A Bill and Guiliana Rancic Update

Bill and Guiliana Rancic opened up to the ladies of The View about their recent IVF. Now I have been impatiently waiting for their pregnancy announcement. Sadly, their first IVF ended in miscarriage. It is discussed in this weeks People Magazine, but you can see their heart breaking interview below. This breaks my heart, I know what they are going through and how hard of a journey infertility is. I just love them, I know they will be great parents when the time is right.

His Name WAS Liam

Hi, folks John here. Every now and than the geek in me has been revealed here in many posts and is about to be again.

I am fan of the TV series Battlestar Galactica and watch religiously every week. This weeks episode "Deadlock" hit home for me in a unexpected way.

To make a long story short for those of you who are not familiar with show, there is a race of artificial beings known as Cylons. The Cylons, originally robotic in nature, evolved into human versions. The human versions, or skin jobs as they are called by the actual humans, are not able to reproduce with themselves. Essentially, they are infertile.

Through the course of the show we learn that humans and the human Cylon versions are able to reproduce. But eventually two human versions of Cylons are finally able to conceive.

Caprica Six, also known as Six after her model number, and Col. Saul Tigh, known to be one of the original 5, get pregnant. I have often joked with Shannon that we are Cylons since we have had such a hard time conceiving.

This episode had hit home for me as Caprica and Saul lose their baby. It reminded me of when Shannon had miscarried and we lost our baby. Reminding me even when do get pregnant again there is a chance we could miscarry again.

In a touching scene, between him and William Adama, Saul reveals the babies name WAS Liam, short for William. Although, Shannon and I will never know what the child we lost would have been we press on.

I look forward to see how the final episodes of Battlestar Galactica pan out and eagerly await how our own adventure comes to a climatic climax. I look forward to the day when I can say her name IS Claire or his name is Luke.

Are you a smoker looking into IVF- then QUIT!

If you are a smoker I am sure you know all the risks that it can cause to a baby if you smoke while pregnant, but have you ever thought about how smoking effects your fertility? Now I know we all say look at all the crack whores who get knocked up on accident! If they can get pregnant then so can I. Beleive me I have thought that very same thing. But honeslty, smoking can affect your fertility and it has a big impact on your success rates of IVF.
Smoking while undergoing IVF can significatnely lessen your changes of concieveing, in fact smoking can add up to 10 years to women's reproductive age, so a 30 year old non- smoker has the same chance of getting pregnant then a 20 year old smoker.

Dutch researchers did a study with 8,400 women who had undergone their first cycle of IVF. All were aged between 20 and 40 and 43% were smokers. It was found that overall, the birth rate among smokers was 28% lower than non-smokers. Furthermore for those who did become pregnant, the miscarriage rate was higher among smokers (21%), compared to non-smokers (16%).


Other studies have shown that there is only a decrease in IVF success rates when a woman is a heavy smoker, smoking more then 10 cigarettes a day. Researchers have stated that the large amounts of tobacco in the body prevent the uterus from being receptive to the embryo, therefore making implatnation more difficult for the embryo.

So while there is no conclusive evidence, it is important to live a healthy lifestyle, so if you are a smoker, light or heavy, and you are getting ready to undergo IVF, STOP SMOKING NOW!

Putting Feelings Into A Song...I Would Die For That.

In Kellie Coffey's song "I Would Die For That" she describes the feeling of not being able to have children and the pain of infertility. The song sums how Shannon and I feel exactly. Why do people get pregnant when they don't want to be? Why is it so much easier for others? Why do people have abortions when so many people want to have children and can't? The video is full of facts that infertile couples go through and experience on a daily basis. I have found we all keep asking ourselves the same question...Why?

www.kelliecoffey.com

My Story- the good, the bad, the miscarriage.

Well, since I have been telling you about different ways to help you get pregnant, I feel its only fair that I share my story.

It all began in August 2006- John and I got married and decided that we wanted some alone time before we starting trying to have a baby. We agreed that March 2007 is when we would start trying. So, in December of 2006 I decided to go off the pill, thinking that it would take 2 months to get my body back to normal. Well, fast forward a month to the end of January 2oo7 and my period is 4 days late. I arrived home from work and decided to take a home pregnancy test (HPT) just to see. Much to my surprise it was positive, I couldn't believe it, I was pregnant. But I had to be sure, I mean it was an old test, and they can be wrong. So it was a Friday night and John and I had our usual dinner out plan. We went to Ceasars Palace at ate at the Cheesecake Factory, throughout the entire meal I didn't say a word. But after dinner we went home and I went to Walmart and bought 4 HPT's. I came home and about midnight they were all positive.

Now, being married to a banker I have learned the personality, everything is planned and everything in the right time. Well, this was not the right time, it was 2 months before John wanted kids. So, nervously I walked into the office with the Clear Blue Easy digital test and said, "promise you wont be mad" and showed him. He was very excited. I was relieved!

We were pregnant! I couldn't believe our luck! My mom had struggled for years to have me, so this was a shock! All I kept thinking was, we didn't even have to try!

We told our mom's and that was about it, but our family cannot keep a secret so within 2 days the entire family knew.

Well, our excitement was short lived, 2 weeks later I started spotting, I immediately called the doctor who ordered blood work, everything came back perfect, but they scheduled me for an ultrasound the next week. Two days later my spotting turned into bright red blood. I called my mother, the nurse, and she immediately jumps on an airplane and flies 3000 miles to be with me. Now I love my mother, however this was not the time to have her staying with me! I know she was trying to help, but it was not helping.

I kept my ultrasound appointment and to our dismay there was nothing to see. I knew it in my heart. I had such extreme pain and so much blood, I knew I was miscarrying. I will never forget that day, February 13th, 2007, it was horrible. I hate that doctors office and I hate that office building. I have since switched doctors so I do not have to go back there.

I went back to work the next day, although I do not know why, and I had to act like nothing was wrong, and be excited that it was Valentines Day. John and I still went out to dinner, but not even the best meal could make me feel better. I took some time to grieve, and feel bad for myself, until I realized that being sad wasn't going to change anything.

Over the next few weeks I started to feel better. I thought we got pregnant once, we will get pregnant again. I kept thinking if I can just get pregnant everything will be okay. But as the months went on and on, without being pregnant, it got harder to deal with.

I still wonder what things would be like if I hadn't lost that baby. I also know that there are things that have happened that would not have happened if we would have had a baby, our business is the prefect example.

Now that it has been almost 2 years, I have moved on and I try not to think about my miscarriage, but it is a part of me, just like infertility is a part of me. I will beat this, I will hold our baby in my arms.

Update on my life

To all who would like an update on my life here it is. John and I are happily married and just had a great holiday season. We are looking forward to an awesome vacation in March, we are heading off to Cabo for some fun in the sun! We are still working on adding another member to the Sholtz family, and no we are not getting another dog. Daisy is enough to handle! I am talking about a baby!

After a devastating miscarriage last year we have moved forward and are working with a fertility specialist here in town, and I absolutely love our doctor! After many tests and many doctors appointments we were given the go ahead to begin treatment. We just began a cycle of Clomid, which is a drug that I take that stimulates my ovaries to work a little harder! I also am doing a HCG trigger shot, it was very scary I have never had to give myself a shot before. I survived it and it really wasn't that bad. I will do anything to have a baby.

Its so crazy I live my life in 2 week intervals, the 2 weeks waiting to ovulate and the 2 weeks waiting to see if I am pregnant, and then the waiting starts all over again! I just cant wait to see 2 lines on a pregnancy test.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers! I cannot wait until I can share our happy news with all our family and friends.