'I'm mostly scared of the unknown': Today meteorologist Dylan Dreyer, 37, candidly opens up about IVF, revealing she is feeling a bit 'overwhelmed', after sharing her infertility struggle
- Dylan opened up about feeling 'overwhelmed' and 'scared of the unknown' in her first blog post about starting in vitro fertilization
- She was initially stressed because she is traveling to Louisville this week to cover the Kentucky Derby and won't be able to make her doctor's appointment
- However, they were able to work out a time to get her baseline bloodwork so she could start her shots while she is away in Kentucky
- On April 22, Dylan revealed on the Today show that she suffered a miscarriage when she was five weeks pregnant and is struggling with secondary infertility
- Dylan and her husband Brian Fichera have a two-year-old son named Calvin and are hoping to give him a younger brother or sister
Dylan Dreyer has revealed she has begun in vitro fertilization, just a little over a week after she shared that she recently suffered a miscarriage and is struggling with secondary infertility.
The 37-year-old meteorologist, who has a two-year-old son named Calvin with her husband Brian Fichera, is blogging about her IVF journey for Today Parents. In her first post, she opened up about feeling overwhelmed and 'scared of the unknown' at the start of the process.
'I started my estrogen patches and was told to call the doctor on Friday, once I get my period,' she wrote. 'My cycles and my reproductive system will be in my doctor’s hands from here on out.'
Honest: Dylan Dreyer, pictured with her son Calvin, opened up about feeling 'overwhelmed' and 'scared of the unknown' in her first blog post about starting in vitro fertilization
Hope: The Today meteorologist, who took her toddler to work with her last week, is hoping to give him a young brother or sister
However, Dylan quickly realized she will be out of town on Friday because she is covering the Kentucky Derby in Louisville and suddenly found herself in a panic.
Like most people with medical questions, she Google searched 'IVF process' and learned that she has to see her doctor that day because they need to check her baseline bloodwork before she starts one of the medications she will be taking.
Hearbreaking: On April 22, Dylan revealed on the Today show that she recently suffered a miscarriage when she was five weeks pregnant and is struggling with secondary infertility
She also noted that she had to order her medications through the mail for insurance purposes and still hasn't received them.
Dylan was understandably stressed, but when she called her doctor the next morning, they were able to come up with an easy fix. Not only could he check her baseline bloodwork before her trip, but a nurse was also able to call her pharmacy and have her medications overnighted to Kentucky.
'In this moment, I’m mostly scared of the unknown,' she admitted. 'Once my medications arrive, I’ll organize them. Once I see my doctor, I’ll know the next step.
'Right now, I’m at work about to go into hair and makeup and I’m prepping for the show, so I’m going to focus on the task at hand,' she added.
'One thing at a time. It’s the only way I can prevent myself from getting overwhelmed.'
Although she has been making an effort to focus on the task at hand, it isn't easy when she has a busy career and a toddle to care for.
She credits her husband with helping her stay grounded when she is bombarded with thoughts of all the things she has to get done before her trip.
Remaining hopeful: Dylan and her husband Brian Fichera discussed their attempts to have a second child with the Today show to help other families going through similar problems
Open book: Secondary infertility is the inability for a woman to successfully conceive and carry a child to term despite already having one or more children already
'I rattle off to Brian the hundreds of things swirling around in my head. He’s my reminder to just focus on one thing at a time,' she said. 'And half the time, so much is out of our hands, you just have to deal with it. Everything else will fall into place. Right?'
On April 22, Dylan revealed on the Today show that she suffered a miscarriage when she was just five weeks pregnant.
Nine months ago, she and her husband Brian decided they wanted to give their son a sibling, but they discovered it was more difficult to get pregnant the second time around. When she finally became pregnant, she ended up losing the baby.
'Five weeks go by, I wake up to just bleeding. To the point where I’m standing in the shower and it won’t stop,' Dylan said through tears while speaking on the third hour of the show. 'I wake up and I tell [Brian] that and I say “I think I lost the baby."'
The moment was emotional for the couple as they believed Dylan was having a miscarriage.
'The first thing he says to me was, "You didn’t lose the baby…you didn’t do anything wrong,"' Dylan recalled.
Ever the professional, Dylan went to work that day while dealing with the possibility of a miscarriage.
Support system: 'The first thing he says to me was, "You didn’t lose the baby…you didn’t do anything wrong,"' Dylan said of her husband's reaction
Staying positive: The couple is now exploring IVF options in order to have a second child
Love: These fertility problems were shocking for Dylan as she was able to get pregnant with Calvin (pictured) quickly, but she now suffers from secondary infertility
'I have to get work and do the Today show and smile,' she said. 'That’s what we do. You push it down, get through the show.'
The last nine months have been a fertility battle for Dylan and Brian, who were attempting to get pregnant naturally.
After six months of trying, Dylan decided to meet with her OB/GYN to discuss what could be going wrong.
'The results showed that I have a very low egg count,' Dylan said of the appointment. 'Instead of having the egg count of a 37-year-old, I am more like mid-40s.'
When having Calvin, Dylan underwent an emergency C-section, which left her two-thirds of her uterus scarred. The leftover scar tissue made it difficult for a fetus to inhabit her uterus.
Dylan then met with a fertility doctor and underwent surgery to remove the scar tissue.
'We get pregnant just like that,' Dylan said, but five weeks in, she experienced a miscarriage.
Frustrated: 'A part of me feels a little bit mad at my body for not being able to do this naturally,' Dylan said about her fertility struggles
Focused: Dylan said she felt 'blessed' to have her family of three, but she said it was emotional not knowing what the future holds for a second child
She decided to share her story with the Today show and the viewers to make fertility struggles less of a taboo topic.
'We're going to open up about our struggle with secondary infertility,' Dylan wrote in an Instagram post on Monday morning, teasing the emotional segment.
'It’s a thing and something women shouldn’t be afraid to talk about,' the post continued.
Secondary infertility is the inability for a woman to successfully conceive and carry a child to term despite already having one or more children already.
While speaking on the show with her husband, Dylan wanted other families to know it was OK to be feeling what they are feeling when struggling to get pregnant.
'I am blessed with the family I have, but going through a miscarriage and not knowing what the future holds is emotional,' she said. 'And I just want people to know that I am going through it, too.'
