Baby Serena is here after a three-year struggle filled with four rounds of IVF.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte couple is celebrating the birth of their daughter after spending years struggling with fertility issues. We first met the couple when they were hopeful new technology at an area clinic would help – and now we’re introducing you to their daughter.
Last summer we went behind the scenes at a very secure, very high tech part of Carolinas Fertility Institute to get a peak at this new technology – that may be the reason we can now show you this couple- and their new baby.
Walter Schall looks adoringly at his new daughter. “It’s been not a lot of sleep but its been amazing – the most fun and the most love that I’ve ever felt.”
His wife Madison Zamora agrees. “She’s obsessed with being held doesn’t want to be put down.”
“I do a lot of the 2 a.m. shifts with her and there’s times when you’re sitting there looking at her and your heart feels so much and there’s nothing else in the world that matters in that moment,” Schall said.
Baby Serena is here after a three year struggle filled with four rounds of IVF.
“We’ve been through so much and we know what a miracle it is to have children so it just gives you a greater appreciation for the fact that she’s here,” Zamora said.
We first met mom Madison when she was 9 weeks pregnant and hopeful this time would work.
“Excited, nervous, it’s not a guarantee” she told us at the time.
The couple struggled to get pregnant. Doctors realized Walter’s wiring prevented quality sperm from getting through.
“Schall said, “I think that was the hardest challenge for me – so much mental and emotional overcoming those issues and feeling that guilt feeling those challenges internally.”
After three failed attempts at one fertility clinic, the couple moved to Carolinas Fertility Institute where they’re using new AI technology to help give the embryos the best chance at success.
“Was there ever a time when you thought I might not be a mom?” Madison said, “100 percent – through every round you go through in IVF you absolutely feel ‘is this ever going to work for us?'”
“We went through so much. I’m very much now whatever I had to go through to get her I’d do it a million times again,” Schall said.
His wife agrees the hardship was worth it.
“It’s incredible. it’s just been amazing. All the pain and heartache we’ve gone through – 100 percent worth it she’s the most incredible thing to ever happen to us,” she said.
Contact Michelle Boudin at mboudin@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
One in six couples struggle with infertility. If this is something your family is facing, there are many resources for people facing infertility, including organizations, websites, and support groups.
Here are some of these resources:
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG): Provides information on infertility, including evaluating and treating infertility www.acog.org
American Society for Reproductive Medicine: Provides information, education, and advocacy www.asrm.org
RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association: www.resolve.org
