Helen Dalgish had been trying for a baby since she was 28 years old. At 53 years old, she finally got her IVF success story miracle and welcomed a beautiful baby girl.
For 25 years Helen underwent IVF procedures, 21 in total, costing her around $188,000 AUD (£100k).
In addition to the grueling procedures and costs, her journey toward motherhood also included three miscarriages, 10 donor eggs, years of lost hope and heartache and, finally, a much-dreamed-about baby named Daisy Grace.
Helen and her husband live in Glasgow, Scotland and have spoken out about the years of heartbreak and the joy of finally finding out that they would become parents. What an incredible IVF success story this is!
Failed IVF ‘like a death’
Rewind to 25 years ago. Helen and her husband spent years trying to conceive but it simply wasn’t happening. They went the IVF route but continued to be left devastated and disappointed after every failed attempt.
“It’s like a death,” Helen said. “I would get down for a couple of weeks but then I would pick myself up and say, ‘Right, if you want this baby, get your act together.’”
In total, the couple underwent 21 IVF procedures in 25 years.
“Sometimes it got too much emotionally, physically and financially. Sometimes we stopped for a year or two… [believing] maybe it’ll just happen if we forget about it.”
In those 25 years, Helen did fall pregnant three times, between the ages of 41 and 42. However, each one ended in miscarriage around the nine or tenth week of pregnancy.
One last chance
It was after this that Helen decided to try donor eggs. However, all 10 of them had perished, leading Helen to yet another heartbreak.
The couple decided to give it one last chance and turned their hopes towards the Dunya Fertility Centre in Kyrenia, Cyprus.
Incredibly enough, she fell pregnant and carried Daisy Grace to full term. She recalls crying and screaming “tears of relief and happiness” and admits it felt like “25 years of grief” was escaping her body as she witnessed her growing bump.
“I was looking down and the bump was getting bigger and I thought, ‘Am I dreaming?’”
Daisy was born in September 2022, happy and healthy. Helen has since shared her absolute awe of Daisy and being a mum as well as her appreciation for the medical staff who helped her become a mum.
“I would like to thank all the staff and doctors and everyone at the clinic. She’s a little darling and worth waiting another 25 years for. It’s almost like I waited so long and now I’m being spoilt”.
IVF success stories with happy endings
Starting a family can be draining, lonely and painful, but it can also end in absolute magic – in the birth of a much-wanted baby (or two) and proof that not every journey toward parenthood is a straightforward one.
Here are a few more beautiful fertility and IVF success stories that filled us with inspiration, hope and happiness.
Baby Boy after 12 Rounds of IVF
For 10 years Melissa Warpole saved photos of baby showers, nurseries and newborn announcements for inspiration, hoping she would one day be able to share her own. However, for ten years it did not happen. Finally, on their 12th round of IVF, Melissa and her husband Matty were blessed with positive news. Melissa was pregnant! They welcomed their son, Kai Alan, on 15 April 2020.
IVF Rainbow Baby Photo
Already a mum to Lochlon, born via IVF, Lesleigh longed to give Lochlon a sibling. It took two years, 500+ injections, vials, pill bottles and patches and two heartbreaking miscarriages, but, finally, Lesleigh was blessed with her double rainbow baby, Lennon Kemal.
Adoption and quadruplets
Maxine and Jake Young always wanted a large family. Five years ago, while trying for their own baby, they also went through the process and became foster parents. They took in four siblings, all under the age of five, while still trying to fall pregnant naturally.
For Maxine and Jake, getting pregnant was easy. Staying pregnant was difficult and Maxine went through several early miscarriages. The couple turned to IVF and then an IUI to help them conceive. They had their son, Henry in 2018. Then, just a year later, they found out they were expecting again, this time naturally. And this time, with quadruplets. Maxine and Jake now have nine children – four adopted siblings, Henry and their quadruplets. Just beautiful!
Mum Welcomes Twins Thanks to Her Sister
Amber Spears was only 25 when she found out she was in early menopause. She and her husband turned to IVF but were told Amber’s ovaries were not working. That’s when Amber’s younger sister, Taylor stepped in to donate her eggs. Taylor was just 24 when she started taking hormone injections in the morning and at night to stimulate her follicles. After one failed IVF attempt, Amber discovered she was pregnant… with twins.
Read their beautiful story here.
Feature Image source: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/determined-scots-mum-welcomes-miracle-30128280
