Pregnantish

If you’re navigating or considering undergoing fertility treatments like IVF, and are confused by all the tests and information out there, you are not alone. Sometimes in this process, we feel like we are given too much information and not enough information at the same time! This podcast episode, in honor of National Infertility Awareness Week (NIAW) 2024, is a spotlight on why we should advocate for our reproductive health and know our options. Dr. Vrunda B. Desai, FACOG, the VP of Medical and Clinical Affairs at CooperSurgical, joins Andrea in studio to share how CooperSurgical is accelerating what’s possible to help people build their families sooner, and how tests like PGT-A, PGT-M, and PGTai can revolutionize the embryo selection process. She is a Physician, Researcher, Educator and Medical Affairs leader at CooperSurgical and is a Board-Certified Ob/Gyn with fellowship training in Minimally Invasive Gynecological Surgery. Dr. Desai is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor in Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at Yale University School of Medicine. She’s seen first hand how many options current fertility treatment patients have when trying to build or expand their families. This episode also features back Sydney Sharon, Social Media and Community Manager at California Cryobank by CooperSurgical, who shares how she and her wife Brit chose their sperm donor and why representation matters when we talk about infertility and modern family building. Thanks to episode sponsor CooperSurgical – a fertility and women’s health company, that puts time on the side of women, babies and families at the moments that matter most – for supporting this conversation. For more, visit coopersurgical.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

World figure skating champion and sports commentator, Tara Lipinski, is known for breaking records and winning awards throughout her competitive skating career, including being the youngest athlete to win a gold medal at just 15 years old at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Japan. But, in the last year since Tara achieved another big dream and became a mom via gestational surrogacy, after five years of struggling to conceive, failed IVF cycles and devastating miscarriages, more have heard Tara’s voice as a passionate advocate in the infertility community with a goal of spreading awareness and education. In honor of Surrogacy Awareness Month and Endometriosis Awareness Month, both of which touched Tara and pregnantish podcast host Andrea's lives, this episode is about persevering in the face of challenges, the truth about resilience and endurance on the rink and in life, and why fertility education is so important. This conversation is supported by All Families Surrogacy, a premier surrogacy agency that supports all families by providing unwavering guidance to all surrogates and hopeful parents, regardless of their cultural identity, location or financial status. Whether you're interested in pursuing surrogacy or being a potential surrogate yourself, find out more at https://allfamiliessurrogacy.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former MTV Asia VJ and Television Presenter/Producer, Denise Keller, and Miss Universe Japan 2021, Juri Watanabe, are the definition of beauty, smarts and grace to their audiences who have followed them as celebrated major pageant winners and popular on-air talent. But, what they their fans may not know is the desire and drive both of these women have when it comes to breaking down taboos in Asian culture, and beyond, around issues like infertility, pregnancy loss and mental health. Denise, who resides in Singapore and is of Chinese and German ancestry, and Juri, who now lives in Los Angeles and who is of Japanese and Korean descent, strive to elevate the conversation on their public platforms so that others who are struggling, feel less isolated as they once did. This episode’s midroll includes a conversation with Reproductive Endocrinologist, Dr. Janelle Luk, Co-Founder and Medical Director of Generation Next Fertility, who says that one reason she has a passion for women’s health is because of her experience as a young girl growing up in Hong Kong and learning that her mother was given away at birth. Dr. Luk also shares how certain conditions that impact fertility, like Diminished Ovarian Reserve and PCOS, show up in higher numbers and/or display differently in people of Asian descent than their white counterparts. The subject of “Asian Infertility” is a highly under-researched and under-covered topic. As a result, some people may not access the care they need. This dynamic conversation with newsmakers and thought leaders, which is also in honor of the Chinese New Year, and “The Year of the Dragon” (known to see an uptick in fertility!), strives to continue and expand the conversation so that people get the help they need and know that they are not alone. This episode is supported by Generation Next Fertility in New York City, whose mission is to provide individualized patient centric quality care and innovative technologies to help patients become parents. For more, visit generationnextfertility.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Professional organizer and Author of “Unstuff your Life” and “Calling Bullsh*t On Busy”, Andrew Mellen, has been called “The most organized man in America”, and has spent his career helping people not only declutter their homes and schedules, but also their minds, their hearts and their lives. Andrew knows that during some of life's hardest chapters, like infertility and loss, it can seem overwhelming or even insurmountable to manage all the moving pieces - but he's determined to show that it's not only possible to lessen load, but that when we do we can alleviate stress, find new sources of productivity, and access more life-balance and success. This episode is presented by pregnantish, the first media and patient advocacy platform dedicated to providing high quality content, community, reproductive education, and support for all the people who need “help” to build their families. Pregnantish is also the home to Pregnantish Insights, dedicated to providing insights to benefit the entire fertility care spectrum and improve the future of patient care. For more, visit pregnantish.com and/or by following @pregnantish Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

American lawyer and bestselling author of “Bet on Black”, Eboni K. Williams, has been known to her audience on her daytime TV show, “Equal Justice with Judge Eboni K. Williams”, and during her time as the first Black cast member on The Real Housewives of NY, as an independent, outspoken and multi-talented woman. What some of her fans may not know is that in addition to all of these jobs, Eboni wants to add another important role to her work: mom. As a single woman, Eboni is hoping to start a family with the help of sperm donation and IVF and is well aware not only of the shortage of Black sperm donors available, but also the stigma of being “another Black single mom in America.” In this episode, taped in front of a live audience in New York City at the "Diversity of Infertility" pregnantish event, Eboni shares why she’s pursuing single parenthood at this stage of her life, what she wishes others knew about the process, including why 'open donation' was important to her, and why we need to elevate the conversation about the need for more diverse sperm donor options. This episode is presented by California Cryobank, a top sperm bank in the U.S., shipping to all 50 states and to over 40 countries. With one of the largest and most diverse selection of sperm donors, California Cryobank is proud to have helped more than 75,000 people create their families for over 45 years. Visit cryobank.com for more information, and use promo code SPERMISH for a FREE Level 2 Subscription for access to their portfolio of donors. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former Miss Michigan and Michigan State Football player Jaclyn and Jon Misch are best known for their time together on CBS’s “Survivor”, where Jaclyn won the title of first runner-up in Season 29 and where the couple had to navigate incredible challenges together on the island. One challenge that the couple knew they'd have to overcome together back at home was starting a family, as Jaclyn was born with MRKH - a condition that rendered her infertile and born without a uterus. In fact, Jaclyn was one of the first public people to bring more awareness to the disorder, which impacts approximately 1 out of every 5000 women. While Jaclyn and Jon knew that she wouldn’t be able to carry a pregnancy, they never imagined all the twists and turns they'd experience on the way to parenthood - including a devastating 20-week stillbirth with a gestational surrogate who was carrying their little girl, Harper. Through faith, science and the generosity of Jon’s first cousin, their gestational surrogate, Jaclyn and Jon are now the parents of a healthy little boy named Logan. And, while they now recognize that the experience strengthened their bond, they will never forget how infertility changed their marriage and their lives. This episode, which explores love, loss, resilience, and the realities of surrogacy, also features Staci Swiderski, Founder/CEO/Owner of Family Source Consultants, who supported this episode. Family Source Consultants is a leading authority in third party reproduction that matches and facilitates Gestational Surrogacy and Egg Donation arrangements for individuals and couples of all backgrounds in the US and Internationally. For more information, or to schedule a consultation, visit familysourceconsultants.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emmy-award winning news anchor and reporter Jenny Anchondo has reported on stories for over a decade, and has spent her career hearing people's life stories, but admits that until being touched by pregnancy loss and secondary infertility, she never had the desire to share her own story. Part of Jenny's story is the lack of awareness and knowledge she says that she had about her fertility, especially after easily conceiving her first child with her husband. As Jenny admits, “I didn't think you can age out of this process…like everybody else, I saw celebrities having children well into their 40s and 50s and it seemed to be happening frequently. Nobody was telling the story otherwise…” Now, at 41 years old, as Jenny prepares to have a baby after many years of losses and IVF setbacks, she says she's an open book so that people can learn what she wishes she knew and so that she can support others who are struggling to conceive, or feeling as isolated as she did through the devastation of pregnancy loss. This episode also features commentary from Dr. Dorette Noorhasan MD, a CCRM Fertility Specialist who deeply understands this pain point both professionally and personally. She shares important education on miscarriage and fertility in this episode’s mid-roll. This episode is presented by CCRM Dallas-Fort Worth, a world class fertility clinic dedicated to providing industry-leading patient care and outcomes. For more or to book a consult, visit CCRMIVF.com/dallasfortworth Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emma Groenbaek grew up not only with the awareness about the fact that she was conceived via sperm donation, but pride connected to it. In fact, as a child, her bedtime book was the story of how she was created with the help of science and donor conception. So, perhaps it's no surprise that when social media came around, Emma, now 27 years old, started blogging, educating and posting about her donor conceived experience. Though she’s grateful to the sperm donor and her parents for pursuing this step to give her life, she's well aware that people who find out that they were donor conceived later, or whose parents kept this a secret, have a much different relationship than she does to this part of their identities. As Emma says, “The truth hurts less than secrets.” In this interview, Emma shares more on why her parents were open about how they got pregnant via sperm donation, even though they were advised not to share this with her, why she has no desire to meet her genetic father, and what she wants others to know about donor conception. This episode is presented by Cryos International, “The World’s Largest Sperm and Egg Bank,” where Emma works as a Donor Child Consultant. Every day, Cryos International helps people around the world make their dream of having a child come true. For more visit cryosinternational.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Benjamin Carmichael and Becca met doing advocacy work for Planned Parenthood in New England in 2018, they never imagined that months later, they'd match on Tinder, get engaged to marry exactly three years to the day, and set out to have children together. But both have always known that they wanted to become parents. For any couple, this chapter of trying to have a baby can be exciting and overwhelming; but for Benjamin and Becca, it's heightened by the fact that Benjamin is a trans man who has had to come off testosterone and inject multiple hormones in order to retrieve eggs for the possibility of having a baby. Even though Benjamin and Becca are hardly the first couple in the LGBTQ+ community to undergo fertility treatments, it's still largely misunderstood by some health care providers and networks and insurance carriers. In fact, much of Becca's work now has been to explore the experience of trans people in healthcare settings. And in addition to personally navigating Modern Family building, both seek to create positive change for others in the LGBTQ+ community who face discrimination or disparities here. As a member of the Transgender Educational Network, and a longtime advocate for LGBTQ visibility and rights, it's perhaps no surprise that Benjamin has used his social media platform to shine a light on fertility from his point of view. And this is ultimately what this episode is about. “Why This Couple Wants to Raise Awareness of Trans Fertility” is in honor of Pregnantish Pride, where we share fertility stories in the LGBTQ community and show the many diverse ways families today are created. For more, visit pregnantish.com/lgbt Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For over 25 years, Karen Salmansohn has been a multi bestselling author with approximately 2 million books sold globally. Her first book, “How To Be Happy Dammit” gained a slew of public fans including Madonna, Tony Robbins and Deepak Chopra and Karen has since added coaching, speaking and consultation to her body of work. In this episode on happiness, which also explores how Karen became a mom at 50 years old, listeners are invited and instructed on how to best challenge negative messages and self-limiting beliefs …even during some of life’s most challenging moments. This episode is presented by pregnantish, who is expanding the success of the 2019 “Why I Left My Fertility Clinic” study to look at the fertility treatment patient experience today, with the main goal of bridging the gap between patients and their providers, and creating a better experience for all involved. Visit pregnantish.com/insights for more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When model and wellness influencer Tess Annique met retired NHL hockey star, Sheldon Souray in treatment for addiction in January 2017, she never imagined the two would later fall in love and marry. The two were good friends and shared life's most vulnerable moments as they tried to get sober. But months later, when they reconnected through a text message, Tess admitted she knew something had changed between them. After that, Tess and Sheldon fell in love, had a fairytale wedding and were excited to start a family together. What she never imagined was that in her 20s, she'd struggle to conceive with her husband, and how miscarriage, IVF and infertility would be one of the most sobering experiences Tess and Sheldon would share together. This episode, in honor of Resolve's National Infertility Awareness Week 2023, is about love in the face of challenges, why others should never judge a book by its healthy cover, and what Tess and Sheldon dream of as they look towards their future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just three months after Mallory Weggemann was rendered paralyzed after treatment for her back pain, she re-entered her happy place - the pool - and tried to regain not only her sense of strength, but her sense of self. Through this incredible challenge, Mallory learned about resilience, vulnerability, hope and persistence – qualities that not only helped her excel as a Paralympic Champion on the US swim team, but strengths that also helped her push forward during her struggle to conceive with her husband, Jay. While Mallory initially wondered about her ability to get pregnant and have children when she found out about her paralysis, and while others seeing her in a wheelchair may assume the infertility is on ‘her side’, the couple faced hurdles due to Jay’s Male Factor Infertility – something that is a reality for many men and couples, and a diagnosis too often left out of the storytelling of infertility. Now Jay and Mallory are new parents and believe this tough chapter of navigating infertility, a MicroTESSE surgery to try to extract Jay’s sperm, and the experience of doing fertility treatments together ultimately brought them even closer. This episode on finding hope in the face of challenges, how to love your body when you feel it's failing you and why vulnerability is a sign of strength, also features Scott Brown and Lauren Isley from California Cryobank™ who share insight and advice for those facing male factor infertility and may need sperm donation to build their families. Today’s episode, in honor of National Infertility Awareness Week 2023, is presented by California Cryobank™, which carefully selects the highest quality sperm donors to give clients the best possible opportunity for a safe and successful pregnancy. For more, visit cryobank.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When CNN Entertainment Reporter and New York Times best-selling author Chloe Melas married her husband, Fitness Influencer Brian Mazza, she expected them to start their family when they were ready, just as their friends had. After all, she was healthy and in her 20s and she didn't know anyone who had openly struggled with infertility. But when she was diagnosed with Low Ovarian Reserve at 29 and told that her husband had Male Factor Infertility, she knew that if she wanted to become a mother, she needed to pursue IVF and this led to feelings of confusion, anger and depression. Now, as an outspoken advocate, and using her platform to spread infertility awareness, Chloe is passionate about sharing her story so others don't feel as helpless as she once felt and so more are educated about the fact that being young or having sex doesn't guarantee a pregnancy. This episode is about balancing life and love while struggling with grief, what she has learned about resilience both through her experience and her grandfather's experience as a POW, and what she hopes and advocates for when she looks toward the future of assisted reproductive technology. Today's show is presented by Generation Next Fertility in New York City, whose mission is to provide individualized patient centric quality care and innovative technologies to help patients become parents. Tune in to this episode to hear how Dr. Janelle Luk helps patients navigate tough diagnoses like Diminished Ovarian Reserve and Male Factor Infertility. For more, visit generationnextfertility.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Actor Camille Guaty is known for her many roles on TV and in films including Gotta Kick it Up, Prison Break and Scorpion. But what people watching her may not know is that behind the scenes, she struggled for many years to get and stay pregnant. Since getting pregnant via egg donor IVF in 2019, Camille has been public about her experience and why she not only doesn't hold shame for using an egg donor, but feels a source of pride connected to it. In this episode, Camille shares the moment she realized she may need to move on to third party reproduction, what she wants others to know about it, and why she's used her public platform to share her experience and her infertility journey so widely. Today's episode is presented by Donor Egg Bank USA, a leader in frozen donor egg. Two of their many financial plans include a guarantee that you’ll bring home a baby or receive a 100% refund. To learn more, visit donoreggbankusa.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

NASCAR fans may know Samantha Busch as the wife of stock car racing driver Kyle Busch; but in more recent years, more have learned that in addition to being a wife, a mom, and a lifestyle blogger, Samantha is also an infertility advocate through her non-profit, “The Bundle of Joy Fund” and her book, “Fighting infertility, Finding my Inner Warrior Through Trying to Conceive, IVF and Miscarriage.” As anyone in the infertility community knows, there is rarely a straight line to parenthood. In Samantha’s case, trying to become a mom again after she and Kyle had their son Brexton, was a chapter full of heartache, set backs, confusion and unexpected beauty after they found their surrogate match. On this episode, Andrea and Samantha discuss how she navigated tough decisions during her most recent miscarriage, why nobody should ever say “just” get a surrogate, her advice on how to navigate the surrogacy process, and why, despite finding resolution and completing her family, she’s still committed to advocating for people struggling to conceive. This episode is sponsored by Donor Concierge, a leading fertility service helping intended parents navigate the challenging process of finding an egg donor, sperm donor or surrogate. For more, visit donorconcierge.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emmy winning reporter Darla Miles never imagined that she'd be the center of a story involving infertility, repeated miscarriages and trying to conceive at 50 years old, especially as she has reported on extraordinary stories throughout her career. In her 30s, Darla met her husband and was thrilled to get pregnant at 36 just before their wedding; but that pregnancy ended and kicked off a decade+ long challenge to conceive and other challenges, including the sudden loss of Darla's husband, who was also her best friend. With a history of miscarriage, an autoimmune disease and now being considered of “advanced age”, some people think Darla's goal of having a baby is unrealistic. But, Darla is determined to exhaust her options as it's in her heart to become a mom. This episode is about resilience in the face of adversity, why we need more education about our fertility, and how far some of us will go to fulfill our most important goal of parenthood. This episode is presented by Donor Egg Bank USA, a leader in frozen donor egg. Two of their many financial plans include a guarantee that you’ll bring home a baby or receive a 100% refund. To learn more, visit donoreggbankusa.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sperm donation has been around since the 1950s and has helped build countless families for people with male factor infertility and/or for women without male partners. When it started, and in the decades that followed, most sperm donors were anonymous and many people who used sperm donors were actually discouraged from telling their offspring that they were conceived this way. But, as donor conception grew, so did the data and feedback from this group, who often demanded to know their genetic roots. On this pregnantish podcast, Andrea interviews two women, Sydney Sharon & Hayley Darknell-King, who live in different countries but share a similar experience of learning as adults that their biological dads were sperm donors. Sydney's dad was a sperm donor in the 1980s and Hayley was conceived, via sperm donation, during the same period. Both women know sperm donation from another perspective, too, as women in lesbian marriages who relied on sperm donation to build their respective families. This episode explores Sydney and Hayley’s personal stories and discoveries as they learned about their conception stories and DNA, how this information has positively changed their lives and/or made them question their identities, and how this information has shaped them as parents of donor conceived people today. This episode is sponsored by California Cryobank, which carefully selects the highest quality sperm donors to give clients the best possible opportunity for a safe and successful pregnancy. In fact, less than 1% of applicants can become a California Cryobank donor. Interested in starting your search? Head to cryobank.com and enter the code PREGISH to gain access to a free Level Two subscription in 2023. Hayley Darknell-King is an editorial guest and isn’t affiliated with California Cryobank. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How will the recent Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe Vs Wade impact the infertility community and those who face complicated pregnancies? According to the guests on the pregnantish podcast, Dr. Krishna Upadhya, VP of Quality Care and Health Equity at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, reproductive specialists Dr. Serena Chen and Dr. Lucky Sekhon, and fertility advocate, Davina Fankhauser, the future implications of assigning 'personhood' status to embryos will create less access to necessary fertility treatments, more vulnerability for doctors and patients, and worse and potentially dangerous outcomes for those who have pregnancies that require medical attention. This episode and conversation was recorded in front of a live studio audience of fertility advocates in New York City in the fall of 2022, and is supported by Doctors For Fertility, a non-profit whose mission is to educate and advocate for IVF and reproductive care. Find out more at doctorsforfertility.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Fabi traveled from California to Nashville for a football game in 2014, she never imagined her life would radically change. One night at a bar she met Josh, a handsome Army Ranger who had been stationed nearby. They would later describe the encounter as "love at first sight." The two were just starting out their lives in their 20s when Josh received a devastating diagnosis, he had a rare form of cancer called synovial sarcoma. Josh knew he wanted to preserve his sperm and later spoke to Fabi about his wish to marry her and try to have a baby with her, despite the fact that he may not be there to raise their child. Josh and Fabi married on November 12, 2016 and Josh passed away just one month later. While this part of Josh and Fabi’s love story together ended, in many ways it continues to this day as she undergoes multiple IVF rounds to try to create healthy embryos and the chance at getting pregnant with her great love and continuing his legacy. This episode is presented by The American Cancer Society, the leading cancer-fighting organization, with a vision to end cancer as we know it, for everyone. For more, visit cancer.org. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Those who have followed Sarah Kennedy Ellis’ career as a top CMO for blue chip companies, like Adobe, and now as a VP of Global Growth and Demand at Google, know how talented, driven and successful she is. What they may not know is that no matter how dedicated and focused Sarah is on one of her most important goals - having a baby - she has silently struggled behind the scenes... until recently. In one of her most vulnerable tweets to her business focused audience earlier this year Sarah shared, “After three and a half years & counting, nine cycles of IVF, two miscarriages in the last six months, I think it's time for me to finally just say it out loud publicly. Infertility is a special kind of Fresh Hell that takes a toll on even the strongest, most resilient people I've met in life.” She added “..one thing I've learned most is how important it is to share your journey to be part of a community of women battling the same. I built my career being transparent as a leader, and I have with my team, but I've been weirdly shy to share this new part of who I am here.” In this episode, Sarah shares her story of building her career while navigating fertility treatments, why she knows she picked the right man to marry and company to work for, and what she wants others at Google - and outside of her work - to know about why it's important to advocate for your health and fertility. Today's episode is brought to you by Fertility Out Loud, a platform and social media community which provides resources and tools to help you along your fertility journey, and support from a community of women and couples who have been where you are. Visit fertilityoutloud.com for more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.