This article is brought to Black Hills Family courtesy of Sanford Health
Trisha and David Dohn say a lot of people around them wondered why they set out to have a child with the help of infertility treatments when they already had one healthy child. They also questioned if it was worth it, but ultimately felt it was because their greatest joy in life is to be parents and to give their son, Brody, a sibling.
The Dohns have been through a lot to get to where they are today, just two months away from welcoming their second son into the world. It started almost five years ago when Trisha miscarried in the first trimester of her first pregnancy.
“Shortly afterward, with a recommendation from my OBGYN, we decided to seek infertility testing at Sanford,” says Trisha. “Our doctor recommended that I go on a variety of medications, but my body wasn’t responding as it should. During one of the final rounds of medications, they said I hadn’t even ovulated. But surprisingly, I found out I was pregnant two weeks later.”
Whatever it Takes
Brody was born in 2011 and it wasn’t too long before the Dohns decided they wanted to expand their family even more. They started meeting with Sanford reproductive endocrinologist Tiffany Von Wald, M.D. Together, Dr. Von Wald and the Dohns laid out a plan in order to make their dream a reality, which included a number of treatments and genetic testing.
“Dr. Von Wald was amazing through this whole entire process,” remembers Trisha. “You can talk to other people, but no one really knows what you are going through. Dr. Von Wald was so understanding and supportive as we tried a variety of medications, did two intrauterine insemination procedures and I even had a few surgical procedures, but nothing was working for us.”
After trying with no success for several months, the Dohns along with Dr. Von Wald decided it was time to try in vitro fertilization (IVF), another infertility treatment option.
I think people who aren’t going through infertility don’t realize that often in vitro fertilization (IVF) is not the first thing you try.
Trisha Dohn
“It was a challenge for us to emotionally, financially and physically accept that IVF was our reality” Trisha says. “Our insurance did not cover the costs so having that financial impact with no guarantee was tough for us to embrace. Dr. Von Wald discussed with us that to ultimately reach our goal of having another child, IVF would be our next best option and it was then that we decided to take those next steps.”
However, the IVF wasn’t successful and the Dohns were left with some big decisions.
“When we found out it didn’t work, we decided to regroup for about six months,” says David. “The toll it was taking physically on Trisha and the havoc it had on our emotions, we decided to take a step back and ask ourselves if it was worth it. And thanks to the encouragement and belief Dr. Von Wald and the staff had, really helped us to make the decision to continue and keep trying.”
“Dr. Von Wald really felt confident about giving IVF another try,” remembers Trisha. “She had really done her homework and informed us about new research and techniques that had come out since our previous attempt. After listening to her, we knew we were in the right place and really had no doubts about continuing to put our trust in her and the team at Sanford.”
Worth It
And now seven months after their second IVF treatment, the Dohns are happily awaiting the arrival of their second son. And this second little miracle is on his way in large part due to Dr. Von Wald and the entire team at Sanford Health.
“Although the entire experience was such a roller coaster, we would not have been able to get through it had it not been for the amazing staff at Sanford,” says Trisha. “We established a bond with the staff at Sanford from the beginning and they truly made us feel like they cared about us, our future and our outcome. They not only empathized with what we were going through but they provided the support we needed to get through each step of the process. From the words of encouragement to the unconditional friendships we developed, we truly can never thank them enough for what they have done for our family.”
