An Australian couple in Newport have taken the last-resort step of appealing to the public for help in finding a sperm donor.
Brooke and Karl Udale have been trying to conceive for five years, including three rounds of IVF, two rounds of artificial insemination and one miscarriage.
Brooke, 31, and Karl, 32, describe themselves as fit, healthy, very much in love and desperate to begin a family together.
But as Mr Udale has no brothers, cousins, or other family members to ask to be sperm donors, the couple are appealing for help from their local community.
“After lots of discussions and lots of soul searching, I decided to take it one step further (and write to The Manly Daily),” Mrs Udale said.
“It really breaks our heart that we can’t do anything, especially as we have such a healthy lifestyle and we did everything we could do to improve our chances.”
Without a sperm donor, sperm donations can take about 12 to 24 months through IVF clinics and the adoption process is no quicker, according to Mrs Udale.
Their experience with infertility has inspired Mrs Udale to offer to donate her own eggs in the future to help other couples.
“If there are a few couples in this situation, we might be able to help out more than just us - my goal would be to help at least five couples,” she said.
The couple said they are buoyed by the success in a previous Manly Daily article, where a couple were successfully matched with an egg donor following an advertisement in the paper.
FIGHTING INFERTILITY
Infertility statistics according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare:
A 2007 report showed 27.7 per cent of infertility problems were caused by a male factor only and 33.6 per cent from a female factor only
The report said 21.8 per cent of the infertility problems were because of an unknown cause
4801 infants were born using assisted conception treatment in Australia, accounting for 1.9 Per cent of all births in 2000
According to the Fertility Society of Australia:
One in six Australian couples suffer infertility
Article: 10th March 2011 www.manly-daily.whereilive.com.au
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