Infertility is a stressful experience for many couples. You may feel alone, or have difficulty trying to cope with problems associated with childlessness. There are times when a couple or individuals need help to work through these emotions and it is at these times that you can turn to us for support. The idea of counselling is to give individuals the strength and resources needed to cope with the stress infertility and its treatment can cause.
Counselling may be appropriate at any time before, during or after embarking on fertility treatment. The number of sessions needed with a counsellor varies.
FSH (Friends, Support & Help) @ St Jude's is a support group created by patients at St Jude's. In addition to discussing issues with a counsellor, FSH @ St Jude's allows patients to interact with others who have been through the process before, or are currently undergoing treatment. By sharing experiences, and providing each other with advice, we hope to minimise the stress caused by treatment.
The support group aims to meet every six weeks, on Thursdays at 7pm. A list of future meetings can be found on the FSH @ St Jude's website - www.stjudesupport.com.
The support group also has an online forum which allows those who aren't able to attend the six-weekly meetings to get assistance. We hope that the forum will be become an enjoyable and informal means of bringing St Jude's staff, patients and prospective patients together. To visit the forum, click here.
In addition to the existing forms of support we offer our patients, St Jude's has introduced a 'prayer line' where patients can email their requests to a prayer team. If you would like to avail yourself of this form of support please e-mail requests to our prayer team leader, Ada Adeghe at prayer@stjudeshospital.co.uk. We periodically hold prayer sessions at St Jude's hospital. If you would like to attend, please e-mail for details of the next meeting.