MrsT
Enjoying wedded bliss.....
Member since 4/06 1323 total posts
Name:
Katrina
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11 miscarriages and then a healthy baby
I heard this on the radio yesterday (Wendy Williams read it).
TTCer's - Keep the faith 
Tracie Aughter-Lounie thought she'd never experience the sweet smell of a newborn's breath or feel the touch of tiny fingers against her cheek. She desperately longed for a child, yet every one of her pregnancies-11 of them-ended in tragic miscarriages.
But Tracie never gave up on her dream of becoming a mother-and after 15 years of heartache, she's finally been blessed with a beautiful baby boy.
"I'd go through it all again for this special feeling!" Trachie told The Enquirer as she cradled little Lewis tenderly in her arms. "He's my little angel."
But it wasn't so long ago that Tracie, 38, was at her breaking point.
"I went through Hell," she admitted.
"The first few miscarriages got me down, but I was young, I could try again, and doctors kept telling me it was just bad luck-there was nothing physically wrong with me."
But by the time she lost her fifth pregnancy, she knew in her heart that something was wrong. "With each miscarriage my spirits got lower and lower, and I started to believe it was my destiny never to be a mom," she said.
"It became an obsession with me. I couldn't bear being near pregnant women, young moms walking new babies in a stroller-I'd get angry inside, asking why could they have a baby, why not me? I felt like I couldn't go on. I'd put on a brave face in public, but i'd break down in tears when I was alone."
Tracie's first miscarriage crumbled because her husband drank and blamed her for the miscarriages. Tracie pushed the thought of having a baby to the back of her mind. She'd gone through the heartache of nine miscarriages, and didn't want any more.
But then Tracie met Paul-and everything changed.
"He was everything I dreamed of-sympathetic, supportive, understanding-and I started to dream once again."
Tracie hoped that having a new partner might make the difference, and she and Paul soon learned they were expecting. She was overjoyed and filled with hope.
But tragedy struck again at 7 1/2 weeks.
"It was the same old story," she said.
Finally Tracie, from Hertfordshire, England, was referred to a special hospital unit in London which dealt with problem pregnancies. After weeks of tests, they diagnosed an extremely rare condition-antiphospholipid syndrome, which starves a developing baby of oxygen.
"That's why I never got past six weeks or so," she explained.
"That's when the placenta kicks in and needs oxygen."
Before they could start her on a special drug regimen designed to beat the problem, Tracie got pregnant again. And she miscarried-for the 11th time.
Tracie hit rock bottom and was almost ready to give up.
"I will give you a baby-I promise," one doctor told her. And Tracie put her faith in the specialist and tried again. Before long, she was pregnant for the 12th time.
Tracie held her breath as the weeks went by. She had weekly ultrasounds to check the baby's progress and was terrified at each appointment that she'd hear bad news.
"Then at 20 weeks, I felt the baby kick for the very first time!" she recalled. "I looked at Paul and I had tears streaming down my face. And as my body swelled I wanted to shout to the whole world, 'I'm pregnant! I'm pregnant!'"
At 37 weeks, Tracie's blood pressure suddenly soared. Doctors quickly delivered 7 pound, 2 ounce Lewis.
"I heard Lewis cry, and it was the most wonderful sound I've ever heard! I screamed, tehn started to cry too!" she said. "Lewis has finally made al lthat heartache worthwile. I would go through another 11 miscarriages I can experience that joy again. And for any woman out there who's gone through a miscarriage or two, just remember-never, ever give up."
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lmnscc
LIF Adolescent
Member since 1/07 598 total posts
Name:
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Re: 11 miscarriages and then a healthy baby
That's basically how my DH and I feel. I keep saying that in the end, we'll look at that little face and this all will be worth it. We've been ttc for over two years, one m/c and one chemical pregnancy, lots of fertility drugs, 4 IUI's later and we aren't giving up.
I guess most people go through the same feelings. I went through a really angry stage where I couldn't understand why it is so easy for some to get pregnant and others can't. I'm not angry anymore, but still sad about it.
Good luck to all you ttc'ers newbies and long-timers.
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