45-year-old mom conceives NATURALLY after 20-year battle with fertility problems


  • Carolyn Savage, an Ohio mother-of-five, made headlines in 2009 when a clinic implanted her with the wrong embryo, and she gave birth to another couple’s baby for them
  • Only her first son Drew, 19, was conceived naturally, with husband Sean, 44
  • Her next son, Ryan, 17, and daughter Mary Kate, six, were the result of subsequent IVF treatments, and her twins Isabella and Regan, three, were born via a surrogate
  • Mrs Savage is now shocked to discover she is expecting an un-planned baby boy

By
Annabel Fenwick Elliott

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A 45-year-old mother-of-five, who has had two of her children as a result of IVF, and two via surrogacy, was stunned to find herself pregnant by natural means in April, following a 20-year battle with fertility.

‘After two decades without a spontaneous conception; after countless ovarian stimulation cycles, multiple intrauterine insemination and more than five IVF attempts… I was pregnant – the old fashioned way,’ Carolyn Savage writes of her discovery for Today.com.

And not only has the Ohio mother suffered several miscarriages in the past, she has even given birth to another couple’s child, when, six years ago, doctors accidentally
implanted her with the wrong embryo during an IVF mix-up. Mrs Savage made worldwide news when she agreed to carry the child to full term anyway, and then reunite him with his biological parents.

Shock news: Carolyn Savage, 45, (right) is almost 15 weeks pregnant with her sixth child, after giving birth to another couple’s child following an IVF mix up in 2009, and having four of her other children (pictured) with the help of medical intervention

Miracle baby: Mrs Savage is astonished to be having a healthy pregnancy, after ‘two decades without a spontaneous conception… countless ovarian stimulation cycles, multiple intrauterine insemination and more than five IVF attempts’

Mrs Savage, who is now almost 15 weeks pregnant, and husband Sean, 44, have been having unprotected sex for the duration of their 21-year marriage, and have only conceived naturally once, 20 years ago; so Mrs Savage could hardly believe it when she saw the results of her home pregnancy test a few months ago.

She ‘immediately’ raced to her computer to Google ‘pregnant at 45,’ and was met with a wash of gloomy statistics.

‘Some of the sites reported miscarriage rates as high as 90per cent for a woman my age,’ she writes. ‘I told Sean later that night and followed the news up with the sobering statistics and the warning, “This probably won’t last.”‘

As the couple anxiously ‘waited’ to lose their baby, time progressed and Mrs Savages’ routine examinations flew by without a hitch.

Agonizing road: Mrs Savage and her husband Sean, 44, (left) had eldest son Drew, 19, (center left) naturally, followed by Ryan, 17, (center right) and Mary Kate, six, (center) by IVF, and twins Isabella and Regan, three (in red) via a surrogate

‘Finally, at 15 weeks, we received the results of our cell free DNA study: Our baby was chromosomally typical, and he is a boy,’ she reveals.

‘I’ve left the morbid state of waiting to miscarry and moved onto a happier, more confident – but not cocky – place.’

Already a mother-of-five, Mrs Savage’s first son Drew, 19, was her only naturally conceived child, followed by a heart-breaking series of miscarriages and complicated pregnancies over the years.

Twin joy: Three years ago, the couple had daughters Isabella and Regan (pictured) via a surrogate, after being told by doctors that Mrs Savage couldn’t carry any more children due to her HELLP syndrome

Her next eldest son Ryan, 17, was a result of IVF, as was her daughter Mary Kate, six. Her following IVF pregnancy was in 2009, this time when her fertility clinic mistakenly implanted her with the embryo of another couple, Shannon and Paul Morrell.

Knowing how much this baby was wanted, Mrs Savage made the life-altering decision to carry the child, Logan, now six, to full term and reunite him with his parents.

She writes that she loved Logan as her own and still ‘thinks and prays for him’ every day.

Baby Logan: Mr and Mrs Savage in 2009 with the child she birthed for another couple (center), pictured with their children, Mary Kate, then three (left), Ryan, then 14 (right) and Drew, then 16 (top right)

Because Mrs Savage suffers from a pregnancy-related condition called HELLP syndrome, which can cause life-threatening pre-eclampsia, she was told while carrying Logan that her uterus was simply unable to carry any more children.

‘I’ve left the morbid state of waiting to miscarry and moved onto a happier, more confident place’

 

So in 2011, Mrs Savage and her husband used a surrogate, nurse Jennifer O’Nash, to birth their twin girls, Isabella and Regan, now three, and settled happily with their ‘happy ending’ – a brood of five.

Now, in an unexpected twist, the thrilled couple looks set to have their sixth child in the same manner as their first, completely naturally, closing a two-decade long loop with a discovery that Mrs Savage aptly describes as: ‘The stuff of fairy tales.’

Comments (16)

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mummyof 2liveones,

sheffield,

10 hours ago

I had my second child at age 46 after 15 yrs of trying. Completely natural conception. Our son is an amazing, wonderful addition to our family. Despite the age gap between my son and daughter we couldn’t imagine life now without him.

Daisy,

Bolton,

7 hours ago

aw how lovely

Ellie.45,

Scotland, United Kingdom,

13 hours ago

blissful happy ending to a heart-breaking yet brave situation

Anna,

Bristol,

14 hours ago

If she conceived her first child naturally there clearly isn’t a problem. So it really shouldn’t be a shocker that she fell naturally pregnant again.

Christina,

London,

14 hours ago

Not true. There is something called secondary infertility. Which I know all too well. It took two years for me to have my second son, after endless visits to the fertility doctors. Infertility of whatever kind is heartbreaking.

Veronica Essex,

London, United Kingdom,

11 hours ago

Yes but at 45 few women conceive naturally and if they do they tend to miscarry.

Leylani26,

StopOverpopulationTwoKidsOnly, Canada,

19 hours ago

Sad to see this couple abuse and misuse fertility treatment. Overpopulation is the biggest threat our world faces. Why so greedy? They should have stopped at 2-3 children which is only slightly above replacement level and thus much more sustainable for our planet. Going through IVF so many times for a large brood is just sad and pathetic. All this fertility treatment and tampering with hormones over the years can also increase cancer risks significantly.

Irina Szmelskyj,

Huntingdon, United Kingdom,

22 hours ago

This case shows that advanced reproductive age is not always a barrier to conception. Factors such as general health, hormones and stress levels can negatively influence fertility. Irina Szmelskyj, The Fertility Foundation.

clearthinkernow,

Cleveland, United States,

23 hours ago

I hope everything goes well and that they’re blessed with this little boy. I think it’s a reward from God for her past unselfishness. God bless them all.

Anniegirl,

Crownsville,

23 hours ago

Lovely, giving woman. I remember this story. I wish her a healthy baby boy.

ray weaver,

baltimore, United States,

23 hours ago

Practice Practice Practice

sakeneko,

Reno,

1 day ago

Does anybody else get the impression that God thinks these people are cool parents and should have another child to raise — for their joy and the world’s benefit?

2 of 4 replies

mia,

somewhere,

18 hours ago

Leylani has drunk deep from the Kool Aid.

Diana,

Tonbridge,

12 hours ago

She did not plan this baby, it happened! Hardly a benefit scrounged
,

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