WHY DON'T FEMINISTS TALK ABOUT INFERTILITY?
Biology is not destiny for many, many women either by choice or by circumstance so why does the mainstream message -- even from feminists - continue to make women feel so bad about themselves when they can’t conceive “naturally” or at all?
This piece from Bustle previews “The Seed,” a hybrid-memoir written by feminist journalist Alexandra Kimball that pulls from her own diverse reproductive history; one which includes abortion, miscarriage, infertility and surrogacy — not to mention a complex surge of emotions that accompanied each experience.
The article and book remind me how essential it is to have a larger conversation that openly discusses the frequency of infertility, miscarriage and alternative paths toward or away from motherhood in general. Without open discourse how else can we destigmatize, validate and accept our diverse reproductive journeys?
True understanding will only come through education, empathy and advocacy and while reproductive policies across the board need to shift in favor of women, books that share honestly about the wide spectrum of reproductive paths — including one that does not end up with a baby! —are essential in order for us to support each other and own our stories without shame.