Why Aren't We Getting Pregnant? Today's Answers To Infertility

This sensitive video takes a look at four couples who have not been able to conceive a baby in the old-fashioned way. The couples tell us how they met and we learn about their relationship and their growing wish to become parents. The video includes a good review of basic biology, explaining what can go wrong with the man or woman's body to deter conception. Unlike some works blaming infertility primarily on women (and their age; see Gina Maranto's article "Delayed Childbearing" in The Atlantic, June 1995), physicians and consultants in this video conclude that infertility is caused by the woman exclusively 1/3 of the time, the man 1/3 of the time, and the other 1/3 is a combination of both partners. The interviewees discuss the emotional aspect of not being able to conceive, the impact of well-meaning relatives and friends, and the importance of support groups. The tape examines the least complicated medical intervention (after which one couple succeeds in having a child) and continues up to the most sophisticated in vitro fertilization, which takes at least three attempts at $10,000 each to have a 50/50 chance of success. Ultimately, three of the four couples had a child through one of the methods outlined in the narrative. The last couple gave up after trying in vitro nine times, and adopted a baby instead. Concerned in tone and thoughtful, the tape does not present a lot of footage of the couples with their babies, aware that this tape is for those not yet in that happy circumstance. An excellent choice for all public libraries. (R. Reagan)