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Go Inside Gretchen Rossi and Slade Smiley's Life-Changing Decision

The #RHOC alum and her fiance open up about their journey to parenthood.

By Jocelyn Vena Jan 12, 2016, 5:55 PM ET

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.

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Watch The Real Housewives of Orange County on Peacock and the Bravo App.

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.

There have been a lot of rumors floating around about our journey of trying to get pregnant. Slade and I invite you to Tune into "The Doctors" today to find out the truth behind those rumors, and the big birthday surprise Slade had for me this year. 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. For the truth behind the rumors, please Check your local times & listings for "The Doctors" which airs today. Hoping #OurStory and #Roadtobaby can help others struggling to conceive. Share your story below if you have gone through any of this. I love hearing from you guys
A photo posted by Gretchen Christine Rossi (@gretchenrossi) on Jan 11, 2016 at 10:47am PST

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."

So I posted at the beginning of December to please pray for Slade post surgery and for his recovery.....Many of you asked what it was for but at that time I was unable to talk about it because of a contract with The TV show The Doctors, well today the show aired and we shared the story that Slade surprised me for my birthday in October and said that he had decided to reverse his vasectomy for me ðð»ð He wrote it in my birthday card and it was one of the most unselfish and wonderful things he has ever done for me. 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. Please share your story with us below on your fertility issues. I think the more we talk about it and are open we can all help each other. We shared our story and they filmed Slades surgery for the Doctor's to help be a voice for those struggling with the same issues. You can see the show on-line here http://www.thedoctorstv.com/videos/exclusive-reality-stars-open-up-about-vasectomy-reversal if you missed the show today (direct link in bio) Sending love to you all #allisGodshands #grateful
A photo posted by Gretchen Christine Rossi (@gretchenrossi) on Jan 11, 2016 at 3:38pm PST

To celebrate the couple's latest milestone, relive her epic proposal below.