My husband and I got married in 2011 and shortly after, we moved to Germany where my husband was stationed in the Army. During our first year there we did not try for kids because we did not want to have them while living overseas. We decided to start trying to conceive our last year there. Nothing happened but not giving it too much thought, we continued to try. We moved back to the states in 2014 and continued trying for two years while living in Louisiana with no luck.
By the time we moved back to Houston in 2016 and got settled, we decided to find a fertility clinic to get some answers on why I wasn’t getting pregnant. In 2017, I found my amazing doctor at Shady Grove Fertility. After meeting Dr. O’Hern and running a bunch of tests, scans, and testing my husband, all we found was I had polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Relieved to have some sort of answers, we wanted to start right away with the easiest option - timed intercourse. Unfortunately, it failed. We tried again the following month. Again, another fail. We kept trying the rest of the year not wanting to give up. Finally, by the end of the year I was told I had unexplained infertility. Dr. O’Hern was not sure as to why I was unable to get pregnant.
By 2018, she suggested we try intrauterine insemination (IUI). However, after two failed attempts and more months of timed intercourse with no success, I decided my body and mind needed a break.
By the time 2020 arrived, I had lost a bunch of weight and felt we could maybe try again. I went back to Dr. O’Hern and we went with timed intercourse again.
In July, I finally got the news I have always dreamed of hearing! After only two days of pure bliss when I went back to get some blood work, my hCG numbers had not risen much and it was declared a chemical pregnancy. We were both completely devastated but also more hopeful than we ever had been before! We tried again in September and in October we were pregnant again. My numbers were extremely high but there was concern because they were not rising at the rate they should have been. After a couple of days, I went back in to find out I had an ectopic pregnancy.
We had to terminate the pregnancy and at that point I was ready to throw in the towel. Heartbreak after heartbreak was leaving me with little hope.
I decided to hold off on trying again for a while, until I received a life changing phone call in January of 2021.
Dr. O’Hern believed it was possible for us to get pregnant through IVF. She put in a recommendation for us to participate in an IVF study and they called to tell us we had been selected! This was such a relief because we had been wanting to do IVF, but our insurance unfortunately didn’t cover it and we couldn’t pay out of pocket.
After several months of paperwork, tests, and trying to be patient, we finally started the journey. On egg retrieval day, they retrieved 24 eggs but of those 24 only nine were viable quality. When the day for the embryo transfer came my body was so exhausted and the embryo did not stick.
After more testing, Dr. O’Hern saw that six embryos had the highest chance of survival and so we froze them. After 2 months of rest, we were ready to try again.
On July 13, 2021, we transferred our highest-numbered embryo and on July 27 at 10:30 am I received the phone call with the news! We were finally pregnant AND my hCG levels were high and rising rapidly!
On March 19, 2022, at 9:15 pm we welcomed a strong, healthy baby boy! He is hands down our greatest blessing!
My advice to anyone who may be struggling is to be patient. I know, I know. This is a phrase most people going through infertility (me included) hate hearing, especially when you’re getting no good news. With the right doctor, the right medicine, and the right timing everything can start to fall into place. You just have to be patient.
Something else that I feel is just as important is a strong support system. For me, it was my husband, my sister, and a few close friends. Without them, I don’t know if I would have or could have kept going. On my hardest days, they were there. On my saddest days, they were there to lean on and they let me cry. On the happiest days, they were always the first to call! All you need is one person!
~Shelby
