How to Be an Infertility Advocate

When a disease affects 7.3 million people in the United States, it’s a public health crisis. In the United Kingdom, the estimates are that infertility affects 1 in 7 couples; in Canada, the number is as high as 1 in 6. According to the World Health Organization, they estimate that “1 in 4 ever-married women of reproductive age in most developing countries are infertile because of primary or secondary infertility” (source).

Infertility is a global public health crisis, and yet, it faces some of the most direct challenges in equal access to care compared to most other diseases on a scale this great. Thus, it is vital that we come together as a global patient community to demand equal access to care, treatment, research, and cultural compassion for our disease.

There are many ways to be an infertility advocate in ways that suit your comfort level and capitalize on your skills and talents. Below are posts that focus on how you too can become your own best infertility advocate.

We can all become empowered agents working for change!

Advocate for Infertility Right Now

Here are two ways to jump right into advocating for infertility awareness!

The Family Act of 2011 Infertility Tax Credit Bill Introduced: Find out what you can do to advocate for and show support of this important piece of legislation.
The Power of 1000 Women: Find out how you can join the largest women’s health social media movement and support infertility awareness in the process!

A Belly Full of Fire

A five-part series on infertility advocacy.

Advocate or Abdicate: Committing to change is the first step in advocacy.
The Wounded Healer: Advocacy can be a source of healing in our journeys.
Which Direction Do We Swim?Which style of advocacy is the best for you?
In a Perfect World: Imagine what the fruits of our advocacy efforts could look like…
Millions of Voices Calling for Change: Practical strategies for becoming an infertility advocate in a variety of ways.

Advocacy Day

For one day a year each year, volunteers come from all over the country to lobby for infertility awareness with legislators on Capitol Hill, with support and training from RESOLVE.

RESOLVE Advocacy Day 2009: Find out how you can participate in something as large-scale as Advocacy Day from the comfort of your own computer desk.
RESOLVE Advocacy Day – One Woman’s Story: A RESOLVE volunteer shares her incredible experience advocating on Capitol Hill and tips for first-timers.
RESOLVE Advocacy Day 2011 Recap: Highlights of my first time lobbying for infertility on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
Two Videos from Advocacy Day 2011: Two vlogs, the first an interview with RESOLVE Advocacy Co-Chair Risa Levine and the second a keynote address from Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, a leading legislative advocate for infertility.

National Infertility Awareness Week

The last week of April is devoted to raising awareness for our disease, sponsored by RESOLVE.

National Infertility Awareness Week 2010: This year, I challenge people to share their stories to raise awareness.
National Infertility Awareness Week 2011 Highlight Reel: The best of the blogosphere for NIAW 2011.

Advocacy & Legislative Change

Posts about how to advocate for change with your legislators.

Mississippi Initiative 26 Threatens Infertility Treatment for All: Personhood legislation, even at the state level, could have a chilling affect on Americans’ access to infertility treatments.
Infertility and Raising Awareness: Sharing our stories is vital to increasing awareness for our disease.
Why All the Hate on Women’s Health? An overview of concerning updates to medical guidelines regarding women’s preventative screenings in late 2009.
Dear Senator Scott Brown: An open letter to Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown regarding disturbing comments that would threaten mandated insurance coverage in the state.
4 Myths Debunked About Mandated Infertility Coverage: The key to successful advocacy is arming yourself with facts.
Why Does the Government Hate Women So Much? A passionate call to action against waves of anti-women legislation in the United States with the potential to directly impact the infertility community.
I Stand With Planned Parenthood: I make the case for why the infertility community should support Planned Parenthood, regardless of our personal stances on choice.
When Advocacy Pays Off: Volunteer efforts in Massachusetts result in a major key update to the Mass. infertility mandate.

The PETA Petition

Read how one woman’s grassroots efforts became a global movement to condemn and change an international organization’s offensive publicity campaign.