If you’re dreading the upcoming holidays, with their awkward conversations and cringe-worthy personal questions, this episode is for you! We are joined by returning guest, Dr. Georgia Witkin to discuss some handy tips and tricks for surviving the holiday season ahead. Dr. Witkin is the Director of Psychological Services and Wellness at RMA of New York and an assistant professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Science at Mount Sinai Medical Center. Tuning in today, you’ll hear Dr. Witkin’s thoughts on why you need to stop “should-ing” and her insights for being discerning about what and with whom you share. She also highlights possible answers you can give to relatives asking questions or making uncomfortable statements about your fertility. Press play to hear these and other helpful suggestions, including the option to opt out this holiday season, and remember: base your expectations on reality and not wishful thinking. Thanks for listening and happy holidays! 

On the show today, we discuss the various meanings of motherhood with our special guest, Dr. Camille Hammond. Dr. Hammond is the Founder and CEO of the Tinina Q. Cade Foundation, otherwise known as The Cade Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote awareness of infertility and serve the needs of families struggling with infertility. They provide educational resources and financial assistance to help them grow their families. Join the conversation as Dr. Hammond candidly shares her personal infertility journey and the incredible story of her mother's offer to be a gestational carrier for her triplets. We explore the impact of social media in shedding light on less-discussed topics like infertility and delve into the founding of the Tinina Q Cade Foundation. Discover the Cade Foundation grants for families seeking support and gain insights into the diverse paths to parenthood and the empowering concept that you can define the word "mother" on your own terms. Don’t miss out on this insightful episode, so press play now.  

In honor of Veteran’s Day, today’s episode explores the under-addressed topic of fertility care for active duty and veteran service members, the challenges they are likely to experience, and how to ensure they are better supported as patients. Joining us to discuss this subject is Dr. Samantha Estevez, a Clinical Fellow at Reproductive Medicine Associates of New York, and Katrina Nietsch, a medical student at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. We discuss their fortuitous collaboration before delving into their recent abstract titled, Supporting Our Troops: 20 Years of Fertility Trends Among Active Duty and Veteran Service Members Seeking Fertility Care at a Major Urban Fertility Center. Tuning in, you’ll learn about Katrina’s long history with the military, what led her to medicine, and how she partnered with Dr. Estevez to explore fertility and fertility care within the veteran population. We take a look at the limitations that veterans or active duty service members might experience when seeking specialized fertility treatment and how our guests went about researching this topic. We also reflect on the important role of advocacy and policy initiatives in this area, and how they are pushing the Veterans Association (VA) and government to recognize and address pressing issues facing female service members and veterans. Join us for an eye-opening conversation about an urgent topic that should be receiving much more attention!  

Today on Fertility Forward, we will discuss another research abstract presented at this year’s American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) Conference, titled ‘Spironolactone use in oocyte maturation in patients undergoing oocyte cryopreservation.’ Here to join us in conversation about it are two of the authors, who are also endocrinologists at RMA of New York, Dr. Atoosa Ghofranian and Dr. Kimberley Thornton. Tune in now to hear more about Spironolactone and its uses, where their research question stemmed from including the story behind the interest in this project, highlights from the study’s findings, and more.  

When it comes to accessibility, we’ve made important strides by enacting legislation that enables more inclusive access to fertility care, but there is still a long way to go. Here today to help unpack this important topic is return guest, Dr. Samantha Estevez, a clinical fellow at Mount Sinai and Reproductive Medicine Associates of New York in reproductive endocrinology and infertility. In our conversation with Samantha, we examine the details of key legislative changes in New York State, their impact on LGBTQIA+ couples, and the contents of her new article ‘Breaking down barriers for same-sex female couples building families in vitro fertilization utilization since the enactment of 2021 New York state legislation’. Tuning in, you’ll hear Samantha’s breakdown of the 2017 New York state legislation, how it excluded LGBTQIA+ couples when it comes to family building, and the important ways in which the 2021 legislation changes addresses these shortcomings. We delve into the findings of Samantha’s study, including how the data showed greater inclusivity post-legislation, before reflecting on what this could mean for future advocacy and legislative changes across the US. This type of research plays a pivotal role in ensuring greater fertility access for all. To learn more about these types of legislative changes and why they are so important, be sure to tune in! 

Today, we are joined by Dr. Tamar Alkon from RMA's Mexico City office to discuss her groundbreaking research on embryonic mosaicism and its correlation with spermatozoa recovery in severe male factor infertility patients. Dr. Alkon begins by explaining embryonic mosaicism and shares insights into her research process and findings. The research will be presented at the ASRM (American Society for Reproductive Medicine) conference in October, which signifies a tremendous step in fertility knowledge and understanding! Tune in to hear Dr. Alkon’s conclusions firsthand. 

The system fails women with cancer who want to protect their fertility and joining us today on Fertility Forward is the person on the frontline of this battle, Founder and CEO of The Chick Mission. In this episode, Amanda Rice tells us all about her cancer diagnosis, what made her decide to freeze her eggs, the disappointment she experienced when her insurance refused due to her diagnosis, and how that inspired her to create The Chick Mission. We discuss Amanda’s current status, how she got through chemotherapy, and what she learned from her experience. Young women are also educated about reproductive health in a backward fashion; with the focus being on how not to get pregnant instead of providing them with an essential well-rounded education. Amanda discusses her mission to change that as well as the other important pillars of The Chick Mission before delving into how you can get involved in her organization. Finally, we are reminded of the importance of reaching out for help. To hear all this and so much more, tune in now! 

Just as we always say, knowledge is power, and today’s guest is a massive advocate for getting more information about your fertility to make informed decisions. Dr. Jeffrey Klein is a reproductive endocrinologist and fertility specialist at RMA of New York --  Westchester with a reputation for incredible patient care and a great passion for his work. He joins us in this episode of Fertility Forward to discuss secondary infertility, what it means, why it occurs, why the workup is similar to regular infertility, and so much more! We delve into why open lines of communication and pure honesty are imperative in fertility care before Dr. Klein explains AMH and the differences between egg reserve and egg quality. Fertility is filled with grey areas, and our guest leaves us with words of encouragement to arm ourselves with information about our own reproductive health. Finally, he shares his gratitude for his health! Thank you for listening in.  

Welcome to PCOS Awareness Month here at Fertility Forward! Today we are joined by an incredible naturalistic doctor, Lana Butner to discuss all things holistic PCOS management. Tuning in, you’ll hear about what drew Lana to natural medicine, what PCOS is, how it manifests, the problematic traditional process of diagnosis, and so much more! Our holistic expert offers nutrition and exercise tips tailored to women managing PCOS followed by a illuminating discussion on cortisol and stress in PCOS. We then explore how mindful eating and acupuncture can assist in alleviating symptoms. Finally, Lana talks about her PCOS course and recipe books! You don’t want to miss this one so be sure to press play now! 

Postpartum depression is a topic that is considered taboo among mothers, especially those who have been blessed with a baby following an infertility journey. But the reality is that it is a very real experience and can be managed with a little bit of support and education. Joining us today on Fertility Froward is the incredible author and mother, Jessica Wendi Abel, to tell us about her book, The Little Blue Rocket Ship, her postpartum experience, and why she wants to help families going through depression and anxiety. Our guest tells us all about the inspiration behind her book, why she wrote it from a child’s perspective, and how her eldest son reacted to it. We hear the difference between postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety, how they cross paths, factors that exacerbate these struggles, how they show up differently for different people, and why many women struggle to communicate their feelings. Finally, Jessica shares some words of wisdom for any family going through PPD and PPA before telling us that we can (and should) change our beliefs to suit the needs of our families. To hear all this and to be reminded to ask new mothers what they need, tune in now! To purchase Jessica's book, click here.