Hear from People Development Manager at Well Pharmacy, Jess Hall about her experience with infertility and IVF and about the importance of awareness and finding support in the workplace.
“When are you having kids?”, “You must be broody”, “You’ll be next”, any of these phrases sound familiar? My husband and I got married in early 2019 and my twin sister got married in late 2019. My sister give birth to a beautiful baby boy in 2020 and these comments became increasingly common (and painful). I know I’d been guilty of saying these phrases to others without thinking but a year into our “TTC” journey I had realised how much words can really hurt. You may be wondering what “TTC” means and whilst I’m usually queen of the acronyms (I work in pharmacy after all), this was one I didn’t know until a few years ago. It stands for ‘Trying To Conceive’.
“Fertility” furthermore “infertility” are terms that still seem quite taboo and very few people feel comfortable discussing this topic; even though 1 in 6 couples globally1 experience fertility challenges.
My husband and I are both very organised and love a plan (my team will vouch for that) so when it came to starting a family we thought it would be no different, everything would go to plan….oh how wrong we were!
Six months into our TTC journey it was becoming clear that maybe having a baby wouldn’t be as straight forward as we had thought. Whilst as a couple we were very much on this journey together, having to break that news month on month certainly took its toll and left me feeling like I was always the bearer of bad news and responsible for the disappointment and pain that we both felt.
A year in and we decided to visit our GP. We went through a series of tests and consultations to ultimately be told that we had unexplained infertility, they could find no reason why we had not yet conceived.
So what next? We were told we had to wait until we’d been TTC for 2 years before we could get “help” in our case this would be to go on the waiting list for IVF. So months ensued of watching what we ate; what we drank to ensure we were doing everything we could to maximise our fertility chances as it could still happen naturally and to prepare us for treatment.
28 months into out TTC journey and we were ready to start IVF. After some initial tests our protocol was determined and during the month of January, I started a series of daily injections and regular scans, all leading up to the egg retrieval under sedation. Prior to this, I had never spent any time in hospital so found the whole process quite overwhelming; this not helped by all the hormones I had raging through my system.
We were fortunate to end up with three high quality embryos, although we didn’t feel fortunate at the time as had expected for us to have had far more eggs. We diligently waited until the appropriate date (the Pharmacist in me is very compliant 😊) and did the test (or more accurately I should say seven tests), which were positive!
I shared what I was going through with my Line Manager early on and I was very fortunate that during the whole IVF process she provided great support, enabling me to manage my diary so I could attend any appointments and checking in with me regularly. I appreciate that due to the role I do in the business, I’m lucky that I have the autonomy to manage my time; for those working in pharmacies, this may not be so easy. I also shared what I was going through with selected colleagues and members of my team so that I knew if I had to duck out of a meeting that they would support and cover for me.
I know many people going through their fertility journey choose to keep this private, but I can honestly say sharing with others massively helped me and opened up a dialogue as the majority of people we shared our journey with would come back and share either their own challenges or those of a close family member or friend.Jess Hall, People Development Manager Well Pharmacy
This helped me to realise it’s more common than you may think.
We welcomed our twins, in October 2022. It’s been a challenging yet rewarding journey, both physically and emotionally. I’m choosing to share our story to hopefully raise awareness of this topic and support anyone else who is in a similar position.
If you’re struggling with fertility, reach out—there’s support available, and you’re not alone.
Jess Hall is the People Development Manager at Well Pharmacy
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