Recently Marriage and Family Therapy professor Brennan Peterson was invited to present at the “Pathways and Barriers to the Transition to Parenthood” conference in Tel Aviv, Israel. He was one of eight scholars representing six different countries: the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Australia, and Israel.

The title of his talk was “The Experience of Infertility – An Unexpected Barrier in the Transition to Parenthood” which discussed the emotional, psychological and relational impact of an infertility diagnosis and the stress of undergoing infertility treatments. Dr. Peterson spoke at length about the different ways women and men experience and cope with infertility and the need for more global awareness on the topic.  Recently, he published an article in The Washington Post titled “5 Myths About Infertility” in a further effort to increase this awareness.

“It was a real honor to be invited to attend and present at the conference.  I had never been to Israel before, and I was treated with such professionalism and kindness by the conference organizers and fellow researchers.  The conference was one of the best I have attended in my 15 years at Chapman,” said Dr. Peterson.

Dr. Peterson also took the opportunity to take guided tours of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.  He enjoyed seeing historical sites and learning about Israeli culture. “I loved the people, the culture, and the religious traditions – it was unlike any place I have ever been.  It was truly a life changing experience.”