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Perfectly Positive
After Years of Infertility, A Couple Digests Wonderful News By Mark Stackpole
I must confess that there was a part of me – a growing part – that thought this would never happen for us. Four years of trying, a varicocelecto my for me, a battery of tests and exams for her and ultimately, IUI for us. After our fifth round of IUI, we were just about at the end of our rope. That round involved an unsuccessful shot of Clomid, clumsily delivered by yours truly, who had to perforate his wife three times before screwing his courage to the sticking point.
Shortly thereafter, my wife developed an enormous cyst on one of her ovaries. It could have sprung up out of nowhere, but that seemed unlikely to everyone involved. Future use of injectables would have to be undertaken with the utmost care. At that point, we had begun to face the facts. Underneath all of the struggle and frustration, there was always hope underlying our efforts. "It's gotta work," we kept telling each other because the alternative was something that we were not ready to face.
The doctors had told us that they usually do five rounds of IUI before they recommend a more involved course of action. Well, we had done five, and not only had we struck out again, but there were starting to be health concerns for my wife as a result of our efforts. We still had options, but it was getting harder and harder to be hopeful about our chances.
"Do you want to take a break?" Charlotte asked me.
"No," I answered immediately. "Because if we stop now, I'm afraid we won't have what it takes to start again."
Each of us had faced significant medical intervention, a bit of dignity loss and the almost unbearable sympathy from friends and family who no longer even spoke of children in our company. We were running on emotional fumes and
Want to see more?
- "Mar k!": One Man's Story of Fertility Success
- The House Is Quiet: Loving My Niece While Waiting My Turn at Parenthood
- Preconception Abbreviations
- Crueler Than Hope: Handling the Disappointments of Trying to Conceive
- Egg Day: Taking the Next Step Toward Conception
- Fuzzy Blue Hippo: A Hopeful Dad's Wait for Conception
- Fuzzy Blue Hippo: A Letter to My Baby on the Way
