I had always known I had polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and had warned my husband to be that starting a family might be more complicated than we would like. Unfortunately, I was right. So I began the scans, doctors appointments and procedures that are all needed to rule out blocked tubes or other infertility issues.
I warned my husband to be that starting a family might be more complicated than we would like.
My main symptom of PCOS is irregular periods which means I do not ovulate regularly. When I first saw the doctor I was only ovulating about once a year. However, this always seemed to be on summer holiday with a horrendous migraine of course, so the chances of getting pregnant were pretty much impossible!
Luckily for me, after a long year of tests and appointments I was finally prescribed Clomid and I responded well to it. After 6 months and one unrelated hip surgery later, I was lucky enough to fall pregnant with my now 5 year old son.
After adjusting to life with our first child, we decided to try for a second, aware that I would still suffer from secondary infertility. Sadly, this was not as straightforward as we would have liked and involved pregnancy loss and the small matter of the global pandemic.
The pandemic made the whole process extra stressful as my husband couldn’t attend any appointments and we had to go to a different hospital as our local maternity unit shut down.
The pandemic made the whole process extra stressful as my husband couldn’t attend any appointments and we had to go to a different hospital as our local maternity unit shut down. Eventually, again via Clomid, I got pregnant and this time stayed pregnant and now have my gorgeous second son who at the time of writing is rolling around in his cot and 9 months old.
My reason for sharing my story is to highlight the unexpected emotional toll this journey took on both my husband and I. No one prepares you for this and to be honest, I think I am still recovering and processing our experiences today.
My way of coping, especially the second time round, was to exercise, be active and try and make sure I looked after myself. Going to the gym, or for a run was a great stress reliever and just not being in the house helped take my mind off the whole process.
Going to the gym, or for a run was a great stress reliever and just not being in the house helped take my mind off the whole process.
This entire experience has led me to want to help others on this journey, and so I have now trained as a personal trainer and started my own online, remote personal training company, aptly named Fitness Fertility hoping to support as many women on their journey as possible. I really hope that some good can come out of my own experience and I think helping others through infertility might be something I can do.
Authors
Maria lives in the UK with her husband and two children. She is a personal trainer and psychology teacher and loves trail running, the gym, reading, messing around with her family and supporting others on their fertility journey.
