Natasha

Natasha's Story:

I dated for a while but didn't meet anyone where I was like, “Wow, he’s the ONE!!!” Then soon after turning 40, I met my boyfriend. He had two sons. I fell in love with both of them and we wanted to grow our family with a child of our own.

But by the time I was 43 that both my biological clock and science were telling me, “Sweetheart, if you want a family, you’ve got to start now. And frankly, my dear, you may be too late.”

So I underwent some tests. My AMH was remarkably high for someone of my “geriatric” reproductive age. But the saline sonogram showed there were fibroids. My OB removed those and also found endometriosis.

The boyfriend and I started IVF pronto. My insurance at the time covered a lot – both the procedure and the medications.  We did two rounds of IVF and three IUI cycles. This was all with my local clinic (not CNY) and I didn’t have much success. 

Granted I did have two pregnancies. One from an IUI session. But the number of eggs retrieved was not many.

Due to the losses and lack of insurance coverage (I had used it up!), it was too expensive for me to push on.

And the boyfriend didn’t want to pursue anything further. Oh, how I sobbed. Didn’t help that the doctor’s advice was that I was too old and the likelihood of a full-term pregnancy was uber slim anyway. I should give up. It was a pipe dream. Boo and ugh!

Then a girlfriend told me about CNY. She told me how effective their procedures have been for young AND older women. She recommended I watch Dr. Kiltz’s fireside chats. What a hoot! I love this guy! Yes – I’ll try it out. I have the funds to cover an IVF cycle with them – even with traveling to NY. Whereas if I stayed with the local fertility clinic, there was no way.

And as I mentioned, my local wasn’t enthusiastic about helping me. Some may say she was being realistic.  But I had this dream. And I was going to shoot for the stars!!

I had a consultation with one of the doctors. He wasn't encouraging either, but I wasn’t deterred. I needed to connect with Dr. Kiltz and his team. The man gave out his personal cell phone!! I pressed on and scheduled my first cycle.

I loved the communication with the travel nurses. They were busy – but answered all of my questions and were so positive. They offered solicitations of “baby dust” and well wishes that it’ll happen “this time”.

As a patient with CNY, I went through two rounds of IVF, two fresh transfers, and three FETs. From my IVF cycles – we cultivated the most eggs I ever had!! Granted, it is about quality, not quantity. But Kiltz’ Keto was working for me!!!

One transfer cycle included a donor egg that wasn't successful. But the next transfer cycle (this last one) with a different DE that was.

I carried the little nugget to a full term as a 47 y.o. woman. Experienced morning sickness during the first trimester and carpal tunnel throughout the 2nd and 3rd trimesters. Otherwise, it was an easy pregnancy.

My boy was fat and happy. I delivered at 40w2d naturally. He was 8lbs 11oz of a blessing from God. I don’t care if his DNA may not match mine. My heart has grown a little bit bigger with this prayer answered from Heaven above.

(Photos by jenniferlindberg.com)

Favorite Team Member at CNY:

Omgoodness there are so many at CNY!!! Dr. Kiltz for certain!! He is always so positive and gives the best hugs. Ashley is my girl!!! And I swear her new taco tattoo was my lucky charm for this last FET. Living in San Antonio, giving up tacos to follow Kiltz’ Keto is nearly impossible. Brutal even. So it was the taco!!!

Then there’s the nurses and donor team. Such patience and true encouragement. Kate listened to me at least twice with emotions running high and gave nothing but praise and heartfelt support. And I cannot tell you how many travel nurses shared my joy and my pain with their listening ear and some of them even sharing part of their fertility journey (successes and failures).

Helpful resources Natasha found:

Yoga. Sound baths. Talking to Kiltz. Changing my jobs. Broke up with my boyfriend. Seriously, I think the lack of stress is what made my last journey the most successful one. Acupuncture. San Antonio Acupuncture Studio as well as at CNY. Sound baths were so essential to my meditation.

The Moment:

This was my 5th positive Beta pregnancy. I lost the other 4 roughly at or before 12 weeks. For every single one, I had heard my angels’ heartbeats.

My first pregnancy when I went to the OB near my previous employer (not my regular doctor) from the monitoring fertility clinic, the tech coldly asked me if I was sure I was pregnant because she couldn’t see anything or hear a heartbeat. OMG I freaked. But when I went for my exam at a new OB for this pregnancy, I cried when the doctor told me the heartbeat was strong. Poor guy didn’t know what to do.

Hope, Inspiration and Advice:

Don’t give up. Your path may not be what you originally imagined, but if a child or family is what you want, there is more than one way. For me, I always imagined being married and having a loving partner by my side. Definitely not on this grand adventure alone. In my vision, I was hoping to be a stay-at-home Mom, at least for the first few years.

Well, Monroe is now more than 3 months old, and he has one grandmother and no father, but more than a village who are eager to meet him and play with him. A neighbor who will show Monroe how to change a flat tire. A co-worker can’t wait to show Monroe how to play golf. A mayor who gave Monroe his first Fiesta medal. They're all excited to help him grow.