Overcoming Fertility Struggles with Reproductive Immunology

The journey to becoming a mother is not necessarily a straight path, even for those who have regular cycles. And often conventional fertility doctors don't have the answers and recommend jumping straight to IVF at the first sign of a problem. But my oldest, dearest friend was not taking no for an answer. This week I'm sharing a really special episode — an intimate chat with my bestie about her journey to becoming a mom. Heather Snyder Ippolito, 45, is the owner of The Graceful Body, a mother of 2 young kids, and lives in NY. She went through a LOT to become a mother and is happy to share her experience with listeners of the podcast. She is an Alexander Technique teacher, posture coach and Pilates teacher and loves helping others in any way she can.

That journey included high ANA antibodies, silent endometriosis, high natural killer cells, MTHFR, a fibroid, and more. She worked with 2 Reproductive Endocrinologists, a GYN, and finally found a doctor who specialized in reproductive immunology. She had IUIs, two rounds of IVF, endo removal surgery, and multiple medications including immunosuppressants and injectables. And she went through several chemical pregnancies and a medical termination before finally having a successful pregnancy with her son after more than 5 years of trying.

And even then, although everything was looking great during her pregnancy, she never really believed that she would end up with an actual baby at the end of the journey. (Spoiler alert: she did, he's now almost 6, and is a super cool kid.)

After having her son, she felt that her family was not yet complete, but she couldn't go through the 5 years of hell again, physically and emotionally. So she almost immediately started looking into adoption for her second and all of the options there. (Hint: it's not "easier" and it too requires persistence.)

I hope that you enjoy listening in on this conversation between me and my BFF.

*There are a few swears (we're NYers), so listen with headphones if you have little ones or are listening at work.

This Week We Talk About:

• The early days of her relationship with her husband being long-distance and some other challenges
• Being proactive when trying to conceive in your mid-30s and trusting your gut
• How not getting answers from conventional medicine drove Heather to find the doctor who COULD help her through reproductive immunology
• The monthly hope and devastation of not getting pregnant, chemical pregnancies and miscarriages
• The brutal decision to terminate a much-wanted pregnancy
• Having difficulty believing her healthy pregnancy would result in a healthy baby
• Going through the adoption process for her second child
• How to support a friend who's going through fertility hell

Mentioned in this episode

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Whether you're trying to conceive, avoiding pregnancy, or charting for health reasons, your Tempdrop can help you do it all. You can get 15% off a Tempdrop kit using the code HormoneDietitianPodcast here!

Where to find Heather Snyder Ippolito:

Instagram: @good.posture.mama

Website: The Graceful Body