Real Life Stories: Christina’s IVF Story

My IVF story used to sound like something out of a fairy tale, a story that many admired.

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We fell in love, got married, wanted to have children, conquered the obstacles in our way and had a beautiful child. We were united and strong. About two years later, after a few obstacles, along came another child. That was one chapter of my life story.

‍Then, the girl I loved fell for another girl and I was devastated. I was heartbroken, shattered and served with divorce papers.  My dreams of having a big family were still there, but clouded by overwhelming feelings and it took time for me to find myself again. I was navigating this new life of being alone and having my kids half of the time, but I was determined to get through it. I built myself back up, slowly but surely and I became stronger. Everything was clear again and the path to wanting more children began. This time, however, I had to involve lawyers and courtrooms, in order to claim the rights for the embryos I’d produced. My eldest daughter kept asking me when would she have another sister or a brother? I had no answer for her, or for myself. One day, I thought.

‍Finally, the day came when I felt like all the waiting had paid off, the embryos that my body had miraculously produced were mine. It had taken two egg retrievals to get those viable eggs and two rounds of IVF to get those embryos. I cried tears of joy, knowing that I could now try to get pregnant again. However, it wasn’t long after I got the news that the embryos were being taken back to court! Again? How? I cried until it hurt. I felt helpless. Was I ever going to be able to start this journey? I had spent so much time building myself back up, only to feel knocked down again.

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‍I didn’t stop pursuing my dream. While my lawyers fought for my embryos, I decided I would try again. I would start a new IVF journey. It wasn’t what I wanted to do, but maybe what I had to do. Doing this process seven years later, showed me how much had changed. My body had not only aged seven years, but the process itself was different. There were different medications and protocols. I went to the same place, but even the procedure room was different. Everything just felt foreign. Thankfully, the faces of my nurse and doctor were the same. I felt comfort knowing that they would help me to achieve my dreams. I thought I would get tons of viable eggs, as the ultrasound showed I had thirteen follicles and ten appeared mature. I was excited, but also nervous. I remember that moment of going to sleep before they retrieved the eggs in the procedure room. In those few seconds, I felt such calm.  It felt like no matter what happened,...