Our Infertility Journey

Our goal as a family has always been to have a large family. We both come from large families and have strong feelings about this. A month after we got married, we found out I was pregnant and I was so thrilled all our dreams were coming true! Then at 7 weeks, I miscarried. I was devastated! It was so hard. I still don't think I have recovered completely from that loss. Right away I joined the EAGeR Trial Study to see the "effects of Aspirin on Gestation and Reproduction." I took a baby aspirin and folic acid every day, tracking my ovulation and freezing urine samples. It was crazy, but helped me feel like I was doing everything possible to get pregnant. It took 6 months, but worked! I was once again pregnant. 

Everything proceeded well until the 20-week ultrasound that showed one side of the hard was twice the size of the other. Then we started lots of tests, more ultrasounds, getting genetic histories, an amniocentesis, and finally in-utero echo cardiograms at Primary Children's Hospital. This was a really scary time for us and we were worried about Elliott. We made plans to deliver at the University of Utah hospital to be closer to Primary's. We thought he had a coarctation of the aorta and would need heart surgery a week after birth. I had an emergency c-section on November 5, 2009 and after hearing a brief cry, Elliott was whisked through the NICU window and I didn't get to see him for several hours. It turned out he had Pulmonary Hypertension and would not need surgery and after 3 weeks and 1 day in the hospital, we took Elliott home on oxygen and with medication. By 6 months he was off the medication and oxygen and at his 3-year check-up, he didn't have any signs of Pulmonary Hypertension anymore. He outgrew the condition and has been healthy and active and perfect in every way. We called him our miracle baby!

(About 2 hours after birth Brian met Elliott and took pictures to show me in recovery.)

One of the many echo cardiograms Elliott had in the hospital.

 Color-coordinated with Mommy.

 Feeling blessed on Elliott's blessing day!

We wanted more children and after a year of trying to get pregnant with no success, we went to the doctor. I first took clomid for 3 months and when that didn't work, we had Brian take in a semen sample. The results came back with zero sperm so the test was ordered again. That test also showed zero sperm so we visited a urologist in Layton who referred us to a reproductive urologist in Provo, who after getting back blood test results, then referred us to an endocrinologist where Brian underwent an MRI to make sure it wasn't a pituitary tumor that was causing this. Luckily it wasn't a tumor. We then skipped right to the top and consulted Dr. Hammoud at the Utah Center for Reproductive Medicine. We mostly figured out that Brian's medications he has been taking for the last 10 years may have caused his testosterone levels to plummet and other levels to rise, resulting in no sperm. At this point we again called Elliott our miracle baby!

Dr. Hammoud put Brian on HCG injections for 7 months and when new tests still showed zero sperm, they did a testicular biopsy and found sperm to freeze for use for In Vitro Fertilization.  I cried  a lot after learning we couldn't get pregnant naturally and thought In Vitro was not an option due to high costs and I originally thought there was only a 30% chance of success. We gathered a lot more information and found the UCRM's success rates to be over 50% per attempt and they also offered a shared risk guarantee program where we could pay more initially and then get most of our money back if it failed. Their procedure started by retrieving and fertilizing the eggs and implanting 2 fresh embryos and freezing the rest. We then could use up the frozen embryos until we got pregnant-or save the frozen embryos for future pregnancies. If we used up all the frozen embryos and didn't end up with a live birth, then most of our money would be refunded. Suddenly we had hope again and started moving forward with IVF plans in May of 2013. On an initial screening, we found I had a polyp in my uterus that would need to be surgically removed before moving forward. I went to my regular doctor and  had the polyp removed in August 2013. After recovering and waiting for my cycle to start, we began the IVF process. 

This started with beginning birth control to even out my hormones and getting everything to the right levels. Then in October, I began lupron shots daily in my tummy. Then I stopped the birth control and added in more hormones to develop multiple eggs. After a few more weeks, I began going in for ultrasounds to check on egg development. On the second ultrasound, the doctor found the polyp had regrown most likely due to all the hormones I'd been injecting. This would put another delay for IVF, for me to have the polyp removed before implanting the embryos. And we could not implant fresh embryos, our only option would be the frozen cycle. But we continued the shots to get as many eggs as we could. 

(The last night of shots I had to combine the leftover from 3 pens, plus the 2 other shots, all in my tummy,)

 All the paraphernalia with the injections! (Elliott told me he didn't want a shot because he didn't want a baby in his tummy. I had to tell him that would never happen for him.)

The egg retrieval was on November 15 and they were able to retrieve 20 eggs. Of those, 16 were mature and were fertilized. After growing for several days, 6 reached the blastocyte stage and were frozen for future use. I then recovered from the procedure. I developed a mild case of ovarian hyper-stimulation which was extremely uncomfortable. My ovaries were so large that they began leaking fluid into my abdomen and it stretched and swelled and for several days, I was going in for ultrasounds and was miserable. Then happily, I started feeling better and it was better that we had time after the retrieval before implanting the embryos. In the end of December, I went in again to have the polyp removed, this time with Dr. Hammoud and it went well. Then I had to recover and wait to start the cycle over again. I felt like we were getting really good at waiting. Still moving forward, but still waiting. 

In February, I began birth control and lupron shots again. Then I added in a hormone pill and stopped the birth control. After a few weeks I went in for an ultrasound and scheduled a day to transfer 2 of the embryos. I stopped the lupron shots and began progesterone injections. On March 19, we went into the clinic to transfer 2 of our frozen embryos that had been thawed into my uterus. The process was amazing! I laid on the table and they opened the lab door where we could see a microscope. They showed the view on a tv on the wall and we could see the microscopic embryos. The embryologist then sucked up the embryos in a catheter and carefully carried it to our room. The transfer took only a minute and then they checked the catheter under the microscope to make sure they didn't get stuck. I then laid there for 30 minutes, then came home for a few days of bed rest. It went very well and was miraculous to watch the process!

(Our 2 embryos magnified a ton!)

We then had to wait 10 days until I went in for a blood test to find our if it worked and if I was pregnant. I rested a lot and took things carefully. I mentioned to Elliott that I was scared the dots in m tummy weren't going to become babies. He asked if everyone was careful with my tummy. I said yes. He asked if I had holded still. I said yes. He said, then they will be babies! His faith was so simple and trusting! On Monday, March 30, Brian and I went in for the blood draw. Then we went out to breakfast with Elliott and Brian's mom Lorraine. We went back to her house to take a nap and await the results. The nurse called just before 11 to congratulate us that we were pregnant! It was such a relief! My HCG level needed to be over 100 for pregnancy and it was at 240. Then I came back on Wednesday for another blood draw. The nurses wanted the level to double, but it tripled, coming in at 614. We were hoping the higher levels meant it was twins. We had to wait 2 more weeks for the viability ultrasound and to see if it was 1 baby or twins. I started feeling a little more nauseated and was really happy to feel sick! I just wanted to be pregnant. 

 And finally, after more than 3 years of wanting to be pregnant, I am!

Our ultrasound picture, showing the dark circle as the sack and the small blob in the upper left of the dark circle is the baby. We could barely see the flicker of the heartbeat, but we could definitely hear it. It was a beautiful and precious moment. The heartbeat also decreases chance of miscarriage to 5% at this point.

 I love the little card the nurses framed the ultrasound picture in. The text at the bottom reads, "Our first delivery is hope."

 I was a little disappointed it wasn't twins, since we still want a large family and it is hard to have to go through this entire process! But we still have 4 frozen embryos left and it is infinitely less expensive to implant frozen embryos than to start the entire IVF process over. So we still have a chance to have even more children and it may be better to have one now instead of two. I do know that the Lord had a plan for our family and that things do work to our benefit and I am trying to have faith in that. I am feeling so very blessed that we were able to work with great doctors and nurses and that it is possible to achieve pregnancy this way. I am so very blessed to have had one miracle baby in Elliott and am humbled to have a chance for another miracle baby. 

Elliott is ready and excited to be a "Big Bro Super Hero!"