"Fertility declines over time, not overnight," reproductive endocrinologist Aimee Eyvazzadeh told NOVA. "But sometimes people feel like it's overnight because they're checking their fertility at a time when their fertility has run out."

For Brigitte Adams, starting a family was much different than she had initially planned. "The years just kept marching by," she told NOVA. "I didn't understand that egg health was directly related to chronological age." At 39 years old, she decided to freeze her eggs, becoming an early adopter of egg vitrification, a technology that can dramatically improve the preservation of a woman's eggs and, potentially, her future fertility.

"When I froze my eggs, I thought 11 sounded like this great number," Adams told NOVA. "Of those 11, nine defrosted successfully. From those nine eggs, six fertilized. And at that point, I thought, 'Wow. I went from 11 to six in almost a 24-hour period.' And I started to get very anxious." The next call Adams received was that of those six, only one had made it to day five of development. "And that was crushing," she says.

Learn more about Adams' story, the eventual birth of her daughter, and the unconventional path Adams took to have her.

Stream "Fighting for Fertility" starting on Wednesday, May 12 on NOVA to learn more: [ Ссылка ]

PRODUCTION CREDITS:

Producer/director:
Larkin McPhee

Camera:
Tony Oberstar

Sound:
Zack Allen

Edited by:
Steve Fischer
Ari Daniel

Digital producer:
Ari Daniel

Narration:
Emily Zendt

Archival:
Storyblocks
Shutterstock

Music:
APM

© WGBH Educational Foundation 2021

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