Sheri's Story

Our journey to overcome infertility was a road filled with many sorrows—but also one of ultimate joy, as God has now blessed us with precious twin boys! Even thinking back now about all we went through as we struggled to have children, I can still remember the pain so vividly. But, I’m not the same person anymore, and Miracle Mothers played a major role in getting me through. Working through this group and Karen Cross, God brought me back to life!

My husband and I were married in 2001 when I was 36 years old. We decided to have children right away because of my age. After six months of trying, we saw my obstetrician and had the usual fertility diagnostics done. We then tried IUI four times with no success and finally visited a fertility clinic in February 2003.

We completed our first IVF cycle in April 2003, when I was about to turn 38. Although that cycle failed, we became pregnant on our second IVF cycle in August of the same year. As the pregnancy progressed, I was followed closely by a perinatologist, due to my age. Everything was progressing according to plan, until at 18 weeks, we were given the horrible news that our baby had multiple anomalies and would never live through the pregnancy; the doctors were shocked, in fact, that the pregnancy had gone this far. On November 26, 2003, we terminated the pregnancy, and we were devastated. On November 29, our son William Alexander was delivered into the hands of God. We spent months trying to understand how this could happen to us and, of course, “playing the waiting game” before the fertility doctors would let us try again. We luckily found out that the problem wasn’t genetic, so we could proceed without worrying that the same problems would recur.

We went through a third failed IVF cycle in February 2004, and then became pregnant with twins through our fourth IVF cycle in April 2004. Tragically, at 6 ½ weeks, we lost both babies. That was without a doubt the lowest point in my life. I thought God was punishing me for the things I had done wrong when I was young; I was mad at God and the doctors, and I was looking for someone to blame. That was when my cousin introduced me to the Miracle Mothers prayer group. And, I’ll tell you, after that first meeting, I felt an amazing weight begin to lift!

We were still struggling with what to do next—“Do we go on? Do we adopt?” But, having those women to pray with and talk to turned things around for me and gave me purpose again. I turned back to prayer and began to get clarity on how to tunnel my energy toward a solution. I began doing some research on miscarriages and problems conceiving and spoke with many women who were having similar problems. Then, I found a clinic in Nevada that could do blood testing to screen for multiple potential problems. My doctor sent off some blood, and they were able to find a problem with clotting. This could be the reason I was unable to either get pregnant or stay pregnant! I found out that I needed to be on Heparin before and during the pregnancy, so we decided that we would give it another try.

Karen prayed with me and told me to trust God for His timing. She continued to focus me on prayer and the Word, and somehow I just knew that it would finally be our time. Our fifth IVF cycle was in August 2004, and we became pregnant. Our first ultrasound was on September 21, and what a shock-- “triplets”! This definitely put me at high risk, so I went in for ultrasounds every week.

One of the embryos was smaller, and the heartbeat was slower so we were cautioned that we might lose one of the babies. Unfortunately, this happened at ten weeks. But, thank God, the other two boys were o.k.! And, according to the doctors, if we hadn’t lost him, the other two children might not have made it. Amazingly that time, I was actually able to focus on the positive outcomes and not be angry. I guess I had learned to trust God, and the prayer group gave me the support to get through.

The rest of the pregnancy and delivery were not easy. I had to be admitted to the hospital briefly when I began leaking amniotic fluid at 21 weeks, and was then put on bed rest at home. I began having premature labor at 26 weeks and developed gestational diabetes. I was put on Terbutaline and followed very closely, and at 28 weeks, I received steroid shots for the boys’ lungs, just in case they came too early. At 30 weeks and two days, I went into real labor. I was admitted to the hospital, and my water broke before we could stop the labor. I had an emergency C-section, and the boys arrived, each weighing just over three pounds. They spent seven weeks in intensive care, and we spent many days and nights praying for them to survive. Praise God, they did!!! They are now 2 years old and thriving!!!

I am still a part of Miracle Mothers group, and I pray for other women going through the same struggles I did. This prayer group is wonderful, and you will find more support and information here than you could ever need. Thank you for taking the time to read my story, and I pray that you find the strength and courage to see you through even the hardest times!