Rachel's IVF story

It’s been amazing; almost too good to be true but it wasn’t!

When my husband and I had been trying for our second child for over a year and a half, we decided to visit our GP to see what was going on. The GP sent us both for lots of tests, but all the results came back fine and we were told to just keep on trying. I remember being told ‘You’re really young (28); you’ve got so much time!’ and leaving feeling completely fobbed off.

We didn’t want to wait any longer, so we started looking into IVF treatment. As I already had a child, we weren't eligible for treatment on the NHS, and I knew that we would struggle to afford private treatment. For months I researched different clinics but couldn’t find anywhere with a price that was manageable for us. It just so happened that one day when I typed ‘IVF’ online, an advert for abc ivf popped up. When I saw the price, I clicked on it straight away and read everything I could find. At the time, the clinic was fairly new, but we decided to book an Initial Consultation and Scan anyway.

As soon as we arrived at the clinic for the appointment, I immediately felt like we had made the right choice. The staff were all so lovely and made us feel welcome. They didn’t fob us off; they took us and our story seriously and made us feel at ease. Our Nurse Consultant performed a comprehensive scan, which was really reassuring, and then talked us through all our options. We were told our chances of success based on our medical history and age, but what I appreciated the most was their honesty. They didn’t hide the fact that treatment might not work, and I think that is really important. We left our Initial Consultation feeling positive and knew that whatever the outcome, the abc team will try their best for us.

We decided to go ahead with treatment at abc ivf, so the next step was to go in for a Treatment Consultation where we completed all the paperwork necessary and went through the treatment plan step by step. The Nurse Consultant explained when and how to take the medication required and even showed me some demos to make sure I was 100% clear. I was really worried about this part of treatment, but felt much more at ease after this appointment. The team gave us lots of useful leaflets to take away and made sure we knew we could contact them at any time if we had any questions or needed any advice.

Treatment began on the first day of my menstrual cycle and I visited the clinic every few days to check how my follicles were developing. Another element which was fantastic about abc ivf was that they could fit my appointments early in the morning. I am a teacher and abc were able to see me before work and that made the world of difference to me! I didn’t have to take time off work and didn’t have to tell my employer about treatment.

When my follicles were mature enough, I took my trigger medication and went in to have my eggs retrieved the following day. I had been a little bit weary about the procedure because this takes place at CREATE Fertility and I was worried about having a different team treat me, but they were absolutely amazing too! They were all so lovely, knew my medical history and really looked after me. When I woke up from the procedure, the nurses came to my private room to check in on me straight away and let me know how many eggs they retrieved. My partner and I were always explained everything that was going to happen and kept in the loop with every aspect of my treatment.

We were promised that we would get a fertilisation update within a few days and I didn’t even have to chase them; they called me when they said they would. The team were in constant contact with us throughout the whole treatment and I really liked that.

We were so happy to find out that we had 2 high quality embryos, one of which we would have transferred into my womb and the other we decided to freeze.

The next step was the embryo transfer. Again, I was made to feel completely relaxed and assured prior to the procedure. I had a lovely nurse next to me, holding my hand, while the IVF Consultant carried out the procedure. They both did everything they could to keep me calm and make sure the whole environment was as relaxing as it possibly could be – I even got to watch the whole procedure on the screen and we were given the scan picture to take home! It was just a wonderful experience.

A few weeks later I went back to abc for my pregnancy blood test. In my head, I was starting to accept that it hadn’t worked, so when I received the call with the results I was amazed. I was pregnant, the care has been amazing, and we haven’t had to spend a fortune. It literally could not get any better!

I would definitely recommend abc ivf to anybody who needs fertility treatment. In fact, I already have. It’s been amazing; almost too good to be true but it wasn’t.

Rachel & Craig x

*Names and images have been changed for patient confidentiality purposes.