My husband and I have been married since November 1995. We had our first child when I was 23. We had no problems conceiving our first child, Dominic, who is now 16 years old. When Dominic turned 6 in 2002, he asked us why he didn’t have a little brother or sister as many of his friends had siblings. I told him that we were hoping to have another child. My husband and I did try to conceive that year. I was 29 and he was 32. I didn’t get pregnant.
I figured that I was just stressed out as I was very focused on my career. I had been working in the insurance industry since my senior year at UCLA (January 1994) and I loved it. I have to admit that since I got married, it was really all about me and what I wanted to do with my career. I even went back to school to get my MBA when our son was 4. For 2 years, I worked full-time and took 2 MBA classes every quarter (evening and weekend classes). I was exhausted mentally and physically.
After I completed my MBA in 2002, our son, Dominic, turned 6 that year. We tried to conceive another child but I did not get pregnant. Because I wanted to utilize my MBA, of course, my career took over…
And then the following year, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. She was 56. We were all shocked because her side of the family had no history of cancer. The focus that year (2003) was getting my mom’s health back. Fast forward, it’s been 9 years since my mom’s breast cancer diagnosis. Thankfully, my mom is now cancer-free…
While working as a Sales Executive in the behavioral health insurance industry for 3 years (2004-2007), I was exposed to the wellness industry. I’ve learned that incorporating wellness in one’s lifestyle improves overall health. Since my father had died of a heart attack at the age of 47 (when I was 19), and my mother had suffered from breast cancer at the age of 56, those were reasons enough to start looking at my own health.
My husband and I tried to conceive again in 2005. I was 32 and he was 35. We did not get pregnant. This time, I was totally convinced that I was very stressed out due to my job as a Sales Executive.
In 2007, I worked as a Director of Marketing for a Los Angeles-based insurance agency. Not only was I working full-time, but I was very active in the insurance industry, and served on the Board of Directors for my professional association, the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA Los Angeles). Eventually, I became President of NAIFA Los Angeles from 2010-11. It was all about achieving everything I could in my career. I felt like I was married to it. I admit that it took a toll on my family life and also on my health..
In November 2009, I turned 37. My OB-GYN, who knew that we were trying to conceive another child, finally told me that I should get my uterus and fallopian tubes checked, just to make sure everything was okay. I was confident that I was fine. So in February 2010, I went to Providence Holy Cross Hospital for a hysterosalpingogram (HSG).
The results showed that both of my fallopian tubes were blocked. I was referred to a fertility specialist who explained the results. Before we spoke with him, I was crying in the waiting room. My husband was shocked to see me cry. He said that he did not realize that having another child was very important to me.
The fertility specialist asked me if I had any operations or surgeries in my lower abdomen area and my answer was “no”. He asked me if my husband was the son of our first child. I almost fell off my chair and laughed out loud, and told him “YES, he is the father of our first child.” Of course, I knew that the doctor had to cover all bases and he had to ask that question (LOL!). Then, the fertility specialist explained to me that if I wanted to conceive another child, there were 2 options:
1) He can operate on my fallopian tubes in order to unblock the tubes
2) He can help with invitro fertilization treatments
He explained to me that while the first option is cheaper (it costs approx $10,000), he could not guarantee that it would allow me to conceive naturally. He explained that additional scarring or adhesions may be found during the process of unblocking the tubes. They wouldn’t know for sure until they go “in”. He explained that if I wanted to be aggressive about getting pregnant, then invitro fertilization would be the best option for me. After all, I was already 37 years old (not exactly a spring chicken), and the chances of getting pregnant are much lower (being above 35). I was shocked as I did not want to do invitro fertilization (IVF). Not only does it cost $15,000+, but I did not want to get pregnant with artificial chemicals and hormones.
I was SO sad after this appointment. I could not understand why BOTH of my fallopian tubes were blocked! I really wanted to get pregnant naturally.
Today is August 19, 2012. It’s been an eventful 2 months. Guess what? I found out that I am finally pregnant at age 39.
(Wellness Adventures by Edna Dimataga-Fernandez, 8/19/2012)
Pregnant at 39 story to be continued here: http://the-wellness-institute.com/pregnant-at-39-2/