MY IVF EXPERIENCE

My husband and I decided, after careful consideration and family discussion, that another addition to our family of 4 was something we all wanted whole heartedly.

After my second child I had got my ‘tubes clipped’ (technical term!), at 30 years old. On deciding to have my 3rd child I was 37. We went to our doctor who weighed up different options with us. We decided on IVF as to attempt to reconnect tubes was a complicated surgery and rates of success were low. IVF seemed a better option. So I began preparing my body for ‘growing’ my little person and the onslaught of medication required for IVF. There are many websites that you can visit that fully describe this process; I was taken care of by the Queensland Fertility Group in Australia.

There were three main aspects of my preparation. These included:

. Gaining support from my close friends and family, who all agreed to see this baby as already choosing to be here and the IVF process and pregnancy as being successful. There was never any negative talk around me of it not being ok this time or a failed attempt.

. Preparing my body, being in optimal health. Eating right, clearing out any ‘toxins’ from my body (detoxing) and supportive supplement programme. I researched anything I could find on programs that were being found to be successful in this area of nutritionally preparing your body for pregnancy and also natural hormonal balancing programs to minimise possibilities of miscarriage.

· I created ‘wish posters/vision boards’ of pregnancy and babies, positive affirmations to support already enjoying a healthy pregnancy, I memorised each stage of what the IVF process was preparing my body for and also foetal development and when this time arrived already imagined my body doing that exact thing. My husband and I went and bought a pram knowing that our baby would be in it in approx 9 months.

I was so excited I shared this with my carers/nurses at the fertility clinic. They were amazing, however often talked in what I considered the negative. When I bought this up to them they said it was part of what they had to do as they were being realistic with patients to lessen their pain and reduce their hope in case it didn’t happen. This didn’t wash with me and I was very disappointed by this particular attitude. I am a firm believer in what we can see in our minds we can achieve in our lives. I also talked to them about my research and usage of nutritional methods. Again they kindly dismissed my findings as being overall unproven and possibly ineffective.

I also found this carried through on confirmation of pregnancy. They said that they do not view it as successful until the 12 week mark and heartbeat is checked. I can understand their logic, however again this bought up fear rather than joy. Not good for mother or baby at this point I believe. So I decided to keep up my 3 step regime and know that my baby and I were growing together each day.

My preparations before partaking in IVF programme were to detox my body. You can find a method that seems right for you, based on advice from an appropriate professional in this area. I found that eating lots of fresh food, taking a good quality natural mineral supplement, multivitamin and powerful antioxidant was purposeful. I also took an essential fatty acid supplement (for hormonal balancing) and a supplement that included Co-enzyme Q10 (to promote a healthy womb lining) supportive. I also increased protein in my diet support egg production. I used a wild yam cream to promote hormonal balance and create ‘good eggs’. I exercised regularly and drank about 2 litres of water daily. I reduced caffeine intake (am a tea lover, so chose not to cut it out completely!). Our diet was already predominately organic as my eldest son has chemical and food intolerances, so this was supportive.

Upon testing my husband and I had no fertility issues other than our age (their opinion!), and due to my mind and body preparations the IVF drugs they gave me took too well. My dose was reduced and I ended up enduring painful ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome. This was overcome and many healthy eggs were harvested. My husband did his part, and then the little eggs and swimmers joined to become the beginning of my amazing son.

I kept up my mineral and multivitamin and wild yam regime during pregnancy. I also kept up a ‘healthy pregnancy’ routine to support my baby’s growth. In the last 3 months I took an essential fatty acid supplement to support a few different things as well as baby brain development and a good quality pro biotic to support good bacteria in my stomach and for baby and delivery channel. Apparently IVF babies and babies of older mothers are generally smaller in size – this wasn’t our experience.

So on the exact due date, our beautiful 3rd child came ‘flying out’ into the world.

The medications/drugs required for IVF threw my system out. I am still attempting to get my weight down again (2 years on) and rebalance my hormones. However, this was a small price to pay for the wonderful human being we welcomed into our world. My other children (11yrs and 13 yrs) love him to bits and I find that this time I am a more patient and confident parent.

Always consult with an expert in this field and research credible information when going through or considering any fertility treatment.

"Your future depends on many things , but mostly on you."
Kirsty – http://www.unity-qld.com.au/