Campaign Story

My name is Taryn and my husband Zac and I have been trying to have a baby for almost 4 years now. I am a high school science teacher and he is a carpenter.

Ever since I was about 12 or 13, I knew my purpose in life was to be a mother but for some reason, I also knew it was going to end up being a difficult journey for me. I brushed it off as just a feeling or bad dreams but when I was diagnosed with Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) several years ago, I knew my intuition was right. I ended up actually getting pregnant unexpectedly in 2020 but miscarried at 6 weeks which was absolutely heartbreaking. We want a baby so badly so I talked with my OBGYN and tried fertility medications (Clomid, Letrozole) to ensure ovulation due to the PCOS but they didn’t work. My husband ended up having some reproductive issues of his own that required surgery so we had that corrected. When the medications weren’t working, I scheduled an HSG which showed that not only do I have PCOS, but a blocked fallopian tube as well. I had tried meds, fertility diets and supplements, and nothing had worked. So in 2023, we started our IVF journey. We ended up with 8 beautiful little embryos from our egg retrieval and our first embryo transfer was in October of 2023. Unfortunately, it did not stick. Our doctor recommended an ERA test which helps determine the correct timing for progesterone doses and embryo transfer to improve the chances of implantation. We just got the results back from the ERA and it should help a lot with the timing of our next cycle.

Our next transfer is scheduled for the end of February and we are staying hopeful that this one will grow into a beautiful and healthy little baby we can hold in our arms. However, most fertility treatment is not covered by insurance and even when it is, the deductible amounts have drained our savings. It’s incredibly expensive, from the actual procedures, to the insurance payments to the specialty fertility medications. We have done okay covering the costs so far but the next transfer is $5k and we need some help. If you know me, you know I don’t ask for help often. In fact, it pains me to write this at all but we so badly want to be parents. If that means swallowing my pride, then so be it.

If you can consider giving even $5 to our journey, we would be eternally grateful. If you can’t donate, we totally understand. If you wouldn’t mind sharing this and just praying, that would be wonderful too!