The Form

Everyone knows the form. There are many we fill out in our lifetime. But the ones I always dread are these damn in-take forms for a specialty care clinic.

This one hits harder though. Who knew I’d be sitting here filling out an infertility clinic form after having one successful pregnancy. Secondary infertility (infertility happening after having a successful conception and pregnancy), is not talked about often. In fact, I don’t really like talking about it because it’s met with a lot of “well, you at least already have one kid. Be thankful.”

And I am. I am incredibly grateful for my son. I love him so much. But my family just doesn’t feel complete yet. He wants a sibling so bad too. But that’s not entirely what this post is about.

It’s about the form.

When you fill out a form for reproductive endocrinology and infertility, they ask all the questions. Health history from you, your partner, treatments, what your ‘trying’ process looks like, how often you’ve done them, and if any were successful.

It’s humbling to realize you really don’t know what is going on with your body until you have done all the tests. Yet, we’re told to try for a year before any diagnostic testing is done. Make it make sense. Why do we wait a year and have so much heartbreak of negative test after negative test? Or worse, miscarriages and chemical pregnancies. And it’s just “normal,” until testing is done to verify that it is indeed, NOT normal.

The form.

Full of unanswered questions yet a form of hope. That is if the doctors genuinely care about the information on this form.

I sincerely hope, whoever is reading this, that you know you’re not alone in the frustration of the form. Whether it’s for this or another specialty care clinic. I hope you get answers and good news.