Breaking the silence: Ex professional Rugby star, Ed Jackson’s infertility journey with wife Lois

For a decade, Ed Jackson lived and breathed sport. As a professional rugby player, it was his whole life and focus. But nearly ten years ago, at the age of 28, Ed suffered a devastating accident when he dived into the shallow end of a swimming pool, sustaining a severe spinal cord injury that fractured his neck at C6 and C7 and left him completely paralysed from the shoulders down. Throughout this, Ed demonstrated how resilient he was and fought his way back to his feet, though he still lives with incomplete quadriplegia.

Newly engaged to his wife, Lois, starting a family wasn’t on his immediate radar then and Ed just believed that because he was a fit, healthy athlete full of testosterone, he wouldn’t face issues. “I just assumed in my head I was training and doing everything right so why would I have a problem having kids.”

The couple stopped using contraception, deciding that if a family happened, it would happen naturally. However, six or seven years passed without success and they realised that Ed’s spinal cord injury could have affected his fertility. Following a recommendation from a friend, Lois went to the Centre for Reproductive and Genetic Health (CRGH) in London for initial investigations. At that point, they didn’t know if it was her, Ed, or a combination of them both. However, Lois received a clean bill of health, prompting Ed to get checked himself.

The results were devastating for Ed. Doctors found hardly any sperm, and the ones they did find had zero motility. “As a typical bloke, I had been completely ignoring that maybe my spinal cord injury had caused this.” Combined with the other spinal cord injury complications like erectile dysfunction and limited sensation, Ed needed to provide a natural sample at the clinic, which felt so impossible.

Initially, Ed withdrew into himself. “At the beginning, I didn’t speak to anyone about it. As blokes, we’re very good at suppressing stuff that might be negative. We don’t like talking about things that we perceive as a weakness and fertility is so closely tied to masculinity and testosterone. I thought I’ll just deal with it. I’ll park it, but it was eating me up,” he admits.

After speaking to his father who is a doctor and who assured him it was entirely normal, he decided to open up to close friends. It was only then that he realised some of those friends were also quietly going through IVF as well and no one had talked about it openly

with each other. In addition, opening up on his social media platforms helped Ed give and receive an influx of support and private messages from other men facing the exact same behind-the-scenes struggles but who wanted to keep those conversations private.

Given advice by their medical team at CRGH, Ed began a three-month improvement protocol for his sperm health. This meant he needed to improve his overall lifestyle choices which included cutting out weekend alcohol, eliminating processed foods and eating a clean, healthy diet, as well as taking supplements that had been recommended. “I didn’t realise what a big impact the way I was living my life was having on my sperm, something I definitely learned from going through treatment.”

When the day of his micro-TESE (microdissection testicular sperm extraction) procedure arrived, Ed was ready for surgery. However, using an electrical stimulation technique to induce ejaculation while he was under general anaesthetic, specialists successfully collected a semen sample containing sperm suitable for treatment. Ed woke to the news that the planned surgery had not been needed and a suitable sample had been collected—a huge relief to them both.

Thanks to fertility science, Lois had already frozen her eggs, so Ed’s sperm was used to fertilise them and they have seven frozen embryos. “For the first time, we feel we are back in control of having our own family rather than it just be chance or luck.”

PLEASE NOTE – LOIS HAS JUST FOUND OUT SHE IS PREGNANT FROM THEIR ROUND OF NATURAL IVF.

Ed and Lois’s journey demonstrates that male factor infertility can happen to anyone – in fact it currently accounts for 50% of all fertility issues, yet men rarely talk about it or check the health of their sperm until a crisis hits. “This process has strengthened our relationship. We have been through challenging times with my injury, and when you care for someone, you go through stuff together. IVF is very much both of you going through this. For now, for the first time, the odds are looking like they are in favour rather than against us.”

Ed gives advice for others: “I always assumed, because I was a sportsperson, I was fit and healthy. I knew all my facts about gyms, cars, and I assumed my fertility and sperm wouldn’t be an issue. To be honest, I didn’t even think about it once. Well now I know the facts and it is one of the most important lessons I have learnt. So, if I can offer one piece of advice, it would be to go and get your sperm checked as early as you can. Let’s normalise the conversation of infertility for everyone so no one feels alone.

“If you have found out you do have a problem, please know that hope is not lost at any point and you can talk. I never thought I would be talking about this or erectile dysfunction to my mates but it has given me so much support by being open and honest.”

The facts

• 1 in 6 couples are facing fertility issues. And of that, male factor infertility, which is just as common as female factor, contributing to half of all cases.
• Breaking the silence relieves intense psychological pressure and connects men to a hidden network of shared experiences.
• Checking sperm health early and exploring modern science (such as sperm freezing or lifestyle interventions) empowers men to take control of their future long before starting a family.

If you are interested in learning more about getting your sperm tested, please visit CRGH and book an initial consultation.