Sometimes wishes do COME TRUE

When she struggled with fertility, Suzy Stanton decided to give two little girls a loving home in her 40s

- GILLIAN HARVEY

When she watches her daughters, aged eight and three, play, Suzy Stanton, 49, often thinks back to the agonising time when she thought she might never be a mum. The years of trying, followed by seemingly endless hurdles and hoops they painstakingly had to jump through. ‘My husband John and I started trying for a baby shortly after our wedding in 2009. I was 37, but nobody I knew had suffered fertility problems and I assumed things would be fine,’ she says.

After two years, the couple were concerned. ‘We went to our GP, who referred us for tests, which we had at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead in December 2012,’ says Suzy. ‘At the appointment, we were told we’d need IVF, although doctors couldn’t confirm what was wrong. But IVF just didn’t feel like the right thing for me. I suggested adoption and John agreed.’

By this time, Suzy was 40 and worried she might have left it too late to adopt. She contacted an agency run by the local authority in Newcastle, which reassured her.

‘They told me lots of couples adopt in their 40s and beyond, often when fertility options run out – I was so relieved.’

For would-be adoptive parents, the first step is to register with an agency. ‘We decided to go ahead and had a visit from two social workers shortly afterwards,’ says Suzy. ‘They discussed our circumstances and toured our house. Ten days later, in early January 2013, the agency agreed to support our application.’