Holiday Gift Guide for that Special Someone Going Through Fertility Treatments

I am enamored with the art of gift giving. It brings me a special thrill to carefully curate gifts for my friends and family.

Last holiday season, I was at the cusp of starting the medications for my egg stimulation. When people asked me, “what do you want for Christmas.” All I wanted to do was scream, “a baby!” But, of course, I didn’t. I really didn’t know what to ask for.

Here is a curated list of items that I wish I would have asked for last Christmas while going through my fertility treatments:

Buzzy – Personal Vibrating Ice Pack

I hope that I don’t sound dramatic when I say that the Buzzy is the single most important tool in your IVF tool kit. This little guy is so vital that I dragged it across the world when we went to Europe this summer. IVF injections are, for the most part, tolerable. However, repeatedly jabbing the same same injection sites over and over again can be overwhelming and painful. This little guy helps numb and cool the injection site making those repeated injections tolerable.

Lidocaine Numbing Cream

This is the topical numbing cream that I used during our egg stimulation cycle and for the first month (or so) of our medicated frozen embryo transfer. Just like the Buzzy, the lidocaine alone isn’t sufficient to take away the sting of the injections, but together it is just enough to take away the edge.

Lidocaine Patch

So there comes a point in the progesterone injection cycle where the lidocaine cream just ceases to be effective. I did about 4 months of progesterone injections (ouch). For those of you unfamiliar with progesterone injections, you have a quarter size target on each butt cheek where the injection can go. After 100+ jabs, those injection sites are bruised, battered, and rock hard – making it difficult to insert the injection, requiring more force, which exacerbates the problem. This is where the patches come in. At the end of the first month of injections, nothing was really helping so in an act of desperation, I purchased these patches. I applied these patches for a minimum of 2 hours before each progesterone injection and when coupled with buzzy makes the whole process a lot more tolerable.

Gauze and Fun Band-Aids

So this gift certainly isn’t sexy, but it will be used daily. Also, for those of you who don’t know, pineapples are kind of a big deal in the infertility community.

Non-Slip Socks

When you are going through infertility treatments, you are constantly in the stirrups. If you’re like me, the mere though of putting my bare feet on those those things gives me the creeps. I always have an emergency pair of socks in my purse. Bombas have become my go to socks. They are perfect for reformer Pilates, work from home socks, and for IVF.

Loose Pajama Pants

I still remember the feeling of sheer panic that I had when I got the call the day before my egg retrieval and the nurse told me to bring loose pajama pants and underwear to the egg retrieval. I am a leggings girl who did not own any loose pajama pants and had to run to Target during my lunch break to find something suitable. Luckily, I found these, sized up (for swelling), and absolutely loved them.

Mediterranean Diet Cookbook

If your friend is going through infertility treatments, they have, most likely, been instructed to stick to a Mediterranean diet. I was put on this diet for close to a year (no small fete for a non-fish eater). Scavenging through Pinterest for recipe ideas became a daily ritual. A cookbook can be a really thoughtful way of supporting your friend going through infertility.

Notebook

I cannot emphasize enough how much information is thrown at you during the course of infertility treatments – from important information regarding medical protocol, to stats given during a blood draw or ultrasound – it’s really nice to have one place to jot down all of the information, as well as any questions that may pop up.

Giant Pill Organizer

It isn’t sexy, but it is both practical and useful. At one point during IVF, between the intense vitamin regimen that my nutritionist had me on, and the medication prescribed to me by my doctor, I was taking well over 20 pills a day. I finally gave in and purchased one of these pups and it made everything so much easier (I am still using it now during my pregnancy).

Spa Gift Card

Assuming your friend is doing a frozen embryo transfer (and, assuming, of course, that their Doctor signs off on it), the time between egg retrieval and transfer is the perfect time to take in a massage or facial. I am so glad that I had one last hurrah at the spa before my egg transfer.

So this is the end of my list. I want to stress one thing. No tangible gift is a substitute for your presence. The value of a handwritten note, phone call, home drop in, or dinner out cannot be overstated. Going through fertility treatments is an incredibly isolating process. Don’t underestimate the value of your presence and support can offer (just don’t offer advice – especially if you’ve never walked in their shoes).