- D
This is our story…
Before I start I would like to say that this is not easy for us. We struggled with this idea for a long time, thinking it would appear selfish and embarrassing. But this has become too much for us and we need help.
When I was sixteen I went to see a doctor about why I never had a menstrual cycle like every other girl my age. It turns out I have PCOS (Polycystic ovary syndrome) which means my hormones are imbalanced, my brain talks to my ovaries but my ovaries are not listening. Therefore I never ovulate. In order to get a period ovulation must occur hence why Im thirty-four and never had a menstrual cycle. Normally with PCOS they put you on insulin medication or tell you to lose weight. Neither of these will help me since neither are an issue. So I was told at sixteen that I would only need to take some pills and bam get pregnant. With further research on my part I found out that it could be more than just a few pills.
Aaron and I met in 2015. We talked about the future and what it would look like to the both of us. When the topic of children came up I was nervous. Nervous he would not want to go through the trouble of having a baby with me and rather be with someone who could get pregnant easily. So I explained to him what is going on with my body and how it probably won’t be simple to have a baby with me. He didn’t mind as long as he was with me.
Fast forward, we got engaged June 2017 and married July 2018. Since we knew it would be a little harder than normal, we started trying in February 2018. Not every month was a month of trying since I do not ovulate. Some months I was able to take the medication to stimulate ovulation and others I was not able to due to the doctor not wanting to go any further and referred me to a Reproductive Specialist. Knowing that route will be expensive, I found another doctor that would give me the ovulation stimulation medication for a few months. Month after month we thought this would be it, this is our month. After 9 months of trying with medication and no result we decided to bite the bullet and see a specialist for an IUI ( Intrauterine insemination) which is when the sperm is placed inside a women’s uterus with the goal to increase the number of sperm that reach the fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the chance of fertilization.
I responded great to the higher dose of medication however it still did not result in a baby.
We decided to move to Fredericksburg Virginia in June 2019 to be closer to my parents and sister. Here we found another affordable specialist in Charlottesville where we did a total of three more IUIs. Again month after month we thought this would be the month. And yet no baby.
In the end we did a total of 16 cycles of ovulation stimulation medication included the four failed IUIs. The only other option for us is IVF (In vitro Fertilization, which is when they take the egg and put the sperm together to fertilize and then the embryo will be transferred back into my uterus) or adoption. Adoption actually turns out to be a lot more money than IVF with all the lawyer and medical fees.
Shady Grove Fertility clinic in Richmond has what is called a shared risk program. This program will give us a live birth baby or 100% refund. The reason this program is a good choice is for reasons such as miscarriage or failed cycles. This way no matter how many times we need to transfer the embryos, we only pay one price. Instead of paying X amount of money for one cycle and if that cycle doesn’t work or a miscarriage happens, we would have to pay another X amount to do another complete cycle.
The shared risk program covers six egg retrievals and as many frozen embryo transfers we need. This program cost $30,000 which includes 6 egg retrievals, testing the embryos for genetic diseases and chromosomal disorders, unlimited frozen embryo transfers and medications.
After long talks and many tears we have decided this is the best way to get to the miracle baby we know we can have. If anyone knows how we are with our fur baby Bailey then you know we will be great parents and this baby will forever be treated with love and respect. We dream of being called Mommy and Daddy and with your help I know we can make that dream come true.
Before I start I would like to say that this is not easy for us. We struggled with this idea for a long time, thinking it would appear selfish and embarrassing. But this has become too much for us and we need help.
When I was sixteen I went to see a doctor about why I never had a menstrual cycle like every other girl my age. It turns out I have PCOS (Polycystic ovary syndrome) which means my hormones are imbalanced, my brain talks to my ovaries but my ovaries are not listening. Therefore I never ovulate. In order to get a period ovulation must occur hence why Im thirty-four and never had a menstrual cycle. Normally with PCOS they put you on insulin medication or tell you to lose weight. Neither of these will help me since neither are an issue. So I was told at sixteen that I would only need to take some pills and bam get pregnant. With further research on my part I found out that it could be more than just a few pills.
Aaron and I met in 2015. We talked about the future and what it would look like to the both of us. When the topic of children came up I was nervous. Nervous he would not want to go through the trouble of having a baby with me and rather be with someone who could get pregnant easily. So I explained to him what is going on with my body and how it probably won’t be simple to have a baby with me. He didn’t mind as long as he was with me.
Fast forward, we got engaged June 2017 and married July 2018. Since we knew it would be a little harder than normal, we started trying in February 2018. Not every month was a month of trying since I do not ovulate. Some months I was able to take the medication to stimulate ovulation and others I was not able to due to the doctor not wanting to go any further and referred me to a Reproductive Specialist. Knowing that route will be expensive, I found another doctor that would give me the ovulation stimulation medication for a few months. Month after month we thought this would be it, this is our month. After 9 months of trying with medication and no result we decided to bite the bullet and see a specialist for an IUI ( Intrauterine insemination) which is when the sperm is placed inside a women’s uterus with the goal to increase the number of sperm that reach the fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the chance of fertilization.
I responded great to the higher dose of medication however it still did not result in a baby.
We decided to move to Fredericksburg Virginia in June 2019 to be closer to my parents and sister. Here we found another affordable specialist in Charlottesville where we did a total of three more IUIs. Again month after month we thought this would be the month. And yet no baby.
In the end we did a total of 16 cycles of ovulation stimulation medication included the four failed IUIs. The only other option for us is IVF (In vitro Fertilization, which is when they take the egg and put the sperm together to fertilize and then the embryo will be transferred back into my uterus) or adoption. Adoption actually turns out to be a lot more money than IVF with all the lawyer and medical fees.
Shady Grove Fertility clinic in Richmond has what is called a shared risk program. This program will give us a live birth baby or 100% refund. The reason this program is a good choice is for reasons such as miscarriage or failed cycles. This way no matter how many times we need to transfer the embryos, we only pay one price. Instead of paying X amount of money for one cycle and if that cycle doesn’t work or a miscarriage happens, we would have to pay another X amount to do another complete cycle.
The shared risk program covers six egg retrievals and as many frozen embryo transfers we need. This program cost $30,000 which includes 6 egg retrievals, testing the embryos for genetic diseases and chromosomal disorders, unlimited frozen embryo transfers and medications.
After long talks and many tears we have decided this is the best way to get to the miracle baby we know we can have. If anyone knows how we are with our fur baby Bailey then you know we will be great parents and this baby will forever be treated with love and respect. We dream of being called Mommy and Daddy and with your help I know we can make that dream come true.