The Silence After IVF: What Happens When It Doesn’t Work

In Episode 76, Berenice, Michael, and Sarah have the conversation they’ve avoided for six years: what happens after failed IVF. With raw honesty and compassion, we explore the emotional aftermath of a process that’s gruelling, often isolating, and rarely discussed when it doesn't lead to parenthood.

We reflect on grief, lost identities, anger at misleading success rates, the mental and financial toll, and the uncomfortable silence surrounding childlessness after IVF. This episode holds space for everyone who has ever felt abandoned by the system, and those seeking to understand.

Here’s the transcript.

Supportive Communities & Networks

• Gateway Women
  Founded by Jody Day, Gateway Women is a global support and advocacy network for childless women, including those who’ve been through unsuccessful fertility treatment.

• Dovecot
  A private, supportive online community for people who are childless not by choice..

• The Full Stop Community
  Our private community space, where you can connect with people who understand life after childlessness., is hosted by Michael, Sarah and Berenice.

• More to Life (Fertility Network UK)
  A peer support network specifically for people living without children after fertility challenges.

Books

• “Silent Sorority” by Pamela Mahoney Tsigdinos
  A raw, reflective memoir and critical look at the fertility industry after failed IVF.

• “Finding Joy Beyond Childlessness” by Lesley Pyne
  Strategies and stories for healing and rediscovering yourself after childlessness.

• “Dear You” by Tessa Broad
  A heartfelt series of letters from a childless woman to the children she never had — honest, warm, and deeply moving.

• “Save Me From The Waves” by Jessica Hepburn
  When a woman finds adventure after failed IVF, a life story to inspire us all

• Nobody Talks About This Stuff
  Kat Brown’s collection of essays is for all the almost parents and those around us.