While on their honeymoon six years ago, teachers Amy and Gary O’Keeffe began trying for a child, and Amy got pregnant right away. We finally had to close the door because we couldn’t keep deciding whether or not we wanted the family of our dreams. We at last achieved the happy ending we were waiting for, and now that we are a family of four, we can begin the next chapter. Gary and I both work as teachers, love children, and are eager to have a family. We’ve been together for eleven years and married for six. We started trying for a kid after getting married and getting pregnant on our honeymoon; sadly, the result was that we had our first miscarriage.
The Carlow, Ireland-based couple started their IVF process in 2017, and Amy became pregnant twice, first in October 2018 and once in January 2020. However, both pregnancies ended in miscarriages. Doing the same thing repeatedly is destructive, she declared. I lose a little more hope each time I tell myself I can’t go on. We decided that we would give up if we didn’t become pregnant after the tenth round of IVF because the odds were overwhelmingly against us.”
We didn’t expect any problems because we had no trouble getting pregnant, but after 14 months of trying again, we were unsuccessful. Being in our 20s, we ought to have had an easier time getting pregnant. I was worried that the miscarriage had thrown us off track, so we saw a GP. They suggested that we visit a center for assisted reproduction. After a series of testing, we were given the diagnosis of unexplained infertility, but we never obtained a definitive diagnosis.
“In November of last year, we performed our eleventh embryo transfer, but we weren’t expecting the two embryos we transferred to be successful. Despite the fact that you can’t test for two weeks, I started to feel pretty sick a week after the transfer. I simply reasoned that maybe this time I was overdoing it and exerting too much pressure on my body, but out of curiosity, I took a pregnancy test and saw a strong line on the stick. After the clinic decided not to check, we made the decision to go see the family doctor. With everything we’ve been through, the doctor asked whether we thought there was a chance it might be twins, but we’re not sure. I never imagined that I would be that lucky.
Around Christmas last year, the couple had their first ultrasound, and they were frightened to find out more bad news. When the nurse informed them that she could see a second baby, Amy exclaimed she couldn’t believe it. The odds were stacked against us, so it came as a surprise. We told our relatives, and they were ecstatic. After receiving the bad news for five years, I believe they are incredibly relieved, and if it’s the good news, it comes as a surprise. It came out to be unfavorable news. Thus, even though everyone was delighted, there was a caution. It was both bitter and sweet.
“Till the end of my pregnancy, I was frightened of having too much baby gear in the house since I was constantly concerned about whether we would be able to bring the twins home. Pregnancy went without a hitch. I carried my children for 37 weeks before having to give delivery. Each of them have distinct star signs and I gave birth to them naturally on separate days. Maisie, who weighs 5 pounds and was born just before midnight on July 22 and is a Cancer, and Jared, who weighs 5 lbs 8 oz and was born just after midnight on July 23 and is a Lion.
