Mark & Kayleigh Infertility Fund
Donation protected
In July 2017, Mark and I started trying for a baby and after a year of no luck, resorted to our OB for answers. After a number of blood tests, a brain MRI, a semen analysis and a hysterosalpingogram (dye contrast radiograph to check the patency of the Fallopian tubes), we were told that while only having mild male factor infertility (affecting how motile the sperm are) and one of my lab tests (AMH) was lower than normal, there’s no clinical reason as to why we weren’t getting pregnant. At this point, we started adding oral ovulation-inducing medication and IUIs (intrauterine insemination) - Femara (also used to treat breast cancer). Two IUIs later starting October 2018 and still no pregnancy. At this point, it was advised to follow up with a Reproductive Endocrinologist at a fertility clinic.
We met with our IVF doctor, Dr. Daniel Shapiro, in Atlanta, GA in May 2019 and found out that my AMH does in fact play a part in why we aren't getting pregnant naturally. AMH is a precursor to egg reserve. There is clinically no way to measure egg quality, only quantity and so the AMH blood test is done to see how many eggs are formed in the ovaries. The AMH for someone in their early thirties should be 1.5 - 2 and mine was 1.2 when we met with our OB in 2018, then had dropped to 0.6 by the time we met with the Dr. Shapiro in May 2019. We were devastated...but the plan Dr. Shapiro put together for us was to use injectable gonadotropins in conjunction with an IUI. Immediately, the high cost visits started, but we had to pay out of pocket if we wanted a family - insurance does not view infertility as a covered illness, unfortunately. While monitoring my ovaries in preparation for the IUI, it was determined that I responded so well to the medications that it unsafe to do the IUI (risk for multiples was too high) and that we either cancel the cycle, wait a month then start prepping for IVF or convert the current cycle to IVF. We had already spent so much on medication and monitoring with bloodwork and ultrasounds, so we decided not to waste what we had already spent thus far and converted from IUI to IVF and our egg retrieval was scheduled. The cost for medication alone in preparation for the egg retrieval was roughly $4,500 and that was gone in 2.5 weeks! The retrieval and fertilization cost us another $14,000. The egg retrieval was scheduled for June 20, 2019 and 19 eggs were retrieved - 14 fertilized - 4 made it to the blastocyst phase and we’re then biopsied, frozen and sent for genetic testing (another $400). Not one of our embryos came back as “normal”, genetically - two were “mosaic” and scheduled to be transferred back to my uterus in August 2019, however different medications for that phase would need to be started. We picked up the $4,000 worth of medication, scheduled the embryo transfer of the two mosaic embryos and on August 20, 2019 they were implanted (another $7,000) and 5 days later they took our first pregnancy test: POSITIVE!!!! We had no idea if we had one or two babies in there but praise God, we were pregnant!
Everything was going really well until the first scheduled ultrasound on September 20, 2019 when the fetal sacs were found to be empty - we had miscarried both embryos....Roughly $30,000 later and no baby to show for it.
In order to afford all of this, we had to take out a 5 year loan to cover the IVF expenses because we simply didn’t have that kind of money and again...insurance doesn’t pay a DIME toward it.
Mark and I have recently relocated to Joplin, MO for Mark’s job and have an appointment scheduled with Dr. Clark Bundren in Tulsa, OL. The cost is estimated to be around $15,000 (without medication included).
I did receive a donation of medication (Gonal-F aka “the expensive stuff”) from a friend who completed IVF in Atlanta and is successfully pregnant, which helps tremendously. But again, we want nothing more than to be pregnant. So without help from our family and friends, we’re not entirely sure how we’re going to afford it. We intend to share photos of all bills we are required to pay and estimates we are provided. I have been informed that there will likely be more extensive genetic testing done to ensure that we are not the reason for our previous abnormal embryos.
******ANY money received from this campaign will go straight toward our next (& hopefully last) IVF cycle******
T-shirts @ $24.99 and sweatshirts @ $39.99 are available for purchasing to help show your support at:
http://bonfire.com/i-support-an-infertility-warrior-tee
https://www.bonfire.com/love-and-science-makes-a-family/
They thank you so much for your support and hope you will wear your apparel with pride in preparation for the next step!
We met with our IVF doctor, Dr. Daniel Shapiro, in Atlanta, GA in May 2019 and found out that my AMH does in fact play a part in why we aren't getting pregnant naturally. AMH is a precursor to egg reserve. There is clinically no way to measure egg quality, only quantity and so the AMH blood test is done to see how many eggs are formed in the ovaries. The AMH for someone in their early thirties should be 1.5 - 2 and mine was 1.2 when we met with our OB in 2018, then had dropped to 0.6 by the time we met with the Dr. Shapiro in May 2019. We were devastated...but the plan Dr. Shapiro put together for us was to use injectable gonadotropins in conjunction with an IUI. Immediately, the high cost visits started, but we had to pay out of pocket if we wanted a family - insurance does not view infertility as a covered illness, unfortunately. While monitoring my ovaries in preparation for the IUI, it was determined that I responded so well to the medications that it unsafe to do the IUI (risk for multiples was too high) and that we either cancel the cycle, wait a month then start prepping for IVF or convert the current cycle to IVF. We had already spent so much on medication and monitoring with bloodwork and ultrasounds, so we decided not to waste what we had already spent thus far and converted from IUI to IVF and our egg retrieval was scheduled. The cost for medication alone in preparation for the egg retrieval was roughly $4,500 and that was gone in 2.5 weeks! The retrieval and fertilization cost us another $14,000. The egg retrieval was scheduled for June 20, 2019 and 19 eggs were retrieved - 14 fertilized - 4 made it to the blastocyst phase and we’re then biopsied, frozen and sent for genetic testing (another $400). Not one of our embryos came back as “normal”, genetically - two were “mosaic” and scheduled to be transferred back to my uterus in August 2019, however different medications for that phase would need to be started. We picked up the $4,000 worth of medication, scheduled the embryo transfer of the two mosaic embryos and on August 20, 2019 they were implanted (another $7,000) and 5 days later they took our first pregnancy test: POSITIVE!!!! We had no idea if we had one or two babies in there but praise God, we were pregnant!
Everything was going really well until the first scheduled ultrasound on September 20, 2019 when the fetal sacs were found to be empty - we had miscarried both embryos....Roughly $30,000 later and no baby to show for it.
In order to afford all of this, we had to take out a 5 year loan to cover the IVF expenses because we simply didn’t have that kind of money and again...insurance doesn’t pay a DIME toward it.
Mark and I have recently relocated to Joplin, MO for Mark’s job and have an appointment scheduled with Dr. Clark Bundren in Tulsa, OL. The cost is estimated to be around $15,000 (without medication included).
I did receive a donation of medication (Gonal-F aka “the expensive stuff”) from a friend who completed IVF in Atlanta and is successfully pregnant, which helps tremendously. But again, we want nothing more than to be pregnant. So without help from our family and friends, we’re not entirely sure how we’re going to afford it. We intend to share photos of all bills we are required to pay and estimates we are provided. I have been informed that there will likely be more extensive genetic testing done to ensure that we are not the reason for our previous abnormal embryos.
******ANY money received from this campaign will go straight toward our next (& hopefully last) IVF cycle******
T-shirts @ $24.99 and sweatshirts @ $39.99 are available for purchasing to help show your support at:
http://bonfire.com/i-support-an-infertility-warrior-tee
https://www.bonfire.com/love-and-science-makes-a-family/
They thank you so much for your support and hope you will wear your apparel with pride in preparation for the next step!
Organizer
Kayleigh Erdman
Organizer
Webb City, MO