Inconceivable, 20th Anniversary Edition: A Woman's Triumph Over Despair and Statistics

I read this book after struggling with infertility for several years. The message of encouragement to find my own voice in this very personal journey was one I needed to hear after nothing but negatives from the medical community. I gained tremendous hope and camaraderie from this book, hope that kept me moving forward to act and/or to accept what was before me. Within a year after reading the book, and using the accompanying meditation CDs, I conceived, against all the same odds as the writer. Even the doctors were stunned. I highly recommend.

Far from adopting the attitude that "all infertility doctors are jerks and out to take their patients' money" as one reviewer asserts, Indichova sought alternatives when her doctors gave her no hope of conceiving with her own eggs. In conjunction with adopting a myriad of lifestyle, dietary and other changes, Indichova continued to periodically assess her medical condition with conventional Western doctors. In fact, if this reviewer had really read the book carefully, he/she would have remembered that Indichova had an appointment with yet another RE to discuss the viability of an ART procedure based her decreasing FSH levels on the day that she learned she had beat the odds and conceived her much-wanted second child! Some of the reviewers seem to have a negative attitude about anything that doesn't fall within the strictures of conventional Western medicine and thereby assign the corrollary attitude (incorrectly!) to Indichova (that she is into "hocus pocus" and "wacko" stuff and disparages Western medicine (she does not). I will agree with the reviewers who've noted that this may be a tough book to swallow for those infertility patients who are struggling with primary infertility *and* have never conceived any children. Indichova suffered secondary infertility, and until I emotionally reached the point where I desperately want a 2nd child (my first miracle baby was IVF 3 years ago), I too would have had little sympathy for someone in Indichova's position. My perspective now is definitely different, but women who've never conceived any children should be forewarned of Indichova's situation. I've been diagnosed with diminished ovarian reserve, and though my FSH numbers aren't high, I've been largely written off as a lost cause by Western medicine. I have found new hope and inspiration in reading Indichova's story, and I'm grateful that she wrote this wonderful account. I'm certainly willing to give some or most of her ideas a try! I've adopted many of her suggestions over the last few weeks and I already feel better, regardless of whether my body is producing a good egg this cycle. True that she has no scientific backup to support what she did ... maybe all those dietary and lifestyle changes did absolutely nothing toward her second pregnancy. But maybe they did. Maybe they did.This review has been edited in June 2003 to say that I am now 12 weeks pregnant with my 2nd child, conceiving 3 months after I adopted many of Indichova's suggested dietary and lifestyle changes. Thanks for the inspiration!

As a 37 year old IF woman, with high FSH, I thought all was lost. Then I found this book. With an FSH of 25, and doctors all telling me that I could never have a child of my own without an egg donor, life looked very bleak to me. But upon reading this book, I decided to make some life changes. I gave up going out to lunch (and brown bagged it instead) and going to movies (nothing wrong with renting) to be able to do my acupuncture sessions. I also bought yoga tapes and guided imagery tapes, and started drinking wheatgrass. I did not do the vegetarian diet though. From 25, my FSH is now 9. While I will still go through with my IVF, I am going into it with absolute belief that it is finally going to happen for me. When I received the results, I was overjoyed. And my doctors were shocked. They continued to test my FSH because they were sure it was an anomaly. They've been disappointed in seeing that my tests remain within a healthy range. I would encourage any and all who believe that in their body lies the key to fertility to at least give it a shot.

I absolutely love this book! One of my all-time favorites (and I am an avid reader). This book provided me with strength, confidence and inspiration at a very difficult time in my life - at the age of 31, I was diagnosed with premature ovarian failure due to a high FSH reading and was told by my doctor that I would only be able to conceive, if at all, if I used an egg donor. Several other specialists in NYC re-affirmed this diagnosis. Then, I found Inconceivable. Not only is Julia Indichova an exceptional writer, but she was able to relay the exact feelings I was going through during this difficult time. I found her suggestions to improve your quality of life and health in a natural manner (via yoga, imagery, diet, etc. as opposed to taking medications) extremely helpful and liberating. Everything she said in her book completely appealed to me and I started working on improving my quality of life via the book's suggestions, despite what the doctors had told me. As of this date, I have lost count as to how many times I have read it - -every time I pick up the book I note new advice and tips. Several months after having first read her book and started taking steps to improve my quality of life, I found out that I was pregnant! I know that the lessons of Inconceivable were an invaluable tool that led me to my pregnancy. While Julia's story is also one of high FSH, anyone going through difficulty conceiving a child of their own will find this book immensely helpful. I cannot recommend it enough!!

The title of this book hit home and I tried everything else, so I bought the book and followed the recommendations as best as I could. A few months after I started, I did an insemination, went to the doctor (who originally felt my chances of getting pregnant were slim to none) and found out I was already 8 weeks pregnant! (What I thought was my period the month before was apparently blood from the embryo attaching to my uterine lining.) My doctor, who still couldn't believe it, recalled all my bloodwork from the month to retest, called me in for a sonogram the next day and, lo and behold, found and embryo with a beating heart. This doctor (one of the most respected in the business) said he'd never seen anything happen like this. I'm 42, have had 5 miscarriages and, as I've said, had a pathetic prognosis. The doctor said he'd be talking about my situation in his lectures and writings and he'd be sure not to mention my name. I now have a 7 month old girl who is a joy every second of everyday.I know how tough trying to have a baby can be when EVERYONE is telling you to pack it in, but believe me, if the advice in this book can work for someone like me, it can work for you too.