-hand) experience with IVF and totally agree with it -- if it is conducted by experienced and reputable physicians. My relatives who used this method had been married twelve years without a pregnancy before they undertook IVF. Then they used only the best fertility doctors in the area [referred by the wife's GYN physician], and then started the whole gamut of painful (and often discouraging) procedures.

Believe me, these young people had such courage, to go through the procedures; I doubt they would do it again now, knowing the pain [and expense] it took. But I must tell you, they have four wonderful children to show for their trouble [three pregnancies; the last pregnancy resulted in twins].

I'm only familiar with the type of IVF which uses the parents' own eggs and sperm. I don't know whether a stranger's eggs or sperm would be as welcome. At least these four babies whom I know personally have the characteristics of their own parents. [including personalities, quirks and all.]

As far as being Biblical and ethical, I feel using the parents' sperm and eggs should create absolutely no ethical problem. To acquire a stranger's DNA, however, might introduce a bit of an ethical problem, but (as you say) it should be no more than that of an adopted child.

[The really painful parts of the procedures, by the way, were only at the beginning. Once embryos were formed, they were frozen; then future pregnancies were commenced from the "sisters" of those initial embryos.]

God bless you in your journey. Perhaps now that you have had a second pregnancy from natural conception, you'll never need to resort to IVF again.

[Sojourner]

I cant see any problem with the IVF process and would say that its likely to become used more and more as fertility rates continue to decline.

The question of what to do if another mans sperm needs to be used or another womans egg, or a donated embryo is a discussion that people do need to have.

Suppose as a male your count is low and you cannot concieve. That is a fact for many males, how do you then feel about another mans sperm being used in the process? On the flipside, how do you feel about refusing that and denying your wife the chance to experience child birth and being a parent outside of adoption?

One observation that I would make is that being a father is much more than just simply having supplied the ingredients to make a baby, fatherhood is about experience, and the natural bonding process that begins between a father and a son/daughter.

Perhaps it is also worth pointing out that the Old Testament contains situations where a woman was unable to concieve, so a surrogacy was used not unlike today in some instances. The problem is not a new one and its not unreasonable to take steps to deal with it if it is needed. What I do know is that IVF is a stressfull process and its a hard thing to let people know you are doing it because of the weight of expectation that others have. So its a good thing for people to be supported in the right way by the rest of us.