Conceiving ideas
Two new magazines offer advice about infertility and motherhood later in life
For most readers, finding their niche is easy. The many aspiring brides, the growing number of organic gardeners, and even the comparatively small lot of yacht owners--all have magazines designed to answer every question, be it about Vera Wang, composting, or teak maintenance. So it's surprising that it took this long to target two readerships that are expanding every month: those who want to get pregnant and those who have done so--often after many medically assisted attempts--after age 35.
Tina Stowe, a 37-year-old human resources administrator in London, Ontario, was a willing spender with nothing to buy. "I would look at Parents and Fit Pregnancy and think, 'When can I pick up those magazines?'"
Then, in Wal-Mart, she found Conceive Magazine, a new publication dedicated to fertility issues. Stowe, who has been dealing with infertility for much of her 10-year marriage, got pregnant after seven rounds of artificial insemination only to miscarry months later. The magazine included a piece on motherhood after miscarriage that "really touched me," she says. "It's nice to know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel."
Conceive was founded by banking colleagues Kim Hahn and Rob Clarkson, both of whom had experience with infertility. (After two years of trying, Clarkson and his wife had a daughter, while Hahn and her husband adopted theirs.) The second issue, just out, looks at the practical (a how-to guide on giving yourself or someone you love an injection of fertility drugs), the emotional, and the medical (reversing vasectomies and tubal ligations). It also considers alternatives, including such low-tech treatments as diet change, stress reduction, acupuncture, and herbs.
Plum assignment. For those who have already conceived but are over 35, there is Plum. Sponsored by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the magazine is free; the just published first issue has been sent by the box load to obstetricians' offices all over the United States. Some of Plum 's advice is one-size-fits-all for pregnant women (don't drink, smoke, or eat deli meats; do save for college), but other pieces are tailored to the audience. Among them: an in-depth look at diagnostic tests and genetic counseling, a frank discussion by six women walking in the same comfortable shoes, and a realistic assessment of the pros and cons. Sleep deprivation is easier to take when you're a 20-something, but the older mom finds wisdom comes along with crow's-feet. Having outgrown the angst of the 20s, many couples find themselves more in sync.
Plum has made a good first impression on expectant women on the far side of 35, says Elizabeth Lapeyre, an OB-GYN at the Ochsner Clinic Foundation in New Orleans. It "offers a reassurance," she says. "It allows them to say, 'Hey, I should be able to relax and enjoy being pregnant.'"
This story appears in the February 21, 2005 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.
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