A single woman who always wanted to be a mother celebrated the birth of her baby girl through In vitro fertilization or IVF.
Kelly Clarke, 51, knew she wanted to have a family but had never met the right man to share her life with.
This had led Clarke to go through the whole process alone despite her family’s disagreement.
In March 2020, Clarke made the brave decision to fly to Athens for an IVF consultation and was informed that she would need a sperm donor in order to become a mother.
Four months later, she flew back to Greece for the IVF and for the fertilized embryo to be implanted. Just 12 days later, a pregnancy test revealed that Clarke was finally pregnant.
On March 31, 2021, Clarke finally welcomed her baby girl, Lyla Rae Clarke, who weighed 7lbs 8oz via cesarean delivery.
In an interview with Metro UK, the 51-year-old revealed that her parents were ‘desperate to stop’ her at first from having an IVF.
Clarke’s parents argued that she might lose her job, struggle financially and that the whole process might impact her overall health and wellbeing. But now that Baby Lyla arrived safely, they are bow very supportive.
“I’d been met with a huge amount of resistance from family for deciding to become a single mom at 50,” Clarke said. “Because they were worried about me and the implications of using a donor.”
“They were so against me doing it, which was very hard,” she added. “I felt like I was being disowned. But I can see how it’s because they love me so much.”
“They worried about how I would cope if it wasn’t successful because they knew how much I wanted to be a mom,” Clarke said. “But it never even crossed my mind that it wouldn’t work, I just had a feeling.”
“Now that Lyla’s here they are incredibly supportive and couldn’t be better grandparents,” she said. “I don’t know what I’d do without them.”
Clarke admits that being a single parent can be very challenging at times – but she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I won’t lie and say it’s easy being a single parent,” she said. “I knew it wasn’t going to be.”
‘But Lyla is an absolute angel and has been a dream, I’m incredibly lucky,” Clarke said. “She’s the perfect baby – I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
“Anyone who knows me will tell you how much I’ve always wanted to be a mom,” she said. “I still can’t quite believe it and am constantly overwhelmed with the joy of finally being a mom at 51.”
According to Metro UK, Clarke has spent around $5,300 on the IVF process abroad, which included treatment, fertility drugs, flights, and accommodation.