This is Infertility - Pre-sales now open

I’m so excited to share that you can now pre-order my debut book ‘This is Infertility’.

You can order a copy here: C&R Press

This book was a labour of love for me. We had a long and difficult six-year infertility journey, filled with many high and lows, until our son Spencer was born through gestational surrogacy in the United States.

This is Infertility is my personal experience of infertility. I give an honest account about the realities of fertility treatment, the IVF industry in Australia and the United States, and international surrogacy. I share our positive experiences but also our obstacles, disappointments and heartbreak. And ultimately what I learned from it all.

Thank you to my publisher C&R Press @CR Press for publishing my book and helping to raise awareness of an issue that impacts millions. I’m also proud to have received @CR Press Non-Fiction award for 2021.

Thanks also to Dr Russell Foulk at Utah Fertility Center @UtahFertilityCentre for all your support and for writing the Introduction to This is Infertility.

If anyone has any questions or comments, please feel free to send me an email through Contact (in the menu) or DM me anytime through my Instagram @straight.up.infertility

Love Kirsten x

Advance Praise

“Kirsten’s journey is a remarkable book… It educates and entertains. It describes the natural reproductive process, the reasons why it failed, and the steps needed to overcome it. It entertains the reader with personal experiences that show the fear, sadness, frustration people go through on their journey to parenthood. I could not put it down until I had read every page.”

–Russell A. Foulk, MD

Blurb

This is Infertility is a must read for anyone experiencing infertility, a world-wide issue affecting millions of people. An honest, compelling, and inspiring memoir, it follows the six-year journey of Kirsten and her husband Ryan as they navigate against tremendous odds to be parents. Moreover, this memoir offers sound advice on how to travel the infertility journey and avoid the pitfalls.

This is Infertility combines Kirsten and Ryan’s personal experiences with factual insights and research into fertility treatment and surrogacy and what people can expect. Ultimately, it’s a story of optimism, hope and perseverance. Kirsten doesn’t sugar coat the struggles involved but she hopes what she learned can inspire and help others. Despite endless adversity and heartbreak spanning three countries (Australia, the United States and Canada), Kirsten and Ryan welcomed their long-awaited son Spencer in 2019.

Amazing Grace - A surrogacy story

I loved chatting to sisters - Jem and Maddy - recently about their surrogacy journey. The most beautiful story of the love and resilience of two sisters.

IVF babble tv - Interview

When 31 year old lawyer Jemani Alchin-Boller diagnosed with cervical cancer and told she needed a radical and urgent hysterectomy, she thought her dreams of being a mother were dashed. Then her sister Maddy sent her a text saying, "You can have my womb".

You can watch my ivf babble interview with Jem and Maddy here.

Amazing Grace - The Book

To read Jem and Maddy's incredible and beautiful story, you can buy their book 'Amazing Grace' (author Venetia Sherson) at amazinggrace.co.nz or visit their Instagram page @amazinggracenz

Baby Showers - To go or not go?

For anyone struggling with infertility, baby showers can be tough. Here's what I learned...

I know during our infertility, I dreaded baby showers. Being surrounded by excited squeals and endless reminders of the one thing I didn't have and yearned for. It was brutal.

With my good friends, I always went. Their baby showers were intimate, understated and beautiful. They would also check in with me, before and after, to make sure I was ok. But outside of close friends, I didn't go.

I often felt guilty and selfish - Why couldn't I just put my feelings aside and feel only happiness for them? Why did I often cry after? Why did I feel the sharp sting of jealously?

What I learned?

• Your feelings are valid. You're going through something incredibly hard and emotional. It's OK to feel crap about baby showers. You're only human! It's OK to feel a mix of emotions - sadness, happiness, jealously...all are valid.

• It's OK not to go! If you're not particularly close to the person, I doubt they'll miss you. And if you are close to them, as a good friend, they'll understand.

• If you do go, have a plan in place. For me, that always meant:

• Having a friend there to lean on / stay close to who knew what I was going through.

• Traveling there by myself so that I could leave any time (or going with a good friend who would understand and be happy to leave when I needed to)

• Having a good cry before and/or after if I needed to. Not having other plans on that day so I could have time and space afterwards to work through any emotions.

Infertility is hard. It's all consuming. It's a roller coaster of emotions. It's OK to put yourself first and do what you need to get through it. Your feelings are valid.