Category — Barren Advice

Why should you take advice from me? Well, you’re not actually just taking it from me… I mean, this is a blog and there is a comment section, and unlike advice columns in newspapers where the main answer is the end answer, on my blog, the answer is the starting point and the comment section is a place for others to chime in with their thoughts. So it’s one question and sometimes 20 answers. The only other reason why you should take advice from me is if you think I’ve proven myself sane and intelligent from One Smart Mama or advice I’ve offered in the past on my blog or in your comment section. Plus, I have always wanted to be an advice columnist and you have been already making that dream come true through One Smart Mama. And moving the column over here (and dropping the cartoon and quotes) will speed things along since I tend to (cough) sit with One Smart Mama questions (cough) in my inbox for a week at a time.

You should not take advice from me if you are looking for the worst story on the Internet–I don’t have it and I haven’t experienced even half of the endless facets of infertility–though I’ve probably read more books, spoken to more people, and listened to more stories than I can begin to list and that’s where I draw from to write all of the sections of the book that I haven’t experienced (yet) and that’s where I’ll draw from to answer your questions. You should not take advice from me if you think I’m a doctor because I’m not (it seemed pertinent to say something along those lines as a disclaimer).

So here are the fine details:

• Like the Roundup on Fridays, I will post Barren Advice on Tuesdays.
• Ask me any questions related to infertility, adoption, donor gametes, living child-free after IF, parenting after IF, pregnancy after IF…um…anything IF. General issues: relationships, etiquette, wedding, friendships. I do not wear lipstick and my shoes rarely match what I’m wearing so I’m not the best person for fashion tips. So, it doesn’t have to be IF related (someone on One Smart Mama once asked about seeing an ex-boyfriend, for instance), though you know that I’m good for a “getting out of a baby shower” excuse. When a question involves pregnancy or babies, I will place “children mentioned” somewhere before that question so you can skip it if you need to because this is still an IF blog–but it’s an IF blog where pregnancy and parenting questions may also come into play because the whole community is welcome here.
• Send questions to thetowncriers@gmail.com and put “Barren Advice” in the subject line.
• Make sure you indicate in your email whether you want the question submitted anonymously or linked to your blog. Reasons for keeping anonymous are probably obvious. Reasons for having it linked–if I have to shorten your question or the situation requires people to read a bit of background, you can send me a permalink to a post on your blog that I can add in order to save space in the question asking on my blog.
• I will post between 1–4 questions and answers per week. I doubt I’ll get more than that anyway, but if I do, I’ll either do a supplemental post or hold it over until the next week. If something is very time sensitive, please indicate that in the note too.
• If I can’t answer your question on my own, I will consult with someone who can help me. If I have to consult and you’ve asked me to keep it anonymous, I will not give out any identifying information to the person I’m consulting. I’ll just say, “I have this friend…”