My body was poisoning my unborn babies with ‘acid’ – but after two miscarriages and failed IVF I’m finally a mum
A YOUNG woman has finally become a mum after she discovered her body was poisoning her unborn babies.
Callie Hayes, 22, suffered two miscarriages and a failed round of IVF before an internal ultrasound revealed the deadly truth.
Doctors found that Callie was suffering with hydrosalpinx - a rare medical condition where a fallopian tube is blocked with a watery fluid.
In Callie's case, her damaged left fallopian tube was leaking fluid into her uterus, preventing any embryos from implanting properly and ending any pregnancies.
The brave care assistant, from Plymouth, Hampshire, chose to have her damaged tube removed in the hopes of improving her fertility, and thankfully, she fell pregnant just two weeks later.
Now a happy mum to cheeky little Teddy, Callie is speaking out about her experience to raise awareness of her condition.
Callie said: "Hearing that I had this condition that I'd never heard of before was absolutely terrifying.
"After two miscarriages and a failed round of IVF, it was also a bit of a relief to finally have an answer for why I'd been struggling to fall pregnant for three years.
"Doctors described it to me as if the liquid had been giving my uterus an acid bath every month, so my body had been essentially poisoning my unborn babies by accident.
"I was heartbroken, and although there was no guarantee I'd be able to fall pregnant after the tube was removed, I had to give anything possible a try.
"I had the surgery, and within just two weeks, I was pregnant, and now I'm finally a mum to a gorgeous and healthy little boy."
Callie first started trying for a baby back in February 2015 after falling in love with her partner Ben Hayes, 28, when they met at a nightclub.
Within three months of meeting, the young couple were engaged and yet their baby dreams were not coming true.
Finally in June 2017, Callie discovered she was pregnant, but their joy was short-lived when she miscarried just five weeks later.
I'd been essentially poisoning my unborn babies by accident.
Callie Hayes
She soon found out that she was pregnant again in August 2017 but suffered a second miscarriage at five weeks, just six weeks before her wedding day.
She said: "I've always wanted to become a mum, and when I met Ben, we both decided to start trying straight away.
"We were over the moon when I fell pregnant, but then to go through two miscarriages in three months was absolutely devastating, and especially just before our wedding.
"It was so hard to prepare everything that needed to be done when all I wanted to do was lay in bed and not face anyone or anything."
She continued: "I thought about my second miscarriage constantly on my wedding day as we had actually planned to announce the pregnancy at our wedding.
"It was so difficult to make it through the day without getting upset, and without constantly thinking about how I should be pregnant."
After three years of struggle, Callie and husband Ben decided to try IVF in August 2018 but the treatment was unsuccessful.
Doctors performed an internal ultrasound where they discovered Callie's left fallopian tube was blocked due to the condition hydrosalpinx.
Most sufferers of hydrosalpinx have no symptoms and only discover they have the condition after several unsuccessful pregnancies.
With Callie still hoping to fall pregnant, she was offered two treatment options - clipping the damaged tube, or having it removed altogether.
Callie said: "I could have had my left fallopian tube clipped, but it wasn't definite that it would work and the poisonous liquid could still leak into my uterus.
"The only way to stop the liquid completely was to remove the damaged tube altogether, which would obviously reduce my chances of falling pregnant.
"I was terrified I might never get my dream baby, but there was a glimmer of hope and I just had to grab it and pray."
Callie underwent a gynaecological laparoscopy and left salpingectomy in August 2018 where surgeons removed her left fallopian tube which was so damaged, it had swollen to almost ten times as big as normal.
The hopeful couple wasted no time in trying for a baby again, and within two weeks, Callie was pregnant.
Terrified of another miscarriage, Callie had extra scans throughout her pregnancy but slowly the nine months passed by and she eventually gave birth to a healthy baby boy on 27th May 2019.
Now a happy mum to cheeky little Teddy, Callie is speaking out about her experience to raise awareness of her condition.
She said: "I'm so glad I had surgery to remove the tube, because within two weeks, I was pregnant with our gorgeous little boy.
"Teddy is our miracle baby, and he's just the most wonderful little man, and always making us laugh with his cheeky smile.
"Ben was my rock throughout it all, and I'm just so happy that we finally have our little family that we've been fighting for for so long.
"I thought my diagnosis meant my dreams of becoming a mum were over, but now Teddy is here and Ben and I are the happiest we've ever been."
What is hydrosalpinx?
According to , hydrosalpinx is a fallopian tube which is blocked with a watery fluid.
Healthline said: "This condition is typically caused by a previous pelvic or sexually transmitted infection, a condition like endometriosis, or previous surgery."
In less severe cases the fallopian tube is left, but can be totally removed - a process called a salpingectomy.
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