When Lad and Andrea Bachtell of Hanalei attempted to start their family seven years ago, they knew there could be a chance they would not be successful. The previous year, Lad had undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, and as a
When Lad and Andrea Bachtell of Hanalei attempted to start their family seven years ago, they knew there could be a chance they would not be successful.
The previous year, Lad had undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, and as a result of the therapy was not producing sperm.
However, doctors told the couple that there was a small chance that sperm production could regenerate in the future. The couple held on to that glimmer of hope, and for the next seven years tried to conceive through a variety of methods before finally ending up at the Pacific In Vitro Fertilization Institute in Honolulu.
At the institute, embryologist and andrology expert Dr. Thomas Huang did a specialized, in-depth semen analysis on Lad. The results were not good.
Although Lad was producing sperm, most were not viable and, as a result, not able to fertilize an egg and produce a pregnancy.
But there was still hope for Andrea and Lad, in the form of an advance in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) that had recently been developed for infertile couples where the male partner produces low numbers of normal sperm.
In IVF, a woman’s ovaries are stimulated with medications to produce multiple eggs. Eggs are then retrieved from the woman’s ovaries using a non-surgical procedure, and fertilized in the laboratory using her partner’s specially processed sperm.
The fertilized eggs are cultured under strict laboratory conditions for between three to five days, and several are selected for transfer back into the woman’s uterus (womb) where implantation may occur.
For ICSI, the sperm are obtained from the male reproductive tract by a simple surgical extraction procedure. Using special equipment call micromanipulators attached to a microscope, it is possible to capture a single sperm in a tiny glass needle that is also used to inject the sperm into an egg.
Fertilized eggs are incubated, and the resulting embryos are placed back into the woman’s uterus for possible implantation.
Andrea and Lad successfully went through their ICSI IVF procedure, and were able to have most of their medical expenses and airfare to the clinic in Honolulu covered by their HMSA insurance.
Today, Andrea and Lad are the proud parents of a healthy, 10-month-old son, Jaden.
“It’s been a long process, and along the way some people said ‘maybe it was not meant to be,'” said Andrea. “But we kept trying, and thanks to the miraculous advances in IVF, we now have Jaden. He is so beautiful, and we feel so lucky.”
The Bachtell family lives on Kaua‘i, and Andrea and Lad own and operate the Blue Kauai Tattoos shop in Hanalei.
According to statistics, the Bachtells’ plight is not as rare as people might think.
One of every six couples may face pregnancy loss, infertility or stillbirth during their childbearing years, and when they are unable to bring a child to live birth, it can affect every aspect of their life.
A statewide infertility conference with a Kaua‘i component is planned for this Sunday, Sept. 21, from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Wilcox Hospital conference rooms.
The conference is sponsored by nonprofit support group Resolve of Hawaii and Wilcox Health.
Infertility specialists, local physicians, adoption professionals and patient panelists will be presenting through the Hawai‘i chapter of Resolve “Bringing Home Baby, Treatment or Adoption?” in four locations across the state.
At this event, couples will learn of causes of and cures for infertility, and hear of the choice of adoption as an option, from patients who have traveled the same journey.
They will also hear from medical and adoption professionals from throughout the state.
Local physicians will also be on hand to help couples with the transition from family practitioner to infertility specialist.
Bevin Parker-Evans of ‘Oma‘o helped found the Resolve of Hawaii organization 10 years ago, after she and her husband had infertility issues as well.
Today, they are the proud parents of a healthy son.
Parker-Evans, a free-lance writer, is 2003 statewide National Infertility Awareness Week chairperson.
The conference is free, and it is for Kaua‘i couples who are trying to have babies. All attendees will receive a free, one-year membership in Resolve, a $55 value.
Pre-registration is available by calling 245-1005, or logging on to www.resolveofhawaii.org. Folks can also register the day of the event.
Most Americans understand that infertility is a life-crisis that is not always solved easily, but few people understand that it is actually a disease with physiological origins, Parker-Evans said.
Like many other diseases, infertility sometimes requires aggressive and expensive treatment to overcome.
Since the desire to have a child is a strong biological drive essential to the sustenance of life, many persons suffer a deep shame and sense of loss and grief when they are unable to produce children of their own, she said.
This lack of self-esteem or depression can actually lead to living a secret life, and keep couples from seeking the counseling and medical intervention that may be necessary for them to actualize their parenting dreams, she said.
In some cases, couples may blame each other for what is most likely a mutual problem that needs medical treatment of both partners, she continued.
This is National Infertility Awareness Week, and Resolve, Inc., the national infertility association, has established the 2003 theme, Hidden Secrets of Infertility.
Infertility is on the rise, and no one seems to know why there is an abundance of these problems surfacing, she said.
It may be environmental, due to added stress in people’s lives, or the problems associated with decisions to delay child-bearing until later in life.
Whatever the problem is, treatment is readily available, and couples who want to have children should not delay seeking help, she advised.
The conference is brought to Kaua‘i with a grant from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Organon Pharmaceuticals, and Pacific In Vitro Fertilization Institute in Honolulu.
Conference presenters will explore the best strategies for getting over fear and secrecy, and the process of basic infertility treatment, as well as handling the decision-making process of going forward with assisted reproductive technology, such as in vitro fertilization, or becoming a parent through adoption.
Career conflicts, difficulty with personal relationships with family and friends, loss of faith in spiritual beliefs coupled with feelings of depression, loss of self-esteem and grief for the life they had planned out, can create a sense of limbo for many couples, Parker-Evans noted.
They may feel that their whole life is on hold while they seek medical treatment. So much of life celebrates the family, and focuses on the importance of children.
Those experiencing infertility often feel alone and in pain, she added.
Even if an infertile couple decides to reject treatment or adoption and live without children, they are often misunderstood as being selfish or self-absorbed, when just the opposite may be true.
Infertile persons deserve understanding from others, and it is the goal of Resolve of Hawaii to bring more awareness and education to families, individuals and even to the physicians themselves, she said.
Treating infertility, like any disease, requires that the whole patient be treated, from their emotional and mental wellness to their need for financial and ethical understanding of the procedures that they are faced with, she added.
For more information about the conference or volunteering, please call the Resolve of Hawaii helpline, 1-808-528-8559.
