Vern Enciso-Lim, Ben Lim Celebrate Arrival Of Baby Boy After IVF Journey

Vern Enciso-Lim has given birth to her baby boy!

Beloved lifestyle vlogger, Vern and her husband, Ben Lim, have welcomed their first child, a baby boy named Nathan. Vern herself shared the heartwarming news via her Instagram stories, offering a glimpse into her birthing experience and a peek at her newborn.

Vern revealed that Nathan was born via C-section at 34 weeks. She wrote, “Less than 12 hours after my CS surgery and even if my #1 enemy every surgery–a catheter was still inserted + the CS pain, I went right down to the NICU to do skin again since I really wanted to produce milk asap for my preemie baby. So lucky he didn’t need any tubes or incubators at 34 weeks.” Alongside the post was a photo of Vern breastfeeding little Nathan.

The next photos detail more of Vern and Nathan’s first few days together, which entailed more skin to skin bonding and Vern’s breastfeeding realizations. She mentioned how helpful a breastfeeding pillow and hakaa have been, and expressed a newfound appreciation for the passion moms have for breastfeeding. “On day 3, I got to hakaa my first btch of colostrum. Now I know why moms are so passionate about their breastfeeding journeys. It’s really the hardest part! Close to being as hard as conceiving him,” she wrote.

Vern also shared that Nathan developed jaundice on day 4 and included a photo of the two of them undergoing phototherapy. By day 7, Vern and Nathan were rooming together, and by day 10, they were able to go home.

Vern admitted that she has “mom brain,” and she’s sharing these “little stories” so she won’t forget. She also shared how “bad” her edema was, which eventually subsided with the help of compression socks and by keeping her legs elevated.

Vern’s road to motherhood

Last August 12, Vern sat down with Smart Parenting and candidly discussed her struggles with infertility and the emotional toll it took on her and her family. She then revealed her diagnosis of Stage 4 endometriosis, myomas, and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Vern and Ben went through two surgeries before deciding to undergo IVF.

In the interview, Vern described how the process of IVF taught her that the emotional journey does not end with a positive pregnancy test. “I thought the hardest part was the procedure. That the adventure and drama ends once you’re pregnant. Per no pala. A pregnancy with IVF is even more fragile than a natural pregnancy,” Vern shared.

Throughout the process, Vern expressed how the experience strengthened her relationship with Ben and deepened her appreciation for motherhood. “It was really a test of faith for us, this whole conceiving journey. And because we prayed together, we had like a whole ritual of reading the Bible together. And then every time we felt anxiety, or we were nervous, instead of crying about it, or letting our anxiety sink in, we would really pray together. Then we’d feel better,” Vern recalled.

Congratulations Vern and Ben!

Read here for Vern’s cover story.