IVF, please read

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lexi

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Please forgive me as this is my first post and I’m trying to articulate my thoughts as best as I can.
I am currently converting to Catholicism. However there is one issue that is weighing heavy on my heart. Due to medical reasons it has been recommended that I have my ovaries removed. I have tried medication therapy to treat my condition and it did not work for me. I understand that this procedure is not considered immoral since it is medically necessary, but the only way I would be able to have another child is to freeze my eggs and implant them through IVF, which in my understanding the Church is against that. Are my only options to have my ovaries removed and accept that I will never have another child, or keep my ovaries and suffer in agonizing pain so that I might have a chance to have a baby? Or does the Church ever make exceptions in these cases? I’m still so young and the idea of having that possibility breaks my heart. Please give me your honest but tactful opinions. TIA
 
It is usually very serious when medical professionals recommend removing organs. That said, removing the ovaries on a young women seems rather crude this day and age. Not to mention that they would get a hefty $$ for saving your eggs. Since this option has been given to you, and egg harvesting is incredibly painful and dangerous in its own right, not to mention incredibly expensive, I would be very concerned about the agenda of the doctors.

I would consult the PJPII institute in Nebraska or a NaPro specalist to see what else may be done.

If they also concur that removing your ovaries is your only option then you are at a dead end.

Adoption would be your only option.

Currently, there is snowflake adoption which means that an embryo that has been abandoned can be implanted so as to be given a chance. Currently, there is no firm church ruling on this. So you could still have the chance to be pregnant.
 
This is incorrect. Your doctor will only implant one fertilized egg at a time in each implant attempt. If you want more, it can be arranged, but not without your permission. Likewise, you have the option of freezing the unused fertilized eggs or having them destroyed.
 
Never heard if the snowflake adoption. Will have to read up on that.
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Right now it is in a moral grey area. The church has neither condemned nor approved it. Ther have been some theologians who have spoken on each side. They both claim to be “authorities” of the church but no official, authoritative teaching has been made.

I feel for these children and if pregnancy was not so hard for me, I’d willingly take on this role.
 
anikins said:
This is incorrect. Your doctor will only implant one fertilized egg at a time in each implant attempt. If you want more, it can be arranged, but not without your permission. Likewise, you have the option of freezing the unused fertilized eggs or having them destroyed.
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You both are incorrect.

The standard medical procedure with the number of embryos implanted today greatly depends on the doctor and the conditions that they are facing. Many doctors still stand by the implantation of two or even 3 depending on maternal age, embryo health, hormonal profile and other factors.

Not only that, but even if only one embryo is implanted the artificial hormones given to the woman to trick the body into thinking it is at the luteal phase can often cause the egg to naturally split and create identical twins or even triplets.
 
The church is also against ivf because it contradicts that whole theology on sex (unitive and procreative), which is also why gay sex or contraception is not allowed
 
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Anyway I’m so sorry you are dealing with this. This issue is honestly quite heartbreaking and it’s something I can’t really understand either.
 
lexi said:
the only way I would be able to have another child is to freeze my eggs and implant them through IVF, which in my understanding the Church is against that.
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Yes, artificial conception is grave matter against the sixth commandment, and additional offenses of grave matter against the fifth commandment arise if embryos die or are destroyed in the process (which is almost always).
lexi said:
Are my only options to have my ovaries removed and accept that I will never have another child, or keep my ovaries and suffer in agonizing pain so that I might have a chance to have a baby?
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Your third option would be to adopt a child if you need to have your ovaries removed and want to welcome another child into your home.

You could also consult another doctor for a second opinion about treatments that reduce or eliminate your pain while keeping your ovaries.
lexi said:
Or does the Church ever make exceptions in these cases?
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I would encourage you to read the Church documents Donum Vitae and Dignitas Personae to understand what the Church teaches and why.

This isn’t a rule, a discipline, which could have an exception. These sorts of procedures are grave matter against the commandments of God— this means they are intrinsically evil. There is a book called Twelve Tough Issues, What The Church Tesches And Why (out of print but you can get it used on Amazon) by Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk. It explains this well, not quite as technical as the two Church documents I also recommend here (those are available online, just Google them).
 
Whether you destroy or freeze the fertilized eggs, it would be immortal. They are human beings, albeit in a primitive state.
 
Are you married? What would happen if you were to go ahead and get pregnant now? Were your ovaries causing pain during your first pregnancy?
 
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