This mama wrote a children’s book about IVF—here’s why it matters

“Where do babies come from?” is a question that can strike dread in the minds of parents everywhere. No matter how you slice it, telling your kids the story of their conceptions can be tricky…and when you conceived via assisted reproductive technology? Well, that can add a whole new layer of complexity.

But author Tess Kossow has found a way to tell the story behind her son’s in vitro fertilization conception—and the best part? She’s letting other parents who turned to this technology use her words.

Kossow knows all too well how intricate the IVF process really is. The mother sought out fertility treatments after a year of trying to conceive. She and her husband began the process with two viable embryos—and while the first embryo implanted she later suffered a miscarriage. The second embryo became Kossow’s son, Ferris, who was born in April of 2018.

It’s so important to normalize the IVF process, and Kossow is doing just that—she’s showing parents who have opted for IVF treatments and their children that their stories are worth telling. Kossow has written the IVF story in the form of a children’s book called I’m Very Ferris.

“I wanted to go with something that would resonate [with little children] and get across the point of IVF,” Kossow tells People. “It’s a rhyming book. The pictures speak a thousand words. I thought I would do this through a child telling the story, instead of having the mom or dad tell the story.”

But giving children a better understanding of the IVF process isn’t the only goal that motivates Kossow’s work. She’s also committed to sending an important message about miscarriages to the women who have suffered them.

“It’s not your fault. There’s nothing you could have done,” she says, according to People. “I’ve come to realize from firsthand experience just how in depth pregnancy is. And how much it truly can be a miracle to carry a baby and to deliver a baby, and have a healthy baby.”

This is so important—because families come together in a variety of ways, and all of those ways are viable and worth understanding. Giving families who have come together thanks to IVF this kind of representation is so necessary. And we applaud this mama for taking this step. You can buy I’m Very Ferris here.

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