First off, I’m sorry if this is in the wrong category. I didn’t know where to put it so I thought this would be a good place to post this.
The story I am writing has some mature themes, and I am going to put a content warning at the beginning saying that there are mature themes. A minor plot point in my story is the main character and his wife trying to get pregnant. I will NOT show any sex scenes or talk about them having sex or how often, as I know this IS against Episode’s guidelines. I will only talk about them having trouble getting pregnant. The main character and his wife do invitro fertilization (IVF), and is unsuccessful. This is where I’m not sure if this would be against the guidelines. Doctors find out the husband is actually the infertile one. I’m not sure what I should say. Is it within guidelines to talk about that there were no sperm discovered in the husband’s semen? Or should I just say that the husband is the one that is infertile and not provide a reason? I just want to ask now so I don’t get in trouble. What can I say to make sure what I’m writing is within Episode’s guidelines? Thanks!
Maybe the doctor could say something along the lines of :
I’m sorry, but it looks like the implantation did not take. However, we did get the results from testing prior to the procedure and it appears that the problem is not with you Mrs. Name. The issue is with Mr. Name. Unfortunately it seems that he is infertile- looking at his examination results, it appears that he has a very low count and the chances of conception at this point would be one in a million."
That way you aren’t outright saying “sperm” but the point is clear. He can’t have children because his sperm count is too low to conceive a child naturally or otherwise. Some younger readers may get grossed out by the mention of a natural bodily fluid Just a thought.
Discussing a couple’s journey to conceive and their efforts to get pregnant is generally acceptable within Episode’s content guidelines, as long as it is handled respectfully and does not contain explicit or inappropriate content. However, it’s advisable to review Episode’s specific content policies and community guidelines to ensure compliance and avoid any potential violations.
Everything you mentioned should all be within guidelines. It’s a medical condition, so as long as you don’t give a play by play of them trying to conceive the “natural way”, you should be fine. However, there are a couple things I’d like to point out about IVF. First, it is an incredibly invasive procedure that takes a heavy toll on the woman. As such, before any competent doctor would even consider doing such a procedure, they would first test the fertility of both partners to ensure it was needed. They wouldn’t find out afterwards that the husband had no swimmers at all. If he didn’t, they wouldn’t have been able to do the procedure in the first place because it requires he have sperm they can put in the egg before IVF implantation. Though, him having a low sperm count could be what qualifies them for the procedure. Or, if you want him to be shooting blanks, that could lead to them discussing whether or not to use a sperm donor for IVF, or perhaps discussing the possibility of adoption. Just a couple things to consider.
Just a thought.