Dr's referral - done!

So...I decided to bite the bullet and take the first step. I've had a longish-term issue with not sleeping well and after a sleepless weekend (exacerbated by unwelcome news about my ex) I booked an appointment with my doctor on Tuesday. Aside from my idiot of an ex one of the issues causing me alot of stress recently has been the fear that the right man might not come along in time for me to have kids of my own, so I decided to talk to him about how much this was upsetting me and that I am considering just getting on with it without a partner. I can't believe how nervous I was sitting in the waiting room! Voicing it to someone who doesn't know me felt like making it very real.

I don't know if I was expecting judgement or was afraid of seeing a look of pity in his eyes, but I was pleasantly surprised by how open to the idea he was, and how understanding. He reassured me that the highest birth rate in the country is amongst women in my age group, and that most of his patients my age get pregnant fairly quickly. He seemed slightly concerned at the idea of going it alone, but understood my need to feel that there was a 'Plan B', and that I wasn't totally out of control of my own life. He gave me a referral to a local fertility specialist who I know from the SMC group is affiliated with a clinic that imports donor sperm and is very sympathetic to single women. He assured me that this country is supportive of single mums if that's what I decide to do.

I know I wouldn't have got this far without the encouragement and 'normalising' influence of the women in the SMC group. What seemed like an 'out there' concept that only 'other people' did - other people who are braver, stronger and richer than me - now seems like a less daunting path to take.

So now for making the real appointments...