IVF for Baby Hammontree

Hello friends, family, and amazing donors! My wife, Ashley, and I have been together almost nine years and married since October, 2010. We have been trying for over two years now to get pregnant and start a family, but have not had any luck at all.

We tried the natural way for 7 months but it wasn’t working. We know that experts say you should try at least 12 months before looking towards infertility treatment, but we just had a nagging sense that something was wrong. We went to Midwest Women's Healthcare Specialist as they agreed to do a consultation. After a few tests, our fears, turned in to reality when they recommended we start infertility treatment.

Our doctor immediately began Ashley on medications and then we started IUI (Intrauterine insemination) treatments. As you can imagine this was quite expensive. While we both work full-time, myself as a Police Officer, and Ashley as a pediatric RN, and have a steady income, each round of IUI, after you factor in sonograms, sperm treatment, and medications, would cost upward of $1400. 

After 3 unsuccessful rounds of IUI, our doctor was concerned that there was something more serious going on. Unfortunately, the only way to be certain was to undergo a hysterosalpingogram and genetic testing for both of us. So, with another out-of-pocket expense, we received more bad news, Ashley had a gene mutation (MTHFR A1298C) that could make it difficult to get and stay pregnant. With only a few answers our doctor wanted to continue with IUI.  We had 2 more rounds of IUI with additional medications praying that we would get pregnant, but it just didn't happen.

Then we were blessed with a miracle. Ashley found out she was pregnant! We were over the moon excited but cautious because of all her medical issues. We were able to go and get our first sonogram, which of course was amazing! A few weeks went by and we went for our second sono. We were excited and hopeful to hear our baby's heartbeat. What actually happened was one of the worst days of our lives. There was not heartbeat and there had been no growth; Ashley had a miscarriage. To compound the situation a week later she had to have a D&C (Dilation and curettage) where they physically go in and remove the fetus. Of course nothing could go simply and the 15-minute procedure took over 6 hours due to complications. As you can imagine this whole situation was heartbreaking and really set us back emotionally and physically for Ashley. After waiting a while we decided we would go through one more round of IUI.

As you have probably guessed by now, it didn’t work. So we’re now on to the next stage, IVF (In Vitro Fertilization). This was something we both have been dreading as the costs are astronomically higher than IUI. Luckily, Ashley's health insurance does in fact help with IVF. However, by doing so our monthly premiums increased almost $200/month, putting a further strain on our disposable income to put toward IVF treatments. After speaking with representatives from Ashley's insurance company and the fertility clinic, we found out that we could still owe well over $10,000 AFTER the insurance. Worse yet, there is no guarantee IVF will work the first time. We’re factoring in the possibility of having to do multiple treatments of IVF. 

On top of everything we were going through with infertility, Ashley had been dealing with severe skin issues for the last three years. She would have flare ups on areas of her skin that looked like eczema but much worse. It was super painful and would cause blisters. Unfortunately, as soon as we started IUI treatments, these skin troubles became even worse. It goes without saying; the doctors wanted her to get this taken care of before we could dive into IVF.  So, after many visits to several different Dermatologist and finally an Immunologist (and another $1,000) we found out Ashley was allergic to...EVERYTHING! Unfortunately, part of that long list was the dyes used in our furniture; which means that the furniture we bought when we moved into our home, (and just paid off) has to be replaced sooner rather than later. Now that we have the allergies under control (mostly), we are finally starting IVF.

These last two years have been some of the most trying years of both our lives. We have spent over $12,000 out-of-pocket trying to have a baby, but we aren't ready to give up! So we are facing this year and this next chapter head-on! For those of you who know us, you know we do not like opening our private life to the world like this as it is such a personal matter. We want you all to know that all donations, large or small, will be equally appreciated. There is nothing we want more than to bring new life into this world and our wonderful family.

We can’t possibly expect our family and friends to fund this procedure in its entirety, but we are hopeful that through the kindness of others we can reach our goal without falling into substantial debt.

Please feel free to share our journey with friends and family.

With love,

Ryan & Ashley