When you embark on assisted reproductive treatment (ART) you may experience many different emotions, from joy and excitement to grief and disappointment. This can be emotionally and physically challenging, so at Melbourne IVF we offer Australia’s largest in-house confidential fertility counselling service.
Our experienced social workers and psychologists are available before, during and after your fertility treatment, whenever you feel you need further support. Our services include:
- Pre-treatment counselling
- Supportive counselling
- Donor and surrogacy counselling
- Support groups
Our counsellors are here to help
As a patient, you can access our supportive counselling at any time during your treatment. We are experienced in helping individuals and couples deal with difficult circumstances and emotions, and encourage you to take positive steps through counselling so you can feel more in control of your treatment, emotions, physical health and relationships.
Our supportive ART counselling can help you:
- prepare for fertility treatments, and explore the options and implications when making decisions about starting, changing or stopping treatments
- deal with the emotional impact of treatment
- work on relationship issues that may arise as a result of treatment or may be affecting your treatment
- cope with unsuccessful treatment cycles or pregnancy losses
- develop coping strategies for dealing with other people's pregnancies, births and children
- deal with the reactions of families, friends and work colleagues
- explore ways to help you feel more in control
- manage the anxieties of pregnancy and preparation for parenthood
- deal with the specific issues related to donor treatment cycles and surrogacy.
Mandatory pre-treatment counselling
The Assisted Reproductive Treatment Act (2008) requires that all individuals and couples attend at least one counselling session prior to starting fertility treatment.
These counselling sessions are tailored to the type of fertility treatment you are undertaking. The discussions will help you to:
- understand your options and choices, as well as the possible outcomes, and understand the psychosocial and ethical implications of treatment, your rights and responsibilities and any legal considerations;
- consider and explore any issues that may impact on your treatment;
- clarify any information you’re unsure about; and
- explore areas of potential stress, and discuss strategies for managing these.
To help prepare for your initial counselling session, we recommend you consider aspects of your care including:
- what you would like to happen to gametes (eggs or sperm) that do not fertilise;
- the implications of creating excess embryos from your treatment;
- what you would like to happen to your embryos in the event of death of either partner.
At the end of your pre-treatment counselling session, your counsellor will ask you whether you are now ready to provide informed consent. They’ll read through a consent form with you, and ask you to answer some questions.
Donor counselling
If you are considering using donor gametes – be it eggs, sperm or embryos, you may at first feel overwhelmed by the number of issues they need to consider when thinking about creating their family through genetic material provided by a donor. Counselling helps you consider your emotional responses to this decision, the implications of having a donor conceived child, your attitudes towards disclosure to the child, family, friends, and extended networks, and the legislation regarding donor conception.
Our specialist counselling team can help you with decision making, and is available for the mandatory counselling sessions you will need to undertake.
We can provide information and support with regards to considerations such as:
- Implications of having a donor-conceived child
- Disclosure to the child, family, friends and extended networks
- Legislation regarding donor conception
- Considering the possible needs of the donor-conceived child
- Managing relationships/future contact with donors
Genetic counselling
Some people need ART or donor treatment because they, or members of their family, have a specific genetic condition. Our counsellors can discuss the options available in these circumstances, and the implications of each form of treatment. If you are having PGD genetic testing, you will also need to see one of our genetic counsellors.
Read more about the counselling team at Melbourne IVF.
Contact us to find out more about counselling appointments at Melbourne IVF.
