03:18 11th August 2014 | Client Testimonial

Fertility Journey Fertility Treatment Injections Egg Collection OHSS Negative Outcome Next Step 2nd Cycle Twin Pregnancy Ultrasound Scan HeartBeats Assisted Conception

 Bridge Clinic couple talks about their struggle and triumph...

We got married shortly after crossing the thirty-something age bracket and for the first two years we tried starting a family but after going from one doctor to the other realized we really needed help, this was the beginning of our journey to The Bridge Clinic, Lagos Nigeria.

My wife who got all carried away with the “Oyinbo” way in which things were done attended the first visit. To cut a long story short, we started treatment, which involved tiny injections to precede the harvesting of eggs (mind you, my wife can’t stand a pinch; I wondered how she could bare the jabs). On the day of egg collection, three eggs were fertilized out of five, which were selected as being good, and the three were transferred.

During the nervous wait to see if we had achieved pregnancy, Ovarian Hyper Stimulation (OHSS) set in. This had my wife looking like an elephant. We saw a clinician at the clinic who advised that she drink lots of water. This was not a very pleasant experience for her. While drinking gallons of water (treatment for OHSS) and being absolutely uncomfortable, we came for a pregnancy test and were informed that we had not achieved pregnancy!

Crushed hope of this magnitude isn’t the sort of thing one talks about outside the house even to the best of friends. You can say it all, not after the needles, not after the emotional pain, the hope, the tension, not after all the plenty naira, this was not what we were expecting to hear. My wife was devastated but in all of this, I was calm. I don’t think it was from strength; it was more like from wondering how we got here and what to do next! We had to make some decisions; this implies that I do some thinking while my wife is going through emotional pains and agony.

The counsellor at the Clinic tried her best but we had to go home to nurse our pains and heal. We made a decision to move our grief and disappointment underground and try a second cycle.The second cycle was more like a walk in the park and before long the eggs were harvested and transferred. This time around we took our minds off it and tried to go through our normal life. (I still wonder how she coped with the 2weeks wait). For fear of the unknown my wife refused to go for the pregnancy test until she got repeated calls from the clinic and was told the implications of delay.

On the 8^th of October 2005 she went for the test and it was confirmed positive. She had her pregnancy scan and we were informed we had achieved a twin pregnancy! Our joy knew no bounds, the excitement was so overwhelming.

The pregnancy was celebrated by the staff in such a way that we were so thrilled. A few days after, there was some bleeding and I initially thought my wife was expelling or having a miscarriage. We would tell no one what was happening this was because we did not want to become people to be pitied or worried over. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.

We visited the clinic and met our doctor who counselled us and advised my wife to rest for a couple of a days; an appointment was also given to us for an ultrasound scan. The anxiety we felt while awaiting our appointment was also given to us for an ultrasound scan. The anxiety we felt while awaiting our appointment was so intense. In the scan room, we hoped and prayed for the best and we had it glaring at us; when the doctor showed us our babies’ heartbeats. It was an amazing experience. Today we have a son and daughter from this same story.

Special recognition needs to be made about the professionalism of the team at Bridge Clinic; they were there for us all the time. Should you require assisted conception, believe me, there is a special place in Nigeria called “Bridge Clinic” where excellence happens on a regular basis.

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