“Dear adorable Aunt Aggie, I'm desperate. Me and my husband have been trying to have a child for the past two years, with no success. After a series of tests, our doctor told me that I may be infertile. We really want to have a baby, and I was bitterly disappointed when we finally tried IVF treatment, which didn't work. I'm getting very upset about this. The other day a woman at work announced she was pregnant, and I thought ‘why can't that be me?’ and got so upset I went into the toilets and cried. What should I do?” — from Infertile in Inverness, age 32.
Loving Aunt Aggie replies: Oh dearie, my poor child, I really feel for you. It must be terrible to not be able to conceive when you really want that pleasure of holding a little baby of your own, in your arms.
It sounds like you have tried everything to get pregnant. IVF usually is the last-straw for women these days, and it is so expensive. However, have you considered some alternative reasons for why you may not be able to conceive?
Back in my day there was nothing wrong with us, we used to produce babies all the time, sometimes two in one week. A normal family had 9 or 10, and I personally had no problem at all squeezing out 12 children, although I had to leave most of them outside orphanages so I could still afford to pay for my radio license.
Which makes me wonder what it is that is really wrong? Have you tried seeing a psychotherapist? I'm sure the cause is “all in your head” so-to-speak. It will be your way of being the centre of attention and getting other people to feel sorry for you.
But don't despair, maybe once your husband has left you to find a younger, more attractive and fertile woman, you can be happy in the knowledge that he can finally be with someone who isn't selfishly denying him the children he wanted.
Then, you'll have more time to think about the reasons why you've allowed yourself to become such an attention-seeking hypochondriac.