In the beginning … Trying to conceive – Part 2

Welcome to Part 2 of our trying to conceive story. Last week I shared how despite our best efforts (!!!!) we had been trying for a baby for almost a year and I was starting to get worried.

I went back to see my GP who referred us to a local IVF clinic for some preliminary fertility testing. In the meantime a friend also recommended we see a naturopath who specialised in natural fertility. Hubbie was skeptical but by this point I was prepared to do anything. If we tried alternative methods and were able to fall pregnant, I didn’t care whether it was the treatment or a placebo effect. If the end result was a baby then that is all that mattered. The naturopath created the most horrendous tasting tonic for both of us and encouraged us to cut out all caffeine and alcohol. I diluted my tonic in the biggest glass of water I could find and hubbie took his as a single shot followed by a straight cordial shooter! It still makes me laugh what we were prepared to do and even though I was sure I wanted this baby a tad more, hubbie was a good sport and diligently took his poison tonic twice a day!

We attended an initial appointment at the IVF clinic to discuss our health/medical history and were referred for some preliminary screening tests. The doctor tried to reassure us that he saw a lot of couples who came to see him after trying to conceive for 12 months and who then went on to conceive naturally, so trying for 12 months didn’t in itself mean we would have to use IVF. But after some less than favourable test results came back, it was becoming apparent that trying to conceive naturally might just not be possible for us. Maybe IVF was the road we would have to take to fulfill our dreams of starting a family. The doctor encouraged us to stay positive and booked me in for a laparoscopy in a few months’ time. Even though I was impatient to get things moving, he still wanted to give us every chance of falling pregnant by ourselves before using assisted fertility.

Before my scheduled laparoscopy, hubbie and I decided to go on a holiday to Fiji. To his surprise, I suggested there be no baby talk and no scheduled trying to conceive while we were on our holiday. This was a chance to just get away from it all, relax and take some of the pressure off our baby making efforts. We loved experiencing all that Fiji had to offer and had a wonderful time. It was nice for us both be able to enjoy time together without counting days and getting timings just right.

A couple of months after we got back from Fiji I noticed my period was a few days late, but having been through so many disappointing months before, I didn’t let myself get excited. A week went by and still nothing, so I decided to take a pregnancy test. And this time there was something different. There it was… a faint second blue line. I quickly re-read the pregnancy test instructions and a faint second line wasn’t enough to confirm a pregnancy. It could be a false alarm. Thinking that a natural conception wasn’t going to be possible for us, I dismissed the faint blue line and continued on as normal. But as the days went by, a little touch of excitement crept in, even though I was trying hard to suppress it.

I waited a whole extra week (which felt like an eternity) until I decided to take another test. WOW! There they were… two beautiful, bold blue lines staring back at me. I couldn’t believe it and stood there in shock just staring at the stick, tears welling in my eyes. Could this be it? No, surely not. It wasn’t going to happen for us this way. Could I finally be pregnant? Well, those two blue lines certainly said so!

I had to tell hubbie NOW! But wait, he had gotten home from work late last night and would be sleeping in then getting up to do another late night. But I had to go to work shortly myself and didn’t want to leave and then have to tell him over the phone. So after a moment of indecision, I thought bugger it, I’m going to wake him and tell him the most amazing news! I went into our bedroom, gently nudged him and whispered his name to wake him up. By the time he roused my voice was shaking and there were fresh tears in my eyes. He bolted upright and asked what was wrong. Smiling, I just handed him the stick. “What’s this?” he said in his still sleepy haze. You’re kidding right? You don’t know what that is? “It means we’re pregnant!” After a few moments, it sank in and we hugged sharing this amazingly special moment. Grinning from ear to ear I left him to try to go back and get some much needed sleep. I floated around the house while getting ready for work and spent so much time smiling that day I was sure someone would figure out our wonderful little secret!

We did it! This concludes our trying to conceive story. In the coming weeks, I will share with you the next stage of our parenting journey …. my first pregnancy.