Ali's guest today is Nicole Lawson, who went through years of infertility, including three devastating miscarriages, before choosing to go the surrogacy route. Today, she has two healthy daughters via surrogacy--and she tells Ali all about the entire process, including some of the fears and reservations she had. Nicole was so moved by the surrogacy process that she started her own agency, called Abundant Beginnings, in L.A.

 

On this episode, we're partnering with Mom Culture, an online lifestyle brand created to spread positive vibes and to highlight both the salty and the sweet sides of parenthood—and the road to parenthood. Their Rainbow Mama tee and Rainbow Babe tee were created in collaboration with Dr. Zucker of the #IHadAMiscarriage campaign. Check them out at www.momculture.com and use code: INFERTILEAF for 20% off your entire purchase through February 29th.

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Not all of these stories end with babies. Today, Ali talks to Katy, who went through four years of infertility, including a failed IVF cycle and depression and anxiety, which left her feeling "stripped down" to her core. "I never thought the ending would be that i didn't have a kid," Katy says. But after a hysterectomy and some deep soul searching, Katy decided to stop trying, and now she is focusing on crafting a beautiful, childfree life, including her blog, chasingcreation.org.

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Today, Ali talks to Sarah Larson Levey, the founder and CEO of Y7 Studio. After talking about how Y7 yoga was a huge part of Ali's infertility story, they talk about Sarah's two devastating miscarriages, "being a complete hysterical fucking mess," the toll it took on her relationship, and how she managed this heavy emotional and physical stuff while building one of America's fastest-growing companies. Also: Sarah talks about how, even though she's five months pregnant now, it's still hard to fully relax.

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Kristyn is the founder of The Fertility Tribe, an incredible online community based on "redefining fertility together." Today, Kristyn tells Ali about how "nothing on the road to motherhood was easy" for her, from the "Clomid crazies" to her first failed frozen embryo transfer. Now a mother of toddler twins, she also talks about the 25 nights she spent pregnant in the hospital, her "traumatic" birth situation, and the things she wishes she knew before starting infertility treatments.

Our Sponsors:
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In this Season Two kickoff, Ali talks to Keeley, a producer in London, about her unexplained infertility journey, resulting in eight rounds of IVF in England, Spain, and finally, Russia. Keeley talks about her "total shitshow" of a second transfer, undergoing one traumatic "pregnancy in an unknown location," making the difficult decision to use donor eggs, and how her husband has been a "total legend" through it all. 

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Karen describes herself as part teacher, part mom, fully inappropriate and forever infertile. She is the creator of Hilariously Infertile, a brand that includes an Instagram with more than 66,000 followers, stand-up comedy gigs, and a book (see hilariouslyinfertile.com for more). Today, she talks to Ali about IUIs, Clomid, the dangers of Google searching, discovering leggings, and why when going through IVF, you should "set the bar low."

 

Today's episode is sponsored by Extend Fertility, which offers egg freezing, IVF and more--with the goal of making fertility more accessible, and with services priced 20-40% lower than the national average. For more, visit extendfertility.com

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com
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Jasmin is an entertainment editor and writer whose New York Times essay about egg freezing, "Great Eggspectations," caught Ali's attention this spring. Today, she talks to Ali about how, since most of her friends were doing it, she jumped at the chance to freeze her eggs at 36 (but what she wishes she knew then). Also discussed: her possible endometriosis, the fortune teller who changed her life path, getting leftover IVF drugs from her friends, and how every six months, she pays money to keep her eggs on ice.    Today's episode is sponsored by Extend Fertility, which offers egg freezing, IVF and more--with the goal of making fertility more accessible, and with services priced 20-40% lower than the national average. For more, visit extendfertility.com.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com
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Today, Ali talks to Dr. Dorette Noorhasan, the Medical Director and Co-Founder of CCRM Dallas-Fort Worth, about being an infertility specialist while going through her own infertility journey. Dorette discusses working with a surrogate as a single woman, the devastation when those two transfers didn't work out, needing a mental break, and how, after marrying her husband, they tried again with a surrogate. Dorette's memoir, "Miracle Baby: A Fertility Doctor's Fight for Motherhood," is out now.

 

Today's episode is sponsored by Extend Fertility, which offers egg freezing, IVF and more--with the goal of making fertility more accessible, and with services priced 20-40% lower than the national average. For more, visit https://extendfertility.com

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com
* Check out My Life in a Book and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://mylifeinabook.com


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On today's episode, Ali talks to her childhood best friend, Michelle, about her years-long quest to have a baby. Included: Why she hates IUIs, getting a surprise diagnosis of PCOS, how to advocate when it comes to insurance, and how one night on a business trip in Hong Kong, her world came crashing down when she checked her medical portal. Michelle also details her six IVF cycles, how meditation finally helped her turn a corner, and why they named their frozen embryos Dwayne and Rerun.    Today's episode is sponsored by Extend Fertility, which offers egg freezing, IVF and more--with the goal of making fertility more accessible, and with services priced 20-40% lower than the national average. For more, visit https://extendfertility.com

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com
* Check out My Life in a Book and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://mylifeinabook.com


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Today, Ali talks to L.A.-based former nanny Angela, whose infertility journey started at 39 and includes two "missed" miscarriages, a stimulated follicle that turned into a cyst, and three IVF cycles with varying results. Angela says that at times, she felt like such a failure that she apologized to her husband, saying, "Why did you marry me? I'm broken." She also explains why she thinks it's important for everyone to get their embryos tested, regardless of risk factors, age and history.    Today's episode is sponsored by Extend Fertility, which offers egg freezing, IVF and more--with the goal of making fertility more accessible, and with services priced 20-40% lower than the national average. For more, visit https://extendfertility.com.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com
* Check out My Life in a Book and use my code INFERTILEAF for a great deal: https://mylifeinabook.com


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