Our Trying to Conceive Journey and #StorkStories Twitter Party!

While I have received compensation for this post from Fertility Planit, all opinions are my own.

Trying to Conceive (TTC) can be a very difficult time for some couples. For myself and my husband, Lawrence, it has been full of ups and downs. It can be a lonely time, where it feels like no one else has ever lived the pain and disappointment. Well I am here to tell you that you aren't alone.

Our Story

Lawrence and I had our son in 2010. He was not a planned child but a very welcome blessing. When he was about 2 and a half years old we decided it was time to try for another baby. We were excited to try as we had never done that before. The first month we tried, we got pregnant. I was ecstatic because I thought it would take a lot longer than one month of TTC. We started planning and I made my first appointment with the doctor and we thought we were all set in completing our family. Boy, were we wrong.

By week 6 and a half of my pregnancy I was at work and I started spotting. I was terrified and called my doctor right away. I didn't experience this with our son at all and knew something was wrong. The doctor got me in for that Tuesday, saying that all could be well and not to worry too much. It is extremely hard not to worry when your dreams are turning into nightmares.

Tuesday came around and at my appointment they found that the heartbeat was weak and the doctor told us that this was more than likely a miscarriage but there was a slim possibility that it would be okay, but it was not hopeful. She was right; it was not going to keep. We came back a few days later and sure enough there was no more heartbeat. I decided to let the miscarriage complete on its own and within two weeks it was over. We were devastated. 

The miscarriage made us both angry and frustrated. We decided it was best to get out of the area we were living in because of the sad reminders of our loss and those who have lost know how hard it is to be around others who are happily pregnant with no complications. 

We moved to the Twin Cities in early 2014 to start our new life. In the mean time we were still TTC, though without any luck. I visited the doctor after a year of TTC because I thought how abnormal it was to take so long to get pregnant and wondered if there was something wrong with me. They did plenty of tests to see if there was tube blockage or if my hormones were not where they should be but they found nothing to be wrong with me or my husband. They put me on Chlomid and after three months of that I didn't get pregnant and quit taking it because of the side effects on my body. 

After this, every month was a disappointment. Even without trying, the day that Aunt Flo (AF) came was one of the hardest because I held onto the hope that maybe this would be the month only to be mistaken. In the Fall of 2015 we had our miracle. I was pregnant after all this trying and we were ecstatic yet apprehensive. It was terrifying but I was holding onto the hope that this was it; we finally got to complete our family.

On Halloween, right before we left for trick-or-treating, I went to the bathroom only to see light blood on the tissue. My heart dropped. It was happening again and I had to re-live the nightmare. I went to the doctor that Monday and they did an Ultrasound and saw our baby but there was no heartbeat when there should have been. My Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) hormone wasn't where it should be and the doctors were very concerned. They sent me to a specialist later that week when they still couldn't locate the heartbeat out of concern that it was an ectopic pregnancy. The specialist didn't know for sure but said if I experienced pain to go to the Emergency Room (ER).

That Sunday night, I woke up to an extremely sharp pain in my right side. I knew something wasn't right so the next morning my husband called into work and we went to the ER and I explained the pain I had and the throbbing pain that it had now become. They did an ultrasound and found that yes, I did have an ectopic pregnancy and needed to do emergency surgery. They admitted me into the hospital and brought me to a room to await my surgery that happened that night. They had to remove my right tube because it had almost ruptured. They said that if I hadn't come in that morning there was a good possibility that I would not have survived. I was in the hospital recovering for 5 days before I was allowed to go home. It was extremely tragic and devastating and I have no words for the pain it left in my heart. The hospital was kind enough to provide a funeral service for our baby along with others who had lost their babies and they have a grave site for us all to visit in memorium of our babies.

Moving On

As you can imagine, our TTC journey has been full of hope to only have it taken away; not once, but twice. The second was even more terrifying given the fact that there was the chance that I wouldn't survive. It has now been 6 months since we had our second loss. We have been TTC since the doctor gave us the okay, but once again to no avail. It has been extremely hard to see other's get pregnant when it is truly the desire of my heart to have one more baby.

More Options

As a couple TTC, we are willing to try just about anything, but know that many things can be extremely expensive. We were introduced to Stork OTC very recently and are extremely excited to try it in our TTC journey in hopes that it will give us that chance to have one more baby. 

The Stork OTC was created by Rinovum Women’s Health to optimize the chances of getting pregnant for those TTC. It is a device that doesn't need a doctor's prescription and can be used in the privacy of your home. Here are some of the best things about the Stork OTC:

• Natural and drug-free
• FDA cleared
• Cost effective
• Home use device

The Stork OTC uses cervical cap insemination to help your chances of getting pregnant. You are supposed to use it on the most fertile days of your cycle or when ovulation is just about to occur. Each box has 1 single-use kit that includes everything you need as well as instructions in English and Spanish. I found it exceptionally easy to use and understand and so did my husband. I'm not sure yet if we got lucky this month but our fingers sure are crossed because it would be a miracle! 

Join Us for the #StorkStories Twitter Party for a chance to win your own Stork OTC device

• When       June 16th, 2016
• Time        9pm EST
• Follow     @StorkbyRinovum and @FertilityPlanit
• Hashtag  #StorkStories

For more information and support during your TTC journey, make sure to follow The Stork For Women on Facebook and @StorkbyRinovum on Twitter. Also make sure to visit the Stork OTC website

Here is a helpful video on how to use the Stork OTC

The Stork OTC has been recently written about in The Wall Street Journal and was featured on The Doctor's Show as well as many big name media outlets like Redbook Magazine and The New York Times. Check them out here: The Stork OTC Media

In Loving Memory of our Angels in Heaven

Adora Ruby 7-17-13
Theodore Andrew 11-9-15