The road to parenthood is diverse and filled with different stories of natural pregnancy, assisted reproduction and third party reproduction, but the bottom line is the arrival of your bundle of joy. Such was the journey for Bose and Bode.
Bose, 34, and Bode, 42, had known each other for over a decade when they finally got together. They had always been friends. They started trying to have a baby as soon as they got married in 2019.
After a year of trying with no signs of a pregnancy, the couple decided it was time to see a doctor and have some investigations. Bose saw an obstetrician /gynaecologist who said that it could take time for her body to adjust, but when she hadn’t gotten her period after several months, Bose knew something was wrong.
She started taking hormones to induce her period, but it didn’t work. She saw dozens of specialists, had every test imaginable, and was poked and prodded in every way imaginable.
Several months after all the investigations, Bose was diagnosed with premature ovarian failure, and was told she and Bode would not be able to conceive on their own after he was diagnosed with low sperm count and poor motility. It was a bombshell for the anxious couple.
Bose was so much looking forward to being a mother it had never occurred to her that she wouldn’t be able to have children as easily as she desired.
But she and Bode had options. It had been established that if she couldn’t conceive a baby, she could at least carry one, and so going for IVF using a donor egg and/donor sperm was a possibility. They could also adopt. The options were varied but expensive, so she and Bode took time to save up, weigh their choices, and relish their time as a couple.
In the end they settled for IVF with ICSI and started googling fertility treatment centres. In a short while Bode found a clinic near his family’s house in Lagos.
The couple moved in with Bode’s parents while Bose went through the process. It was a life upheaval, but she cared about getting pregnant more than anything else. After weeks of medications, blood work, ultrasounds, and various other procedures, they found an anonymous egg donor,
The couple had their initial consultation at the fertility centre, where they were recommended to opt for IVF treatment with ICSI. From the moment they went to the fertility clinic, they had such a good feeling. They thought it was the most amazing clinic, and felt like individuals there and really felt like everyone was rooting for them to have a baby.
The donor eggs were fertilized with Bode’s sperm through IVF/ICSI procedure. When the embryos developed two of the best were selected and transferred into her uterus. After that, all they could do was wait. Twelve days after the transfer, Bose got her first-ever positive pregnancy test. She was ecstatic and so was Bode.
But their joy was short-lived as she suffered a first trimester miscarriage. It was a shock and devastating blow and Bose took it badly. There was no explanation for the loss and the clinic did its best to counsel the couple and urged them to try again after a while.
Three months later, they returned to the clinic for another attempt. The fertility specialist advised that they try another donor, since it was not clear if there were problems with the previous donor eggs.
After a while and with the help of the fertility clinic, another suitable egg donor was found. Overall, 12 eggs were collected and sperms were then selected from Bode’s sperm sample, and injected into the eggs through the ICSI process.
The resulting embryos were then carefully observed in the laboratory for the next five days. Five of the embryos were selected as the best, and two were selected for transfer, with three of the other embryos selected as suitable for freezing.
After having two of the embryos replaced into Bose’s womb, the couple then had a two week wait to discover if they had been successful. They tried to do really positive things to keep busy and relaxed and to keep feeling positive.
When the two-week wait was finally over, it was time to do the pregnancy test. Bose had a dream that the test had been positive, and so got up at about 4 o’clock in the morning to do it. She sat in complete shock when she saw the test was indeed positive. She told Bode and they both sat there in tears, it was very emotional.
After a straightforward pregnancy, Bose had an uneventful labour after being induced; she gave birth to a gorgeous little boy just last month.
Bose and Bode can’t remember life before the birth of their baby that has now completed their family. They assure whoever cares to know that they plan to have more babies.
They still have three frozen embryos and hope to use them to expand their family one day. Bose advises couples going through IVF to keep life as real as possible and not to allow negative thoughts.
