Don't Tell Me To RELAX- A Fertility Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

This week Katy and I are digging into the pros and cons of social media and fertility. We discuss our personal experiences of it and the overwhelming amount of information available around fertility.

We discuss

• how social media can provide valuable information for fertility journeys.

• how personal relationships with social media can be both positive and negative.

• the overwhelm from conflicting information & how it can hinder decision-making.

• how connection with others in similar situations can alleviate feelings of isolation.

• the dangers of misinformation and how it can lead to unethical practices in fertility advice.

• how creating a separate account for positive content can help manage triggers.

For more support:

🧡 Join The BIG Fertility ⁠Walk⁠ and ⁠Talks⁠

💛 ⁠⁠Join our Don't Tell Me To RELAX!⁠⁠ community

❤️ Follow us on⁠⁠ Instagram⁠⁠

🩷 ⁠⁠Work with us⁠⁠ in clinic

I am with Nicola Salmon this week. Nicola is a fat positive fertility specialist, who shares her personal journey with fertility and body image.

We discuss the systemic discrimination faced by individuals in larger bodies within the medical field, particularly regarding fertility treatment.

Nicola debunks myths surrounding weight and miscarriage, emphasizes the importance of respectful care, and offers insights into navigating fertility challenges- without crash dieting.

We highlight the need for change in the healthcare system and Nicola provides encouragement for those feeling marginalized in their fertility journeys.

For more support and information see Nicola's website and Instagram page.

Join our Autumn campaign- ⁠The Big Fertility Walk & Talk- 11th to 19th Oct.⁠

We will be organising WALKS up and down the country- providing an opportunity to connect with people in your local area who are on a fertility journey. You can find out if there is one near to you and register ⁠HERE⁠

And we have TALKS all online- providing 5 nights of fertility eduction from our team of brilliant experts, register for those ⁠HERE⁠.

💛 ⁠Join our Don't Tell Me To RELAX!⁠ community

❤️ Follow us on⁠ Instagram⁠

🩷 ⁠Work with us⁠ in clinic

I am joined by Professor Hasan Shahata from the Centre for Reproductive Immunology and Pregnancy.

We discuss the complexities of reproductive immunology, particularly focusing on recurrent miscarriages and IVF failures.

We discuss:

• How Reproductive Immunology focuses on the immune system's role in pregnancy.

• Why recurrent miscarriage is not typically caused by chromosomal abnormalities.

• How investigation should begin after two miscarriages, or one if late.

• How Male factors are often overlooked in miscarriage investigations.

• How testing protocols vary between NHS and private sectors.

• Why Natural killer cells play a significant role in recurrent miscarriage.

• How IVF does not improve outcomes for recurrent miscarriage patients.

• Why medications like prednisolone may have immune modulation effects.

• How microbiome testing is an emerging area but lacks conclusive evidence.

For further support we will be running two events in our community as part of this series. To access them follow ⁠this link to join our community.⁠

💛 Miscarriage Support & Care in Tea & Chat with Carly Garret our Fertility Coach on June 18th at 8 pm

❤️ What Now? A Practical Guide After Pregnancy Loss with me Hannah Pearn July 15th at 7pm

For further miscarriage support see:

⁠Worst Girl Gang Ever⁠

⁠Tommys⁠

⁠Miscarriage Association⁠

⁠Held in Our Hearts⁠

Don't Tell Me To RELAX is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Acupips,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ quote RELAX for 20% discount.

❤️ Join our Don't Tell Me to RELAX fertility support community ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

💛 See ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hannah Pearn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for more information on where we work.

🤩 Follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

This is our final episode in Series 1 and we cover:

• early peri-menopause and how to support follicular development as much as possible 
• cervical position and how to know the difference between open and closed
• top 4 tips for sperm health
• conceiving over 40
• progesterone support in the luteal phase
• cycle tracking (of course!)
• where to find a fertility reflexologist and fertility acupuncturist

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram

We couldn't do a series on the menstrual cycle and not mention PMS. In this episode we discuss:

• Our own experiences of it
• The lack of research into it
• Possible explanations for why it happens
• Ways to manage and alleviate it
• Why it's even tougher when you're TTC
• And finally we put out a question for next weeks episode (the last in the series) ASK US ANYTHING......please send in any cycle related/fertility awareness questions and next week on the show we will be answering them. Please email me hello@hannahpearn.com

We hope this is helpful, please do let us know if you learnt anything new!

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram

Cycle Tracking

We are big fans and thought that as we have mentioned cycle tracking in pretty much every episode so far it was important enough to warrant it's very own episode.

So in this episode dedicated to the joys of tracking we discuss:

• our personal experiences of tracking
• cervical mucus and why this is helpful
• cervical mucus in the follicular phase and the luteal phase and how it differs
• BBT charting, what it is, how to do it and why it can be helpful
• plus the limitations of it
• cervical position
• apps, the advantages and disadvantages
• femme tech
• Katy's fertility awareness programme

We hope this is helpful, please do let us know if you learnt anything new!

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram

Luteal Phase and Progesterone

I know we keep talking about each stage of the cycle being important for fertility! But this one really is VERY important!  We take a deep dive into the Luteal Phase and the role of progesterone. We discuss:

• Problems that can arise in this phase
• Why it's so important for fertility
• Progesterone and what it does
• Signs of low progesterone
• Day 21 testing and why this isn't always day 21
• BBT charting and why this is helpful during this phase
• Ways to support your progesterone.

We hope this is helpful, please do let us know if you learnt anything new!

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram

And finally if you struggle in the luteal phase with the waiting to see if you have a positive pregnancy or not then our TWO WEEK COURSE is there to help. Reduce overwhelm and regain control 💛

Episode 4 is all about the Follicular Phase of your menstrual cycle. All phases are important for fertility, but this one in particular is vital to understand. It's the part of your menstrual cycle where the follicle is growing and maturing the egg, ready for release and hopefully ready for conception (if you're TTC).

So we discuss:

• why is it called the follicular phase and what is happening
• why we bloody love a bit of ostrogen
• cervical mucus, what it is and what it does
• how to check for it
• OPKs
• lifestyle patterns that influence the follicular phase

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram

Your period has the potential to tell you a lot about your fertility. We think that knowing what IS and ISN'T normal when it comes to periods can help you at all stages of life, not just when you're Trying To Conceive. So in this episode we talk about:

• the different names for your period
• what a period is and how it starts
• period poos 💩
• period flow
• period pain
• period regularity
• and where to go for further investigations.

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram

In this episode we look at why understanding your menstrual cycle is vital at every stage of your life.

We discuss

• female reproductive biology
• vagina/ vulva and why we struggle to use them
• menstrual cycle facts and figures
• how menstrual cycles influence all aspects of health
• issues with the pill to address menstrual cycle problems
• what is an optimal cycle

If you would like to learn more about your fertility and connect with people who are TTC, come and join our free community "Don't Tell Me To Relax"

To find out more about working with us in clinic you can book a discovery call or an appointment directly online

You can also find us on Instagram