Book Review: The Fertility Journal

My first book review! Well, actually this isn't truly a book-as the title implies, it' s a journal. I recently signed up to be a part of the Mother Talk Book Club (I know I'm not a mother...yet-but why not get a head start?)

I have to be honest: I was anxious to open this journal--I was prepared to see baby dust everywhere and false impressions of how "easy" it is to get pregnant.

However, I was pleasantly surprised. The Fertility Journal is something I definitely would have added to my shopping cart when Mook and I tossed out the pill. Since I love keeping track, organizing and planing, this journal would have been the perfect tool.

Of course I was more interested in the part where it gets past the trying phase, and introduces you to the world of fertility treatments. The author describes the basic path of treatment and gives some background on how infertilty can affect people: female factor, male factor. I'm always looking for more information about male factor, and this journal could have added more about the male side of things.

I had to sigh when I saw that there is very little room to track infertility treatment cycles, and I know for me it would be difficult to keep a journal around that showed all the unsuccessful tries in the beginning. Once we entered fertility treatments, I only wanted to look forward-not back. The author might consider adding a supplement to this journal, or producing a second journal.

Overall, I would recommend this journal to a woman just beginning on the journey to becoming a mom. I hope to give this journal as a gift someday soon, and I will definitely use it as a time to educate the recipient about the 2nd half of the journal.

About the Author

Kim Hahn is the founder and CEO of Conceive Magazine, dedicated to fertility and adoption topics and based in Orlando, Florida. Named one of the 50 Best Magazines of 2006 by the Chicago Tribune, Conceive Magazine is read by 2.5 million women in North America, Europe, and Asia.

Dr. Geoffrey Sher is an obstetrician and gynecologist known for his groundbreaking work on in vitro fertilization. He is the founder of the Sher Institute for Reproductive Medicine, which has locations across the U.S.

You can purchase your Fertility Journal here.