#InfertilityUncovered: Raising Awareness This Week

DENVER (CBS4) - One in eight couples in the U.S. has trouble getting pregnant or staying pregnant. Many deal with their struggles in silence because of the shame associated with being childless.

National Infertility Awareness Week is April 21 to 27, 2019. It is an effort to remove the emotional and economic barriers to overcoming infertility. The theme is #InfertilityUncovered: Raising Awareness.

One new mother in Denver was happy to share her journey to encourage others.

On a sunny Tuesday in her home near Washington Park, Lauren Lee smothered baby Lawson with kisses.

"I love you, I love you, I love you," Lauren gushed.

Lawson is 5-months-old, but it took more than five years for Lauren and Brian Lee to bring their precious baby boy into the world.

"We didn't know we had a problem," Lauren told CBS4 Health Specialist Kathy Walsh.

The Lawsons wanted children. They started trying three years into their marriage, but trying wasn't working.

"We went to acupuncture, we tried yoga, special diets," explained Lauren. "We ended up going on Clomid and then we tried IUI's (Intrauterine insemination). All of those failed."

And the Lawsons got discouraged.

"Are we not meant to have children? That went through our minds a lot ," said the 34 year old.

The couple moved to Denver in 2017. They could afford one shot at in vitro fertilization (IVF) at the Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine (CCRM).

They got pregnant.

"I think we cried out all the emotion we were holding in for that whole time," said an emotional Lauren.

Lauren knows the stigma associated with infertility. She tells her story so others know there is no reason to be ashamed.

"It's not normal, but it's normal for some people, and it can end in a great, beautiful baby," she said.

In the Lawsons' case, a baby with chubby cheeks and big blue eyes and a glorious giggle guaranteed to make you grin.