Our Only Chance to Grow Our Oswald Family
Donation protected
Hello, my husband Matt and I are looking for donations to help grow our family. This will be our first and possibly our only child. Please read our story below and consider helping us.
The Backstory:
In 2009 the winds of fate decided to drop this amazing man into my life. Here we are, 10 years later going strong but not without hurdles.
In 2011 I was diagnosed with PCOS and told I would never be able to carry a child. I went to several gynecologist and a hand full of specialist and all gave me the same line. Finally, exhausted from the roller coaster of emotions and side effects trying to control my PCOS I did my own research in 2018 and worked to get it under control through diet the best I could. Then, after a step in the right direction with that, we decided to take one more shot with one more specialist.
My current gynecologist sent us to Hershey. We were not getting our hopes up given everything we've dealt with in the past. We had our first meeting with her and it was great! We didn't have any solid answers at that point but she listened and truly cared about our story and what our goals were. She ran lots of tests on my husband and I. We finally had answers.
The improvements I made myself were enough to get me to ovulate with assistance! That was great news! She said blood work made it look like there were minimal signs of PCOS. This means with assistance of medication, we could try.
But then we went over my husband's results. No one had ever tested him in years past because every doctor said it wouldn't matter because I would never release an egg. His sperm count is high, great news! The speed and shape however, were not good results. So even though he produces plenty of them, the likelihood of them making it to an egg on their own is minimal.
After we received all this information, we received a call offering us to be apart of a trial they were running. I had to get a procedure done to see if my tubes were open and this trial would be a part of this procedure. They used an internal ultrasound and a catheter and pushed saline in to see that my tubes were open. Once they saw the tubes were open, the trial agent was pushed in the same way as the saline. We were told that this oil could possibly on it's own help us conceive. Unfortunately, that was six months ago and there is no longer a chance of that helping us.
We decide to try naturally (with the assistance of Letrozole for me to release eggs) for four months after the trial was done. We had hoped that with the help of the pills and the oil, we would be able to conceive. Those four months pass and each one ends with a negative test. We went in a few months after the last dose of Letrozole for a consultation and because of the continued issues, our only option is IVF.
To prep for IVF I had to have another procedure done where they take pictures of the inside of my uterus and measure to make sure there is enough room in there to carry. Well, like every other step in this process, we have complications here as well. My uterus is too small on the inside. There is extra tissue {Septum} that comes down inside my uterus that is taking up space that the baby would need. So we scheduled surgery to remove this extra tissue.
All of this news was shattering. We are a strong couple with a strong relationship and have had a lot thrown at us in these past 10 years. We support each other and will get through this emotionally, but it is very hard. We just need to catch a break. Something that comes so simple to the majority of people, is going to take science and a lot of money for us.
10 out of 100 women and 4 out of 100 men in the USA struggle with infertility, and unfortunately both of us fall into those categories.
The Costs:
The egg retrieval and one transfer of fresh eggs is going to cost $12,500. Success rates for the first transfer are low so we will most likely need to do at least three transfers. Each additional transfer is $2,500. We will also have to pay $3,000 to have the sperm inserted into the eggs manually because of the shape and speed issues. Our insurance does not cover anything except office visits and blood work which will be minimal costs compared to the overall expense. We hope to get enough viable embryos from one retrieval, otherwise this whole process could go close to $30,000.
How You Can Help:
Any little bit helps! And if you can't afford to help with a donation, we'd appreciate if you'd share our story on any social media platform you use. We are normally the couple to help and take care of everyone around us, but this time we could use a little support ourselves. And if we raise more then we need for this whole process, we'd love to pay it forward to another struggling couple.
Thank you for any support you can give and God bless!
The Backstory:
In 2009 the winds of fate decided to drop this amazing man into my life. Here we are, 10 years later going strong but not without hurdles.
In 2011 I was diagnosed with PCOS and told I would never be able to carry a child. I went to several gynecologist and a hand full of specialist and all gave me the same line. Finally, exhausted from the roller coaster of emotions and side effects trying to control my PCOS I did my own research in 2018 and worked to get it under control through diet the best I could. Then, after a step in the right direction with that, we decided to take one more shot with one more specialist.
My current gynecologist sent us to Hershey. We were not getting our hopes up given everything we've dealt with in the past. We had our first meeting with her and it was great! We didn't have any solid answers at that point but she listened and truly cared about our story and what our goals were. She ran lots of tests on my husband and I. We finally had answers.
The improvements I made myself were enough to get me to ovulate with assistance! That was great news! She said blood work made it look like there were minimal signs of PCOS. This means with assistance of medication, we could try.
But then we went over my husband's results. No one had ever tested him in years past because every doctor said it wouldn't matter because I would never release an egg. His sperm count is high, great news! The speed and shape however, were not good results. So even though he produces plenty of them, the likelihood of them making it to an egg on their own is minimal.
After we received all this information, we received a call offering us to be apart of a trial they were running. I had to get a procedure done to see if my tubes were open and this trial would be a part of this procedure. They used an internal ultrasound and a catheter and pushed saline in to see that my tubes were open. Once they saw the tubes were open, the trial agent was pushed in the same way as the saline. We were told that this oil could possibly on it's own help us conceive. Unfortunately, that was six months ago and there is no longer a chance of that helping us.
We decide to try naturally (with the assistance of Letrozole for me to release eggs) for four months after the trial was done. We had hoped that with the help of the pills and the oil, we would be able to conceive. Those four months pass and each one ends with a negative test. We went in a few months after the last dose of Letrozole for a consultation and because of the continued issues, our only option is IVF.
To prep for IVF I had to have another procedure done where they take pictures of the inside of my uterus and measure to make sure there is enough room in there to carry. Well, like every other step in this process, we have complications here as well. My uterus is too small on the inside. There is extra tissue {Septum} that comes down inside my uterus that is taking up space that the baby would need. So we scheduled surgery to remove this extra tissue.
All of this news was shattering. We are a strong couple with a strong relationship and have had a lot thrown at us in these past 10 years. We support each other and will get through this emotionally, but it is very hard. We just need to catch a break. Something that comes so simple to the majority of people, is going to take science and a lot of money for us.
10 out of 100 women and 4 out of 100 men in the USA struggle with infertility, and unfortunately both of us fall into those categories.
The Costs:
The egg retrieval and one transfer of fresh eggs is going to cost $12,500. Success rates for the first transfer are low so we will most likely need to do at least three transfers. Each additional transfer is $2,500. We will also have to pay $3,000 to have the sperm inserted into the eggs manually because of the shape and speed issues. Our insurance does not cover anything except office visits and blood work which will be minimal costs compared to the overall expense. We hope to get enough viable embryos from one retrieval, otherwise this whole process could go close to $30,000.
How You Can Help:
Any little bit helps! And if you can't afford to help with a donation, we'd appreciate if you'd share our story on any social media platform you use. We are normally the couple to help and take care of everyone around us, but this time we could use a little support ourselves. And if we raise more then we need for this whole process, we'd love to pay it forward to another struggling couple.
Thank you for any support you can give and God bless!
Organizer
Ashley Oswald
Organizer
Orwigsburg, PA