Author: Josie Teggeris
Let’s face it right, I never expected to be the recipient of bad news in the office of my gynaecologist. From the tender age of 21, my poor body had been subject to 10 or more laparoscopic surgeries, particularly relating to endometriosis. It somehow became the norm for my pear sized uterus to be put through this so called form of “minimal invasive surgery” every 18 or so months.
I think I was around 36 years old, where I began to consider my age for having children and that’s when I took myself to my gynaecologist to get some tests. After being told I’d need a blood test to see where I was at hormonally, this blood test would also determine whether I had enough eggs to be able to conceive.
Being told I was in early menopause
Whilst sitting in my gynaecologist office, getting the results to my tests, I was seriously oblivious to all my previous surgeries and the impact that could have on my fertility and then I was hit with “You are approaching early menopause and I highly doubt you’ll be able to conceive naturally or if at all”. The shock of what the fuck was I hearing, sent me into complete denial and I distinctly remember being numb to the news for the remainder of my appointment.
You see by the age of 25 I was diagnosed with SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus) Lupus, which is an autoimmune disease. This disease mistakenly attacks the body’s healthy tissue, affecting the skin, joints, kidneys, brain and other organs and whilst my skin, hair and joints were notably affected with the disease, all whilst fatigue kicks in, I was never told fertility could become an issue.
Would we ever be parents?
Devastated to say the least, I felt like complete shit. My partner Gary (now husband) often articulated that life was about family and kids, so how the fuck was I supposed to tell him I cannot help him achieve his goal of becoming a dad?
That night with the agony of it all, I broke the news to Gary. He was as supportive as one could be and with hurt in his eyes, he said “WE WILL BE PARENTS BABE! I didn’t have strength to argue it and just let his thoughts be!
Coming to terms with my fertility issues
The next few weeks was all about coming to terms with my fertility issues and trying to constructively figure out what I could do to become a mum, when an interview with Sonia Kruger on her morning show was aired. Sonia told the world she was pregnant with an egg donor.
Within 2 weeks I had an appointment with a fertility specialist. Straight up after examining my test results I was advised if I want to become a mum I surely could. But, I couldn’t achieve this without an egg donor. The reality then kicked in. I was once again shattered, as I had to tell my hubby and I didn’t know what to expect with his reaction.
Investigation the option of an egg donor
Surprisingly, my hubby was open to any option it would take to achieve our goals of becoming parents, so we made another appointment to see my fertility specialist. We discussed all donor egg options in depth, we had explained the laws in Australia with regard to it and we discussed how it works anonymously in other countries, to which we gravitated to. We were given great detail on the procedure and were referred to Dr Stefanos Syrkos in Greece, since we advised we wanted to visit Cyprus in the coming months.
After numerous questions, emails and telephone conversations back and forth, Dr S pretty much made us feel at ease with the procedure and we were set to go to Athens in July.
Pumped with hormones, we set upon our journey to become parents!
What a whirlwind experience! I at times became anxious, all whilst feeling pretty positive, hopeful and optimistic!
Upon arriving at Athens, I messaged Dr S who in turn welcomed us advising everything was on schedule! This made it all real and this was the beginning of my parenting journey.
Dr S went to great lengths in choosing our donor and having sent photos of myself and after articulating my needs and wants, he nailed it.
After taking many medications to get my lining and hormone levels right, we were ready for the procedure. My donor gave me 3 perfect eggs to which we decided to use 2 at once. We felt it was best to maximise our chances, since coming to Greece wasn’t something we could do every few months.
The procedure literally took 10 mins on a full bladder. Once it was done, I lay there for a further half hour.
Donor eggs and twins. Finding out I was pregnant!
Over the next week, I wasn’t feeling any kind of symptoms, however googling made matters worse!
On day 7 I decided to take a home pregnancy test against the doctors orders and became terribly disappointed when I didn’t see a second line. A couple hours later I went back to the test to ponder and I saw this faint 2nd line which baffled me. First time trying IVF with donor eggs and I was pregnant with twins!!
Looking back now, it’s a blur but looking at my baby girls and I’ll always remember my strength, determination, along with the great lengths I went to become a mother. It’s literally the best thing I have ever done in my life.
You can read Josie’s pregnancy and birth story on Twinfo HERE.
You can follow more of Josie’s journey on facebook and Instagram @Lifewifeandtwins
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