What the 'miracle' pregnancy of golfer Stacy Lewis tells us about fertility

Golf champion Stacy Lewis’ second pregnancy has been described as a “miracle” after years of secondary infertility, IVF failures, and the turmoil of thinking her daughter might remain an only child. But her story is also a lesson about the limits of natural fertility.

Key Takeaways:

• Golfer Stacy Lewis conceived her first child at age 33 and then experienced secondary infertility, including failed IVF procedures.

• Alleviating the stress of a demanding schedule may have helped her to conceive naturally at age 41.

• Unlike artificial facility treatments like IVF, RRM aims to determine and address the root causes of infertility instead of glossing over the human body’s natural reproductive process. RRM also addresses root causes without creating and destroying human beings.

• Women's biological fertility is not unlimited, and women deserve the truth — that despite egg and embryo freezing, there are no guarantees if women wait and attempt to conceive past their most fertile years.

The Backstory:

Golfweek reports that in 2018 at age 33, Stacy Lewis became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter, Chesnee, becoming "the first mom on tour to win in nine years, collecting her 13th career title at the 2020 Scottish Open. No mom has won on tour since."

But after this pregnancy, Lewis and her husband, Gerrod Chadwell, experienced secondary infertility. They attempted IVF, which failed. Chadwell suggested that the stress of Lewis' demanding athletic schedule might be a contributing factor to their infertility.

Golfweek reported:

“It was really hard. I mean, it was hard,” said Lewis of the three years they tried to have a second child. “It was hard seeing other people be pregnant and, you know, you want to be happy for them, but at the same time, you're kind of sad inside that it's not me.”

Years after Lewis stepped back from some of these commitments, she conceived a child naturally at age 41.

“It’s funny just how God has a plan,” Chadwell told Golfweek.

Why It Matters:

Lewis noted the "brutal" process of egg retrieval, which she experienced as part of the IVF process.

“Those egg retrievals are brutal on your body,” she said, with Golfweek adding:

Lewis, still thinking big picture, would like to see the LPGA adopt a similar rule to what tennis implemented last year that gives players rankings protection while undergoing a fertility procedure such as egg or embryo freezing.

But Lewis’ story reminds us that human life cannot necessarily be generated “on demand” — and women have a limited time in their lives that is most favorable for conceiving a child. Egg and embryo freezing are not guarantees that someone will successfully conceive and then bear a child via IVF.

In fact, IVF does not hold a high success rate. And even though it is used to create human lives, it also destroys them as part of the process. As Live Action News previously reported:

The mere fact that more than half of the IVF embryos won't make it beyond the initial first steps after fertilization, including the health screening, should be enough to prove that IVF is not about creating life but about controlling it, determining which lives are accepted as valuable and worthy and which are automatically destroyed for being deemed 'subpar.'

This jolt of reality should be significant enough to debunk one of the most ubiquitous myths of modern womanhood: that fertility can always be determined, delayed, and subsequently revived through a laboratory procedure.

At first glance, Lewis’s hope to see the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) enact rankings protection for players undergoing egg or embryo freezing procedures may seem noble and desirable. But it is incorrect to presume that fertility can be suspended, preserved, and restarted down the line. 

Contemporary women are exhorted to think that their biological clocks are flexible, as well as that professional aspirations should take priority over motherhood and child-rearing. 

Yet, as Lewis’ own experiences in attempting to conceive naturally and using IVF unravel the fragility of such thinking, as human bodies are not machines to be fully controlled and regulated. 

The 'Biological Clock'

One of the most common but often misleading fertility misconceptions is the notion that age does not affect reproductive ability. Here are some hard truths:

• After age 35, a woman's fertility drops noticeably ,owing to fewer eggs and poorer egg quality.

• Women in their 30s experience a natural drop in egg numbers, cutting monthly conception odds by 15-20%.

• Egg quality and supply diminish at this stage, while miscarriage risks escalate drastically.

• By age 35, the average time to conceive lengthens further also because of added environmental stresses impacting physical and emotional well-being.

• Over age 40, pregnancy carries heightened obstetric risks like gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and chromosomal issues, together with worsening egg quality.

Egg freezing and IVF are not foolproof guarantees of pregnancy, and can incur considerable physical and emotional costs, such as a risk of ovarian stimulation.

Under the Surface

An underlying note in Lewis’ account is the role that stress likely played in affecting her ability to conceive a child.

Lewis’ husband testified that once they were not dealing with the demands of her golfing tours, they experienced more peace, with Lewis herself admitting that her body felt better. Although Lewis’ case does not imply necessarily that stress alone leads to infertility, studies have demonstrated how stress can negatively affect reproductive hormones and ovulation, while psychological support can enhance well-being and boost the odds of pregnancy. 

Better Alternatives

Lewis’s story should bring the topic on restorative reproductive medicine (RRM) into the spotlight.

Unlike artificial facility treatments like IVF, RRM aims to determine and address the root causes of infertility instead of glossing over the human body’s natural reproductive process.

Some differences:

• IVF divorces conception from the marital act and typically manufactures surplus human embryos in a laboratory, while RRM tries to diagnose hormonal, ovulatory, cervical, and other underlying health issues that may impact fertility before natural conception takes place. 

• RRM is a life-affirming medicinal approach that regards fertility as a health issue instead of a commodity to be monetized. It respects the woman’s body, the child’s dignity, and the moral significance of conception itself.

While Lewis’s case does not necessarily guarantee that RRM would have increased her chances of conceiving a baby naturally at her age, it does reaffirm the necessity of exploring life-affirming alternatives to IVF, the latter which routinely involves the creation, storage and destruction of live human embryos. 

The Bottom Line:

One lesson learned from Lewis’ fertility and pregnancy journey is that pregnancy is a gift and a blessing, and it is never a guarantee based on human effort.

Biological motherhood has a limited window of time, and women deserve to know the truth.

With straightforward medical counsel, timely fertility evaluation, and life-affirming fertility treatments that address root causes of infertility, women can be better placed to embrace the rewarding vocation of motherhood as soon as they can.