GayleL's Story Part 1: Before Diagnosis Lies Uncertainty

My biggest fear in my adult life has always been not being able to have children. I’m not sure why, but it’s like I always had a feeling inside that there would be issues. I always wanted to be a Mom and certainly always wanted to experience pregnancy. It didn’t help that at the age of 27, I was diagnosed with having a huge dermoid cyst on my right ovary. So big, in fact, that my Gynecologist thought I was 5 months pregnant when examining me. So big, that it had to be taken out in sections and I was told it was the size of a basketball. As a result, there was no way to save my ovary. Despite what the doctors told me, it just seemed to validate my fears.

My DH and I were married right before my 31st birthday (and on his 29th birthday). He wanted to experience life as a married couple and thought we had plenty of time to have children. I had my fears, but I went along with his wishes. I had been on birth control pills since I was 18 (in retrospect, what a joke). I went off the pill in early Fall of 2002 and we officially started trying to conceive. I was 32 ½ at the time. As the months went by, I used all sorts of ovulation predictors…OPKs, Clear Blue Fertility Monitor, Basal body temperature thermometers, etc. Quickly we realized how baby making sex was a chore and really took the steam out of our love life. I was even giving DH monthly calendars with my potential “fertile window” highlighted on it! Real romantic!

After about 8 months of trying, we decided to at least get a sperm analysis to make sure all was well. DH went to his urologist and all came back within normal range. So, in the summer of 2003 (at age 33) I made an appointment at a local fertility clinic. We met with the RE, who recommended a battery of tests on both DH and me. Once again, DH’s tests all came back within normal range. I had blood work, which showed my FSH was great for my age, I ovulated every month, had regular periods, my tubes were clear and every other test came back normal. So we were officially diagnosed as “unexplained”.

Next ...
GayleL's Story Part 2: No real issues, but no real answers
GayleL's Story Part 3: Was it the African Fertility Statues?
GayleL's Story Part 4: How humbling the whole IVF rollercoaster can be