Even after miscarriage, failed IUIs and a diagnosis of unexplained fertility, Jolie and her husband Michael never lost their hope in having a family.
Written by Jolie M., RSC of the San Francisco Bay Area patient
I grew up in a blended family, the youngest of four girls with a whole tribe of cousins. I knew early on that I wanted kids. My husband and I were so excited when I became pregnant in 2016. Excitement gave way to heartbreak and disappointment when I miscarried shortly after. Heartbreak and disappointment grew into frustration when after almost a year of trying after that we couldn’t get pregnant.
Diet, exercise, acupuncture and trying not to stress about it because “it’ll happen” were feeling futile. I’ll spare you all the details of testing that lead to the dreaded “unexplained infertility” diagnosis. We joined the not-so-exclusive club of couples struggling with infertility.
We exhausted our options through insurance – opting to try intrauterine insemination (IUI) more times than I’d like to admit. When it was clear that this was not going to be our path to creating a family, we began our in vitro fertilization (IVF) journey with Reproductive Science Center of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Sharing my fertility journey
I have been very open about my infertility journey since I miscarried. One way that I cope with this kind of stress and sadness is by sharing my experience. It is how I discovered that MANY of my friends and even a few family members have also struggled with loss and infertility.
In fact, I now know of at least six friends and coworkers who have built their families through RSC. Our oldest daughter and her best friend were transferred one week apart at RSC. Some friendships start in daycare – some start in the freezer.
Overcoming unexplained infertility with IVF
After our initial consultation at RSC, we knew we were in good hands. Dr. Evan Rosenbluth was great at setting expectations and laying out the options. The doctors at the clinic really work together as a team to ensure all patients are taken care of.
In November of 2020, I gave birth to our daughter, Violet. She was the result of our first frozen embryo transfer (FET). We had four embryos left with which to expand our family. The plan was to have one more child.
In 2022 we underwent our second successful transfer. Sadly, it ended in miscarriage. This was followed by a failed transfer at the end of 2022. So, in early 2023, we decided to transfer both remaining embryos – hoping at least one would take.
On Christmas Day 2023, we welcomed Emma and Colin to the family. We truly felt with these additions that the family was complete.
For those thinking about and undergoing fertility treatment
It has been a long journey. There has been joy, frustration, disappointment, excitement and basically every emotion in between. To families thinking about and currently going through this journey, I see you. Keep fighting for your family. Find a space where you can share and be heard – you are NOT alone in this struggle.
After everything, I can proudly say I am an IVF mom. It’s a title that was hard-earned. I endured countless needles and meds, six rounds of IUI, two miscarriages, one massive egg retrieval, many false starts to transfers, one failed transfer and two successful transfers.
We are forever grateful to Dr. Rosenbluth and the amazing team at RSC for helping us build our family, and we can honestly say it was worth every bit of the struggle.