Woman, 47, gets pregnant  naturally after three miscarriages

A 47-year-old woman has shared her delight at conceiving naturally after having three miscarriages and spending £8,500 on IVF. 

Nicola Barrand-Haig, from Wistow, Leicestershire, discovered she was expecting in late January, after visiting a clairvoyant who predicted she would be pregnant by then.

The asset management assistant and her husband Nick are now preparing to welcome their little one in October.

The pair met on dating app Tinder seven years ago, and Nicola – who says she has ‘always wanted to be a mum’ – had hoped her wish would soon come true.

The couple’s fertility journey has been rocky, and they were getting increasingly worried they’d never become parents, with concerns that menopause could halt the ‘race’ to get pregnant. 

‘I’ve always wanted to be a mum,’ Nicola said. ‘But before Nick, I never met the right person to have children with.’

The soon-to-be-parents started talking in February 2015, and started trying for a baby seven months later.

Realising that ‘nothing was happening’, they went to see a doctor.

The asset management assistant and her husband Nick (pictured together) are now preparing to welcome their little one in October

‘It was upsetting for us,’ Nicola admitted.

She added: ‘As we were both below 42 at the time, we were allowed to go ahead with a course of IVF through the NHS – which we did whilst wedding planning – as I wouldn’t have minded being pregnant during our wedding ceremony!’

The heartbroken pair endured a ‘full-on IVF fail’, and continued their efforts to conceive naturally. 

In 2019 they tried IVF again – this time privately – but this sadly resulted in Nicola miscarrying at about seven weeks.

Nicola spent weeks nervously hoping her pregnancy would be healthy and successful, but despite her worries, was eager to tell family and friends early on. Pictured, a scan of their baby

Nicola continued: ‘We then conceived naturally on two separate occasions but suffered two miscarriages, both at seven weeks.

‘Each miscarriage hit me differently, and I had a whole range of emotions, from feeling empty to overwhelming sadness.’

After struggling for years to have a baby of their own, the couple looked into other options to make their family dream come true, including adoption. 

However, Nicola didn’t want to stop trying to conceive naturally. 

Nicola (pictured showing off her baby bump, left and right) said she made sure that each time she was at her most fertile, her and Nick would try for a baby again

Last year hope was wearing thin when a private consultant advised the pair that their ‘only chance’ was to use donor eggs and undergo IVF ‘at an additional cost of £15,000’.

The couple got as far as registering on the list, paying their non-refundable deposit and were even choosing their donor, but after a heart-to-heart they decided to keep trying naturally.

Nicola said: ‘I felt like they’d given up on us due to our age, but I was determined.’

Being a spiritual person at heart, she even went to visit a clairvoyant who predicted children – plural – in her future.

The couple’s fertility journey has been rocky, and they were getting increasingly worried they’d never become parents, with concerns that menopause could halt the ‘race’ to get pregnant

‘I was quite shocked when the clairvoyant I see told me I’d be pregnant by February 2022, and how she didn’t see just one, but two babies,’ the expecting mother revealed.

Nicola said she made sure that each time she was at her most fertile, her and Nick would try for a baby again. 

‘I’d never tracked my cycle before and had wrongly assumed the dates I was most fertile,’ she explained.

And it would seem the clairvoyant was right on the money, when Nicola found that her period was late in January. 

Nicola found that her period was late in January. Pictured during the early stages of her pregnancy

Pictured, Nicola’s scan during the early stages of the pregnancy. ‘I know there were some friends and family who were worried it might never happen for us, but they’ve been so surprised we’ve finally got to this point at almost 33 weeks pregnant,’ she said

She spent weeks nervously hoping her pregnancy would be healthy and successful, but despite her worries, was eager to tell family and friends early on.

She continued: ‘I can’t believe I’m going to have a baby boy; it’s certainly been a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows, but hope is what has ultimately kept us going through this journey.

‘At first, we didn’t dare to get our hopes up about our pregnancy, as we both assumed/expected it to end like the other three.

‘But when we announced the news to family and friends, everyone was so happy for us – and my mum is super excited to have another grandchild around.

‘I know there were some friends and family who were worried it might never happen for us, but they’ve been so surprised we’ve finally got to this point at almost 33 weeks pregnant.

‘Our baby is due in October and Nick has already been joking we need to have another one straight after to fulfil the prediction!’

Nicola (pictured before her pregnancy) gushed: ‘Our baby is due in October and Nick has already been joking we need to have another one straight after to fulfil the prediction!’