The Pilot or the teacher...

So first things first as i prepare myself for Round 2....The Sperm Donor..

Luckily there hasn't been too much of a wait, my first offer was a man who had dark brown hair, fair complexion, 5ft 9, medium build, O+, CMV-, interests include computer games, reading, walking, swimming and he is a student.

I must admit to being a little unispired! The sperm donor I used before in IVF Round One sounded so good I wanted to date him! (Maybe that was my mistake, picking the right men to go on dates with and have affairs with has never been my strong point!)

I was just about to say how unispired I was to one of my friends when she claimed "that sounds like Andy"..(her husband)...phew...close call, a narrow escape of foot firmly in mouth syndrome! Careful now!!

However main gripe with the latest donor was that he was new on the books..ie, an unproven donor...

Strange how your opinions change throughout the IVF journey....To begin with I was a little freaked to find out that the snowboarder (Donor NO 1) had proven fertility, ie..he already has kids out there...I kinda wished he hadn't. Now however, I cant take a risk on someone who hasn't worked his magic already...so I turned down offer NO 1.


My next offer was the teacher, dark hair and eyes, fair complexion, A+, CMV- and interests include Running, reading, football, travel, fitness, writing and research or the Pilot, 6ft 1, medium build, fair complexion, A+, CMV- whose interests include cookery, car and motor bike mechanics, going to the gym, and running....

My immediate response was that i liked the sound of the Pilot. A slightly more glamourous job than teaching and had the extra height. Plus he sounded pretty handy with his hands if he could fix cars & bikes.. I even found myself thinking that if I had a little boy i could imagine him with his toy airplane, I thought that it sounded like a good 'story' to tell a child when they ask about their father....until I thought about said little boy romanticizing the idea of being a pilot and telling me that he was off to join the RAF and go fight in some dreadful war...hmmm

Biggest thing though was something I had heard on the radio in the past week, a reminder of a subject that I had studied while doing my degree at university... ELF's ,VLF's, XRays and radiation and the effects they have on the human body...

What I heard on the radio was one of the latest studies of cabin staff and the affects of frequent flying. It seems they are in no doubt that it affects a womans hormones and menstrual cycle...so what about men?

So I googled it....and I didn't like what I read. Frequent flying can affect sperm ,it may reduce sperm counts, cause abnormal sperm shape, or adversely affect semen quality. ...It can also affect fertilisation.(which is where it all went wrong before)

Now I know sperm donors have to go through rigourous tests before their sperm is accepted, and I know that The Pilot must of had a good enough count for him to be accepted at the clinic, but could I risk it?

If I got zero fertilisation again, I would never forgive myself, i'd feel like my instincts were warning me and I had ignored them. (NEVER ignore your instincts...it's one of my 'rules'.) Besides, it didn't seem like a coincidence that I had heard that interview on the radio.

I rang the clinic to ask if they had heard anything about frequent flying affecting sperm and wondered to them If I was being a bit OTT, the woman at the end of the phone had to hold back the laughs...grrr...bitch! She made me feel a bit foolish.

I ummed and aahed...I aahed and ummed...
I got the dowsing crystal out, I did the best out of 3...I even tried a shamanic journey, deperately looking for a 'sign'...

Such a massive decision but with so few details to go on...

I then messaged a fertility doctor who was also a pilot on Twitter and asked him what he thought...his response....

" Tough question - Study would require LOTS of patients. Stress, heat, G-forces, radiation, all potential risks."

So, I've decided not to take the risk...

The teacher it is then....plus...he sounds more intelligent ;)