Our story began like so many others with a strong desire to have children; after stopping the pill, this wish took its time to be fulfilled. While at first we both stayed calm and level-headed, our longing grew bigger by the day. After 9 months we decided to visit our GP, and after a number of tests we were told that my partner's sperm quality was very poor and that our chances of becoming parents were very small. Our world collapsed at that moment, and without any further explanation or guidance we carried on with our lives on our own.
Still, it kept nagging at me, and after 3 months I managed to convince my partner to have another sperm test done and to ask for a referral to the hospital. It turned out afterwards that the sperm quality was actually very good. Our substitute GP had given us the wrong information. After some frustration, we were of course also relieved. After all sorts of tests, no cause could be found on my end either — we were happy but at the same time didn't understand why it still wasn't working.
In consultation with our gynecologist we started IUI treatments; the guidance at the hospital was difficult, with little listening or consideration given to what I indicated. It took them 5 IUI treatments to discover that I was ovulating too early, even though I could feel this clearly and had mentioned it several times. The last IUI ended in overstimulation, which left me feeling very unwell. That was the final straw for us, and we decided to look beyond a hospital in our own area.
Through the internet we found Human First. However scary it seemed at first, it also made us curious. The process was clear, well laid out and professional. I called Evren that same week; Evren listened to our story, explained things to me and answered my questions. Shortly after, we decided to try it and go through with the process in Istanbul — this was late October, early November. We booked an 11-day trip, and I started the ultrasounds and the Menopur there. All of this in consultation with Evren, and it went great — she listens, is there for you and answers all your questions.
On Christmas Day we flew to Istanbul, and the next day we already had an appointment at the hospital. Our appointments went very well; Dr. Cem Demirel, in a word, is a doctor who knows what he's talking about. The guidance was better than we could have expected — nurses who genuinely care, a lab that reaches out to keep you updated on progress. In total we visited the hospital 4 times: 2 ultrasounds, the retrieval, and the transfer a day before departure. In total we had 6 top-quality eggs, and after discussion we decided to do the transfer on day 5/6. The risk was that not all 6 would keep developing, and that turned out to be the case — we ended up with 2 eggs of A quality and 1 of C quality. In consultation with Dr. Cem Demirel we decided to transfer the 2 of A quality. The retrieval and transfer went fine, and we flew home the next day. Once back home we stayed in touch with the hospital; they'd call me when I needed a blood test or could do a pregnancy test. We are now happily 9 weeks pregnant with 1 embryo!
For us, there won't be any more treatment in the Netherlands — next time, we're going back to Istanbul through Evren.
This story was translated from Dutch by our team. Read the original Dutch version →
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