This is why I say you don’t understand what IVF means to many couples. You are acting like the man jerks off in a cup and goes about his own business while his wife suffers alone. Many times IVF is an emotional roller coaster for COUPLES because of infertility and other issues, they are going through this TOGETHER emotionally, and it means a lot to both of them when they finally get a positive response. Do yo think after years of trying to conceive and finally getting pregnant a wife is going to turn to her husband and say “I had to get poked with needles you didn’t, so don’t say we’re pregnant”? The emotional in these cases outweighs the physical and it seems you’re having a hard time understanding that.

I wonder how those saying “once again men are trying to take credit for women’s work” would feel with a partner in a lesbian couple saying this. Would they still find it offensive? Or do different rules apply?

If men don’t do their part there, that’s a lack of willingness, not a lack of ability.

It is not “couples” who suffer physically during IVF. Only the woman does. The man masturbates and puts sperm in a cup. The woman goes through rounds of frequent hormone injections, takes pills that induce depression, and undergo invasive procedures under anesthesia to remove the ova. And it’s the woman who suffers an increased risk of cancer, fibroids and other complications for the rest of her life because of IVF. It’s absolutely ridiculous to suggest that the man’s experience with IVF is the same.

And to paraphrase AuntieEm, WORD!! You rock, Becky. Thank you for verbalizing the latent content in our dissatisfaction.