The Path to Conception
Fertility-focused retreats help women and couples deal with infertility issues.
By Marie Myung-Ok Lee
2/2008
2/2008
A fertility retreat can be like a purposeful vacation. During a two-or three-day stay, often at a spa-like setting, women who have been frustrated by fertility issues get away from their hectic day-to-day lives, connect with others facing similar problems, and learn about diet or stress-relieving techniques that can help them become pregnant. (The retreats often include seminars on the benefits of acupuncture or yoga, for example.) The three retreats profiled below are offered by fertility "gurus"—each one an author of a prominent book on infertility.
- The Mind/Body Program for Infertility at the Domar Center for Complementary Healthcare (domarcenter.com) holds two-day weekend retreats around the country. Financial aid is available for couples that meet income criteria.
Cost: $395 for an individual; $755 for a couple per day - Fertile Heart retreats (fertileheart.com) are one-day intensive workshops in various locations led by Julia Indichova, author of The Fertile Female (Adell Press, 2007) and Inconceivable (Adell, 1998). Out of a group of 11 women and six men who attended the workshop in December 2005, eight of the women conceived within five months and later delivered healthy babies.
Cost: $195 for one day - The Fertile Soul retreats (thefertilesoul.com) are five-day retreats led by Randine Lewis, Ph.D., author of Infertility Cure and The Way of the Fertile Soul. Known for successfully treating infertile couples (in her Houston clinic in the late 1990s and early 2000s, she achieved a birth rate of 75 percent), Lewis closed her clinical practice and started retreats based on her medical philosophy, The Fertile Soul MethodTM, which includes diet, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and stress-reduction education. These retreats include acupuncture and a take-home treatment plan.
Cost: $1,995 for five days
