Join Andrologist Olivia Musa and myself to discuss the factors which can affect male fertility, what a semen analysis actually means and a holistic approach to improving sperm parameters. 

Olivia Musa Founded The Male Fertility Clinic which offers private semen analysis in Central London whether you are trying to conceive or just want to know whether your sperm are in good health. 

Worried you might have endometriosis? Concerns post surgical management of miscarriage? Haider Jan, Consultant Gynaecologist, Obstetrician and Clinical Director for Women's Health at Epsom & Surrey NHS talks us through these conditions and will give you practical tips about what to do next. 

Haider Jan is based at Epsom & Surrey NHS and also privately at Parkside Hospital, CRP clinic & Ashtead Hospital. You can contact his wonderful secretary Helen on: 
07757 310098 or [email protected]

Nicola Headley previously worked as a Midwife, Health Visitor and Birth Trauma Specialist.  But it was her own difficult journey to motherhood which led her to train as a fertility coach. 

Nicola specialises in supporting women following pregnancy loss or who are going through IVF or fertility treatment to take back emotional control of their fertility journey.  Because infertility takes over every area of life.  It affects our mental health, confidence, and feelings of self-worth.  Which is why looking after how you’re feeling during this time is so important. 

Her unique programme is a mix of counselling, coaching and hypnotherapy techniques.  To support you to release what’s happened in the past, start living in the now and look to the future with hope and optimism.

We discuss:

 - Why mindset matters when TTC  & your Subconscious thoughts

 - Common emotions that arise when TTC

 - Ways to manage these emotions and why it’s important to address them

 - Exploring PTSD around fertility treatment

 - What fertility coaching is and how it can help

Nicola is a fat-positive fertility coach and author of “Fat and Fertile”.

She helps fat folks navigate getting pregnant in a weight-obsessed world and advocates for change in how fat people are treated whilst accessing help with their fertility.

Nicola uses her unique fat positive framework to support people in finding their own version of health without diets, advocate for their bodies, relearn how to trust their body and believe in their ability to get pregnant.

In this episode we discuss: 

 - Why women in bigger bodies are often discriminated against in the fertility world
 - Why BMI should not be used to determine who is entitled to fertility treatment or not and the reasons behind why it's currently used!
 - Why weight does not always have a direct correlation to a woman's fertility
- Ways you can approach medical professionals in a non confrontational way with the evidence base to get the care you deserve.
- where to go to find evidence around weight and fertility

You can find many more resources at Nicola's website. 

Becky is the founder of 'Paths to Parent Hub' which is an online support network & community for couples going down the route of doner conception. She also co-founded 'Fertility Matters at Work', a company which  is dedicated to raising awareness and education of fertility issues in the workplace. 

In this episode we discuss: 

- When to consider, or when you might have to consider, donor conception

- Different types of donation - ie: egg, sperm, embryo, double

 - The main things to consider when choosing a donor 

 - Where to go to start choosing a donor

 - The implications of Donor Conception, attachment, bonding, anonymity and potential implications for the child/parent relationship.

If you are considering Donor conception then this episode is for you!

Hannah Pearn is a fertility and women’s health acupuncturist who runs a practice in South London. She is also a passionate educator on all things women’s health, fertility and menstrual cycle related, so much so she has even designed her own online course, teaching to conceive.

In this episode we discuss how acupuncture actually works and how it can support fertility, we also bust a few acupuncture myths!

Click here, if you are looking for a fertility support trained acupuncturist near you! You can also check out the British Acupuncture Council for a list of qualified Acupuncture practitioners near you. 

Rebecca Hay is a qualified midwife and private fertility nurse at The Evewell Clinic in London and in this episode we are discussing IVF.

We talk through choosing a clinic or consultant, the very first appointment and all the paperwork you will need to complete to what actually happens in each part of an IVF cycle. Rebecca explains the differences between protocols, IVF & ICSI and  what you can expect at each part of the treatment. She even talks about how you might feel emotionally during each part if the treatment! If you are about to start fertility treatment or are even considering it then this episode will be invaluable for you.

You can contact Rebecca via The Evewell Clinic. Please note the wait time for an appointment at The Evewell is now much shorter than mentioned in the podcast! 

Emma is an embryologist and the lab manager at The Evewell fertility clinic in Harley street and previously spent 13 years at the lister fertility clinic in London. 

Emma specialises in pre-implantation genetic testing of embryos and she has a passion for preventing the transmission of inherited genetic disease and enhancing the capabilities of embryo selection. 

Emma believes IVF patients should have the opportunity to understand what goes on in an IVF laboratory. Her goal is to help patients alleviate some of the stress and anxiety caused by so many unknowns by championing education and awareness around IVF and embryology. 

In this episode we discuss: egg quality (obviously!), PGT-A testing, what happens to your embryos in an IVF cycle and much more! 

Dr Hassan Shehata is a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist and a subspecialist in Maternal Medicine. He is the clinical director for south west London maternal medicine network. He has a specific interest in reproductive immunology and it’s impact on fertility and pregnancy. He founded the Centre for reproductive immunology and pregnancy miscarriage clinic in Epsom and this is where he is primarily based. He also its on the royal college of obstetricians and gynaecologists council. 

In this episode we discuss how the immune system can cause recurrent miscarriage, unsuccessful IVF cycles and so called 'unexplained infertility'. Dr Shehata highlights the differences between NHS treatment for reproductive immunology and those of private clinics and why. We also touch on signs and symptoms of potential immunology issues and treatment protocols.