Infertility Sisters

In this episode we dive into your questions about our egg donation journey! We have covered a lot of this conversation in the previous episode, so if this episode interests you I encourage you to also listen to last weeks too!

In this episode we discuss:

• Legal aspects and rights of donors and recipients
• Mental hurdles and how we overcome them
• What made Lydia want to be an egg donor
• How we plan on telling our future children
• What our donors relationship with our children will look like

Plus more of course. As always, thanks for all of your support and lovely messages following last weeks announcement!

Jasmyn x

In this very special episode, we’re sharing a story that’s close to our hearts. You’ve heard this voice before, but this time, she’s stepping into a whole new role—our egg donor.  

Tune in to hear us discuss;

• How we came to the decision to use an egg donor
• Why our donor was the perfect fit
• What the egg donation process involves
• The emotional and practical sides of the journey
• The medical process and key milestones
• Our thoughts and feelings throughout the experience
• What’s next in our fertility journey

This episode is raw, real, and filled with gratitude. Thanks for joining us as we dive into one of the most personal chapters of our fertility story. 

Tune in today for a quick, but important egg donor update from me! 

Our egg donor and I will be recording an episode very soon so if you have any questions please ask them on Instagram or email. Our email address is [email protected].

As always, thanks for tuning in!

Jasmyn xx

Lydia is back on the mic with me today to ask me all of your burning questions. 

This episode was recorded last year, before completing our egg donor round. It's a great insight into exactly where my head was at at that point in time. 

Some of the topics we cover are;

• My endo diagnosis
• Am I unhappy with our clinic
• Why egg donation
• Are my eggs "really" the problem
• Now that I have an endo diagnosis, why not go again with my eggs
• Do we have a private donor
• What is the cost of egg donation
• Would we use a surrogate
• Do we have an age limit with TTC
• What impact infertility has had on our marriage
• What impact has infertility had on our finances 
• Do I miss having someone to do the podcast with
• Do I feel any resentment towards others who get pregnant easily
• Big and honest friendship chat

I know, it's a long episode. But we cover so many topics and just generally have a big catch up. It's like the old days of the podcast and I think you will all love it!

We are back with another episode! 

Tune in today to hear from Adelle, who talks us through her journey to growing her family. I do want to make it clear that Adelle has faced a lot of adversity since a young age, with getting diagnosed with kidney disease as a child and the impact that has had on her ability to get pregnant. The disease returned during pregnancy, resulting in a very high risk pregnancy and a tumultuous time for Adelle and her family. 

In this episode we discuss; 

• Kidney disease at age 12
• Two kidney transplants 
• IVF
• Positive embryo results 
• Multiple miscarriages 
• Hysteroscopy
• Down regulation
• Successful transfer
• Kidney disease returning at 13 weeks pregnant 
• Premature birth at 25 weeks gestation 
• 110 days in neo
• Current health status 
• Choice taken from her to have more children 

This episode is different to any other we have done before. We spend a lot of time discussing Adelle's health battle, pregnancy and birth. I don't often do this, given my audience are mainly people struggling to conceive, however Adelle's story is one that needs to be shared in detail. Her experiences are traumatic, yet her positivity shines through. It takes a special person to see the positives in life after facing so much adversity and Adelle is one of those people. 

Thank you Adelle for being so open with me. I have no doubt that anyone who listens to this will walk away feeling like that can take on the world xx

Today I am joined by Kat, who I went to high school with! She talks us through her personal women's health journey, her first marriage and then her TTC journey with her wife, which has resulted in their beautiful children. 

Today's episode covers;

• Missing periods
• TTC journey in first marriage
• PCOS diagnosis
• Tumor in her uterus 
• Lichen Sclerosus
• Deciding to have children when in a same sex relationship 
• Finding a sperm donor
• Miscarriages 
• Common misconceptions and questions around how same sex couples have children
• Legalities
• Maternity leave
• Toxic positivity 

This is our first same sex TTC chat and it's a goodie. There is still so much to learn in this space, especially for those of us who are in heterosexual relationships. And at the same time there are also a lot of similarities between Kat's story and where we are personally with our journey. 

Thanks so much for being an open book Kat!

After a long break, the podcast is finally back!

In today's episode I am joined by my husband Corey to discuss our third round of IVF. This round has taken up the last 12 months of our lives and it has been a wild ride. 

Topics discussed in this episode are;

• Medication break down
• Egg collection (hardest one yet)
• Our best fertilisation and embryo outcome yet
• Two biochemical pregnancies 
• Recurrent pregnancy loss testing 
• Hysteroscopy
• Final embryo transfer of this round
• A third failed cycle of IVF
• Next steps which involves egg donor discussions
• Surgery to explore endometriosis

This round was a rollercoaster and unfortunately was filled with so much heartbreak. Reliving it all was tough but listening back to this episode before posting it has surprisingly brought me plenty of joy. I am so happy we are sharing our story and I really hope that one day I can share the ultimate good news!

Jasmyn xx

Welcome back to this weeks episode! Tune in today to hear Hannah talk us though her 3-year TTC journey.

Her story involves; 

• Seeking help after 10 months TTC
• The emotions of months of negative pregnancy tests 
• Referred to Fertility Associates 
• Unexplained Infertility diagnosis 
• Ovulation Induction using Leterezole 
• IUI
• Developing anxiety 
• Leaving her job 
• IVF
• Being approached for a possible adoption 

It has been a pleasure getting to know Hannah, her positive outlook through the roughest times is something I admire.  If you want to keep up with her journey you can follow her on Instagram @hgasprivate. 

Thanks for listening! 

Evie is here this week to share her story of navigating trying to conceive over a seven year period.

Her story involves;

• The joy of getting pregnant quickly 
• The turmoil of that pregnancy ending in a missed miscarriage 
• A long period of TTC
• Second pregnancy resulting in miscarriage 
• Self referring to Fertility Associates
• Diagnosis of unexplained infertility 
• Ovulation Induction
• IUI
• Her husband getting diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes 
• Spontaneous pregnancy resulting in their first child 
• Chemical pregnancy 6 months postpartum 
• FIIX Study
• IVF
• Unsuccessful fresh transfer 
• Spontaneous pregnancy resulting in their second child

Evie's story is one of heartbreak but also one of hope. I know it's not always easy hearing stories of success however I do think it is important that we let ourselves hear these stories to keep our hope alive. 

Thanks for listening! 

Today I am joined by Dr Amelia Ryan who has kindly offered us her time to help spread the word on Adenomyosis. Amelia is an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist currently working at the Fertility Associates Auckland office. 

This episode covers; 

• What is Adenomyosis
• What are the symptoms 
• What are the ways to get diagnosed
• Management options - Is there a cure?
• How Adeno can impact fertility 
• The connection between miscarriage and adeno

Amelia is an amazing doctor and is someone who aligns so well with the Podcast. Her ethos for treating patients is amazing, she really is the gold standard for what care we should receive. It was a privilege to have her on today and please let me know if there are any other topics you would like us to cover with Amelia!