Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

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My husband Josh and I always moved quickly! We were married four months after meeting and decided to start trying right away to build our family. My periods had always been irregular, so I was concerned it would be an issue. However, we were very fortunate and people joked that I was a “fertile myrtle” since we got pregnant so easily. We were blessed with our daughter Hannah’s birth one year after we were married. Never in a million years did a future struggle with infertility cross our minds after this!

Experiencing secondary infertility

We had hoped to have our children close in age, so when Hannah turned one, we immediately started trying to conceive again. I wasn’t concerned at first, but after a few months passed, I began to get worried. My periods had stopped altogether and I had ended up on Provera more times than I cared to count in order to have a cycle. After actively trying to conceive for over a year, I went to my OB and he prescribed Clomid. Josh and I thought that this was it—a baby was going to happen! Unfortunately, the Clomid did not work for us after three cycles with timed intercourse.
We ended up moving out of state at that point and had decided to try naturally again. We still did not think we had a “major” problem since we had Hannah naturally and my pregnancy and delivery were exceptionally great. At the two year mark, I had an HSG completed and we ended up pregnant that cycle! We were thrilled, but I was scared because something felt “off” for me. When I was supposed to be 9 ½ weeks pregnant, I started bleeding on Mother’s Day. The baby measured only six weeks. Josh and I were devastated with our loss, but again started trying to complete our family.
We ended up going to a fertility clinic (not Shady Grove Fertility, as we lived far from a SGF clinic). All of our tests came back normal, with the exception of my PCOS diagnosis. At this point, we did three back-to-back (six in total) IUIs with Clomid. On our last cycle, I had five eggs release. We decided to go ahead with the IUI and were mentally preparing for multiples. When we failed that cycle, it was unacceptable to me. It felt like we had lost another baby although I hadn’t been pregnant this time. We were so sure it would work, but it was yet another devastating blow.

Moving to Shady Grove Fertility

Another move out of state led us to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It was here that I became familiar with Shady Grove Fertility. On our first visit with Dr. O’Brien, we knew this was it. She took our case seriously even though we had conceived naturally on our own twice before. She laid out the plans of IVF and gave us hope that our family would be complete. Again, all our testing came back normal. 4 ½ years after starting our journey to conceive a second child, we were starting our roller coaster ride. Right before we started our cycle, I had a dream that I had just delivered a baby girl and she was lying on my chest. Our oldest daughter was standing beside me in the dream, so I knew it could not be her. It gave me a feeling of peace we would be successful, and our baby would be a girl.
We had one chance for everything to work and prayed with everything we had left. At our egg retrieval, I had 11 eggs. We had banked on every single egg fertilizing, so when I got the call the next day that NONE had fertilized, I was hysterically crying. After my dream, this was not what we expected! We felt as if our entire journey was over once again before we had a fair chance. It turned out we had a male factor issue that had never been diagnosed because it didn’t become visible until we went through IVF—the sperm did not bind to eggs. How we had conceived naturally before was a miracle!
Thankfully, the staff at SGF is top-notch. They were able to perform rescue ICSI on five of my eggs—but we had to wait until the next day to see if any of those five fertilized. The call the next morning was spectacular news—four had fertilized! Now the waiting began to see which embryos would continue to develop. We prayed and prayed for our embryos to continue to divide and conquer. Each morning I had a sense of dread that something would happen and it took all I had to answer the phone, waiting for the report. In the end, two of the embryos made it! Although at first Dr. O’Brien only recommended one embryo to transfer, due to the unforeseen circumstances we ran into, she recommended we transfer both. So, we transferred our two perfect embryos.
The next day I started feeling really sick and although I had been following the diet to keep ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) at bay, it still found me. Josh took me to Rockville and I had to get fluid drained from my belly. It felt as though we faced one obstacle after another and my hope was falling that we would be pregnant after all this. Josh held fast to his hope and refused to believe anything other than we would complete our family.
Thankfully, we did indeed get pregnant. Out of 11 eggs, none fertilized naturally. Rescue ICSI fertilized four, two made it to transfer, and one stuck around! Graduation day from SGF was one of the best feelings we ever experienced!

Jaime’s advice for future patients

Never give up! It is much easier said than done when obstacles arise but continue on. My only regret is not reaching out sooner. I had initially visited my OB/GYN for fertility help, which I think many people do. However, one piece of advice really helped make my decision to move on. An OB’s job is to care for pregnant women, but an RE’s job is to ensure pregnancy occurs.



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Infertility terms
In vitro fertilization (IVF)
Polycystic ovary syndrome

Receiving care

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Dr. Jeanne O’Brien
Rockville, Maryland location
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Brad and I met at church camp when I was in fourth grade. Although for many years we were just friends, my senior year of high school is when we started falling for each other. When I started dating Brad and things were getting serious, I pictured my life with him. We planned on getting married, waiting a few years for me to graduate college and get some work experience, and then we would have children. After our wedding, we moved out of state and enjoyed our time of “just us.” We got a puppy, traveled, moved, and went on plenty of dates. Although I got bit by baby fever before he did, we stuck to our plan of waiting for a bit until we would try to have children. After a few years, we decided that we were ready to become parents. I was prepared for it to take us a few months, but I was not prepared for what was actually in store for us.

Trying for a family

Instead of everything going in accordance to my precise planning, I did not get a period for over 100 days after getting off of hormonal birth control. My OB/GYN ran tests and couldn’t find anything wrong, so she gave me progesterone to start my period, and Clomid to take during my cycle. I was sad to think that we might need help to get pregnant, but I figured I take a few pills and end up pregnant in no time. After two rounds of Clomid with my OB/GYN, and still not being pregnant, I felt that there was something wrong with me that she wasn’t seeing.

Coming to SGF

I searched for fertility clinics and discovered that Shady Grove Fertility was holding a seminar in the Reading, PA, office. Brad and I attended, and once the seminar was over we scheduled a consult. After our consult and further testing, I was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
My heart broke when I learned that my dream of being a mother is not going to happen the way that I had always planned. Instead of designing our nursery and shopping for cribs, I started the journey of infertility treatment. I watched many loved ones announce their own pregnancies. Baby pictures and baby commercials seemed to be everywhere while I tried to implement another intervention to increase our odds of becoming biological parents.
The few things that have given me inklings of hope were my prayers and discovering other couples who are going through this as well. It is estimated that at least 1 in 8 couples face infertility, yet it seems that very few of them ever “come out of the infertility closet.” And for a while, I didn’t want to either. But I did, and discovered that we were not alone in this journey.
Once our tests were complete, Dr. Munabi decided that the best course of action was an intrauterine insemination (IUI) with Femara and a trigger shot. Brad and I were very hopeful. All of the staff that we interacted with were thorough, encouraging, and sensitive to us during this trying time. But IUI #1 failed. For IUI #2, injectable medications were added. I had to be at the office more frequently for monitoring, but still, the staff was incredible. Unfortunately, that cycle failed as well.

One last try

IUI #3 was the longest cycle yet. Dr. Munabi used a “slow and steady” approach for my medication, which meant even more frequent office visits. We knew that if this IUI didn’t work, we’d be moving on to growing our family through other ways. At this point, Brad and I had both resigned to the fact that we would not have biological children. I already had a big pile of paperwork that a caseworker had sent us to start the foster-to-adopt process. I had even started a foster care registry to prep for a foster baby, as I knew how fast that process could go once it started.
The morning that I decided to test, I was so sure that it would be negative. I didn’t tell Brad that I was testing. I took the test, set it on the bathroom counter, and went back to bed instead of waiting for the results. That’s how positive I was that it would be another negative. When I woke up about an hour later, I glanced at the test. I couldn’t believe what I saw. Rubbing my eyes, I look again and saw it: two miracle lines! We were pregnant!
We are now the happy parents of our miracle son: Elijah Joseph Jordan. He is ahead on all of growth charts and very healthy.

Advice for future patients

If I could tell anything to future patients, it would be to never give up hope, and to find others who have been or are going through fertility struggles. This is the most difficult journey that Brad and I have ever had to face, but I can say without a doubt that Elijah was worth the wait.
He was worth the tears, the money, the pain, and everything. And we will always have Shady Grove Fertility to thank for our most amazing gift: our son.



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Infertility terms
Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
Polycystic ovary syndrome

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Dr. Abraham K. Munabi
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Meet our SGF care team

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I was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) when I was 17 after years of not having a period. That same year, I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. My gynecologist told me that conception would not be easy, but that was about it. She never said what this would entail.
This meant little to me and I didn’t really process it at the time. I guess I was in denial or just in my invincible adolescent mind figured everything would be fine. Over the years, I became comfortable with the understanding that when the time came, I would need help getting pregnant. I am grateful that I didn’t have the devastating diagnosis that some have after a period of trying to conceive. I had time to grow into it and mentally prepare.
Danny and I met in 1994 at Hampton University while I was a freshman and he was a senior. After years together, we inevitably had conversations about the future. Though I told Danny that I had PCOS and would have a hard time getting pregnant, when the time came, there wasn’t really much to do about it. The distance in time at that point kind of made it unreal. Neither of us knew what was to come. In hindsight, that was probably a good thing.

The ups and downs of treatment

We have had so many ups and downs I think I have started to lose count. We were with another fertility practice and had two unsuccessful rounds of in vitro fertilization (IVF). We decided to switch over to Shady Grove Fertility when we heard about the Shared Risk Program on the radio.
Boy am I glad that we did. I never would have envisioned that we would still be trying to conceive almost a decade and so many procedures later. Since we have been with SGF, we have had one intrauterine insemination (IUI) cycle canceled (due to too many mature follicles), four IVF cycles, and maybe four or five frozen embryo transfer (FET) cycles.
Three pregnancies and three miscarriages later, I don’t know how we would have gotten through it without prayer and a God who can comfort the most uncomfortable and bring peace to the peace-less. We hang onto the Holy Spirit that says this is bigger than you and you will have a testimony when it is all over.
I am also grateful to Dr. Browne, who learns something new from each cycle and keeps pressing forward, giving us hope. With each visit, I feel like she wants this for us as much as we do. Never once have I felt like she was getting tired of seeing us or answering our questions or that she was ready to give up.

“Life would not stop so that we could bring life”

Our first pregnancy was confirmed on December 2, 2009. A short time later, we found out that it was twins: both embryos had implanted. T
wo months prior I had been laid off from my employer and I thought, “This is God setting me up to be the stay-at-home mom that I wanted to be.” On the day of my second ultrasound, I had had some spotting but thought that it was normal. The heartbeats were just under 140 beats per minute. We just saw them on the screen! Our babies were fine.
I miscarried that night into the next morning.
I was devastated. Over the next few weeks, I was comforted by stories from other women that let me know that I was not alone, and I was reassured that miscarriages in early pregnancy are common. After the trauma started to subside, I remember Danny and I talking about how life couldn’t stop so that we could bring life into the world.
The details of the whole conversation are fuzzy but that part stuck with me. We proceeded with the next IVF cycle, which, fortunately (due to the PCOS), produced a plethora of eggs. I endured near-hyperstimulation and several more big fat negatives in 2010 and 2011. During this time, we held onto the fact that I had actually gotten pregnant. It happened once, so it could happen again.

Turning to our faith

After my lay-off, I was not sure what I wanted to do. I spent lots of time and money investing in a career in architecture but just felt like it wasn’t the life for me. The best way to put it was that I felt afloat. I wasn’t rooted. My husband had his career and ministry, but the thing that I had been working hard at—managing my Type 1 diabetes so that I could have a healthy pregnancy and harvesting a plethora of eggs—had all been swept away.
My only answer was to turn to my faith and have God show me what to do. So I turned to God spiritually and physically.
By 2012, I was very active in volunteering with our church on my own and with Danny, and I decided to go back to school for health information management, a career that allows a bit more flexibility. While I was in school, we took a long break from trying to conceive. I didn’t think that I could be pregnant and start a new career all at the same time.
It was hard to spend that much time not being a mother or trying to be a mother, but what always rang out in my ears was “You aren’t positioned yet. What kind of mother do you want to be? Prepare while you wait. Prepare yourself, your marriage, your career, and the space that he or she will come into. What kind of life do I want to model for my children? What kind of marriage do we want to model for our children? Will my career work with my family or against it?”

These things kept me mentally, emotionally, and physically busy so that the loss/lack of little ones was not so pronounced. I wanted to take advantage of the gift of time. This kept me focused when I went to baby showers or when I walked through the toy section to get gifts or saw the set of twins in the food court at the mall. It is challenging, but when I feel the pang of jealousy, I reassure myself that, “What God has for us is for us.” We don’t want anything more or less than that.

In 2014, two years after our previous IVF cycle, we conceived in June via FET, but from the start, this pregnancy did not progress well. The heartbeats peaked at 60 beats per minute and slowly decreased. The sac looked strange. We had a D&C in September after weeks of waiting. We conceived again on our very next FET in December and I found out that I was pregnant the day before my birthday (December 24th). On January 9th, we lost our third pregnancy, another set of twins.
With the help of Dr. Browne and the wonderful staff, we continue to seek what God has in store for us. We began another cycle on June 1, and though it is terrifying to think that this could happen again, we are comforted in knowing that God has a plan for us and we are just walking it out, one day at a time. Whatever will come, He will guide us through as He has done thus far.

Sara’s advice for future patients

It’s okay to feel sad and be disappointed, give yourself that time and space. However, continue making space for the child that you want. Look around yourself and ask what in your life is or isn’t prepared to receive the awesome task of parenting. Don’t spend that time being so sad that you let yourself go and then when they get here you are a wreck with grief and pain. Work on the life you want and that you want to bring a life into. Make those things better so you are at your best when that life comes and they get the best of you.



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Diagnosis and treatment

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In vitro fertilization (IVF)
Frozen embryo transfer (FET)
Polycystic ovary syndrome

Receiving care

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Dr. Paulette E. Browne
Fair Oaks, Virginia location
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Most people don’t think that infertility will be an issue, and I was no different. My husband and I were married a few years before we started trying to have kids. We wanted to spend some time together in our marriage before starting a family, and we used that time to travel, spend time with friends, and fix up our first home.
Like most people, we thought that as soon as we were ready for children, we would be blessed with immediate news of our first pregnancy. Little did we know we had a long journey ahead of us, and the urge to have children would only intensify as we worked through that process together.

“I still had no idea how difficult the road ahead would be.”

I stopped taking the birth control pill when we were ready to start trying to have a baby, but after almost 8 months of not getting a period, I made an appointment with my gynecologist to discover that my ovaries were covered in cysts and it may be difficult to become pregnant. A diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) was given, but because I didn’t have any symptoms or qualities other than the cysts, I had trouble accepting it. Although I left that appointment feeling very down, I still had no idea how difficult the road ahead would be. Fertility treatment is tedious in all aspects—body, mind, and soul—but the emotional part may very well be the hardest.
We started off using Clomid with my OB/GYN in hopes that it would initiate ovulation. We also had high hopes that more invasive forms of treatment would not be necessary. As time passed, it was obvious that Clomid wasn’t working, and we needed to try something different. My OB/GYN recommended that we go to Shady Grove Fertility.
We moved on to try two rounds of intrauterine insemination (IUI), both of which had to be canceled due to overstimulation. After all the ice packs, shots, bruises, and discomfort I had gone through, hearing the cycles had to be canceled was heartbreaking.

Moving to IVF

After the failures with less invasive treatments, we decided in vitro fertilization (IVF) would be our best option. I will never forget the moment when our nurse called to tell us we were pregnant after the first round. It was pure elation and joy and felt like an out-of-body experience. I will also never forget the moment we went in for an 8-week ultrasound to find that the heart had stopped beating and I had miscarried. It was the lowest point in my life, and I wasn’t sure how I would be able to continue. I was in a dark place and wasn’t sure if or how I would be able to go through it again. After some time had passed, I decided I was ready to move forward—nothing was going to stop me from building a family.
Our next frozen cycle was a failure, and because of that, we decided to have our embryos genetically tested for abnormalities. To our surprise, most came back normal and we now had a little more confidence going into our next cycle. I tried to be more relaxed about the next cycle. During the two-week wait, my husband and I took a trip to New York City to get our mind off the waiting game. I felt free on that trip, and I truly think that had something to do with the results. When I got home, I took a test and found out I was pregnant … again!
We were cautiously optimistic (more cautious than optimistic, really). We didn’t tell many people the news and walked around on pins and needles with each week’s passing. On Christmas Eve, I was having major cramping and started bleeding. I called my husband into the bathroom as I sobbed that I knew something was wrong yet again, and I was already unsure I would be able to pick up the pieces with another loss.
We drove immediately to SGF for an ultrasound, during which the doctor said “both heartbeats look great…” BOTH heartbeats!?? After everything we had been through, implanting just ONE embryo for each IVF cycle to avoid the risk of twins, we were expecting identical twins. It was truly a miracle.

Life with our miracles

Life with 9-month-old twins is exhausting and exhilarating at the same time. I never imagined our family would look like this, but now I can’t picture it any other way.

Working with Shady Grove Fertility

I cannot say enough good things about the care and kindness we received at Shady Grove Fertility. Infertility is a difficult and isolating journey, and the team at SGF is both sensitive and kind. Dr. O’Brien was reassuring and patient with us, and kept us confident when we needed her to. I would urge anyone having similar issues to reach out to SGF. It was the best decision we have ever made and we will be forever grateful to SGF for helping us start our family.

Lauren’s advice for future patients

Infertility can be isolating and lonely—it’s not a topic that people feel comfortable sharing, and that can be difficult. I found comfort in talking to people who had been through the same thing, and also shared my journey with a couple of my closest friends, which I found to be very helpful. Do your best to stay positive and know that there are so many options to build the family you want to have; these events you are experiencing are only temporary and are so worth it when you get to your goal, whether that is becoming pregnant, adopting, or some other means of welcoming a child to your family.



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Infertility terms
In vitro fertilization (IVF)
Polycystic ovary syndrome

Receiving care

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Dr. Jeanne E. O’Brien
Rockville, Maryland location
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First, to introduce ourselves, my name is Erin and my husband’s name is Michael. We are both from the East Coast and happened to meet in Dallas, TX. I lived there for about 5 years before I met Mike, who was transferred there for his job. I always told him I had to live in Texas for 5 years before meeting the man of my dreams and he only lived there for 1 before he met me!!! Speaking of meeting, we met online! We both had very busy lifestyles and I for one didn’t have time to meet guys in bars or “out.”
After 3 years of dating, Mike proposed, and a year after that, we said our vows in Jamaica. 4 months before we got married, however, Mike was in a horrific motorcycle accident in which he was in the hospital for a month.
He was hit head-on by a car and broke all his ribs, fractured his pelvis in four places, and completely destroyed his left arm. From the elbow down, he is all titanium. He still has movement in his hand, though. The doctors didn’t think he would be able to walk for our wedding, but he proved them wrong. Although limited, Mike is truly my superhero… metal and all!
Mike is a project manager in the telecom industry here in Pennsylvania (where we live currently due to his job relocating us here from Dallas, TX). I work from home as an associate broker in the insurance industry for a company based out of Dallas, TX. While living in Dallas though, I worked as a hairstylist for many years.
Unfortunately, my carpel tunnel took hold and I couldn’t cut anymore. I miss it every day. Mike and I both were in the military as well. I served in the US Air Force Reserves for 8 years as a Staff Sergeant. Mike served Active Duty Army, having gone overseas three times with the 82nd Airborne Division. He is 30 percent disabled. He has a compressed spine from making too many jumps out of airplanes and has severe PTSD and hearing loss. All of which he has treatment for and it is going wonderfully.
I am currently 31 years old and my Mike is 34. We have been trying to get pregnant for about 3 years with no luck. We first tried timing it just right and then our OB/GYN put me on Clomid. I took that for 4 to 5 months with nothing. We then were living in Dallas, TX, and ended up moving to Norristown, PA, 2 years ago.
Even though at first I was sad about moving from Texas, I look back now and think about how if we didn’t move here, I would never have met Dr. Isaac Sasson and his staff at Shady Grove Fertility.

Searching for a diagnosis

We met with Dr. Sasson at his Chesterbrook office last year for our consultation. He explained everything and ran some tests to see where we were at and our diagnosis. We were told I had polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). I never had regular cycles and never actually peaked at ovulation, which made it extremely difficult to get pregnant. Not to mention the overproduction of eggs (which you would think would be a positive thing… but actually isn’t most of the time).
My husband’s count was amazing though! Overachiever! Ha! But at that moment I felt guilt…guilt that I couldn’t give my husband a child. I was sad for a bit, but Dr. Sasson said, “Nothing is impossible.” Right then and there, I picked myself up by my bootstraps, picked my head up, held my husband’s hand, and we decided to do whatever it took.

Beginning treatment

We did time intercourse first. During my first visit, it looked like I had an amazing-sized follicle, so Dr. Sasson gave me my “trigger” injection and said to take it that night. Long story short, we ended up getting pregnant right away! The first try!!! I was ecstatic!!!! I did what every person who had trouble getting pregnant for so long would do: I shouted it from the rooftops! I went out and bought baby clothes. I finally didn’t have to walk by that baby department and turn my head in disappointment!
My excitement was short-lived, though. When I went to my OB/GYN for my first visit at 11 weeks, it turned out our baby’s heart stopped beating at 9 weeks. We were devastated. I had to have a D&C to remove the baby and I was told I couldn’t get pregnant or try again until 8 weeks later when the pregnancy hormones were completely out of my system. Even then, I didn’t know if I ever wanted to try again.

Coming back to SGF

We finally decided to go back to Dr. Sasson and we moved on to intrauterine insemination (IUI). We did three rounds.
The first two didn’t work, but on the third—and the last one we could afford— WE GOT PREGNANT!!! We are now 32 weeks pregnant! 8 more weeks left until we meet our little boy!

Working with Dr. Sasson and the Chesterbrook, PA team

Dr. Sasson is incredible. Down to earth but to the point. He doesn’t tiptoe around anything. He will give you your best options and tell you what he thinks but never says, “This is what you need to do…” He leaves every decision up to you. His nurses, Jamie and Debbie, are amazing as well. They are supportive and friendly. When we had our miscarriage, they hugged me and told me it wasn’t my fault. They were so supportive. Every time I would go in for blood work they were like my cheerleading squad!

Advice for future patients

Don’t give up. There are others out there just like you. Find support groups around you and—most importantly—know all of your options. Talk to SGF…they gave me hope.



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Diagnosis and treatment

We understand you may have questions about infertility and how it’s treated. Gain answers from the diagnosis and treatments shared in this story.
Infertility terms
Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
Polycystic ovary syndrome

Receiving care

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Dr. Isaac Sasson
Chesterbrook, Pennsylvania location
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Azuree and I met in 2010. We both feel like we struck gold in meeting each other, and in our dating always discussed having children. It was never a question of if, but more of a question of when and how many. Azuree is an only child and I’m the first of three, so we thought two was a good compromise! Fast forward, we got married in 2014. We decided it was time after attending Azuree’s goddaughter’s first birthday, who had also been conceived with the help of Shady Grove Fertility.

Coming to SGF

We met with Dr. Osborn in December 2015, and we felt very comfortable with her and our nurse Myasia. Initially, we planned to start trying in the following 6 months, but we felt so good about our interaction, we started right away getting all the pre-treatment items checked off our list. We started treatment in March 2016 with unmedicated intrauterine insemination (IUI) using donor sperm.
Picking our donor was relatively easy! We used Fairfax Cryobank, and after reading an essay and hearing the donor’s voice we knew we had the right person. He wanted to be a teacher, and Azuree is a teacher! After two unsuccessful tries, we took a break over the summer to relax and not feel like the process was becoming a chore.
It’s hard because you put expectations and hopes into every cycle, and it was feeling like it wasn’t happening in the time frame we had set. But talking about it together and leaning into conversations with others going through the process was helpful. I also continued to go to therapy, receive acupuncture, and did yoga to help me stay centered and feeling in control of my body.

Trying again

We had more testing done and I was diagnosed with PCOS. This gave us the knowledge we needed to proceed with medicated IUI. A few days after our last try, before we discovered it was successful, we re-affirmed why we were doing this and that we weren’t going to stop again until it worked. I think taking the break over the summer to recharge and refocus really helped us commit to treatment again.
We continued to use therapy as an outlet, and I continued to do yoga, acupuncture, and lots of affirmations, which kept me positive and not obsessive about what was going to happen. What really helped me keep the peace mentally that last try was doing a vision board. Being able to visualize what our family would look like was helpful. We got pregnant on the first try with medication!
Our first ultrasound we discovered we were having twins and couldn’t have been more excited and happy! Sage and Ari were born on June 13th. Even though “graduating” from Shady Grove Fertility was always the goal, I still miss the kind and supportive staff there.

Life with twins

Life with our two miracles is busy! We are so, so happy. I genuinely can’t believe I get to live this life! We are so fortunate and SO grateful to feel like our family is complete. When you dream about what you want your life to be like as a kid, I feel like we are living that dream. We look back at the time we spent worrying about when it was going to happen and laugh. We had no idea the abundance that was coming!

Advice for future and current SGF sisters

When we were working with SGF we only told our very close friends. It can be difficult to get constant questions about what is happening or not happening, and it really is a very personal journey to include the world on. We felt less pressure about getting pregnant and more comfortable about just letting things happen by not telling a whole bunch of people.
Creating a self-care habit will be helpful for parenthood too! If you don’t understand, ask questions! Our nurse was so patient and kind and responsive, I never had to wonder what was going on. We feel so lucky to live so close to an amazing fertility clinic.
Also, comparison is the stealer of joy—focusing on what other people are doing doesn’t help. We both disengaged with social media for a while. It can be frustrating and sad to see other people getting pregnant when you are going through this, so give yourself permission to check out for a few days or longer if you have to. You’ll be happier when you aren’t constantly seeing other people get what you want if it’s not happening how you expected.
I would say to future patients that it’s important to remember to take care of yourself. Take care of yourself mentally. There are tons of people that have done this before and are great resources. They can help you see the light at the end of the tunnel.



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Diagnosis and treatment

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Infertility terms
Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
Polycystic ovary syndrome
Donor sperm

Receiving care

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Sibley Hospital, Washington, DC location
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