The case studies published by assistedconception.org have been written by individuals and couples experiencing fertility problems. Writing your own case study can be a very cathartic experience and can often release inner tensions and anxieties.
We always welcome new case studies. To have yours published, or if you would like to be put in contact with any of the authors, please email gillian@assistedconception.org.
After 3 failed cycles of IUI, I had more or less resigned myself to the fact that IUI was not for us, as it isn’t for many couples, and that we would have to move onto IVF for any chance of having a baby. During my 3rd cycle of IUI, I had been very positive up until the 2nd week of my 2 week wait. By this time I had a feeling that it hadn’t worked and for a few days after this I was extremely low. I just kept telling myself that everything will work out when we moved onto IVF after our next cycle.
A diagnosis of ‘unexplained’ infertility felt to me, like no diagnosis at all. How can I know how to feel or what to expect when the medical profession pretty much says ‘dunno’? I have met couples facing many different challenges to their becoming parents and each brings its own problems and issues. When a diagnosis can be determined, so can a course of action. My experience of ‘unexplained’ infertility was that you start at the beginning with every test under the sun, and work your way through the treatments on offer starting at the least invasive and working your way up; a very time consuming business.
When my husband and I decided to start trying for a family a couple years ago we never thought for a moment that there would be any problems with conceiving. However, as the months passed without success, we began to suspect that there could be something wrong. About this time my periods, which had always been a bit of nightmare, became dramatically worse with every passing month. I searched the internet to try and find an explanation for some of the more worrying symptoms. It was during this search that I came across the term Endometriosis.
Our story started three years ago. At the time of my 30th birthday in Nov 2001, I came off the pill to see what would happen. I started taking folic acid and reducing my alcohol intake within reason and just got on with life without thinking much more about it. As the months slipped by, my cycle kicked back into line and every four weeks my period would arrive.
Background
My client was 29 years old and had been on the combined pill for approximately 11 years. When she came off the pill to start a family, she discovered that her periods were very erratic and were sometimes up to 12 weeks apart. After 12 months, her GP referred her to hospital for tests. These tests revealed that she was not ovulating. She then began hormone treatment and took Clomiphine for 6 months in order to kick-start ovulation. However, this treatment was unsuccessful, and Suzanne was then transferred to the waiting list for IUI (intra-uterine insemination).
As a teenager I had the dreams that most girls had. I never imagined being a career person, my ambitions were to be happily married with four children, live in a quiet village, roses round the door etc… fairy tale!
I was diagnosed with Endometriosis when I was 20 and was given minimum treatment for it. Four months before I was due to marry I saw my consultant again, who advised me that as I was going to start trying for a family soon after my wedding he was not prepared to treat me further. He was very rude and dismissive and I was too naive to fight so I walked out of his office without even thinking of the consequences.
The desire to have a family had always been with me since my marriage in 1999. My wife Tracey, however, did not feel ready for this huge commitment. When the time came that both of us were ready to start trying, Tracey came off the pill and we both felt that it would only be a matter of time before we announced a pregnancy. In the first 6 months we were unsuccessful, and Tracey felt she should go to the doctors. Her main question was whether or not her irregular periods were affecting our chances. The doctor suggested that Tracey should try a course of Clomid, designed to make her more fertile. We were told that if she wasn’t pregnant within six months we were to return to see him.
Helen and I were married in August 1991. After a few years, we decided to try for a family and expected that children would come along naturally. This did not happen as we thought it would. We buried our heads in the sand hoping that things would change, they didn’t and eventually decided to go for help.
Investigations showed that Helen had some problems and it was suggested that we consider assisted conception, specifically artificial insemination. In December 2003 we received an appointment from the NHS for 2nd June 2004.
I must have read a hundred personal accounts of other people’s Infertility Treatment in publications and websites over the 6 years of my own quest for a baby, and the comforting thing is that in some way, I have been able to identify with every one of them. Every one’s journey is different with it’s own twist and turns, bumps and hurdles, but the aim is the same for all of us, we all want to be parents. We all fantasise about that day when we hold our baby for the first time and feel that unconditional, all consuming love that we have longed to feel.
Background
As a little girl you grow up dreaming of getting married and having children, the maternal instinct is in us all, it’s what we are designed to do physically, mentally and emotionally!
I was no different to any other kid except I always though that my path to motherhood would not be straight, I don’t know why, I just always had this gut feeling.
Our IVF Adventure - Part 1, Acceptance
Our journey into the realms of assisted conception began after a laparoscopy confirmed what I had suspected for some time, that I had endometriosis. I was 27, my husband Gary 29 and we had been trying to conceive for about a year. I had always suspected that something wasn’t quite right with me, but after numerous GP’s told me I was merely a ‘cyber-chondriac’ I had just about convinced myself that things would be fine. It was almost a relief then to be told that my fears were justified, but it was a shock to be told that the disease was at an advanced, severe stage, and that I was probably also suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome to boot.
Introduction
Throughout the last 10 years I have come to terms with infertility and our journey into fertility treatment. It has been at times, an emotional roller coaster and an experience that has left me feeling empowered, educated and confident with our life choices. I can say with honesty that what has shocked and surprised me most throughout, was not my diagnosis and treatment, but the way in which people close to me have dealt with this. Some have surprised me in a very positive way, some more negatively, and other than the most obvious, this can often be one of the most difficult things to deal with, particularly during fertility treatment. As ironic as it may seem, our lives have been changed in some special way, with all that we have endured. Had we not been through all that we have, I would never have met so many caring and special people who have touched me in a way that I will cherish for all of my life.
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