I decided to have a baby on my own

I hadn't met a partner yet and time was ticking. I started out by going to a different clinic in Birmingham to do some groundwork and look at my options. I thought I was healthy person, and I probably wouldn't have any issues having treatment. I got told straight away that I had a really awful egg reserve so IUI wouldn't be an option for me. I'd have to do IVF for any chance of success.

I wasn’t eligible for NHS treatment. I understood that it was my choice to have a baby on my own, but I didn't realise that I had a long list of things that were wrong with me that I needed help with. I didn't qualify to have any of my procedures done on the NHS which I felt was very unfair.

I had originally anticipated having my treatment at the previous clinic. I had an examination, and he wasn't able to find my left ovary, so it was thought that I possibly didn’t have one. The ovary he could see, only had a few follicles present, so it didn't look great at that point.

The consultant asked me some questions about my periods, from a young age they've been really painful, and I told him a few other details. He suspected endometriosis  and concluded that I needed to have a few procedures before starting IVF.

" As a solo parent looking for a sperm donor, this was a really important part"

I had an operation including a Laparoscopy and Hysteroscopy to investigate my missing ovary. Tissue was blocking my fallopian tubes, as well as my left ovary being fused to my bowel. If I had tried to fall pregnant naturally, it possibly wouldn't have worked because of these issues.

I had that procedure done and started looking for donor sperm. The clinic didn’t have a license to use overseas sperm banks, the choice of sperm banks in this country is really limited. As this was such an important part of the process, I wanted to make sure I was happy with the sperm donor, so wanted more options.

That was part of the reason I decided to move to CREATE, but also the communication at the previous clinic was awful. I would email the admin staff questions, and I wouldn't receive a response. It's quite an anxious time when you're going through a process like this. To be left hanging frustrated me to the point where I thought, no, I can't go through this experience if that's the kind of support and communication I'm going to get.

''To come to a clinic where I was listened to, the communication was excellent and that just made things so much easier for me '' 

The advice I would give is it's a very stressful and emotional journey to go through. Especially if you go through it as a solo parent. Don't underestimate that. There are lots of ups and downs along the way. I'm sure some people have smoother journeys than me. I'm sure some people have much harder experiences than me. Prepare yourself for that and lean on friends and family to talk to and offload. That really helped me.

Try your best to maintain hope as hard as that can be sometimes. Along my journey I often felt hopeless, but I think Doctor Datta kept me grounded with that. He would always remain positive, saying we'll try something else if this doesn't work. It felt like, there's different options to explore, I've just got to keep that positive mindset. If you want something so badly you've got to go for it, and if you pick a good fertility clinic, it can make the experience so much better.

" After moving to CREATE it improved so much for me and it just made everything far less stressful"

A friend of mine had also used CREATE Bristol and she recommended them. I looked up the reviews which were really positive, and I liked the mild IVF approach. Previously, because of my low egg reserve and all these different issues I was facing, I was told that I would need the maximum amount of medication to yield any kind of results.

" I started afresh with CREATE. There I found the process really easy."

I read a bit more on CREATE about how they focus on the quality of eggs that you produce rather than trying to medicate you to such a high level that you produce lots of eggs. I liked that this was their ethos. Everybody was really lovely when I went for my initial appointment. It's a good experience to start from.

After my initial and consultation, I had a video call with Doctor Datta where he took me through my results and his recommendations of what would be the best avenue to go down.

''The staff at CREATE treated me wonderfully. They were all so friendly '' 

It wasn't a smooth journey, because of how my body was reacting to the medication, but the support from CREATE was smooth, my body just wanted to do its own thing. They pretty much knew me on a first name basis towards the end because I went into the clinic that many times. They were just really kind, and nothing was too much for them. If I had any questions via email, somebody would always get back to me really quickly, and if I phoned up, I'd be able to speak to somebody quite quickly. They were really supportive with my medication and getting all of that sorted.

When I did have success the receptionist said, we just want to say we're all really, really pleased for you. So it was lovely and it did feel like they were just as invested in my journey as I was.

''I would absolutely recommend CREATE Fertility '' 

I was in absolute shock when I found out I was pregnant. I was so excited, but it didn't sink in for me for quite a long time. I think it's because at so many points along the way, it looked like this was never going to happen for me. I think I took several pregnancy tests over the first few weeks just to make sure that I was still pregnant! But it was wonderful and such a special time. Especially at my early pregnancy scan with Create when I got to see my baby’s heartbeat.