Jennifer & Tim
Infertility Diagnosis
- Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
- Unexplained infertility
Treatment(s)
- Frozen embryo transfer (FET)
- Hysteroscopy
- In vitro Fertilization (IVF)
- Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
- Laparoscopy
Location(s)
- Albany
Physician(s)
- Edward Ditkoff
- Michael Grossman
- Robert Kiltz
Jennifer & Tim's Story:
What is infertility? Our long journey began 2 years ago. We were grateful to have CNY Fertility so close to where we live. Little did we know we would be making many visits there. We were lucky to have decent health insurance that covered some procedures and medications. We started with IUI’s because well insurance covered it. 4 IUI’s and no such luck. Every time one failed it was a downer, but in true Jen form I picked myself up and met with the Doctor and Tim and I decided to move on to IVF. Of course this meant having to pay out of pocket for retrievals and transfers. Also started going to acupuncture frequently, thank goodness insurance covered those appointments. Continued shots, bloodwork, and monitoring for 2 retrievals. We didn’t care about quantity we cared more about quality. Once we were happy with the amount of eggs we had next up was the transfer of the embryos. We ended up doing 3 transfers all together. I feel like the transfers that were negative were harder than going through IUI’s because in the back of my mind I was questioning the embryos that fertilized.
On November 1 we had our last transfer of the only 2 embryos we had left. In the back of my mind I was already starting to plan out “what if” game plans. IUI’s and IVF are so hard because after the procedure you wait 2 weeks to find out if it worked or not. On November 11 was beta day and I got the best news ever...a phone call from CNY saying they got back my bloodwork and that I was pregnant!! I learned on this journey to celebrate each milestone because it got you farther than the first time. 2 days later back again for more bloodwork and wanting to see the first number double up. Heartbreaking news the number did not double up like it was supposed to it doubled down. Closely being monitored by the nurses at CNY 2 days later back for more bloodwork. The numbered double back up again. Since than all my bloodwork numbers have been amazing. Baby is doing great.
My husband has been amazing through all of this and has been great at the role of official shot giver. My mom has been great stepping in to give shots when the husband was not available.
In the end all of the retrievals, transfers, shots, blood draws with my difficult veins, and appointments have been worth it. It’s amazing also how much I’ve learned through this whole process. I’m going to be so sad when our time at CNY Fertility is over. The nurses, doctors, receptionists, acupuncturists have all been amazing through our whole journey and we are forever grateful. Baby C is already so loved!!❤️
Favorite Team Member at CNY:
There were so many staff members at CNY that helped make our experience at CNY a special one. Every nurse I had seen was very supportive. It’s hard to name just one because the staff at Latham CNY are all amazing! Dr Ditkoff was the one who retrieved our eggs and Dr Grossman did our transfers.
Helpful resources Jennifer & Tim found:
I took advantage of the free fertility yoga classes. Before each procedure I took advantage of getting acupuncture and massages. I also found that listening to Dr. Kiltz Sunday fireside chats were very helpful. There are also a ton of CNY Facebook support groups run by patients that were helpful.
Unique Moments:
What is unique about our story is that our beta numbers were great for beta 1 decreased for beta 2 which is not a good sign but doubled for the 3rd beta and progressed after the way the numbers are suppose to.
Hope, Inspiration and Advice:
Best advice to is to never give up on your hopes and dreams.Your story is part of the struggle and is part of who you are. It is okay to share your story because there are so many people going through the same thing?❤️
