GOP TREEHOUSE - Dems keep out!

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2004
GOP TREEHOUSE - Dems keep out!
122
Thu, 07-08-2004 - 10:51am
This thread is hereby officially dedicated to Republicans, conservatives, and Bush supporters. Make of it what you will, but please observe the TOS and refrain from personal remarks about other I-Village members.

Renee ~~~

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iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2004
Mon, 07-12-2004 - 10:31am

Right Reading July 12


The Senate Intelligence Committee Report

Renee ~~~

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2004
Tue, 07-13-2004 - 3:06pm

Right Reading, July 13


Hating America

Renee ~~~

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2004
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 11:33am

Right Reading July 14


OH, THAT LIBERAL MEDIA

Renee ~~~

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2004
Sun, 07-18-2004 - 2:36pm
When One Is Enough

By AMY RICHARDS as told to AMY BARRETT


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/18/magazine/18LIVES.html?pagewanted=print&position=






I grew up in a working-class family in Pennsylvania not knowing my father. I have never missed not having him. I firmly believe that, but for much of my life I felt that what I probably would have gained was economic security and with that societal security. Growing up with a single mother, I was always buying into the myth that I was going to be seduced in the back of a pickup truck and become pregnant when I was 16. I had friends when I was in school who were helping to rear nieces and nephews, because their siblings, who were not much older, were having babies. I had friends from all over the class spectrum: I saw the nieces and nephews on the one hand and country-club memberships and station wagons on the other. I felt I was in the middle. I had this fear: What would it take for me to just slip?


Now I'm 34. My boyfriend, Peter, and I have been together three years. I'm old enough to presume that I wasn't going to have an easy time becoming pregnant. I was tired of being on the pill, because it made me moody. Before I went off it, Peter and I talked about what would happen if I became pregnant, and we both agreed that we would have the child.


I found out I was having triplets when I went to my obstetrician. The doctor had just finished telling me I was going to have a low-risk pregnancy. She turned on the sonogram machine. There was a long pause, then she said, ''Are you sure you didn't take fertility drugs?'' I said, ''I'm positive.'' Peter and I were very shocked when she said there were three. ''You know, this changes everything,'' she said. ''You'll have to see a specialist.''


My immediate response was, I cannot have triplets. I was not married; I lived in a five-story walk-up in the East Village; I worked freelance; and I would have to go on bed rest in March. I lecture at colleges, and my biggest months are March and April. I would have to give up my main income for the rest of the year. There was a part of me that was sure I could work around that. But it was a matter of, Do I want to?


I looked at Peter and asked the doctor: ''Is it possible to get rid of one of them? Or two of them?'' The obstetrician wasn't an expert in selective reduction, but she knew that with a shot of potassium chloride you could eliminate one or more.


Having felt physically fine up to this point, I got on the subway afterward, and all of a sudden, I felt ill. I didn't want to eat anything. What I was going through seemed like a very unnatural experience. On the subway, Peter asked, ''Shouldn't we consider having triplets?'' And I had this adverse reaction: ''This is why they say it's the woman's choice, because you think I could just carry triplets. That's easy for you to say, but I'd have to give up my life.'' Not only would I have to be on bed rest at 20 weeks, I wouldn't be able to fly after 15. I was already at eight weeks. When I found out about the triplets, I felt like: It's not the back of a pickup at 16, but now I'm going to have to move to Staten Island. I'll never leave my house because I'll have to care for these children. I'll have to start shopping only at Costco and buying big jars of mayonnaise. Even in my moments of thinking about having three, I don't think that deep down I was ever considering it.


The specialist called me back at 10 p.m. I had just finished watching a Boston Pops concert at Symphony Hall. As everybody burst into applause, I watched my cellphone vibrating, grabbed it and ran into the lobby. He told me that he does a detailed sonogram before doing a selective reduction to see if one fetus appears to be struggling. The procedure involves a shot of potassium chloride to the heart of the fetus. There are a lot more complications when a woman carries multiples. And so, from the doctor's perspective, it's a matter of trying to save the woman this trauma. After I talked to the specialist, I told Peter, ''That's what I'm going to do.'' He replied, ''What we're going to do.'' He respected what I was going through, but at a certain point, he felt that this was a decision we were making. I agreed.


When we saw the specialist, we found out that I was carrying identical twins and a stand alone. My doctors thought the stand alone was three days older. There was something psychologically comforting about that, since I wanted to have just one. Before the procedure, I was focused on relaxing. But Peter was staring at the sonogram screen thinking: Oh, my gosh, there are three heartbeats. I can't believe we're about to make two disappear. The doctor came in, and then Peter was asked to leave. I said, ''Can Peter stay?'' The doctor said no. I know Peter was offended by that.


Two days after the procedure, smells no longer set me off and I no longer wanted to eat nothing but sour-apple gum. I went on to have a pretty seamless pregnancy. But I had a recurring feeling that this was going to come back and haunt me. Was I going to have a stillbirth or miscarry late in my pregnancy?


I had a boy, and everything is fine. But thinking about becoming pregnant again is terrifying. Am I going to have quintuplets? I would do the same thing if I had triplets again, but if I had twins, I would probably have twins. Then again, I don't know.

Renee ~~~

Renee ~~~

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-12-2003
Sun, 07-18-2004 - 10:11pm
Renee, I am shocked by that story. I guess I'm naive to think that no one would ever do such a thing,
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Avatar for emty_nstr
Community Leader
Registered: 05-25-1999
Sun, 07-18-2004 - 11:40pm

Hi, I just stumbled in here. Like I need another board to read..........lol.........But I didn't see that movie Fahrenheit 911. For one thing I had never heard of this Micheal Moore guy but the promos on tv made him sound like he was so great....... And I don't like people bashing, such as picking out words from a speech to make it sound like what was said was bad and what was really said wasn't.


All I keep thinking about since I heard it and I don't know from whom it was maybe one of the late night guys.


"Oh, great just what we need in the White House.........never mind that might be a dirty joke....lol.....


I don't know if we have enough people or not but Nebraska is mostly Republicans.


I still believe the right man got in the White House in 2000. And I think he looks good there. Janet

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2004
Mon, 07-19-2004 - 12:28am

I found it extremely upsetting, too, and am filled with disgust for this woman and horror that

Renee ~~~

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-18-2004
Mon, 07-19-2004 - 1:23am

Hi emty_nstr!!


Welcome to the board!

Miffy - Co-CL For The Politics Today Board

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-18-2004
Mon, 07-19-2004 - 1:57am

Though I can understand why someone would not want to have three children at once, multiple births are part of the risk of trying to conceive, and people should think about all the possible consequences before they start trying to have children so things like this won't have to happen.

Miffy - Co-CL For The Politics Today Board

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-12-2003
Mon, 07-19-2004 - 8:25am

I'm glad you posted it here too. I would be even more sickened by

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