MY INFERTILITY JOURNEY: STRUGGLING WITH INFERTILITY FOR FOUR YEARS

Infertility can be depressing, it is a journey that is for the strong-willed. My journey started like a joke because getting married we planned to start trying for a baby three months after our wedding, and we didn't expect to wait for four years but life had other plans for us.

Infertility is depressing and difficult in a society where we have a lot of womb watchers, immediately after the wedding ceremony, in-laws, parents, neighbours, friends begin to ask questions like; "are you pregnant?", "why are you adding so much weight?", "why is your stomach increasing?", "are you sure your having sex the right way?", "do you know how to count your fertility period?", "all your mates have children so what is happening?" and the questions can go on and on.

The first year of marriage, I didn't think it was anything to worry about until I didn't see my period for three months, being excited I got a test tab and did a pregnancy test and it was negative, thinking whenever you missed your period, it's a pregnancy I was disappointed, I decided to go to the hospital for check up and then the unknown began.

People always say experience is the best teacher, for me I have never experienced it before, I have always seen my monthly flow every month and couldn't speak to anyone about it apart from my hubby and mom.

Now my journey to the hospital begun, I ran several tests, scans and I was told I was experiencing hormonal imbalance and I had PCOS and I was given birth control pills for six months to no avail. The pills completely changed my body system, I lost taste for food and started seeing my period once in three months.

I took the drugs 💊 for over six months but no difference then I stopped going to the hospital and taking drugs because I was not improving, I decided to research on other methods and joined a lot of fertility groups on social media to find out what other women where going through and finally it helped me, seeing that I was not alone and others were going through the same thing, I decided it was time to look for solutions I began to read and do my research and I discovered that your diet is very Important when it comes to hormones and I had to cut off sugar completely from my meals, cut of carbohydrate, introduce a lot of fruits and vegetables into my meals, as for my favourite food rice, I didn't eat for one year.

Exercise turned my best friend, I skipped 2000 everyday and after two years my period became consistent every month but still conceiving was an issue, my body kept on deceiving me monthly, I bought pregnancy test tab and used it for than 50 times and seriously got tired and frustrated then I decided it was time to go see a senior gynecologist, so when I meet him, he asked tests, like scans and trans-virginal scan be done, and when I did, it confirmed that I didn't have PCOS or hormonal imbalance anymore but told me and my partner to undergo several more tests which we did that confirmed that we were fine.

Then I decided it was time to also pray seriously about the issue so every 12 midnight I woke up and praised God and also prayed because I knew I had tired all I could, while still continuing with the tests, I was told to do HSG to find out if my tubs were okay or blocked and before the test I was informed that it was very painful.

Truly getting to the HSG table the pain was something else but after the doctor finished the x-ray on me, he said congratulations and with tears in my eyes I asked him for what, he said your tabs are not blocked but fine.

Then all the tests and examinations came out fine and I felt better, my period was normal and then two months later I saw my period twice in a month and I was very sick 😫, my mom told me to do a pregnancy test but I refused due to the times I had done it and I didn't want to feel disappointed again so I went back to the hospital, when I got there the doctor asked me to do take the pregnancy test but i was afraid so the nurse that was my friend encouraged me to take the test, which I agreed and she ran the test herself, coming back upstairs to where I was sitting, she was singing praise and all of a sudden, she met me and told me congratulations.

I was surprised and shocked, couldn't believe my ears, tears rolled out of my eyes, truly I was pregnant.

Finally, four years of all kinds of tests, scans, drugs had come to an end.