Meeting Santa with IVF twins is ‘a dream come true’ for Essex couple
27 Nov 2024
The festive period will always hold a very special place in Cara and Steve’s hearts after finding out on Christmas Eve six years ago that Cara was pregnant following successful IVF at Bourn Hall Clinic in Wickford.
Thought I may never share Christmas with a child of my own
The couple from Basildon were first in line to greet Santa at his grotto at the Wickford At Christmas Fair with their five-year-old twins Alfie and Esmae. “I never thought that I would get to do things like going to see Santa with children of my own,” says Cara. “It feels amazing.”
Bourn Hall Wickford has been sponsoring Santa’s VIP appearance at the town’s Christmas fair for almost as long as the clinic has been open. The purpose-built clinic opened its doors in 2018 and Cara and Steve were amongst some of the first patients to be treated there.
T’was the night before Christmas
The couple found out their IVF treatment had been successful on Christmas Eve six years ago and couldn’t wait to surprise their families with the news on Christmas Day. When they returned to Bourn Hall in the New Year for their seven-week scan they found out they were expecting not one baby – but two.
“The nurse said to us ‘I have got two pieces of good news for you,’” remembers Cara. “And she told us that we were expecting twins. I burst into tears and Steve’s jaw hit the floor, he was so stunned; I don’t think he said anything else for the rest of the time we were in there!“
Sharing the joy
The couple were accompanied to the Wickford at Christmas Fair by Bourn Hall Wickford’s Senior Fertility Midwife Becky Green who heads up the clinic’s specialist fertility nursing team. She joined Bourn Hall two years ago, having worked as a community midwife in Essex as well as on busy maternity wards.
“Fertility nursing is not a million miles away from midwifery,” says Becky. “Both involve direct contact, patient care and empathy with people at what is a very personal and emotional time in their lives.”
More NHS patients coming to Bourn Hall
Becky hopes that in the coming years even more Bourn Hall Wickford patients will get to enjoy taking their children to meet Santa.
“Since the NHS postcode lottery for IVF in Essex ended, we have seen an increase in NHS patients coming through our doors alongside our self-funded patients,” says Becky. “Next year the team at Bourn Hall Wickford is looking forward to helping even more people achieve their dream of starting a family.”
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“We went to an open evening at Bourn Hall Wickford and came away feeling really positive about the place. The staff were really friendly and the presentation was clear about the statistics regarding success rates and live birth rates; their data was very transparent. We came away feeling like we would really be looked after.”
Katy and Leigh are parents to Charlie after IVF
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“We chose to make an appointment at Bourn Hall Wickford because of the favourable reviews. When we got there and met the staff they were just so lovely, making us feel welcome and explaining to us what tests would need to be done and what our options were; we just thought ‘yes, let’s get the ball rolling!”
Jess and Fran are mums to Nathan after IVF with donor sperm
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