Becoming Empowered When You Feel Powerless
I will be going away on a family vacation this week, so I will not be able to post my blog love Monday post. (Hence, the reason I posted the success story early!) So here are other Blog Love posts!
But please don’t go now that you’re here! There’s been plenty of great material written 
so look through My Favorite Stress-Free Posts, my Categories and my awesome, moving Tag Cloud on the sidebar for some stress-free reading pleasure!! I’ll miss you but I promise to check in when I get back!
It’s Success Story time (a day early)! Today, meet Tiffany! She blogs at PCOS Success! She is 25 weeks pregnant with her first son she is naming Bradley. Read on for her amazing story.
1. How long did you struggle through infertility?
It was two years ago that I decided to go off the pill but after 6 months and still no period, I got concerned. After vaginal ultrasounds and tons of blood work, I was diagnosed with PCOS.
2. What did you go through (as far as treatments, different doctors, adoptions agencies, etc.)?
After the blood work that helped diagnose the PCOS, my Ob also noticed high LFT (Liver Function Test). Because of this I was sent to a GI Dr. to get this problem “fixed” before my Ob would proceed with any ttc methods. With the GI Dr. I went through months of testing, ultrasounds of my liver and fasting of any alcohol or vitamins. But still…high LFT. It was very frustrating. After 3 months of dealing with the liver thing and getting no where, we found our RE. She told us that there is a link between PCOS and high LFT. We were frustrated because we felt like we had just washed 3 months of trying down the drain. Anyway she put me on a round of Provera to start my period, and scheduled an HSG to check my tubes. Hubs was also sent for a SA. Hub’s first SA came back with a low count. He was sent to a Dr. to see what the problem was. The dr. didn’t find anything horribly wrong and just gave hubs the advise of eating more healthy (cutting back on all the caffeine and alcohol). Second SA came back with a normal count. My HSG came back normal as well. I was very thankful. At that point I was cleared to start on Clomid. 50mg and using OPK. BFN. Second round Clomid 50mg using OPK and IUI. BFN. Third round, put on METFORMIN, Clomid 100mg using OPK and IUI. BFN. Fourth round on Metformin, Clomid 100mg, getting HSG trigger shot and IUI. BFP!
3. How did you handle disappointments through your cycles (natural and otherwise) or months of waiting?
There is really nothing that makes the sting of a negative pregnancy test go away. However, I do feel one of my greatest outlets was being able to find the humor in all my crazy ttc antics. To my husband and I, it was either cry everyday, or laugh everyday. We chose to laugh. Having the support of a wonderful partner is also key. When struggling with IF one can’t help but feel blame, shame, like it’s “all my fault”, or like “there’s something wrong with me, I’m broken.” But having a partner that lifts you and and really makes you feel that IF is something you BOTH are struggling with, not just the woman, is priceless.
4. What were the ‘stress-free’ techniques that you tried that helped you get through the cycle or time (yoga, meditation, acupuncture, support through family, friends & on-line, etc.)?
Tiffany's fur children
As funny as this sounds, blogging was one outlet for me. Writing out my feelings and stresses and concerns help me get through the hard times. Also, I am a HUGE fan of downloading the pod-casts on conceiveonline.com’s website. I would download them to my ipod and take long walks. It was so helpful listening to other woman’s stories and knowing I wasn’t the only one. My husband and I were are also each other’s workout partner. We would walk with each other almost every night and also lifts weights together when we had time. Lastly, my fur children can help me through anything!
5. If you could give advice for couples going through infertility now, what would it be?
My biggest advice, and what helped me through the struggles is, “Stay committed, don’t stay attached!” What that means is, stay committed to everything you have to do to get to your end goal. i.e. stay committed to taking your medicine, exercising, going to your Dr. appointments, supporting each other etc. However, don’t become attached. i.e. don’t buy baby things that will only sit in your house and haunt you, don’t pick out names, try not to put your life on hold etc. I know these things are easier said than done but they really do help. Also, just saying a daily mantra or affirmation, “I will become a parent, I will become a parent…” Will help remind you of your end goal. I always knew I would become a parent, I didn’t always know if I would get pregnant or not, but I knew I would be a parent, eventually, somehow!!
Thanks so much for sharing Tiffany! To follow her journey into motherhood, follow her blog!
And the winner is….(drum-roll please…)
Jessica ( @aWifeNamedJess) from A Place to Start!! You won this beautiful necklace from Fertile Garden!! Enjoy it!! And Congratulations!!! 
OK…so I’m going to keep this short and sweet! Today’s the last day of ICLW! (So thank you so much to all those that stopped by, followed and commented! My heart is full and I was happy once again to reach out into the IF blog-world and add some new blogs onto my blogroll!)
And today is also the last day of my Fertile Garden Giveaway! <–Click this link to get all the details on this beautiful necklace that I know you want a chance to win! I will announce a winner tonight!! You can still tweet and blog about it for an EXTRA entry (Please link to the post above)! Make sure to include your favorite piece in your comment as the main entry! Thanks and good luck!!
If you’re here from ICLW and it’s your first time here, welcome! I’m having a giveaway! (Click on it! You definitely want a chance to win this beautiful necklace from Fertile Garden!) So, it’s Blog Love Monday and each week, I do a feature on a blog, and lately I’ve been doing a mini-feature on 3 blogs! So, here they are!
First up is Aunt L from Always the Auntie. She just got a new job, so Congratulations Aunt L! And she’s added low-dose aspirin, Primrose oil and infertility Yoga to her TTC plan. She’s also trying to eat better! (And who isn’t these days?) So, give her some encouragement and follow her along!
Next up, we have Lisa (@WaitingLisa) from Waiting Lisa. She’s really down right now because it’s been 2 yearssince she’s been homestudy approved for adoption and she’s still waiting for a baby. In December, the doctors removed her uterus and ovaries from endometrial cancer and she’s still working through that. She’s recently been trying to fundraise for her adoption and you too can help chip in! We’re here for you Lisa!
And lastly, we have Shannon from Musings of a Fat Chick. She has a gorgeous view from her balcony that I’m so jealous of! (See the picture at the right.) She recently had a tomato plant Yetti, who against all odds had a baby and I think this post was such a great analogy for perseverance through infertility! And she recently had a WTF appointmentand is now looking for a new clinic (after 3 failed IVFs and 8 failed IUIs). Go lend her some support!
Please stop by and give all these lovely ladies some Blog Love today!
It’s Success Story Sunday! If you’re here from ICLW, I strive to feature a new story every Sunday. If you or someone you know has been successful, please go here for more details. Thanks so much!
Meet Courtney! She is on Facebook, tweets @MommaRoberts07, blogs at The Secondary Chronicles, and vlogs at Our Journey to a Family of 4. She went through secondary infertility and is now pregnant with a boy due in November! Read on for her surprising story!
1. How long did you struggle through infertility? I am not your typical infertility story. I did not have to struggle for as long as some women, but either way the struggle still hurt. We tried for 21 cycles.
2. What did you go through (as far as treatments, different doctors, adoptions agencies, etc.) ?
I had Secondary Infertility. We had our Daughter in November 2007. We didn’t try, nor did we prevent getting pregnant with her. We hadn’t been preventing for 2 years prior to getting pregnant, but didn’t think much of it because we were young and not really trying. She was a wonderful surprise and David and I were both over the moon excited to be having her. (I had always thought I would have trouble getting pregnant because my mom had a horrible time) So after she was born I naively thought “YAY! I will be able to get pregnant when we want and have the large family we always wanted!”
So when our daughter was Nine months old we decided to start trying for our second child. The first month went by and I was a little upset but not put out yet, because I knew it could take a couple months. After 6 months I was getting very depressed. I began looking it up and found that Secondary Infertility can be quite common…. who knew?? I sure didn’t. Month after month I got more and more upset. I mean what the heck is wrong??? I get a period every month!
In January I was finally able to start seeing a new OB/GYN to help me find out what was wrong. (before that I had tried all the At-Home remedies for TTC (none worked:/)) She was so amazing and started running tests immediately. My Husband had his Semen Analysis, which was a little abnormal. You can hear all about it here. I had an ultrasound where she told me I have a titled Uterus, my right ovary is more in the middle of my body instead of the right side, my ovaries are poly cystic, but none of these things were the problem. My lining was great, my progesterone was good (even though my luteal phase was a little short), and my cervical mucus looked good.
I was beginning to think I was going to be one of those women who just wouldn’t know why. In February she told me to come back in on CD 3 of my next cycle and we would do an ultrasound then. That month I decided not to chart m BBT or take OPKs. We had sex about every other day around my usual ovulation time (cd 16 or so I thought) like always. The only things I changed was after sex I laid on my stomach instead of hiking my hips (because of the tilted uterus) and that month I really looked at myself and was not happy. I told myself I was going to be happier and stop acting so upset and depressed it just wasn’t me.
On March 12, 2010 I decided to take a pregnancy test (I was 9dpo by my usual ovulation day) I didn’t think anything of it because I was so use to it being a BIG negative that when I walked back in the bathroom to look I almost passed out! It was Positive! I broke down in tears and called my husband (who was working out of town at the time). He thought something was wrong with me, I almost couldn’t get it out I was crying so hard. When he finally understood what I was saying he started crying too. After 21 cycles of trying we were finally PREGNANT!
3/4. How did you handle disappointments? What were the ‘stress-free’ techniques that you tried that helped you get through the cycle or time (yoga, meditation, acupuncture, support through family, friends & on-line, etc.)?
In April of 09 I found the TTC community on YouTube and that group helped me out so much! At our one-year mark in August I decided to start making TTC Vlogs and the support I received was amazing! Then in October I started my Blog and found my Twitter community, which helped me even more. These ladies are the best and helped drag me out of the horrible depression I had fallen into.
I am now 22 weeks pregnant. Our SON is due November 23, just 10 days after our daughter’s 3rd birthday. He is growing perfectly and although I have more aches and pains, this pregnancy is going great. We are planning a VBAC and our OB is amazing and on board with us 100%.
5. If you could give advice for couples going through infertility now, what would it be?
Baby Dust and Sticky Vibes to all! My Best advice to those going through infertility is to ignore all the negative people around you and the idiots who throw the “just relax” in your face. Focus on your spouse and the supportive friends and family in your life. If you don’t feel you have enough support get into a TTC community. YouTube, Twitter, and the Blogging communities are amazing and were a lifesaver for me. There are so many supportive women and men and there is always someone going through what you are going through or have gone through it. It always nice to have a “cycle buddy” to suffer your Two Week Wait with or go through injections with or IVF or IUI. These are great support systems!
Please feel free to ask me any questions! You can follow our Journey on our Blog, Vlog, Twitter, or Facebook.
Thanks so much Courtney! I’m sure your daughter is so excited to be a big sister!
OK…so in case you missed it, there’s a little giveaway I’m having from Fertile Garden. See the post below for all the details. It’s a beautiful necklace and I’m really quite excited about it!!
So I’ve been debating about my new playlist on my sidebar. I was only able to get a handful of the songs from my Inspiring Tunes post (and of course I’ll continue to add more on, so feel free to write a comment about a song or two you love). But what I’m wondering about is…should I put the list on automatic play? And maybe random? Will that be a tad annoying or a soothing welcome? What do you guys think? Would you rather click play to hear the music? I would love your opinions!! Thanks! (I have a playlist on my other blog that always starts with Ordinary Miracles which I love and I think is fitting because that’s the title! But I wonder if anyone gets tired of it?)
And lastly, if you’re here from ICLW and you’re new, welcome! I’m at 99 followers and I’ve been anticipating getting to 100 since my 100 Ways to Be Stress Free Through Infertility list!! And…well I’m so close I can barely contain myself! If you follow along I promise to keep it interesting and as stress-free as possible. My whole idea for this blog is to create a community of support! Thanks so much in advance!!
Happy ICLW!!
Good morning everyone and Happy ICLW! If you’re new here I am so happy you came by! Please peruse my newly organized sidebar for a little of what’s been going on!
Now onto the BIG excitement for the day! I am starting a giveaway courtesy of Fertile Garden “where hope helps things grow.” It’s an amazing shop of hand made fertility & pregnancy bracelets, fertility jewelry and inspiring art featured on Etsy and Shop Handmade! (The owner herself is going through infertility and rounding out an IVF cycle. She also tweets and blogs! So be sure to check those out!)
I LOVE her jewelry because each piece uses high quality gemstones “which have special metaphysical properties that are used to enhance fertility and sustain pregnancy.” Some gemstones used most often in Fertile Garden’s pieces are amethyst (which is said to “purify and transmute negativity, boost production of hormones and peace of mind, and give patience and calmness despite overwhelming odds“), moonstone (which ”promotes love, hope and fertility“) and rose quartz (which “are the beads of love and fertility, soothes the heart and promotes peace“). The jewelry is also adorned with charms that are unique fertile symbols like butterflies (”symbols of the soul“), elephants (”symbol of love and virility” said to “increase fertility luck“), and turtles (”symbol of fertility and vitality, known for patience and tenacity“).
Fertile Garden would like to giveaway this beautiful necklace to one lucky reader!
“This beautiful antique bronze fertility necklace features a lovely pendant circle with 5 wire-wrapped moonstone dangles, resembling eggs in the nest, all watched over by two sweet and nurturing mother birds. Birds symbolize love, loyalty and good fortune.”
To enter: Simply View the shop of items and leave a comment on this post about which piece you would most like to have. Please include your e-mail in your comment so I can contact you!
For extra entries: (each one can be counted!)
The giveaway will end on Wednesday, July 28th!
That’s it!! Good luck!!
<a href="http://stressfreeinfertilityblog.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i873.photobucket.com/albums/ab292/mymiracles77/head-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://stressfreeinfertilityblog.com/2010/04/14/100-ways/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i873.photobucket.com/albums/ab292/mymiracles77/14-2-1-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
"/>
Thanks so much!! I hit 100 followers!! Now onto my next goal! 200!!! 
Sucess? A Chance for more Giveaway entries!
So my question is, how do you feel about the success stories every Sunday? Do you love them, come here each week and read through the stories with hope and leave feeling inspired and uplifted? Or do you avoid them and feel like you’ve seen enough and that it makes you more depressed?
I don’t think I’m going to stop posting them because I do get some positive vibes and visits on Sundays (unless of course you all chime in that they aren’t helpful) but I just wanted to get a better idea! Thanks!!
OK…not sure why I didn’t think of this before but today and most of tomorrow are the last chances to enter Fertile Garden’s giveaway!! So, for an extra entry or two, you can tweet about the giveaway and/or blog about it. Please link back to the original giveaway post! Go ahead, it’s giveaway blogging, giveaway tweeting, necklace winning time!!
Posted in: Blog News.
Tagged: comments · giveaway · success