Cristal and Chris

When my partner and I received the news that we would require medical intervention to start a family, it was devastating. My body did not work in the most natural way it was designed to work. Although I have a loving supportive and committed partner, the guilt and fear I felt was overwhelming. I could no longer give him what he deserved, a wife that could provide him with the family he longed for.

Was it my fault? Would he look for someone whose body would give him his family? I collapsed crying. My partner came over to me, picked me up, looked me in my eyes and calmly told me “I love you and we are a team”. This is when I realized we were stronger than I ever thought, and our family journey was not over, it was just altered.

We decided to start treatment with Olive Fertility Center because the centre was highly recommended by our OBGYN, has higher success rates for IVF than the national average and because there was no waiting period to start treatment. We were eager to get started as we had already been trying to conceive for 2 years. We quickly scheduled our consult appointment with Olive Fertility Center in Vancouver to discuss the doctor’s recommendations and what to expect during our IVF cycle. The nurses took time to explain our medication plan, showed us how and practiced giving the hormone injections and answered all the questions we had, which were a lot. Being from Winnipeg, our nurse and patient coordination team also assisted us with figuring out what dates we would need to travel back to Vancouver for the cycle monitoring and egg retrieval. We left our first appointment feeling fully informed.

As we returned to Winnipeg we started our fertility medication for our first cycle. My partner and I both knew that this process would be both physically and emotionally difficult, so I decided to open up to my work colleagues about what I was going through in case I needed a little extra support because I was still working during the first stages of my cycle. As I began sharing my situation I was shocked to find how many of my colleagues had gone through IVF or some other form of fertility treatment. It was like a live work support group that none of them had ever talked about until I brought it up. I wasn’t alone!

We are still working hard on starting our family but talking about our IVF journey to family, friends and colleagues also gave me the opportunity to tell them how they could best support me, like asking them to not ask me if the treatment worked, or if I was pregnant yet, or just giving me a wink and telling me I’m doing great if it looked like I was about to cry.

We continue to attend Olive fertility because of the wonderful doctors and staff. From the minute you walk in the clinic at reception, every phone call, every email, every ultrasound, every consult, you are not just a patient…. You are their priority. Our journey may end up with another IVF cycle or egg donors or whatever way we decide are the next steps to start our family but we are glad we shared our story and we are glad we have had the support of Olive fertility centre’s team because it is easier doing something hard when you know you are not alone.

Thank you again to our amazing team at Olive fertility centre. A very special thank you to Dr. Taylor, Paula Anderson, and Heather Loeffelholz for everything you have done for us. You make your patients feel like family.