Imagine someone telling you at 14 years old that you’ll find it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to have children. Surprisingly, this isn’t as uncommon an occurrence as you might think. Millions of desperate women struggle to conceive thanks to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). My guest today, who’s also a former patient of mine, found herself in that group but managed to overcome the odds. As a teenager, Valentina McCachren knew her developing body differed in a major way in comparison to other girls her age. As an adult, she’s sharing her story online, forming connections across the ..read more

Comparisons are so common when navigating the infertility treatment process. Sometimes this looks like going down the rabbit hole on Google or Reddit and comparing other people doing fertility treatments to your own treatment process.  Do they have the same diagnosis?  What is their treatment protocol and how does it compare to mine?  What results did they get and how do they compare to my results? Sometimes it is comparing yourself to other people in your life:  My sister is pregnant with her third baby, and she is younger than me.  My best friend has a baby shower ..read more

In today’s episode, I’m diving into what’s problematic with the fertility wellness industry, where we are basically told that if you:  Eat the “right” diet  Do the “right” exercise  Manage our stress in the “right” way  Take the “right” supplements and vitamins  Participate in all the “right” lifestyle practices  Not to mention all the “wrong” things that you shouldn’t do That you will get a baby. This perfectionist fantasy is detrimental to your mental health AND your fertility process. Tune in to find out why and what you can do about it.   IMPORTANT LINK ..read more

Welcome back! I have taken a break for a while to work on some other projects but I’ll be back now, every week, with a new episode of the Infertility Stress Relief Podcast. In this newer version of the podcast, I will be talking about how to care for your mental health and your nervous system, during your infertility process. For those of you who are new to the podcast, I wanted to do an intro episode about myself - and also answer the questions: Who am I? And why should you listen to me?   IMPORTANT LINKS Sign Up For Michelle’s Email List ..read more

In this episode, we are talking all about what to eat to optimize fertility - and how to manage the vast amounts of information on healthy eating and fertility diets. In my conversation with Dr. Liz, we are going to distill down the information available to what’s evidence based and applicable. But also talk about the idea that there is no one-size fits all approach to food and nutrition in any context - not even fertility. In today’s episode, we talk about: The naturopathic model of care and how it relates to fertility How our diet influences our fertility How long we can expect it to take t ..read more

As part of the Fertility Clinic Confidence series of episodes, this episode will help you to have a more empowered and confident experience while you are going through your fertility treatment process. In this episode, we will be talking about the three ways you can give yourself permission during your fertility treatment process, to create the best possible experience for yourself.   IMPORTANT LINKS Connect With Michelle On Instagram Work With Michelle Grab The Infertility Stress Relief Toolkit For FREE Book Your Acupuncture Treatment With Michelle Sign Up For Michelle’s Email List ..read more

Expectations not matching the reality of outcomes? Let’s face it, if you live in a human body, you will experience this in the context of your health at some point in time. During the fertility treatment process and IVF, this is a theme that we often face over and over and over again. In this episode, I talk about what to do and what not to do when this happens. By the end of this episode, you will have a few ideas to help you find some relief when you’re inevitably faced with that theme of “Oh yeah… Sometimes human bodies do weird things and don’t respond in the way we want them to”.   I ..read more

Today Emily Ginn is on the podcast for a conversation about shame, trauma and fertility. Emily is a social worker, life coach and IVF warrior and she is with me today to share her wisdom, experience and colourful analogies! My favourite “we put a lot of mustard on our thoughts”! - very enlightening moment for me. If you are doing fertility treatment of any kind - this episode is for you. We discuss: Her story and how she came to do this work Trauma: what it is and how it occurs in the context of fertility treatments Shame: what it is and where it comes from Therapy vs coaching and how to know ..read more

Today I’m going to share my conversation with Lisa Hendrickson-Jack. She is the expert that I often refer to when people want to learn more about cycle awareness and cycle health. I have been listening to her podcast, the Fertility Friday Podcast, for years! I love her approach to education on menstrual health and her work in teaching people body literacy and self-advocacy. She is such a powerhouse of knowledge on this (and many other subjects), and I have so much respect and appreciation for the movement she has created and is continuing to grow.   Lisa’s Bio: Lisa Hendrickson-Jack is a ..read more

In today’s episode, learn the five signs that you may be experiencing fertility treatment related burnout. And more importantly, what you can do to begin to heal from burnout or prevent it from happening in the first place.   IMPORTANT LINKS Join The Pineapple Collective Connect With Michelle On Instagram Work With Michelle Grab The Infertility Stress Relief Toolkit For FREE Book Your Acupuncture Treatment With Michelle Sign Up For Michelle’s Email List ..read more