BEFORE GABRIELA - 3.5 years of TTC, 6 miscarriages
We were trying to conceive for approximately 1 year when we decided to get some tests done. But I got a positive pregnancy test just before we were to go for testing. We canceled the appointment and thought we were in the clear. At 13 weeks, I miscarried for the first time. We then set up another appointment for tests that we followed through with.
Everything looked good when the results came back, and I was told my tests were within range. Charles’ sperm count was a little low, and the doctor recommended some supplements to boost his sperm, but he said he had seen people get pregnant with a worse sperm count. I was prescribed some medicine, and we were told to start trying.
I remember feeling somewhat dissatisfied with the recommendations but hopeful that maybe we just needed the new medicine to help us get pregnant. The doctor didn’t seem concerned with Charles’ sperm count, but we picked up the supplements anyway and started TTC.
We conceived two more times, and both pregnancies ended in early miscarriages. At this point, I “qualified” for further special testing since I’d now had 3 miscarriages. The testing came back normal, and we were diagnosed with unexplained infertility.
The doctor recommended we jump right into IUI and give that a try, and if that didn’t work, then we might want to think about IVF, but he was pretty positive that IUI would work since we were both young and healthy.
We were devastated, frustrated, and at a loss for what to do. We didn’t think IUI or IVF was the answer since I could get pregnant, but I couldn’t keep the pregnancies.
There was more to it. Although I wasn’t exactly sure what to do to improve our odds, I had been researching and thought acupuncture would be a good idea, so we began that treatment and saw a local naturopath a few times. We started taking some supplements and herbs and changed to more of a Paleo style of eating.
We again got pregnant and again experienced another miscarriage. I had felt more hopeful this time because we had made some changes; however, sadly and even more frustratingly, the result was the same as last time.
We worked closely with a local naturopath and were hopeful this was the answer, but I got pregnant and lost the baby. This was now 5 miscarriages. At this point, the naturopath I saw told me she couldn’t do anymore. I couldn’t believe we were back to square one. These were some of the darkest days for my husband and me; we were there for each other, but both felt so broken, scared, and terrified that we would never become parents.
At this point, I started urgently researching what I could do. I remember feeling so hopeless and lost and just googling and reading. This was when I came across The Fertility Breakthrough Program™’s website and Gabriela Rosa’s posts and videos. I knew this was what we needed, so I sent the link to Charles for him to review it and see what he thought.
AFTER GABRIELA
After reviewing the website and reading about The Fertility Breakthrough Program™, Charles was optimistic, although it seemed too good to be true. We joined one of the introductory online programs, and I just remember sitting on the couch devouring every FB post and every FB live.
I remember repeating everything to Charles on the phone (he was away working at the time). I remember telling him this is who we needed. We had FINALLY found someone who was going to give us answers, who was going to care, and who was going to listen to us and not just push us around.
Everything changed for us at the information session. We were all set to join the entire program. It felt liberating that we knew Gabriela and the team would get to the bottom of what was not working for us as a couple.
It was great to know my husband and I were finally being thoroughly assessed instead of being told, “Keep doing the same thing and expect a different result because this is just a numbers game.” (INSANITY!!)
Also, EVERY aspect of our lives, from our diet to our environment to essentially every single thing that can impact our health and also our ability to conceive and keep a healthy pregnancy to term, was addressed.
After trying to do it all myself, it was a relief to have someone else holding my hand, walking this journey beside me. Someone I could ask all those questions forming in my mind each time I read yet another article online; someone who could explain things specific to our case, reassure me of the things that *we* needed to focus on, and the things we could ignore.
Throughout the next year or so, we met very regularly with our assigned practitioner, and I loved how she would review our test results, food, and supplements, as well as anything else that was going on for us each time, and tweak our program based on the information specific to us. However, I knew an entire team was looking at our data and developing a treatment plan. It felt so reassuring that everything was covered.
I found it quite unbelievable how many more tests we had to do that had never been requested by the other fertility specialists we had seen. Everything we were doing was making us healthier, and Charles and I could feel the incredible difference it was all making to our health.
Soon enough, we were ready to try again and started TTC naturally. It felt exciting to get the green light but also quite scary. We had come to a place mentally and emotionally that we had not been at before, and I was afraid to come out of our “healing” bubble. We had done so much work while on the program, and I liked who we had become.
We tried for many months to get pregnant, and we were not getting a positive pregnancy test. Then, we finally got one, and we thought, “This is it!”. But, just a few days later, we lost that baby. At this point, our assigned practitioner reassessed our supplements and recommended further testing. We also committed even more to the program. Charles took a couple of months off from work to relax and recharge. And it was great because he got to focus on his exercise regime and being healthy (which was sometimes hard while he was traveling for work).
One of the biggest hurdles we had yet to overcome was mental, and our life coach was stronger in helping us change our thought patterns. This was the last step we had to take to conceive and birth our beautiful baby successfully.
Charles and I both came to a place mentally where we just gave up. But I remember Gabriela talking about this once: how you stop trying but keep doing the things you know to do and work hard, and it will come to you.
Just a few short months after that last loss, we got another BFP, and this time it truly was our BFP. I remember going in for that first ultrasound after spending 10 weeks sick with morning sickness and praying for our miracle. There she was, her little heart beating on the monitor, and Charles and I looked at each other in wonder, fear, and disbelief. We cried tears of great joy. We would hold this baby in our arms and not just in our hearts.
Charles and I are so thankful for Gabriela and her team. Their advice helped us get pregnant and have a beautiful, happy baby and a very happy mom, free from postpartum issues and completely natural and uncomplicated labor, delivery, and birth. We are so grateful for our little Sybil, and from the bottom of our hearts, thank you again!
