When Mark and Louise met each other in 1999, they fell in love quickly and Louise knew deep down that Mark was the man she wanted to have children with. When Louise was 32, Mark and Louise started trying to conceive. However, as Mark had a vasectomy earlier in life, this meant that the couple had to try to conceive in nontraditional ways.
In spite of medical treatments, getting pregnant and carrying a healthy baby to term was not easy for Louise. Over a period of 16 years, Mark and Louise actually spent more than $100,000 on treatments. They paid for sperm donors and for numerous IVF treatments.
Louise became pregnant a total of 18 times over those 16 years, but she had the devastating experience of losing those babies to ᴍɪsᴄᴀʀʀɪᴀɢᴇs all 18 times. The woman from England never carried a pregnancy past a few weeks. The couple and doctors could not figure out the reason for this.
Several years later and right before Louise turned 50, she reached out to a different doctor who realized that Louise’s body had what is commonly known as ᴋɪʟʟᴇʀ ᴄᴇʟʟs. These cells would attack and destroy any embryos that she carried.
After this diagnosis, Louise was able to be treated for this condition. Louise and her husband decided to try to have a healthy pregnancy one last time, and their effort was rewarded.
Their son, William, was delivered at 37 weeks. He was a healthy, happy baby, and his parents were elated.
Some strangers mistake the now-older Louise and Mark as the baby’s grandparents, but this does not bother them. The two is thrilled to be raising their son and finally having the family that they have been dreaming about.