Starting at the beginning....

So I have decided to start at the beginning and I have tried my best to explain everything. I'm hoping that none of you who read this have to google anything I write about :) Please keep in mind that this is the path that God has led Nick and I down and it may not be the same for others. If any of you who do read this are struggling with infertility of any kind, I have you in my nightly prayers. The struggle is real and you are not alone!!! I apologize in advance if some of this is a little "book" like. I just want y'all to be well informed :). Happy reading!!!!

To understand a little more about infertility, let me explain "infertility." Infertility is defined as one who cannot conceive a baby. It is grouped into two categories. Primary infertility is when a couple has been trying for one year, without the use of contraceptives, and has not become pregnant or has become pregnant but is unable to carry the pregnancy to a live birth. Secondary infertility is the inability to become pregnant, or to carry a pregnancy to term, following the birth of one or more biological children without the use of reproductive technologies or fertility medications.


There are many, many causes of infertility in women, including but not limited to: autoimmune disorders, cancer or tumor, clotting disorders, diabetes, growths such as fibroids and polyps, birth defects that affect the reproductive tract, excessive exercising, eating disorders and poor nutrition, drinking too much alcohol, obesity, older age, poly cystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), scarring from sexually transmitted infections/previous abdominal surgery/endometriosis, smoking, thyroid disease, or too little or too much of certain hormones . Male infertility may be for several reasons including the following: decreased sperm count, spermatozoa being blocked from being released, sperm that do not work properly, being in high heat for prolonged periods, birth defects, cancer treatments, environmental pollutants, heavy use of marijuana/alcohol/cocaine, impotence, obesity, older age, retrograde ejaculation, scarring from sexually transmitted diseases, smoking, too little or too much hormones, and vasectomy to name a few.


Our journey with infertility:


In October of 2012 Nick and I decided that we would stop birth control and start trying to have a baby. We were excited for this new chapter in our lives. We were approaching 5 years of marriage and had done most of the things that we had wanted to do - we travelled, bought a house and established ourselves in our careers. This was something I had been waiting for since we got married. I have always wanted to be a mom!!!

When I was 17, I had a bit of a scare. I remember I was supposed to go bowling with my then boyfriend and I could barely walk down our stairs. Thinking I had appendicitis, my parents took me to the hospital. I was put through multiple tests. Finally they did an ultrasound of my abdomen and they found 7 cysts on my ovaries. Apparently 3 or 4 of them had ruptured which was causing the severe pain in my abdomen. I was on pain meds and kept for observation from Friday night until Monday. It was scary and maybe it was my first instinct that I would have difficulty getting pregnant.

Fast forward to March 2013, I turned 30 and took a trip to Europe with a bunch of fabulous ladies which included my mom and mother in law. We had a blast and when I got back it was time to take a pregnancy test. Nick and I of course had been trying for almost 6 months and nothing. I do believe I had a chemical pregnancy that month. My period was 12 days late yet no positive pregnancy test but I was nauseated and peeing a lot. After a negative blood test, I was prescribed progesterone in order to start my period again. When this happened, I knew in my gut that something wasn't right and really wanted an answer.

On May 21 we had our first appointment with Dr. G. I didn't realize it, but I had not been to an OB in over 2 years -oops!! I do NOT recommend that to anyone. It is so important to take care of your body- especially your lady parts!!!! That being said, Dr. G did a complete work up on me. My amazing husband went with me because I had a feeling that the news would not be good.

An ultrasound of my ovaries showed that I had PCOS. Basically, my ovaries looked like chocolate chip cookies. Two round ovaries with a bunch of little spots all over them. What is PCOS you ask? Well, PCOS (poly cystic ovarian syndrome) is defined as a condition in which a woman has an imbalance of female sex hormones. It can lead to changes in your menstrual cycle, cysts on your ovaries, trouble getting pregnant, and other health changes such as the potential of becoming a diabetic or developing heart disease. With PCOS, you produce multiple follicles (hence the chocolate chip cookie appearance) but none of the follicles develop into an egg that is large enough to "drop" during ovulation. Therefore, most women with PCOS do not ovulate and therefore cannot become pregnant.


I was so relieved to have an answer. Listen to your gut people! I'm sure glad I was persistent about listening to mine. Typically a couple is encouraged to try for a year before seeking further reasoning as to why they are not getting pregnant. I shaved 6 months off my 1 year - after all, I am not getting any younger ;).

Dr. G came up with our game plan. We decided to try clomid and metformin and see how that went when I started my next cycle. Clomid is a drug used for women with PCOS. "It works by stimulating an increase in the amount of hormones that support the growth and release of a mature egg (ovulation)." (Courtesy of webmd). Metformin (glucophage) is a diabetes medicine that is sometimes used in people with PCOS. " It decreases the level of androgens produced by the ovaries and adrenal glands. It also helps the body use insulin and may reduce the risk of diabetes." (Webmd).


I stopped metformin after a month because it was making me feel pretty bad. We continued on clomid, increasing my dose every month, with some months being a bust ( as in no follicles big enough to trigger with HCG). HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) is used for final maturation induction in lieu of luteinizing hormone. Ovulation can be induced by HCG and ovulation will happen between 38 and 40 hours of injection (Wikipedia). We then moved to letrezole. Letrezole is typically used for people with breast cancer because it suppresses the excretion of estrogen. Suppressing the estrogen causes the brain and pituitary gland to increase the output of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). For women with PCOS, the increase in FSH can result in the development of a mature follicle, and in turn, ovulation.

After about 6 months of trying with Dr. G, we were referred to a reproductive endocrinologist (RE), Dr. P. We had a procedure called an HSG (hysterosalpingogram) which shows whether both Fallopian tubes are open and whether the shape of the uterine cavity is normal. Thankfully everything went well- both of my tubes were open and my uterus was normal, even though it is slightly tilted.

Dr. P had us continue with our letrezole, sono, HCG regimen but added IUI. IUI (intrauterine insemination) is a procedure that involves placing sperm inside the uterus to help facilitate fertilization. We would go in an hour before IUI and Nick would leave a sample. The sample is then "washed" so that only the best are used for the procedure. The procedure is painless. It is much like getting your annual. The RE or nurse places a sterile speculum and then uses a small tube to find your uterus. They then inject the washed sperm and you lay for about 30 minutes with the speculum in. After 30 minutes, the speculum is removed and you are free to go! We were encouraged to have intercourse several times over the next few days and return 3 days later for a HCG shot. I was also to start on progesterone that day, and we were to return 2 weeks later for a blood draw. (Progesterone is used to support the endometrial lining of the uterus. It helps the embryo(s) attach to the uterine wall after fertilization. Essentially progesterone helps maintain a pregnancy after implantation. )

After our first IUI, Nick and I took a trip to Lubbock, TX where we went to college and where we met. Texas Tech held a special banquet for veterans of war and Purple Heart recipients. My dad just happens to be a Purple Heart recipient and was recognized at a banquet. It was so amazing to hear everyone's stories and my dad really opened up that weekend, telling Nick and I war stories. On our way home to Dallas, we stopped at a gas station and I noticed that I was bleeding a little. I didn't want to get my hopes up but with all of the research I had done, this could possibly be implantation bleeding. (Implantation bleeding is a small amount of vaginal bleeding that may occur about 10 days after conception when the fertilized egg attaches itself to the uterine wall). When I came out of the bathroom I started crying and telling Nick what had happened. I told him that this could be it! We could actually be pregnant. I didn't want to get my hopes up but to be completely honest with you, I was really excited and anxious. My blood draw could not come fast enough!!!

Our first IUI was a success! I was pregnant and shortly after, miscarried. Nick and I were devastated. As I prayed, I became hopeful and as Dr. G pointed out, now we knew I could get pregnant and that was a positive. Needless to say, we had to take a break and let my body recover.

We did the same thing in late December without success. Dr. P, Nick, and I had a heart to heart. Due to insurance purposes, we made the decision to move on to injectables with IUI and if that didn't work, we would move to IVF. I loved that we now had a game plan. I was ready!!! Game on!


The start of a new year is a time of renewal for most people. Generally people make resolutions to loose weight, eat right, etc. My journal entry for January 1, 2014 says, " I think this year is going to be our year! My goal is to stay positive and to take care of myself". I then listed 5 goals with one of those goals being, " Have a full-term, healthy pregnancy and baby(ies)".

In January we started injectables. On day 3 of my cycle, I injected my abdomen with gonal-f. Gonal-f is a follicle stimulating drug. It provides FSH which helps the ovaries produce eggs. I continued injecting myself with the gonal-f every evening until day 13 in which I went in and saw Dr. P. We did a sono which showed that my follicles were almost big enough. We went in 2 days later and were told to do an HCG trigger shot the next evening and to return to the office on Monday for IUI. Nick gave me my HCG shot in my buttocks late Saturday night and we went in on Monday morning for IUI. WARNING - this may be TMI. Nick and I were done. "Trying" every month becomes very stressful and taxing on a relationship. Instead of looking forward to making love, it becomes a chore. We did the IUI and not much else since we knew we were doing IVF in February. Three days after IUI, I was started on progesterone. We were to return to the fertility clinic on February 10 for a blood draw.

We went to a wedding in Utah and I honestly let everything go and thoroughly enjoyed myself. I was with my hubby and 2 of our best friends who recently moved away. Although I did not ski per my doctors request, we still had a blast!!! When we got back, I hosted a sip and see for another bestie of mine. It was then time to go to Dr. P's for our blood draw.

The morning of the blood draw, I had to prepare myself as I have before every blood draw. I got up, peed on a stick, it was negative so I got in the shower to cry it out. This had been my routine for over a year at this point. While I was rinsing my hair, I glanced over at the stick and much to my surprise, there were two lines. I'm sorry, what!?!?!? I finished my shower and woke Nick up. "Nick, I need you to get up and pee on this stick"! He looks at me with sleepy eyes and a confused look on his face. "Babe, I just took a pregnancy test and it's positive but I don't believe it. I need you to get up and pee on this stick". Nick shot up out of bed and did as I asked. His of course was negative. I then proceeded to pee on two more sticks. It took a few minutes, but they were positive too! I tried to contain my excitement. I did not want to be disappointed again.

Waiting for my test results seemed like an eternity. After my blood draw, I went to Cafe of a Life ( my chiropractor) and got adjusted. My best friend was there with her newborn and I told her our exciting news. We both boo- hooed like babies. She has been by my side through this whole journey - even going to a doctors appointment Nick couldn't go to because he was out of town on business. A good friend of ours that we work with saw us and knew about our journey - needless to say she made an educated guess. We all ended up going to lunch together. They helped ease my nerves.

Around 5 that evening, the fertility clinic called. "May I please speak with Tiffany". "This is she," I replied. "Hi, I wanted to give you the results of your lab work". Long pause, "yes". She said, "I am happy to let you know that you are pregnant. Your HCG is 679. We need to see you back in 2 days to repeat your labs". I didn't know what to say. I was speechless. I replied, "thank you, thank you, this is the best news ever!!! We will see you in 2 days". I looked at Nick and he was beaming. This was it. We were pregnant!!!


I remember thinking that a HCG level of 679 was high. I did a little research and knew that this could mean that we had an increased chance of it being multiples. I also convinced myself that maybe we had just gotten pregnant before we thought we had. Time would tell....

We went in 2 days and my HCG was 1754. Multiples were in the back of my mind. I told Dr. G my levels and he said, "sounds like you could be having twinkies". I still shoved the thought to the back of my mind. Three days later we went in for another blood draw. My HCG this time was 10031. Wowza! We were to come in for an ultrasound the following week.

We arrived bright and early for our first sono. As we walked into the exam room, I was overcome with emotions. I felt elated, scared, nervous, anxious, and grateful. As we waited for the doctor, I laid there praying. I prayed for a healthy, term pregnancy. I prayed for peace of mind over whatever laid before us and I thanked God for this baby growing inside of me. When Dr. P walked into the room, you could tell he was extremely happy that we had gotten pregnant. As he performed the sono, he showed us the sack and our tiny little baby in the sack. He then moved his wand around and said, and here's the second one! Nick and I looked at each other and I may or may not have said, "holy sh*t". It kind of just slipped out! We all chuckled and the Dr. P said, "ok, where's the third?" I'm sorry, WHAT!!!! He did not end up finding a third sack but did find a large cyst. And he managed to freak us out!!!!

We left the fertility clinic in disbelief. Two!?!?! Wow. We hadn't completely mentally prepared ourselves for this, but never the less, we were overjoyed. All day long we kept looking and saying to each other, "there are two"! Our family jokes that we both have always been overachievers!!!

We returned weekly to the fertility clinic for sonograms. With each one we watched the babies grow bigger and bigger, and as they grew bigger, the reality became more real to us. We were having two babies!!!

At our 7 week sono, they noticed that I had a subchorionic hemorrhage. A subchorionic hemorrhage is the accumulation of blood within the folds of the chorion or within the layers of the placenta itself. The chorion is the outer fetal membrane that is next to the placenta. The placenta is an organ that connects the developing fetus to the uterine wall. The placenta allows nutrient uptake, waste elimination and gas exchange via the mothers blood supply, fights against internal infection, and produces hormones that support pregnancy (Wikipedia). These bleeds, or clots, sometimes cause the placenta to detach from the uterine wall if they get too large, if they develop in a dangerous spot, or if they aren't eventually reabsorbed. More than half of women who bleed during their first trimester go on to have perfectly healthy pregnancies, there is however an increased risk of placental abruption and preterm labor.

I was placed on bed rest for a month. At each sono they measured my bleed. Originally it measured 1 mm but got up to 2.5 mm. Luckily, I never was symptomatic (i.e. I never had vaginal bleeding) but I think that my OB was being very cautious. For starters, he knows what my job entails as a labor and delivery nurse and he knew how difficult getting pregnant had been. He did not want to take any chances and I am so incredibly thankful for that.

At our 8 week sono, we heard both of the babies heart beats. Hearing their hearts beat for the first time was like music to our ears. We started looking forward to Mondays. That was the day I was another week pregnant and it was also the day of our sonos. At 11 weeks we went in for a big sono and they made us a CD of the babies and their heartbeats. It was at this point we were released to see my OB, Dr. G.

Hopefully I was able to explain our journey - and it has only just begun!!!! Prayers for those of you who are going through this challenging time in life and thank you for taking time out of your day to read about our trip through infertility.

A little about me!

I've been contemplating starting a blog for a while now, but I never could figure out what my platform would be. Over the course of this year it has become abundantly clear as to what I should blog about. That being said, let me tell you a little about me!


I was born in Hawaii and moved about every 2-3 years due to my parents both serving in the Navy. I am an only child and loved traveling the world. We ended up in Texas in 1994 and have been here every since.


In 2001 I met my now husband at Texas Tech. We started dating in 2002 and got married in 2008. Over the years, we have done lots of traveling and enjoying each others company. Nick is my best friend, biggest supporter, and rock. I feel so blessed that God put him in my life - especially at such a young age.


In October of 2012 we decided to stop using birth control and try to start a family. I say TRY very strongly because we have been struggling with something you don't hear a lot about - Infertility. This blog is our journey - the good, the bad, and the ugly.