I have shared some personal things lately about our rainbow son Mac. You can enjoy his birth story here. What is a rainbow baby you ask? That is a living child you birthed after you have suffered a miscarriage or death of a child. Today, I want to talk about my infertility journey that luckily lead to our son Mac.
“This is a sponsored conversation from Mums the Word Network and The Stork OTC. All opinions are my own.”
About 1 in 8 couples suffer from infertility. Many of these couples require different treatments, procedures or medications to conceive a child. None of these are a happy experience unless of course they result in a child. If you have struggled with infertility you will understand just how humbling it is. I understand! I was were you are reading this about 10 years ago.
I watched my friends and family members welcome children into their lives almost effortlessly. From a young age I was diagnosed with a condition that unbalances my hormones. Because of this my body creates cysts and tumors all over my bodies. Since they would grow to large sizes they required surgeries to be removed. At age 18 I lost first ovary in a surgery. In recovery I had to go back under the knife due to internal bleeding and have my tube removed.
At age 22 I was told I need a total hysterectomy.
I owned a home, I had a good job and all I ever wanted was to be a Mom. I just knew I loved children and could offer them so much. I decided to try insemination before I no longer had the ability too. My doctor agreed that getting pregnant would help balance my hormones and help in a way with my condition. I took to researching and getting on a schedule. What you might not know trying to get pregnant is NOT easy if you physically can’t. You can try and try but sometimes it just doesn’t work. You have to figure out your period cycles, ovulating cycle and best days to try. After a while it becomes a bunch of numbers, dates and romance has gone out the window. Not to mention you get injections, hormones to help amp your body up and get pregnant. They hurt, appointments take time and it is so humbling. Think about doing pap smears every week and think if you would enjoy that?
Getting in home kits like this Stork OTC are wonderful! Saves you having to bare all more frequently and you can find them in your local Target store (They currently have a Buy 2 kits between July 16-19th and get a $30 Target gift card). My first attempt ended in a Miscarry. I was so devastated. I knew it was going to be a trying journey but loosing a child is hard. Having a miscarry is an emotional rollar coaster but I was determined to keep trying.
My second attempt ended in an ectopic pregnancy with twins. I was rushed to the hospital and immediately taken in to have them removed from my tube. Basically your egg has fertilized in your fallopian tube. After that I was told I would never have a child on my own without IVF. My third and final try was my rainbow child pictured above. He is 8 years old now. He truly fills my soul with more joy than you can possibly imagine. He is a fighter by all accounts and worth every single tear I shed trying to have him!
If you are struggling with infertility I know what you are going through. You are embarrassed, ashamed and think it is YOU. Biologically it could be but realistically it’s nothing YOU can change physically. It is the hand you were dealt. You feel like you see so many pregnant people and you are alone. YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Find others who have gone through this and connect. I personally found the STORK OTC community. I talked to other Moms and let me tell you it HELPS! We will be hosting a Twitter party on July 20th at 8pm EST using #TTCwithStorkOTC.
Connect with others in your position, ask questions and don’t give up!
So strong of you to share your story!!! So many women go through this and it's so important for them to know they aren't alone!!!
I'm so sorry for your struggles but so thankful you can share your story. I'm sure it will help many people!
Oh my, 1 in 8! That's a crazy stat! I hope your story can help other families!
Your story is so touching. I'm so sorry for your losses up to the point of having your son. Thank god you have him now!
Thank you so much for being so strong and sharing your story with us. I'm so glad more women are speaking up about this. Bless you and your family!
What a beautiful, honest and vulnerable thing you've done by sharing your story. I can't imagine how many women you have helped and encouraged
I'm sure this story will keep many women inspired on their own journeys. Infertility is much more common than most people realize. You are not alone!
Thank you so much for sharing your story! You are so strong and so many will be so encouraged reading this. And Mac is adorable!
Thank you for sharing your story. I can't image what you have gone through. I am so happy you got your rainbow baby!
I recently blogged about my infertility journey as well! Thank you for being brave and stepping out to talk about this and break the silence
What a beautiful story! I am at that age where a lot of my friends are getting pregnant and some have ended up having miscarriages, so I know that it can be incredibly devastating to lose a child. I think it's wonderful that you never gave up on what you wanted and that you now have a sweet 8 year old! I love that you are reaching out to help others who are struggling with this, too — thank you so much for sharing this!
You story is so touching, thank you so much for sharing! This will help many women and families struggling with infertility.
You are so brave to share your precious story. Know that you are not alone.
Very courageous of you to share your story. I know many women who have been through something similar for various reasons, age, PCOS, etc. It is good to have a community to talk to and find information.
Thank you for sharing, gah it is so hard to watch people you love getting pregnant and having their beautiful families. I am truly happy for them, but it does hurt.
Your story is so inspiring- thank you for sharing. What a blessing it is for women to be able to overcome such trying obstacles and birth a child in the end! Thank you for sharing your journey- I wish you the best!!
Thank you for sharing your story. My daughter is a rainbow baby, and it took us two years to conceive her. We went through tons of testing, and a miscarriage, and finally conceived using ovulation medication. I still feel lucky even after all that.
Thank you for sharing your story. It took us two years to conceive my daughter. We went through tons of testing, and suffered a miscarriage, but finally conceived using medication. I still feel we are one of the lucky couples even after all of our struggles!
Thank you for bringing even more awareness to this issue. While I didn't struggle with infertility, we've had several miscarriages and each is just as painful as the last. Thankful for our rainbow baby too. <3 Love to you, mama!