Retired USWNT forward Carli Lloyd announces pregnancy after IVF journey
DELRAN, N.J. (CBS) -- Positive, joyful news awaited Carli Lloyd at the end of a long "secret journey" with infertility.
The two-time Olympic gold medalist and New Jersey native announced she and husband Brian Hollins are expecting a child on social media and with a first-person piece in Women's Health magazine.
Lloyd said she went through multiple rounds of in vitro fertilization, or IVF, that were not successful and said at times during the journey "I was literally driving myself crazy."
She drew a large contrast between her time on the field and the journey to becoming pregnant, saying if she missed a kick or turned in a poor performance "there was always something I felt I could do to control the situation."
"I would go out and work 10 times harder," Lloyd wrote.
"The majority of the time, the world saw me in competitor mode. A machine. I was often emotionless and numb because that's the only way I felt I was able to survive and thrive," Lloyd said.
But in contrast, Lloyd said she felt at times "completely out of control" and at her weakest when she first started going through the process. She described trying to put on a happy face while she was traveling extensively for public appearances, speaking engagements, filming the show "Special Forces" and playing in a golf pro-am.
She credited the support of family, friends and her husband Hollins as well as her faith to keep going.
Lloyd said she started out "feeling embarrassed, ashamed, and afraid to tell people that I was going through IVF," but eventually her mindset shifted and she began wanting to share her story to help others.
Lloyd said she went to Dr. Louis Manara of the Center for Reproductive Medicine and Fertility in Voorhees, New Jersey for her IVF treatments.
"Dr. Manara is the best; I am so grateful for the way he handles his patients, the knowledge and expertise he provides, and the care and empathy he showed throughout our entire journey," Lloyd wrote.
Lloyd's baby is due in October 2024.
