Go Inside Gretchen Rossi and Slade Smiley's Life-Changing Decision
The #RHOC alum and her fiance open up about their journey to parenthood.
The road to motherhood has not been an easy one for Real Housewives of Orange County alum Gretchen Rossi. After she and fiance Slade Smiley pursued IVF unsuccessfully, Slade decided to take a big step in his life and reverse his vasectomy so that the couple can try and conceive naturally. "After we were on the show [in 2014], Gretchen ended up being allergic to the progesterone shocks and so the whole IVF process was quite challenging," Slade explained on an episode of The Doctors earlier this week, sharing that following that procedure he decided to have the reverse vasectomy.
The episode also featured footage from inside the operating room while Slade was getting the procedure done. "I will tell you that the people I told I was going to go through this thought I was a little nuts," Slade joked on Monday's episode. "But, [the] doctor has fantastic hands, so I'm feeling good actually."
Check out video from Slade's procedure, featured on the January 11 episode, below.
The same day the episode aired, Gretchen headed to Instagram to clear up some of the chatter around the couple's road to parenthood. "It's been a long hard journey. Dealing with the challenges of IVF, our concerns about genetics, and cancer in the family as well as Slade's decision to have a vasectomy over 15 years ago. We are so grateful to all those who have supported us and wished us well during this process," she wrote in one post.
According to Instagram, Slade got the surgery in late 2015 as a birthday gift to Gretchen. "He wrote it in my birthday card and it was one of the most unselfish and wonderful things he has ever done for me," Gretchen wrote. "I am blessed that we are partners in life willing to do anything for each other to help each other's dreams come true. Thank you to all of you for the continued prayers and support as Slade and I go through this journey to try to conceive."
To celebrate the couple's latest milestone, relive her epic proposal below.