Patients comments - 22

Here's our personal story…

Jason and I started trying to have a baby just few months after we were married in 2004. As the months went by and we weren't having any luck, I got sick. I developed a tumor on my left ovary and had to have surgery. Due to the nature of my tumor, surgeons removed my left ovary and my left fallopian tube. During the surgery, it was discovered that I had tumors growing on my right ovary. Luckily, the doctors only had to remove half of this ovary.

Once I healed, Jason and I started looking into our options for conceiving a child. I had only one half of one ovary. Jason had given a sperm sample to make sure everything was working on his end. Turns out, it wasn't. We saw countless urology specialists and it looked like there weren't any options for us that didn't involve getting extra help. After getting Dr. Silber's name from my gynecologist, we made the appointment to meet with him. He listened to our situation and recommended that we think about IVF. We took home the packet of information, read through it all, and watched the DVD to help us better understand the process. Since this was a huge financial endeavor, we weighed our options to go through with IVF or try adopting. We knew that we had to give it a try if it was possible to have our own child. I had few eggs and my husband had few sperm.

We began the process with a sense of excitement and the worry that it might not work. As part of Dr. Silber's requirements, Jason had to have a blood test for Dr. Silber to learn more about his make up. We were dealt another blow when we learned that Jason was a carrier for a genetic defect that could end my pregnancy if I did get pregnant. At this point, we didn't know what to do.

We decided to keep going. Dr. Silber recommended that we could have a special test done on the embryos to determine which ones would have the genetic defect.

On the day we were scheduled to have our transfer, we got all of the results from the genetic testing. Four of my eggs were no good. Seven of the embryos carried the genetic defect. That only left us with four embryos. Not as many as we had hoped, but it was something.

Dr. Silber came in and showed us the pictures of our four embryos. He even told us the gender of each one, three boys and one girl. We were still waiting on the results of one of the embryos, so Dr. Silber thought it would be best to put in two of the three boy ones.

Jason and I were so excited! We thought for sure that this was going to work. Later, we went back for my blood test to find out the good news. Jason and I were driving in the car, so we pulled off and listened to our results on speaker phone. "I'm so sorry. You're not pregnant." We were shocked. I immediately burst into tears.

We decided to try one more time over the summer. We only had one embryo left. So came the time for the blood test. This time we prepared ourselves for what was to be. I had my blood drawn and we went straight home. It was harder this time to keep busy. I made Jason call to find out our results this time. He had a huge smile on his face. He kept saying, "It worked? Are you sure?"

I couldn't stop smiling. I was so convinced I wasn't pregnant and to find out I really was realize my prayers had been answered.

Our son, Lachlan, was born March 13, 2008. We just celebrated his 2nd birthday. Every day Jason and I look at him and are so grateful that he is here with us. He is truly a miracle. We owe thanks to God, Dr. Silber, and his staff for all that has been given us.

Lachlan is especially a miracle to us because I had to undergo a hysterectomy in June of 2009. He is our joy and our blessing.

Jason, Beth, and Lachlan K.
Ballwin, Missouri