Pregnancy Journey: We Made It!

After my surgery, I was not optimistic about how quickly I would fall pregnant. We waited until I had finished just one cycle before trying, and I was doing all the typical things people do when trying to conceive: tracking ovulation, taking supplements, basically everything Google suggested. That first failed cycle was a shock and made me realise this was not going to be an easy ride. Each negative test brought a whole host of emotions.

I found myself down the rabbit hole of TTC TikTok, looking for others in the same position so I knew I was not alone. I even wrapped a baby blanket to put under the Christmas tree, as I had read it was meant to bring good luck.

Christmas came and went, and suddenly we were in 2025. It was John’s birthday, which we celebrated in the Lake District, one of our favourite places. I was desperate to take a pregnancy test but did not want a negative result to ruin our trip, so I waited until we got back. On the journey home, I thought I had started my period and was miserable the whole time.

When we arrived back late, emotions running high, I decided to take a test just to confirm the inevitable, but to my surprise, not one, but two pink lines appeared. I took another just to be sure. I told John, who was understandably in doubt considering I had moped the entire way home, and then suddenly I was bouncing off the walls with excitement.

Then it hit me: what if it is another ectopic? I knew I had had surgery to remove the problem tube, but that type of surgery can increase the risk of future ectopics. My mind was racing with thoughts. I started taking a test every day to watch the line get darker. I was booked in for a six week scan at the Early Pregnancy Unit due to my history of ectopics and returned to work not knowing if everything was okay.

A few weeks later, we finally got confirmation. I was pregnant and the egg had come from my right ovary, the side without a tube. I was part of the ten percent of women where the opposite tube catches the egg. The human body really is an amazing creation.

Around seven weeks, my nausea really kicked in. By nine weeks, I was signed off work due to hyperemesis gravidarum, which completely wiped me out. I will go into more detail about this condition in a separate post, but in total I was signed off for just over a month. I felt incredibly guilty for not being able to work or care for the kids at home. On some occasions, I was left alone with them and had to push myself to do even the smallest tasks. I will always remember one evening when John was out with our youngest at football and I was at home with the eldest two. They wanted to watch a match on TV, but despite my best efforts, we could not get it to work. My nausea worsened and I had to be sick and lie down until John got home late, which meant dinner was delayed. Some people do not realise how debilitating this condition is and unfairly label sufferers as lazy, which was incredibly frustrating.

By this point, the kids were starting to worry about me. We were determined to wait until twelve weeks to tell them I was pregnant, and we did just that one Sunday evening. We gathered them, shared the scan pictures and a little video from the private scan. Their excitement was priceless.

While their excitement was wonderful and they obviously shared this with loved ones, the news was then unfortunately shared by someone who had no right to discuss it. They claimed I was seeking attention and that I was taking focus away from a child’s achievement. I have never felt so much anger. It was hard to tell whether it was my hormones or just people’s sheer audacity to blatantly lie. Over the years I have learned that social media is not always kind, but it can also be a place to spread joy and connect with people.

The final weeks were a whirlwind of excitement and preparation. In August, we celebrated with a lovely baby shower surrounded by family and friends, which was such a special moment of love and support. At the same time, we were busy with a bathroom renovation and putting the finishing touches on Florence’s nursery, turning it into a cosy little haven ready for her arrival. All of that anticipation and hard work made the day she finally arrived even more magical. On the 12th of September, our beautiful baby Florence joined our family, and it felt like the most perfect ending to this incredible journey.