My IVF Journey With Kindbody From Infertility to Pregnant | Macro Beauty | Refinery29 - video Dailymotion

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After more than two years of infertility, Sophia Jenezon, 30, refused to let go of her dream of becoming a mom. A nurse by profession, Sophia has spent her career caring for others but when it came to her own fertility, she was repeatedly told she was too young to worry. That it would happen on its own. But what happens when the nurses need care too? In this episode of Macro Beauty, Sophia shares what it really looks like to navigate infertility with grace, patience, and an unshakeable hope for what is possible. It wasn't until she found Kindbody in Walnut Creek, California that everything shifted. With a team that finally listened, Dr. Geraldine Ekpo and the Kindbody team were by Sophia's side every step of the way through embryo freezing and two embryo transfers. Now she's pregnant with a baby girl. Because every woman deserves a team that truly cares. Watch the full episode now.  ⚠️ This episode contains an honest discussion of infertility, IVF, and fertility treatments that may be sensitive for those currently navigating their own journey. Please watch with care. 💛 If you or someone you love is facing infertility, you are not alone. Share this episode with a woman who needs to hear that it is possible.  https://kindbody.com/  ABOUT REFINERY29  Refinery29 is a modern woman's destination for how to live a stylish, well-rounded life. http://refinery29.com/  ABOUT SERIES Macro Beauty is Refinery29’s intimate, visually immersive beauty series that zooms in on trending treatments. Each episode follows a new host as they try a buzzworthy procedure — from the first consult to the final results — to answer the ultimate question: Was it really worth the beauty investment?  SUBSCRIBE TO REFINERY29 Subscribe to the Refinery29 channel: http://bit.ly/subscribe-to-r29 Follow Sophia Jenezon on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sophiajenezon/ Follow Kindbody on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kindbody/ Follow Refinery29 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/refinery29/ Follow Somos on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/r29somos/ Follow Unbothered on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/r29unbothered/

Transcript

00:00I've been struggling with infertility for two years. I turned 30 this year and I always thought

00:05at 30 I would have at least one child. I've always wanted to be a mom and so going through

00:10the infertility journey has been really tough. When I found out that we could do IVF with

00:16Kind Body, I was so excited. I started crying. I couldn't believe it and it just felt like a dream.

00:31Hi, I'm Sophia Jennison. I'm 29 years old. I'm a registered nurse and I'm going through IVF for

00:36the very first time. Will it be worth the time, pain, and would I recommend it to a friend?

00:41What happens when the nurses need care too? I was running, trying to get myself in shape.

00:47All of a sudden, I just stepped incorrectly and fell to the ground. At 29 years old, I didn't think

00:54that I would be getting surgery as well as going through IVF after multiple medicated cycles, IUIs,

01:01and timed intercourse. After a year, it was really daunting and really upsetting. It just amazes me

01:09when I look back at pictures when I see how much time really has gone by and how there have

01:15been

01:15certain holidays or birthdays that I have thought that I would have my own baby to hold during those

01:22times and that just hasn't happened for us. Every time you get your period, it just becomes so emotional

01:28because you're just starting back over again. The very first time that I went and talked to a

01:36professional about my concerns about getting pregnant, they basically told me, you know,

01:40you're young. I'm 29 now. I was 27 at the time. I just didn't take no for an answer. I

01:46wanted help

01:47and I wanted to figure out what was going on. I'm so interested to speak with Dr. Ekpo about

01:54what her findings are and what my labs look like and just to get a little bit more information.

02:00Dr. Ekpo Hi, I am Dr. Ekpo and I am a reproductive endocrinologist and fertility specialist at

02:06Kinebody San Francisco and Walnut Creek. The term IVF means in vitro fertilization and it's a way to

02:12help families conceive by fertilizing the egg outside of the body. The cost of IVF can range from about

02:20$10,000 to $20,000 to $30,000. IVF sometimes involves using a surrogate or a third party, which can

02:28range

02:28sometimes up to $100,000. One thing to know is that infertility is a disease. It does affect

02:35one out of six individuals. There is a stigma sometimes with that diagnosis. People sort of

02:43question things that they may have done in the past to cause this and I often have to remind patients

02:48that there is probably nothing you did. This is just something that unfortunately has happened and we

02:54take the best steps to try to overcome that diagnosis. There is a sense that when pregnancy

03:01doesn't happen it's because of something wrong with the woman but up to 40 percent of the time

03:05it's actually a male factor or a combination and so with IVF we can actually overcome male factor

03:10infertility as well. The woman ends up taking all the shots and growing the eggs but ultimately sometimes

03:17the reason for IVF to begin with is due to a male factor. My husband Alex and I have been

03:24together

03:24since we were in high school and we grew up together but now we have really learned how to lean

03:30on each

03:31other. It's not only an emotional process for me but also for him too. He has been my biggest partner,

03:37my biggest supporter. He's picked me up off the ground when I've been upset and didn't want to keep going

03:44on. He has always wanted to be a dad and he loves to play with our niece and nephew so

03:49it has been such

03:50an incredible experience to watch him work so hard on this with me. When I found out that we could

03:58do IVF

03:58with Kind Body I was so excited. I started crying. I couldn't believe it and it just felt like a

04:05dream.

04:06And then when I went there the very first time they were so incredibly nice and just made you feel

04:11so

04:11comfortable and it didn't feel like you were going to the doctors because something was wrong with you.

04:16Being a nurse I constantly take care of other people and it's one of my favorite things to do.

04:22Being in the patient role I really see what it's like to have good people to take care of you

04:27and what it really means to have that extra smile and that extra patience with the person that you're

04:33taking care of. Hi my name is Dr. Jasmine Pedroso. I am an OB-GYN for Kind Body in San

04:39Francisco,

04:39Dr. Jasmine Pedroso. Taking cases like Sophia's in mind I just want everyone to know that it is never

04:44too early to investigate what you're working with and what I mean by that is does your uterus look

04:51normal? Are there cysts on the ovaries? Do you have polycystic ovarian syndrome? Knowledge is power.

04:58Just a simple assessment, a little bit of blood work, a little bit of ultrasound, we can get you to

05:03a point

05:04where you have some information, some objective information that you can work with. Most of the

05:09time we're giving good news, some of the time we don't but because we are able to have that information

05:15early we can proactively manage and hopefully mitigate any potential future fertility issues.

05:22Kind Body has developed sort of a proactive approach where we are meeting patients where they

05:27are as early as your 20s just to do an initial assessment and hopefully identify any issues

05:32earlier on in life. Kind Body is very inclusive. We welcome people of all ages, gender, orientation

05:39and we really believe that starting a family should be accessible to everyone. So what we're going to be

05:44going over is some of your blood test results and what next steps I recommend to help you guys get

05:50pregnant. Okay. Consultation. This is the first part where I meet the patient and we talk about their

05:56diagnosis. So one of the things I noted from the blood work is that your follicle count is quite high.

06:02Sometimes when we see that we worry about something called PCOS. When we're looking at fertility we're

06:08looking at things from the female stand and also the male standpoint as well. One of the things that we

06:13noted was the how fast the sperm is swimming was a bit on the lower side for him and so

06:18it would make sense

06:19given those findings plus potential PCOS in response to the fact that you may not be ovulating every

06:26month to consider IVF as our next step. Okay. What are your thoughts on that? I think that's something

06:32that I've been waiting here for a while. For a long time. Yeah. Once the decision is made to proceed

06:37with

06:38IVF we start that process. The first part of IVF involves stimulating the ovaries to grow the eggs.

06:44I think it hurts. I've been on the medication for about four days now. I had a little bit of

06:51spotting

06:51but that's all normal so it's something a side effect to look out for. She said everything looks

06:57good. My uterus looks good. My follicles look good. It's on track for what they're expecting so that's

07:04such a great relief. She said I'll be back in a couple days to do another ultrasound in some labs

07:09just

07:10because there's constant monitoring with IVF which you don't always get with other cycles.

07:17Okay tonight we're doing trigger shots so it's 11 45 we're going to do the first one and then we're

07:24going to do the trigger shots and then the folleston. I've never seen somebody get that many shots at one

07:30time. I do them because I'm a nurse so it's easier for me and Alex doesn't have to. My knees

07:38are getting wobbly.

07:40The second part is the retrieval to collect the eggs once they get to a certain size.

07:45Okay so today is the day. It's egg retrieval day. I'm not allowed to wear any makeup or any perfumes.

07:52Very excited. This is always like the scary part because you're just sitting waiting. Before I got

07:59the trigger instructions and I read everything through and there's a section that says for your

08:04partner. My husband and I read it together and it says that the day of the trigger he also has

08:10to

08:11make a sample. It's a partnership. It has to be done together. How you doing? Good. How are you?

08:18You look good. You look cute. The retrieval typically lasts about 15 to 20 minutes. Usually it's done on the

08:24anesthesia. An IV is placed. The egg retrieval is a process by which we go into the ovaries through the

08:31vagina using an ultrasound guide to collect the eggs from the follicles. We drain the ovary of

08:38all the follicles that have grown and whatever fluid is collected is sent off to the lab and under

08:43the microscope we can identify the eggs. The eggs are then put together with the sperm which the male

08:49partner provides and we often assist the sperm in getting to the egg or we allow the sperm to swim

08:56to

08:56the egg. And whatever embryos are created from that process we have the option to transfer that back

09:02into the uterus or do genetic testing. At Kind Body we have our own retrieval room. We have our lab.

09:09Everything is done here. The embryos stay here and eventually the embryo transfer also happens here.

09:14We got our embryo results back so they send us like a cycle plan updated and then I also have

09:20a message from

09:21Kind Body. I hope you're doing well and wanted to check in. I also wanted to give you an update

09:29on

09:30the embryos. The lab notified me that you have two additional embryos that made it to the plastic this

09:36day. I'm at the total of 10 embryos. I wanted to confirm if you wanted them to buy up to

09:41the additional

09:42two more embryos. Oh my god that's amazing! Yay! Okay so we have our little board here so we

09:51retrieved 38. Mature 30. Fertilized 28. And now blasts will be 10. Gotta update this. That's so exciting.

10:04Today is August 1st we found out that we have five embryos. I found out the genders and I'm going

10:11to

10:12go and get some things from the store to surprise Alex so that he can open up a bag and

10:17find out what

10:18the genders are too. So we have three boys and two girls. Sorry. It was just like the best news

10:29ever

10:30and it just feels more real. I am still crying. I feel so lucky. I'm so grateful for this opportunity

10:39and I just can't wait to surprise him because I know he's going to be so excited just like me.

10:45I love you. Wow that's amazing. Three and two. Three boys, two girls.

10:51I love you. I love you too. Let's have them all. Yep. Okay we're doing our first

10:57pile injection and Alex is going to do the first one. I've already washed my hands and everything.

11:05And we're out. Let's get you a bandage. Third pile shot. Transfer tomorrow. The transfer day

11:13is a big day. It's the last part of the process. This is done while you're awake. This is often

11:20like

11:20a pap smear. A speculum is placed. The cervix which is the opening to the uterus is cleaned and we

11:26put a

11:26catheter in. The embryo is then thawed if it had been frozen put into the catheter and brought into the

11:33transfer room and transferred into the uterus. This often takes about five to ten minutes. There's typically

11:39no need for any pain medication for this part. With one IVF cycle, one can create multiple embryos to

11:45use for future transfers. So if our first transfer is not successful, we will go back to the drawing

11:49board and think about things to optimize using one of the existing embryos that she would have in store.

11:55But my fingers across them hoping for the best for her and that the first transfer is in fact

12:00successful. Next, the embryo is transferred into the woman's uterus under ultrasound guidance.

12:05Oh, just super emotional. She just did the ultrasound just to make sure my bladder was pretty full

12:13because that way it's easier for them to put the embryo in. I know it's like I'm not pregnant yet

12:19but it

12:20just feels that way and we were just saying it's been a lot since to get here so all the

12:27work feels

12:29worth it and we're just really hopeful. I'm not even thinking about the procedure itself, just thinking

12:36about all the great days to come. Okay, it's transfer day. Feeling good? Yeah, feeling really good. Good.

12:46It looks like your bladder is ready. Your lining up there looks great. We're going to confirm the embryo,

12:51make sure we're thawing what we said what we thought and that it's your embryo and then we'll get started.

12:57Okay.

12:57And then I'll start a picture with your embryo.

12:59Oh, thank you.

13:01Hopefully we're going to preserve this baby spray.

13:03Yeah.

13:06So cute.

13:10It's so crazy.

13:16IVF is not without complications. With IVF, you often have to take injections. There can be bruising

13:22from that process. Side effects, sometimes fatigue, nausea, and just general bloating is one of the

13:28things that patients can experience. The IVF process involves a procedure, a surgery to take the eggs out

13:34that's done under anesthesia. So there's a risk of the anesthesia side effects. There's risk of damage to

13:41anything around the ovaries during the retrieval process. These are not common. These are very rare,

13:45but can happen. Today is October 30th. We just had our ultrasound and

13:56the embryo stopped crowing, so they don't think it's a viable pregnancy anymore. And we found out it was a

14:02boy.

14:05This is literally the worst, dude. But so next steps are to take a medicine

14:17to expel the pregnancy. It really sucks.

14:26My eyes are super swollen from crying all the time, but I took the misoprostol last night.

14:33I felt nauseous and dizzy. Then this morning I was sitting on the toilet

14:38and I wiped, but I couldn't bear myself to look at the toilet.

14:46I knew what was going to happen because I took the medication, but it hurts so much.

15:02It's just so emotional. All right. Thursday, February 26th, and we're doing our second frozen embryo

15:14transfer. A little excited, a little nervous. We're ready. Ready.

15:30First thing that we always see is the yolk sac, which is the circle.

15:34And then the next is the fetal pole. You can see that flickering.

15:46Today is April 10th, and I can't believe I get to say this, but we have graduated from

15:53our kind body clinic. I just can't believe that this day has come. If you can see behind me,

16:00I put our two ultrasounds. This was the sixth week when we got to see the flutter.

16:06And then this was the eight week appointment where we got to see baby growing even more.

16:11I just can't believe the support that we got. I always felt heard. If ever I had a question,

16:16they always answered it. And then at the end, they all lined up as we were walking out and they

16:22handed me this adorable bag right here. And they gave us this little shirt that says kind baby on it.

16:30I was able to give Dr. Expo a hug and just thank her so much for everything that she did,

16:34as well as all the ultrasound techs and the medical people that helped draw my blood every

16:40single time. Lots of up and downs, lots of crying, lots of happy tears, but I

16:48wouldn't change it for the world. We do know the gender, but we're waiting to tell our family.

16:53We're just so excited and thank you for coming along.

16:58Well, I guess we can tell she's so much bigger.

17:02Mm-hmm. We do know it's a she.

17:04Yeah.

17:05Yeah.

17:06Oh my gosh.

17:08Everyone's fertility journey is,

17:09we call it a journey for a reason. It's different for everybody. But what's important

17:14to know is that you're not alone. When you feel overwhelmed, just know that hundreds of women

17:19have gone before you and they have been able to have the family of their dreams.

17:24Becoming a mom to me is something that I've wanted to do since

17:28I was a little girl. I used to walk around with baby dolls and I just knew that if I

17:35didn't want

17:35to be a nurse, I wanted to be a mom. To watch more videos like this, subscribe here.

My IVF Journey With Kindbody From Infertility to Pregnant | Macro Beauty | Refinery29

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