Tonight my dad mentioned that when he was reading about the hurricane in Florida and saw the words “storm surge,” he thought of “hormone surge” and wondered how I was feeling that afternoon. When he told me about this word association I laughed and jumped over to my laptop, just as he was asking me to keep him “anonymous” in my blog posts. I have read that family support is vital in the process of becoming a single mother by choice, and I believe I am living proof of that.
Last month’s IUI didn’t result in a pregnancy (I wasn’t one of the lucky 20% who become pregnant on the first try). I was disappointed and immediately got into the car and drove home from the beach to be with my family. This process doesn’t give a woman much time to wallow. On “Day 3” I had to be back at RMA for blood work to start the cycle all over again. This month’s attempt was an exercise in timing and patience and I complicated matters by having my sperm sent to RMA’s beach location instead of the one only minutes from my house. I mention all of this, because when things got complicated and it became clear that I was going to have to camp out near the beach, I picked up my mom and dragged her there with me. I needed support from the home front.
My mom and I managed to turn the whole episode into a little getaway and I’m hoping the fact that I was sitting by the pool reading about vampires and witches after the IUI will result in a more fruitful attempt this month. (Fingers crossed!)
Without the love, support and friendship of my parents and sister, I don’t think I could embark on this adventure. My gratitude is not always perfectly expressed, as I find myself frustrated, nervous, and hormonal, but I cannot properly measure what it means to me to have these three wonderful people on the front lines with me.
Family. At the end of the day, that’s what this is all about, right? Making more family.
Read more about Emily’s journey to motherhood here.
