I’m so thrilled I can finally spill the beans.
Check your local newsstand. Pick up a copy of this month’s REDBOOK. Turn to page 86. I was one of several women interviewed for their article, The Invisible Pain of Infertility. This groundbreaking campaign was produced in conjunction with RESOLVE, the National Infertility Association.
Also exciting? REDBOOK has launched a No-Shame Video Campaign called “I Wish I’d Known,” an amazing collection of videos from celebrities and folks like me, JW Moxie, and Kathy. Real women (and men!), real stories, real hope.
I’ve been sitting on all this since August, so I’m glad that I can finally share this with all of you. This article could have a huge impact on raising awareness for infertility given REDBOOK’s demographic. I hope this article and these videos will inspire and comfort women living with infertility and spread the message that infertility is nothing to be ashamed of. Infertility is a disease that affects real women, just like you or me. Just like any other woman who picks up a copy of REDBOOK every month.
More importantly: I hope this “Truth About Trying” No-Shame Campaign empowers women to take action, to become their own voices of awareness and agents for change. There’s no reason to go through infertility alone and we can do this together as a community of women!
Here’s mine… and Larry’s video! My husband rocks – he hooked me up with a great camera, some swanky editing software, and even stars in the video with me:
You can see all the other SIXTY videos online here and even add your own!
This fantastic article is comprised of several parts which you can read here online at REDBOOKMag.com:
- The Invisible Pain of Infertility
- Blogroll: The Best Infertility Blogs
- 4 Things to Never Say to a Friend Who’s Been Trying
- Infertility Treatments: What Women Need To Know
Don’t forget to tune in today on Twitter at 2PM Eastern and follow @REDBOOKmag and #TruthAboutTrying as I moderate today’s awesome Twitter chat about infertility! I’d love to get #TruthAboutTrying trending in the United States – you can help me make it happen. I know a lot of folks have RSVP’d here and elsewhere and it looks like it’s spreading all over Facebook, so share it, Tweet it, and see you today at 2pm! You can join in by clicking this TweetChat link.
Thank you to REDBOOK Magazine editors Jihan Thompson and Sunny Gold, REDBOOK writer Norine Dworkin-McDaniel, REDBOOK Social Media mavens Marissa Gold and Valerie Denny, and RESOLVE’s Director of Public Relations Andy Schwartz. I’m honored that you reached out to me and that my story and so many others could be shared with such a wide audience. I know this will campaign is going to have a huge, positive impact on the infertility community and it’s all possible because of each of you taking the time to give infertility the positive media coverage it deserves.
I hope you’ll join me on Twitter today, check out the articles and share them far and wide with your family, friends, support groups, and colleagues.
We are the faces, the stories, and the hope of 7.3 million living with infertility.
adult sharing says
I think this is among the most vital info for me.
And i’m glad reading your article. But wanna remark on few general things, The site style is wonderful, the articles is really great : D. Good job, cheers
tough survivors says
Thank you so much!!! I heard about your blog and your IF video from a close friend! I too have Premature Ovarian Failure. You have helped me feel not alone! Thank you! Is there a way I can follow your blog? I just started mine.
Embracing says
Your video rocks. Thanks so much for all that you do for this community.
Lisa says
Oh Keiko! Your video is my fav. Thank you for ALL you do for all of us.
Mo says
You just…. Rock.
That is all. 🙂
Lori Lavender Luz says
I know you are brilliant with the written word, and now it’s clear you are also stellar with the spoken word. So well done, Keiko.
KH99 says
Bravo, bravo! Great job and thank you for sharing your story. This project is wonderful, and I so respect the work you do.
Articia says
Keiko, thank you for sharing your story. I too have POF/POI. I was just diagnosed back in June. It’s been rough, as I know you can relate. You are the only person I’ve found “out here” with it as well, so it’s comforting to know I am not alone (when I broke the news to my dad he actually asked if I’d made that diagnosis up!). Anyway, I just wanted to say I admire your work and your mission. Thank you for what you are doing.
gurlee says
I don’t visit often but I need you to know that you have brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion. Your video is amazing, the project is incredible and I can’t wait to check it out (even more). Thank you for being a fearless voice of the infertile. I can’t wait to hear how your story ends too.
xo
Justine says
You rock my socks off, Keiko! Thank you for sharing a REAL story with the world!!
Mama Kat says
Such an amazing story! Congrats!!
Hope says
I *loved* your video! Thanks so much for sharing this. 🙂
Kir says
SOOOO happy for you and the AMAZING things this will bring to the infertile world. SO proud of the work you are doing Keiko. A TRUE INFERTILITY HERO.
WOW. xoxoxoox
Gail says
Great job on the video! And, I loved the article! I’ve watched about 8 videos this morning and need to stop so that I can get my workday started. But, you and Redbook and RESOLVE are doing a wonderful thing. Thanks for getting the word out.
Chickenpig says
Your plan and our plan was almost exactly the same. We didn’t ditch the birth control until we were 30, but we were married when we were 26. It took us 6 years to take home our kids, but we were still “young” by IF standards by then at only 36. Take heart in the fact that you guys still have lots of time, thanks to the fact that you married early enough to have that time before you. For couples who don’t find the right person until they are 30, or 34, or older infertility becomes even more of an issue. I am thankful every day that I met the love of my life when I was only 23, not 33, it has made all the difference in the world. I’m not sure what most of my friends would have done had they found themselves infertile, because all of them were getting married when we had already been trying for years. Our wedding advice to them was “Don’t wait!!!!”
I wish you and Larry all the luck in the World. The best advice I can give to you youngsters, is that there IS an end to your story. We all make it out of infertility, one way or the other, make your plan now. My husband and I had insurance, so we agreed to try until blah blah…and if that didn’t work we were moving on to fostering, since we couldn’t afford adoption. Yes, that plan could have changed at any time, it has changed, but it really helps to take charge of the infertile part of your life. It is going to go on for this long, and then I’m moving on, suck it infertility!
Kathy says
Yay for Keiko, Redbook, Resolve and everyone who is willing to share their stories and experience in effort to help raise awareness about the realities of family building for so many who struggle with infertility!!! I am sooooo proud of you!
Thank you so much for sharing this opportunity with me! I am so glad that I made my “I Wish I’d Known…” video for the “No-Shame Campaign” and feel honored to be a part of all of this! Looking forward to the Tweet chat this afternoon! What an exciting day!
JW Moxie says
I’ll be there (in 12 hours – why am I still up at 2am?)! Thanks so much for all that you do, Keiko. I’m so glad that I could be a part of it.