Bachelor Nation is about to get a little bigger.
Bachelor in Paradise alum Sarah Herron announced she is expecting her first child with fiancé Dylan Brown and reflected on her fertility journey in a Sept. 28 Instagram post.
"We can't keep a secret any longer!" Sarah wrote alongside photos of her and Dylan holding up a sonogram and pair of baby shoes. "Our embryo transfer was a success and I am pregnant with our baby boy! Our little 5day embryo nestled in comfortably and is measuring in at 7 weeks old today."
It's certainly been a time of ups and downs for the couple. Sarah—who's been documenting her IVF experience on social media—broke her knee cap after tripping on the curb while walking her dog earlier this month.
"As you may have suspected, we received our first positive HCG test within hours of me breaking my knee," she continued. "Two days later, my betas doubled, and this week we saw our baby's heartbeat flicker for the first time. Surreal doesn't begin to describe how it's all felt."
And while the past few weeks haven't been easy, Sarah remains excited about this next chapter for her family.
"I've spent the first 3.5 weeks of my pregnancy on bed rest, nourishing myself and putting all of my energy into growing bones and organs," she noted. "I believe these two events coincided for a reason and though it was excruciating, it turned into a miraculous path that I know I needed to take. The road ahead is long and I know we'll be holding our breath until the day our baby is earth side with us."
She also sent a message to anyone experiencing fertility struggles. "I've dreamt of the day that I could share this news, and at the same time I've dreaded how I would word it," Sarah added. "To the women and families amidst their fertility challenges; please know that I share this news with the most gentle intention. Whatever feelings come up, or space you need from my account is valid and respected. My heart belongs to all of you today. We are all warriors and I assure you I am still in it with you. I hope this lessens the sting, though I understand it may not."
At the end of her post, she expressed her gratitude for her doctor, Dr. Aimee Eyvazzadeh, noting, "You have fought for this as hard as we have."
As Sarah told Us Weekly in an interview published Sept. 28, she and Dylan, who got engaged in 2021 after four years of dating, have been trying to conceive for two years. "We started trying to conceive naturally in 2020, but after seven months of no luck, we turned to fertility testing which confirmed that I had Diminished Ovarian Reserve," she said. "As soon as we learned my diagnosis, we immediately turned to IVF with Dr. Aimee Eyvazzadeh."
Before finding love with the photographer, Sarah appeared on Sean Lowe's season of The Bachelor, which premiered in 2013, and then starred on the first and third seasons of Bachelor in Paradise in 2014 and 2016, respectively.
After learning of the pregnancy, several Bachelor Nation members expressed their excitement. "Aaaahhhhhh!" Sean's wife Catherine Giudici wrote in the comments. "Congratulations!!!!" Added Carly Waddell, "Congratulations!!!!!!! Love you!!!!!"