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Jessica and Jeffrey Smith of Stroudsburg wondered whether they would ever realize their dream of starting a family after enduring years of frustration trying to conceive a baby and considering the high cost of fertility options like IUI and IVF.

They succeeded with an unexpected option for Jessica — bariatric surgery.

During her time struggling to have a child, Jessica discovered she had insulin-resistant polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). As she learned about fertility options, doctors told her that women with PCOS who were struggling to conceive a baby sometimes succeeded after weight-loss surgery.

Jessica had contemplated weight-loss surgery before but opted against it, trying to lose weight on her own. With bariatric surgery covered under her insurance — IVF wasn’t — she chose to undergo gastric bypass surgery as a last chance to have a baby.

“I wound up losing 140 pounds from my heaviest to my smallest,” she said. “I had my gastric bypass Feb. 7, 2023. We were told by the doctor that we needed to wait at least a year for me to safely lose enough weight to try [to conceive a baby].

“From the time we were cleared to try to the time we conceived was only 2 1/2 months. The surgery did exactly what we hoped for.”

Jessica, 37, and Jeffrey welcomed their first child, daughter Riley June Smith, on Feb. 7, 2025 — exactly 2 years after Jessica had her bariatric surgery. Jessica’s due date was Feb. 28, but she developed preeclampsia during her pregnancy, which led doctors to schedule a C-section for Feb. 7.

Jessica was worried about having her baby three weeks early, but having her C-section date line up with her bariatric surgery anniversary represented a full-circle moment for her and her husband.

“Being a new mom is very interesting,” Jessica said. “I love it. I’m totally in love with her. She does have her days and nights mixed up right now, which can be a little challenging.

“But just getting to know each other because she’s getting quite a little personality, and getting to know the type of person I am postpartum has been pretty cool. When they say that you’re totally in love with this person you never met, it’s so true.

“Just falling in love with her more each day has been the best part of it,” she added. “And seeing my husband become a dad is really the best part of it.”