Mothers, who benefited from In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF), have interesting stories to tell despite the pains and frustration in their search for babies. To them, assisted reproductive technique (ART) gives hope to the hopeless. WALE ADEPOJU reports.
For eight years life had no meaning for Mrs Olubunmi Salako. Her attempts to become a mother were futile. She experienced pains and frustrations until she got to know about In-Vitro Fertilisaton (IVF) and her story changed. She is now a proud mother. IVF, she said, is gaining ground.
But it does not mean that IVF has no flip side. The flip side, according to her, is that women who access IVF or other form of assisted reproductive technique (ART) are maligned and derisively addressed as ‘incomplete’ in Nigeria. Superstitions, ignorance and taboos, she said, are some of the reasons some women are not going for IVF to redress their situation.
She said she damned all consequences with her husband’s support to go through the treatment. Beaming with smiles, Mrs Salako, who shared her experience at the 16th anniversary of The Bridge Clinic in Ikeja, Lagos said her years of pain have now turned to joy.
IVF, she said, is Godly as “it has wiped away my tears”.
“As you can see we are all happy today after years of pain. Our children have removed pains from our homes. Many marriages that would have been broken are now intact,” she said.
Mrs Salako recounted that her husband heard about IVF treatment on television in 2000, stressing that he encouraged her to go through it.
“He, however, said it is a big gamble. This made us stay away from the clinic after our initial visit to the facility. We did not go back there until almost a year. We prayed about it. We believed that it will be possible. This came to past. I became pregnant after our first attempt. My child is 12 years now,” she said.
She said she went back to the clinic for another treatment, which was also successful. “The third cycle failed. But, we did not relent. In 2007, we had twins. When they were about seven months I started feeling funny. I consulted my doctor and I was told that I was pregnant again. This time, it was without IVF. On October 7, 2008, I gave birth to another baby. I was happy, although it did not allow for spacing because the twins were still very small,” she said.
Mrs Salako said not all women, who did IVF have a success story to tell.
“I remembered the story of a woman who was treated, became pregnant, but lost the pregnancy after five months. I felt for her.This is why I have not stopped praying for them. My advice is that they should not give up. There is nothing impossible for God to do,” she said.
She also spoke of a lady with blocked tubes, who now has two sets of twins. “She was able to overcome the problem because she never stopped trying. She had tried three times without positive result.
“If you do not have babies in the home as an African woman, it is like you do not have anything,” she said.
She said seeking IVF is not devilish.
Like Mrs Salako, life was also empty for Mrs Eucharia Kapajie, who took fertility drugs and did many things to get pregnant, but could not get pregnant for seven years.
“I also did laparoscopy to remove some fibroids. Yet, I could not get pregnant,” she said.
This, she said, made her plead with her husband to allow her try IVF treatment. “My husband,” she said, “refused bluntly”, adding: “However, after much persuasion he agreed and we started the treatment. By the third month of trying, I was sure it would be successful because of the way it was performed. Sometimes, I get so afraid. And I would say to myself, you will soon be on your own.”
She continued:This is despite peaceful relationship with my extended family. We came for egg collection and then implantation; it was all successful.”
Mrs Kapajie said she worked till about two days to the birth of her baby, stressing: “At work, I passed the performance test. My lifestyle did not change throughout the pregnancy. I lived a normal life.
“I even went to Lagos Island to do a last minute shopping. I was there till 2pm. I had a baby boy. My husband has refused to allow me do a second IVF. But it worked the very first time I did it.”
She continued: “I have a colleague whose mariage is about 20 years . They have been trying for a long time, but it did not work out. My result prior to the birth of my five-year-old son was not fantastic, but God was faithful.”
The clinic, she said, only helps the embryos jump the obstacle into the tubes.
“Some tubes may be blocked or damaged. IVF allows the eggs to go straight into the womb,” she said.
Her uncle, she said, introduced the IVF treatment to her. “He even advised that I go to India because he was scared,” Mrs Kapajie said.
Another mother, Mrs Eremibo Omojoyegbe, said her husband read about the clinic and he encouraged her to have the treatment.
Getting money for treatment, she said, was a problem as her husband’s income could not support such venture.
The doctor, she said, also presented a no-hope situation to her because her follicles were not doing very well.
“She said I have a slim chance of getting pregnant. She tested me and concluded that I have three feeble follicles in my body. The doctor also advised that I stopped the treatment. But I insisted.
“They arrived at a decision during their board meeting that I should have the treatment. My mother-in-law bankrolled the treatment. Those three follicles became my twins,” she said.
Her summation, she said, is that doctors are trying, but God has the final say.
In an attempt to have a baby, Mrs Patricia Jibor said she had several treatments at some IVF centres, but the results were quite frustrating, adding that the practice at those centres was unethical. “But I could not complain. This was shortly before I was introduced to The Bridge Clinic,” she said.
Her treatment at those centres, she said, was not transparent because she was not told what she was taking. “But here whatever you are taking is explained to you in details. I was introduced to the clinic by my doctor at the Military Hospital, Yaba, Lagos,” she said.
She said she had troubles conceiving, adding: “The first time I became pregnant, it was an ectopic one. The second pregnancy was ruptured and my tubes were damaged. The doctors removed the tubes. I was in that problem for four years. For almost seven years I could not get pregnant. It was a period of reflection for me. This made me give my life to Christ.”
She said she became broke due to the financial demands. “I called on God to send me helpers. He did. My sister paid for my treatment,” she said.
Mrs Jibor said she paid N415,800 to remove a fibroid. “Consequently, I accessed IVF treatment, but it failed. I cried bitterly thinking of who to help me again.
“So, I told my sister that I would jump into the Lagoon, but she calmed me down. And she offered to pay the second time. I had the treatment. After the implantation, a calamity struck. My husband had an accident and he lost his limb.
“Doctors advised that I refrain from anything that can prove stressful. But I had to attend to my husband’s needs. I went in to see Dr Sharon, who was not smiling. I became afraid. On getting inside the consulting room, she congratulated me that the treatment was successful.
“I was able to carry the pregnancy despite the stress that I went through. I gave birth to a bouncing baby girl in February. She is more than a year old now,” Mrs Jibor said.