Hailey & Nathan

Hailey & Nathan's Story:

They say after the rain comes a rainbow, but it felt like it was just constant rainy days for us with no sunlight. We started trying for a baby at 18. We started dating as teenagers, and were married by 18, wanting to start a family. We didn’t ever think that we would endure the journey and the obstacles that we did. The first year, nothing. Timed intercourse and ovulation tests, and just negative after negative. Our OBGYN considered it normal to take up to a year to conceive, so we kept trying with no luck or medical intervention.

Finally, after the first year, I got blood work done, and everything came back normal. We had no answers, but kept trying and fighting. By the end of 2017, we decided to get a semen analysis which would then reveal the results of crytozoospermia (a very low count). All his numbers were awful, but we felt relieved to have some answers. A few months later Nathan visited a Urologist who prescribes him clomid to raise his count. His numbers were rising and we were ecstatic! We conceived naturally in August of 2018, almost two years of TTC. We told our friends and family right away, bought things, and even planned a gender reveal out of pure excitement that we finally did it. We watched our friends get pregnant and begin their families, and were so happy that it was our time to stand in front of the light. At 7 weeks pregnant, we went for our first ultrasound where they found a fetal pole with no heartbeat measuring about 5 weeks. I’ll never forget the ER doctor that walked into the room and said word for word “ your baby is dead”. They then rolled me into the hallway and I publicly cried while listening to the girl behind me receive unexpected pregnancy results. My heart was crushed.

Recovering from that loss took months and I was so embarrassed and hurt. We tried different approaches that didn’t work either. In February of 2019, I put myself on the waitlist for CNY. Our initial consult was in November of 2019, but we were so lucky to have it moved to JUNE! We discussed treatment options and got the ball rolling for our first IVF cycle. We never thought of being as young as we were that we would be able to ever afford IVF. After consulting with our local IVF clinic in Florida, they wanted 12,500 for ONE CYCLE of IVF. Just a generic cycle. No medications. No ICSI. No add ons. We began our IVF journey In October. I had scared myself so bad about going under anesthesia and having the egg retrieval done, but to be honest I would do it 5 more times, because the nap is so great! Personally, I had no pain. We did a fresh 5 day transfer that resulted in a pregnancy. Unfortunately, we had lost that pregnancy shortly after around 6 weeks. Our numbers weren’t great and the pregnancy was progressing abnormally. We gained the courage again to do another embryo transfer, where we transferred two embryos in January of 2020, and those didn’t stick either. We were out of embryos, and starting all over for a second retrieval.

We changed our protocol and didn’t give up. Giving up wasn’t an option. Our second retrieval was in March of 2020, and we got 7 eggs and only two fertilized. Let me tell you guys that the numbers, do not matter. Quality over quantity. Our first retrieval we got 5 eggs and 3 made it to blasts. We transferred a 3 day embryo March 7, and are currently 8 weeks pregnant with this little babe.

I can’t thank CNY for giving me hope when there was none. I can’t thank CNY for giving people affordable medical treatment, and recognizing that every family deserves a child. People of any age can be dealing with infertility and recurrent pregnancy loss. I’m only 21 and my partner is 24. CNY welcomes people of all ages, and I felt comfortable and never discriminated upon because of my age.
The one thing I can tell people who are fighting this battle, is to keep going. Keep fighting. If a cycle fails, try again. Don’t lose sight of the prize. We beat the odds, and you can too.