Rosanna Davison has revealed that she and her husband Wes Quirke are expecting their first child together via a surrogate, while opening up on their "long and very tough journey" to get to this point.
In a detailed post on Instagram, the model and author said they are "overjoyed" to be expecting a baby girl in November by a gestational surrogate.
She went on to explain that she experienced "multiple miscarriages along the way" as they attempted to start a family.
While posting a picture of herself and her partner holding a top that says "dream big little girl", she opened the post by saying: "Half you and half me."
She continued: "Wes and I are overjoyed to share the news that we're expecting a baby girl in November (by gestational surrogate). As our families and close friends know, this has been a long and very tough journey for us, sadly with multiple miscarriages along the way.
"We’ve dreamed of being parents for many years and I would have loved to carry my own baby, but for reasons unknown (most likely embryo rejection due to an overactive immune system) and although tests show excellent fertility, I’ve been unable to sustain any of my pregnancies, despite the best efforts of reproductive immunology experts and a lot of immune-suppressant medication, injections, intravenous infusions and surgery.
"Following medical advice, gestational surrogacy abroad became our only viable option for a biological child and we’re so thankful for the wonders of modern medicine and reproductive science. We’re incredibly grateful to the team of doctors, embryologists, nurses, pregnancy coordinators, my GP and everyone involved in giving us the greatest gift of all by making our family dream come true, and of course our amazing surrogate for keeping our little daughter healthy and safe. We already love her so much and can’t wait to finally hold her."
The former Miss World also spoke about the support needed for couples who are struggling to conceive naturally, and said that talking about it openly "greatly helps to reduce the stigma and sense of helplessness."
"However, I know too well that pregnancy loss and fertility struggles can be a profoundly lonely, frightening, devastating experience for both women and men, and happy pregnancy announcements can be very difficult to see," she said.
"Statistically, one in six people in Ireland face fertility issues and almost 8,000 Irish couples undergo fertility treatment annually. If you're going through this, I send you all of my love and support. As painful as it is, I’ve found that talking about it openly with trusted family and friends is deeply healing and greatly helps to reduce the stigma and sense of helplessness.
"Proper awareness, support and understanding is crucial to the challenging physical and emotional recovery process, especially when all you want to do is blame yourself. Most of all, stay strong, positive and don’t give up on your family dreams... miracles really do happen."
