My name is Esther Georges, and I am a Social Worker, and I am also a Therapist. My niche is working with couples and individuals who are experiencing infertility. Now I have joined the community that I have been so diligently serving for the last couple of years. One of my youngest memories is the plane ride from Haiti to Miami, FL. My family immigrated from Haiti for a better life when I was only 5 years old. So of course, it was the happiest day of my life. As a young black immigrant child, I remember education, church and family being the bedrock of my upbringing and this was strictly preached and strictly enforced in my household. I was always told by my parents to go to school and get an education because that’s what was important. And so, I did what I was told, and I focused on my education and eventually graduated from college. While completing my master’s program I met the love of my life. We dated for some time and in 2019, got married. I was the happiest person in the world on my wedding day. Afterall, I did what I was told; I went to school, got an education and I waited to meet the right person to wed. I did everything in “order”. So imagine how I felt when it was my turn to have a baby, and I began to experience difficulty conceiving, after I did everything the “right away”. No one talks about this part of the process; the part when you’re challenged with bringing new life into this world. At some point, I started to blame myself and the guilt set in. Did I wait too long? Is it my diet? Should I have worked out more? Then you realize that there is nothing you could have done to prevent this from happening.
When I went into private practice and decided to work with couples who suffered from infertility, my husband and I were not even aware of our issues. I simply noticed that I had several close friends suffering from infertility in silence. In the black community, infertility is not a topic that you will hear discussed often. Yet the statics state, 1 in 8 couple suffers from infertility. I watched my friend suffer in silence with no one to process their depression and anxiety that was linked with their infertility. Their thoughts of feeling less than a woman and not being able to give her husband the family they’ve always wanted. I decided to step in and fill that void and to start the conversation on infertility. I wanted to let other women know that they were not alone and that there were other women out there suffering too. I started to get involved in a movement and a community not knowing that I was not only going to be a the very individual that I set out to serve. My husband and I are now 1 of 8 couples fighting to start a family.
Soon after our wedding my husband and I tried to conceive on our own. We always talked about how we wanted a big family as we both come from big families. We simple love children and believe that they are our legacy. When we saw that we were not able to conceive naturally, we went to an infertility specialist and conducted all the necessary tests. That is when we were informed that we would need IVF in order to conceive; we were devastated. Then, we were hit with another blow when we found out that our insurance did not cover any treatments or medications. Here we are, my husband is active military, and I am social worker working with the infertility population and now we needed help and are unable to access it. Along with the shame and guilt of not being able to conceive, we now had to deal with the financial aspect of this illness. I called my insurance company several times to see if they would cover my procedure, but each time I was denied. We tried to buy additional coverage, but this option is not available in the state of Florida. Finally, through many sacrifices, we were able to save enough money for one IUI cycle, however that cycle was not successful and financially, I am not sure if our family can afford another round at this time. Never in my mind, would I have ever thought that I would be battling internally and externally to experience motherhood.
I am afraid I am running out of time and will not be able to have the family my husband and I so desperately desire. Please consider helping my husband and I. This would immensely bless myself, my family, and the clients I serve. To show others, that there is hope, resources and opportunities to help women like us bear children. Your help would resuscitate the hope that was stifled from the troubling news we continued to receive in our attempts to conceive. While my husband is out fighting for our country, telling him we received enough money to cover our IVF treatment would be the best news I could ever give him when he calls, aside from me telling him we are finally expecting. I would love to tell him that I am carrying the legacy he is fighting for and begin the process of fertility once again with your help.
When I went into private practice and decided to work with couples who suffered from infertility, my husband and I were not even aware of our issues. I simply noticed that I had several close friends suffering from infertility in silence. In the black community, infertility is not a topic that you will hear discussed often. Yet the statics state, 1 in 8 couple suffers from infertility. I watched my friend suffer in silence with no one to process their depression and anxiety that was linked with their infertility. Their thoughts of feeling less than a woman and not being able to give her husband the family they’ve always wanted. I decided to step in and fill that void and to start the conversation on infertility. I wanted to let other women know that they were not alone and that there were other women out there suffering too. I started to get involved in a movement and a community not knowing that I was not only going to be a the very individual that I set out to serve. My husband and I are now 1 of 8 couples fighting to start a family.
Soon after our wedding my husband and I tried to conceive on our own. We always talked about how we wanted a big family as we both come from big families. We simple love children and believe that they are our legacy. When we saw that we were not able to conceive naturally, we went to an infertility specialist and conducted all the necessary tests. That is when we were informed that we would need IVF in order to conceive; we were devastated. Then, we were hit with another blow when we found out that our insurance did not cover any treatments or medications. Here we are, my husband is active military, and I am social worker working with the infertility population and now we needed help and are unable to access it. Along with the shame and guilt of not being able to conceive, we now had to deal with the financial aspect of this illness. I called my insurance company several times to see if they would cover my procedure, but each time I was denied. We tried to buy additional coverage, but this option is not available in the state of Florida. Finally, through many sacrifices, we were able to save enough money for one IUI cycle, however that cycle was not successful and financially, I am not sure if our family can afford another round at this time. Never in my mind, would I have ever thought that I would be battling internally and externally to experience motherhood.
I am afraid I am running out of time and will not be able to have the family my husband and I so desperately desire. Please consider helping my husband and I. This would immensely bless myself, my family, and the clients I serve. To show others, that there is hope, resources and opportunities to help women like us bear children. Your help would resuscitate the hope that was stifled from the troubling news we continued to receive in our attempts to conceive. While my husband is out fighting for our country, telling him we received enough money to cover our IVF treatment would be the best news I could ever give him when he calls, aside from me telling him we are finally expecting. I would love to tell him that I am carrying the legacy he is fighting for and begin the process of fertility once again with your help.