Praying for a miracle: IVF #4

Dear Family and Friends,

Bryan and I would like to share our family story with you. Most of you don't know all of it, so I will start from the beginning.
Bryan and I got married on a beautiful August day in 2005. We knew that we wanted a family but we wanted to wait and make sure that we had a strong and stable marriage first. Not long after our 1^st year anniversary we decided to play the "let's see what happens" game to having a baby.
After, about a year and a half nothing happened. I decided to see a new Doctor who found that I have Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), Hypothyroidism, and a tumor on my pituitary gland. So, I started on two new medications to help balance my hormones, help me feel better and to help me get pregnant. About another year went past and still no luck, so I started a third medication. Through this next year we tried several other small things to help but nothing ever worked.
In January 2011 I saw yet another new Doctor. This Doctor wasn't very concerned with my thyroid (my levels were good), or my PCOS (as my last Doctor had been) but with my pituitary gland. The tumor had grown and hemorrhaged. I was sent in for a MRI and sent to see a Neurologist. The medication that I was on had not been working so he switched me to another. After, a month we experienced the same results. So, off we went to see the Neurosurgeon. I know that God was with us because we just happened to get the best Neurosurgeon in the state of Illinois. In May, 2011, the tumor was removed. Everything went great! But, in September 2011 I knew something wasn't right. I went back in to see my Doctor and we both agreed that I didn't need one of my medications anymore. While there, we got our game plan together for all the fertility tests that I would undergo. At the very end of the appointment she had me take a pregnancy test, just to make sure. The lab technician came rushing out of her room as I was leaving mine and we almost smacked right into each other, then she held out her hands and there was my test with two little lines. I was shocked! Bryan and I were thrilled- we were on cloud nine!
Until two days later when they called to say that I was going to miscarry, then our world came crashing down. It took us five years to get here. Then we find out that I had an ectopic pregnancy and it was stuck in my right fallopian tube. I went in for surgery on October 18, 2011. They removed my ectopic and my fallopian tube, it had begun to stretch so it was too damaged to put back in. It was a blessing that we went into surgery then because I had internal bleeding and blood was starting to pool. They also found endometriosis- just one more thing to deal with.
The next step was infertility treatment which we started in 2012. We started with medicated timed cycles. After, three cycles failed we moved onto IUI's with injectables. After, a couple of those not working we went in for our In-vitro Fertilization consultation. At the end of our appointment we concluded that the only way for us to conceive is through IVF.
In October 2012 we were all ready to go for our first cycle. We were so excited. We thought "finally this is going to work!" After, all the shots-and appointments-and traveling we still ended up with a negative result. Not only did it not work but we didn't have a single embryo survive to freeze.
January 2013 we began cycle #2. This time the Doctor changed some of my medications to give me more mature eggs. Cycle #2 ended the same way as #1.
This Doctor is the best RE in the Midwest and he wasn't sure why this wasn't working for us.
In March I went in for surgery, once again, this time for Ovarian Diathermy. O.D. is used for women with PCOS to help relieve symptoms and to help increase egg quality. After, I healed we went back and did and IUI just to see how I would react to medications. Of course, it didn't work. So, we went on to IVF #3. Everything this cycle went perfect, things were finally starting to look up for us. Then came the phone call to say that, once again, no embryos had made it to freezing and then we knew that this cycle was a bust.
And now here we are. We have one final attempt left and to make the most of it we need to use an egg donor.
The reason that Bryan and I wanted to share our story with you is to let you know not only what our personal history has been, but also what our future plans are. Infertility is not spoken about much in social circles. People are uncomfortable talking about dying embryos. They feel bad for couples trying to get pregnant but have no idea what to say. Please understand that we understand the uncomfortableness of the situation. But, although we experienced so much loss, we are still extremely hopeful that we can still become parents. This entire experience has been an emotional and financial burden on us, but Bryan and I remain a strong couple determined to conquer these obstacles TOGETHER.
We have set up this site to seek support in (hopefully) the final step in this journey. The cost of using an egg donor is $7000 plus incidental expenses. Any help that you could give us would be so greatly appreciated. We continue to pray and have faith that we were meant to have a child to love and help grow.


God's Blessings to You,

Bryan&Lisa