Are you excited? You’ve finally decided to attend an infertility seminar!
You’re not alone in wanting to learn more about infertility and how you can be helped by an infertility clinic like HRC Fertility. But you also might be nervous to attend a public venue where you will be “outed” about your infertility or think you’ll be pressured into making a decision to seek treatment.
Like many couples, you may be wondering why you cannot get pregnant on your own or are feeling frustrated because you’re not making progress at your OB/GYN or another fertility specialist. So it’s good to be looking at other options.
Free seminars are wonderful opportunities to learn about the diagnosis and treatment of infertility as well as to get a more intimate look at the doctors and facility where you are considering treatment. Some clinics even will include incentives like free initial consultations. So there are many reasons to take a few hours out of your busy schedule to register for one of these events.
To maximize your time there, here are a few suggestions we can offer:
Don’t go it alone
Enlist your spouse or partner to attend with you. Why? One of you can take notes while the other can listen intently or ask questions. If he or she can’t go, ask a good friend or family member with whom you have been open about your fertility struggles to accompany you.
Practice your elevator speech
Most seminars will give you the chance to talk individually to doctors or other clinical staff members. Depending on the size of the gathering (we try to limit the audience to a manageable size), you might be vying for attention with other seminar participants. It is a good idea to summarize your infertility experience and problems, so you can spend less time explaining and more time getting answers about your specific needs.
Prepare with questions
Think about the questions you want answered at the seminar. Maybe not all of them will be answered, but there is a good chance that even if you don’t ask, someone else will.
Take advantage of some alone time
At many seminars, there is time after the presentations for individuals to get some “alone” time with one of the doctors. We hope you take advantage of this chance for a “mini consult.” You might need to wait your turn, but it will be worth it.
Get a sense of personalities
You not only will be able to get a sense of the doctors’ personalities as they present information and answer questions, but you also will be able to see how different staff members interact with each other. Though we try to minimze it, infertility treatment can be intensive and you will be spending a lot of time at the clinic. You want to be comfortable with the doctors and nurses and be able to ask questions without feeling awkward.
We look forward to seeing you at one of our free seminars and are confident you will consider it time well spent. Many couples and individuals have gone from participants at these seminars to becoming parents after receiving treatment. That, too, is our wish for you.
To learn more and sign up for upcoming free seminars at HRC, click here: https://www.havingbabies.com/patient-resources/free-seminars/.