Two Namibian women who had been trying to conceive for over five years sought help from Mediclinic Windhoek’s new IVF clinic. Both fell pregnant on the same day in June 2017 during their first round of IVF treatment, which also happened to be the clinic’s first round of treatments. They share their stories with us.
Geraldine’s story
Geraldine Goosen Kotze, an ex-miss Namibian finalist and co-owner of a game farm a few kilometers out of Windhoek, is in her early 30s. Despite experiencing quite severe pain during her periods, she always assumed that once she started trying for a baby, she would just fall pregnant. But nature had other plans for her. She started trying to conceive soon after her wedding day but after five years she still wasn’t pregnant.
She went to see her GP who ran some tests and checked that she was ovulating. She also checked her husband’s sperm count: both looked good.
‘So we tried for another 18 months and still, nothing happened,’ says Geraldine. ‘At this point, my doctor referred me to a gynaecologist. I was just lucky that at the time, Cape-Town based Prof Igno Siebert was consulting at Mediclinic Windhoek and could see me straight away. He diagnosed endometriosis and removed it via laparoscopy surgery. He then advised that we try to fall pregnant naturally for another six months before looking at other treatment options.’
When Geraldine still had no good news to share, she consulted Prof Sibert’s partner at the fertility clinic, Dr Van Der Colf. He advised that they could either continue to try and conceive naturally or they could consider other treatment options.
‘We have severe drought on the farm so we are under a lot of stress. Coupled with the fact that we are getting older now and would like more than one child, we decided on the fertility treatment. After one unsuccessful round of timed intercourse, we decided to do the IVF treatment at Windhoek IVF with Dr Van Der Colf.
‘We didn’t have to wait much longer for the good news,’ smiles Geraldine. ‘We went for two blood tests at 10 and 14 days after the IVF treatment, at which time they confirmed that we were indeed pregnant.’
Sonja’s story
Sonja Baufeldt, also in her early 30s, is in the financial services industry in Windhoek. After trying unsuccessfully to fall pregnant for two years, she tried three rounds of intrauterine insemination (IUI) without any success. Another two years later, she decided to consider IVF treatment
‘I considered doing the IVF in South Africa, but it was difficult to get leave and accommodation, and that held me back. Then a friend told me they actually have an IVF clinic here in Namibia,’ says Sonja.
‘I was initially wary of entering the treatment because of the unsuccessful treatments in the past, so I had my reservations. But I tried to stay positive, hoping it would work out.
‘Then once I found out I was pregnant, it seemed almost too good to be true,’ says Sonja.
Geraldine agrees with Sonja, saying that it was a very emotional experience but definitely worthwhile in the end.
‘I would recommend Windhoek IVF to any Namibian couple trying to conceive: Sonja and I were always in the best hands, surrounded by the best doctors and nurses who genuinely care about your health and, after the treatment, the health of your baby.’
Geraldine and Sonja’s babies are due in February 2018.