Hello all, if you have opened this and are willing to read my story, thank you. For those of you who really know me, you know my ultimate goal is to have children of my own. A dream to be able to hold my newborn baby in my arms with awe and wonder and so much love. For many years I have dreamed of the traditional way to have a family, from the husband, to the white picket fence, to creating a family that I could only dream of. But then came the diagnosis which required me to refigure my original dream. Testing and receiving the positive gene test for Huntington’s Disease after watching my father fight for years, and ultimately lose his battle with the disease. Knowing that any biological children I have would have a 50% chance of inheriting the disease as well. But there was the light at the end of the dark tunnel, that there was a way my babies could be saved from HD, and that is IVF. So I am here, asking for help. Accepting that this is not something I can do on my own. Going through the process of In Vitro Fertilization, and by testing the embryos created with Pre-Implantation Genetic Testing, I have the chance to have a child/children that are Huntington’s Disease free. That I do not have to worry about passing this fatal gene to those I am meant to protect. And that they do not have to worry about if they possess the same fate.

But unfortunately, this option comes at a very high cost. One round of IVF, which includes the stimulation meds, the egg retrieval, the fertilization and embryo development, the genetic testing, and the embryo transfer, costs $15,000 - $20, 000 for ONE cycle. A high financial burden for the chance to experience what others can do naturally. The entire financial burden will be falling on me, as I am pursuing this as a single woman, and utilizing a sperm donor to create my embryos. I do not enjoy asking for help, but I’m not sure what else to do. Knowing that I have this gene and will develop HD in the future, I have never been more determined to have as much time with my future children as possible, but that is requiring IVF with a donor. I want my children to have as many good years with me as they can get, and I have come to terms with the idea of this not being what I dreamed of my whole life. But I am willing to go through heartache and pain, and travel thousands of miles, for the chance of a pregnancy with an unaffected child. They say that the strongest women become the strongest mothers before their children are even conceived. I have never been more sure of anything in my life than I am knowing that I am meant to be a mom, that I am ready for this adventure, and that I am unbelievably excited to begin!

Be a piece of my IVF story! I will be buying a 1000 piece puzzle, in which I will write the initials or names of all who donate on the back of the pieces and then after it is complete, placing it in a double sided frame which will hang it in the nursery so baby H will know how much they are loved. They will know just how much their mom was willing to go through to bring them into the world. Each puzzle piece is $10, buy one or many if you are able. A donation of any amount is greatly appreciated. They say it takes a village to raise a child, and I am reaching out to my village for help. If you’ve read this far, I could never say thank you enough. This GoFundMe account is the primary option for donating, but you can also utilize my Venmo @Marissa-Hagen-3.

Love,

Marissa and future baby H