In a recently held beauty pageant, once contestant was asked this question: “What is the essence of being a woman?” Confidently, the attractive young lady replied, “The very essence of a woman is to bear a child.
At first, one would think that there is merit to this short but sure answer. However, one should still ask: What if a woman cannot conceive a child? What if she choose to be child-less? Does being child-less disqualify a person from becoming a full-fledged woman?
These questions can be answered from different perspectives. However, any discussion on this subject must not be made without taking into consideration the important aspect of infertility — an issue that is already a major concern for women all over the world.
Female infertility is defined as a woman’s biological inability to conceive a child or the inability to carry a pregnancy to full-term. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, infertility affects at least 6.1 million American women and their partners, or about 10% of the reproductive age population.
The subject of infertility has always been considered a woman’s...