Period Story Podcast: I Really Wish I Had Paid More Attention To My Cycles When I Was Younger

“Period Story is a podcast where in each episode, I sit down with a guest to talk about their period story, we get behind some of the myths and misconceptions about periods, and so much more.

Each episode features a notable and interesting person talking about their first period, the way they learned about periods and menstrual health, what they know now that they wish they knew back then and everything in between.”
— Period Story Podcast

Thank you to Le’Nise Brothers for inviting me onto Period Story Podcast; a fantastic podcast that does exactly what it says on the tin - really important conversations that take on taboos around menstruation:

Katy shared her journey through infertility and pregnancy loss, what she learned about her body, her inspiration for Uber Barrens Club and of course, the story of her first period.

Katy talks about reading the fabulous Judy Bloom book, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret? as a period rite of passage. She also shares the moment at the school gate that prompted her mum to make sure she understood the birds and bees 😄

Katy says that she went on the pill because she wanted to control her period and talks about what prompted her to eventually come off the pill and get diagnosed with lean PCOS.

We had a very candid discussion about what this diagnosis meant for her fertility journey at the time, what happened next and why Katy wishes she had paid more attention to her menstrual cycles when she was younger.

Katy says that she started Uber Barrens Club because she only ever saw one narrative of infertility, after people have been successful. She says that she wanted to write a different story and take back the word barren, reclaim it and make this silent sisterhood more visible.

Katy says that you don’t have to do this alone. She believes we should reach out, read up, learn about our bodies and not be afraid to ask questions. I love that!

For more info & a transcript of our conversation check out Period Story Podcast

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Consumer Law Guidance on Self-Funded IVF - Patient Consultation

The CMA (Competition & Markets Authority) is developing new guidance for IVF clinics in the UK to make sure they comply with the law and put patients first.

They’re concerned that some clinics may be mis-selling their services or misrepresenting their success rates - but currently there is no written guidance on consumer protection law for the IVF sector at all.

The guidance will cover issues such as:

  • Price transparency: Clinics should present clear and upfront prices for their treatments.

  • Potential mis-selling of treatments: Patients should not be mis-sold ‘add-on’ treatments, which are offered by some clinics and can cost up to £2,500 per cycle.

  • Success rates: Clinics should not mislead patients about how successful their treatments are and should ensure that rates are accurate and up to date on their websites and in advertising.

  • Unfair terms: Terms and conditions should be fair and transparent.

 


Having our Say

Although all IVF treatment is currently suspended due to the coronavirus outbreak, when fertility clinics do reopen it’s more important than ever that they treat patients fairly.

The CMA wants to hear from anyone who's had personal experience of any of these issues when considering or having self-funded IVF treatment.

You can do this in 2 different ways:

  1. BPAS (British Pregnancy Advice Service) - a charity who campaigns and advocates for reproductive rights - have created a short questionnaire to collate responses to share with the CMA - which you can complete here

  2. You can email the CMA directly at ConsumerLawIVFTeam@cma.gov.uk


The deadline for submissions is 8th May 2020.

Making our voices heard

This consultation is our chance to make sure this guidance works for patients - so it’s really important that we have our say.

The CMA have left it open to us to tell them what we think they need to know - you can share as much or as little as you like. 

Whether you choose to complete the BPAS questionnaire or email the CMA directly, here are some questions that might be helpful to think about:

Pricing

  • When you were considering your options, do you feel the clinics you looked at had clear and transparent pricing? 

  • Before you began treatment, do you feel you had a clear idea about what the cycle would cost? How did this compare to what you ended up paying?

  • Do you feel you understood what was included in the cycle cost and what wasn’t? 

  • Did you experience any unexpected costs? (e.g. things that weren’t optional extras, but which weren’t included in the cycle cost - such as drugs or blood tests)

Cycle packages

  • Were you offered a multi-cycle package? (e.g. embryo-banking cycles, financial discounts or ‘baby guarantee’ package).

  • Do you feel you had enough information to make an informed decision about choosing a package?

  • Were there any criteria you had to meet to be accepted as a patient on a multi-cycle package?

Success Rates

  • When you were considering your options, how easy was it to find and compare success rates for different clinics? 

  • Do you feel clinics provided clear information about their success rates? (e.g. on their website, social media or in leaflets/brochures)

    • Did they make it clear where these figures were from? (e.g. internal clinic data vs audited data from the HFEA)

    • Did they explain what the data was measuring & why? (e.g. pregnancy rates vs live births, per cycle started vs per embryo transfer)

    • Did they provide success rates by age group?

  • Do you feel you feel you understood what factors might have influenced these success rates? (i.e. why clinics might have different results)

  • Did clinics mention the HFEA website to you as a source of impartial information?

Add-On Treatments

  • Did the clinic offer you any add-on treatments - additional tests, procedures or medications on top of your core IVF treatment? (e.g. endometrial scratch, time-lapse imaging, pre-implantation genetic screening, reproductive immunology, endometrial receptivity tests, embryo glue)

  • Do you feel you had enough information to make an informed choice about whether to opt for an add-on? 

    • If you had treatment in the last 12-18 months: did your clinic mention the HFEA Traffic Light system for information about add-on treatments?

  • Was it made clear to you that it is not clear whether add-ons work? 

  • Were the risks of add-ons clearly explained to you? (e.g. any potential health risks to you or your baby, or that certain add-ons could plausibly reduce your chances of having a baby)

  • If you decided to opt for any add-on treatments:

    • Did you have to sign a consent form?

    • Were you clear about what the add-on would cost you?

    • How did this compare to what you ended up paying?

Find out more

For more information you can check out the official CMA page about the consultation:

Gov.uk - Self-funded IVF: consumer law guidance.

We have until 8th May 2020 to have our say - so let’s make sure our voices are heard.

 

#LTLU: Living the Life Unexpected - Blog Tour

One of the books that's made the biggest difference to coming to terms with my own infertility, authored by one of the writers and speakers who's helped me most along this journey, is 'Living the Life Unexpected' by Jody Day.

Jody is an amazing woman who I’m proud to have got to know: she’s a tireless advocate and voice for anyone who (for whatever reason) finds themselves childless-not-by-choice and founder of Gateway Women - a global friendship and support network for childless women.

‘Living the Life Unexpected’ is a book about coping with the heartbreak of involuntary childlessness and finding hope for a new kind of life – a life unexpected.

When I first read it, I wasn’t ready for any of that. Even now that we’ve come to end of the road with my body, having been told by doctors on both sides of the Atlantic that I will never be able to carry a child, I don’t know what the next phase of our journey will look like. So why would I choose to read - let alone enjoy, let alone recommend - a practical guide for making sense of a new identity as a childless woman?

“Let this book be your lighthouse; let it be your hope in the dark. Those of us who’ve already made this trip are waiting for you on the other side, and many others are in the water alongside you, each feeling that they’re swimming alone. But you’re not alone. Welcome to your Tribe.”
— Jody Day

Hope: A Different Perspective

If you’ve come across any of my writing or broadcasting before, you’ll probably know that ‘don’t lose hope’ and 'you’ll get there' are platitudes about infertility and pregnancy loss that drive me bonkers, because they suggest that any journey can be successful if you just keep going - the implication being that if you don't end up with a baby, it's because you didn't try hard enough, or because you didn't want it enough.

In the depths of despair, when the only way out of the darkness that was presented to me was to have a baby, the prospect of what would happen to me if I didn’t end up with a baby was utterly terrifying. Would I feel like this forever? Do people survive this?

(The answer is no, and yes, in that order).

Living the Life Unexpected was a lifeline because it gave me reassurance that happiness was possible even if our journey wasn’t successful.

The only infertility stories always seemed to end up with miracle babies, but what about the people who didn’t? Jody’s book helped me to realise that there was light at the end of the tunnel even if we didn’t end up at the destination we’d set out for.

I was still in treatment when I read this book, and it made such a huge difference to my mental health, because it helped me to realise that the ‘there’ in ‘you’ll get there’ didn’t necessarily mean ending up with a much-longed-for baby.

It helped me to realise that ‘don’t give up hope’ didn’t just mean hope that I would become a mother - but hope that I could still be happy even if I didn’t end up as a mother.

“For anyone who wanted to be a mother but is facing the prospect that the future you longed for might not happen, this book is the companion for you.”
 

Stories of Survival

The book is packed with practical advice about how to let go of the dream of motherhood to forge a creative, happy, meaningful and fulfilling future without children - which I wasn’t ready for. And that’s OK. I knew that it was there should the time come, a kind of ‘break glass in case of emergency’ safety backup system.

The stories of women who’d been in my shoes and felt what I was feeling, whose journeys hadn’t turned out how they’d hoped, but who’d made it through to the other side and found a new way forward - they were the role models I didn’t know I so desperately needed.

When the only stories I saw had fairytale endings, their stories showed that there are many different routes to your happy-ever-after.

It was the antidote to the tyranny of positivity that so infuriated me. It filled the gap in the ‘it’ll all be worth it when you have your baby in your arms’ narrative, that had no answer for ‘but what happens if I don’t end up with a baby in my arms?’

You don’t have to be at this crossroads yet to read this book.

But it’s a really useful map to help you feel less fearful and more prepared about what might lie ahead if you do reach that point - and a guide to get through it if you do end up there.

How to get your own copy

A brand new 2nd edition, fully revised with fresh perspectives for a new decade, is coming out on 19th March 2020, and I have a free, personally dedicated and signed copy to give away - check out my instagram to find out more!

Don’t worry if you miss out, there are over 25 copies up for grabs across the rest of the blog tour between now and 20th March, or by signing up for Jody’s free webinar on ‘Coping with Mother’s Day‘ on 14th March for a chance to win.

If you’re in the UK, you can pre-order a copy of the book (paperback or ebook) here.

If you’re outside the UK you can buy it online via Amazon or The Book Depository (which offers free international delivery).

Follow the blog tour

This post is just one of many on an international ‘blog tour’ to celebrate the launch of this new edition: many other bloggers from the CNBC (childless-not-by-choice) community around the world will be sharing their reflections about the book (and offering the chance to win a free copy) - please do check them out!

This post isn’t sponsored: I’m just delighted to support Jody’s work, as she’s been a true inspiration to me, and has helped me - and so many other women - along the way. I hope it’ll help you too ❤️

CBC Radio Canada: Out In The Open - Inside Infertility

In the CBC London studio

In the CBC London studio

Thank you to CBC Radio Canada for having me on their Out In The Open show, for an episode about infertility - and how it can complicate your sense of self. CBC is the Canadian equivalent of the BBC so I was chuffed to bits when they got in touch!

I chatted with host Piya Chattopadhyay about my experience of infertility, the tension between my identity as a feminist and feeling like a "failure" as a woman, and how why I’m trying to reclaim the word "barren". The show also explores the experiences of male factor infertility and infertility as a woman of colour - they’re really powerful stories and well worth a listen (even if you skip my bit!)

Out In The Open #129 Inside Infertility:

Listen Online: Full episode | My interview segment

Download: CBC.ca | Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts

Fertility Week 2019: #FertilityAtWork

image courtesy IVF@work

image courtesy IVF@work

This week is UK Fertility Week and today the theme is #FertilityAtWork

I've written about this at length in previous blog posts, which you can check out here:

Nov 18: Fertility At Work

Feb 19: Fertility In The Workplace

Everything I wrote in those posts is (sadly) still just as valid several months on, so please do check them out for more detailed info and insight into the impact of fertility issues in the workplace.

This year I wanted to highlight some new research findings and initiatives that show how this issue is more salient than ever.

Support needs to come at an organisational level

We can only get the support we need from employers if we actually let them know that we're going through fertility issues in the first place.

But if (worst case) we worry that we'll be discriminated against and (best case) that they won't know how to support us - how likely are we to say anything?

New research from LinkedIn found that almost two thirds of workers wouldn’t discuss fertility issues with their employers - but a similar number would be more likely to have a conversation with their employer about fertility if they had training/guidance on how to deal with the conversation.

This fantastic infographic from Dr Uracha Chatrakul Na Ayudhya at Middlesex University highlights the scale of the problem.

 

Advocating for this change

HR professionals are starting to acknowledge that offering fertility support to employees would make them more competitive in attracting and retaining talent, and that happier employees would be more productive employees.

Which is great. More awareness is good.

But we need more than conversation. We need action.

Much of the coverage in the media about fertility benefits has been around coverage for fertility treatment provided by global corporations. But there's so much more that every company can do - from the small business right up to the multinational.

Claire Ingle is an HR professional and fertility patient who's written about why IVF should be higher on HR's agenda and is speaking out as an activist for change. She is speaking to organisations about the support networks/polices and procedures they have in place (and the most common response is that they simply 'don't') and advocating for change - do check out her IVF@work blog and follow her on Twitter and Instagram

Middlesex University is at the forefront of getting this issue on the agenda, which they described in a recent workshop on 'Contemporary reproduction, work and working life' as 'a neglected but growing form of workplace diversity".

image courtesy IVF@work

image courtesy IVF@work

Middlesex have collaborated with Fertility Network UK since 2016, leading to the launch of Fertility Network UK's Fertility In the Workplace initiative - offering employers training sessions and policy consultations to help them develop and implement their own fertility policies, as outlined in their Workplace Webinar

The More to Life Webinar Series covers a vast range of issues and subjects for those dealing being childlessnot by choice. We have selected a fantastic group of experts to host this series bringing you information, support and inspiration to help you as you journey through a life unexpected.

Channel 4 recently hit the headlines for their (brilliant) recently launched menopause policy for employees - I hope by this time next year we can see stories about employers launching formal fertility policies in the headlines too...

Baby Loss Awareness Week 2019

This year's Baby Loss Awareness Week was a total whirlwind, a bundle of emotions, and I think I'm still trying to process it all.

Guardian & Daily Mail: The 12 week rule

Things kicked off two days before the start of #BLAW2019 when an article I’d written about miscarriage and the 12 week rule was published in the Guardian on Mon 7th Oct - more about this and how it blew up (becoming a ‘new campaign’. according to Dame Jenni Murray!) in my previous post.

Mourning rituals

The following day, on Tues 8th Oct, I attended the funeral of a dear friend, who’d passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly: the day itself was somewhat of a blur, but on reflection I can’t help but think about mourning her death and celebrating her life juxtaposed with how we commemorate losses for those family members who never joined the family tree.

Tortoise: Why don’t we talk about miscarriage?

Immediately after the funeral I attended a Tortoise ThinkIn event titled Why don't we talk about miscarriage? Tortoise describe their ThinkIn events as ‘the engine of open journalism’:

“A ThinkIn is not another panel discussion. It is a forum for civilised disagreement. Modelled on what we call a ‘leader conference’ in the UK (or an editorial board in the US), it is a place where everyone has a seat at the table. It’s where we get to hear what you think, drawn from your experience, energy and expertise. It’s where, together, we sift through what we know to come to a clear, concise point of view.”
— Tortoise

Editor Polly Curtis reached out to me on Twitter to very kindly invite me to the event after she’d read my article about the 12-week rule - but I only learned afterwards that she has a particularly personal perspective on this subject, having written about her own experience of 8 devastating miscarriages in the Guardian in 2015. She chaired the discussion, featuring 3 terrific special guests

Here’s some highlights from a really inspiring, thought-provoking evening (& a full recording of the event is available here):

A few thoughts from the room, from our ThinkIn: "why don't we talk about miscarriage?"

 

Moncrieff

Then on Thu 10th Oct I was thrilled to be invited onto Moncrieff (apparently one of Ireland's most popular afternoon shows!) on Newstalk FM to discuss the 12-week rule with presenter Seán Moncrieff - you can listen to the interview on the Newstalk website (approx 12 mins - not deliberate!) We spoke about why the 12-week rule is harmful, why I want to change the way we talk about pregnancy loss, and also a little about my own experience of infertility and miscarriage (and why I think it's time to reclaim the word 'barren'!)

 

The cycle of life

In a cruel accident of timing, I was discussing my first miscarriage on national radio on the very day that would have been that baby's due date - and in another life we might have been celebrating a 3rd birthday.

In another life we wouldn’t have been lighting two candles at 7pm on the 15th October, for the global #WaveOfLight, where grieving parents across the world light candles to remember all the babies who have died too soon.

But in this life our journey took a different path. And just as we mourn loss, we celebrate new life. The morning my Guardian article came out, just before the start of #BLAW2019, I received the most wonderful (and unexpected) news from my brother. My beautiful nephew had come into the world 4 weeks early, and I was now an aunt. I am utterly besotted and overwhelmed with love for this tiny human, and so overjoyed he is safely here.

A microcosm of life in one week - birth, death, memories, new experiences, happy, sad and everything in between. Life, eh?

Guardian: Time to scrap the 12-week rule

Last year for Baby Loss Awareness Week I wrote an article for the Guardian about the language of pregnancy loss, and I was thrilled to be given the opportunity again this year. This year I wrote about the '12-week rule'; how it perpetuates the notion that miscarriage is something to hide and we shouldn’t make a fuss, thereby forcing so many women & couples to suffer in silence - and why we need a more empathic and supportive culture around early pregnancy loss.

For something that's so common (1 in 4 pregnancies ends in loss), miscarriage can feel so incredibly lonely, because we're made to feel that it's no big deal and something we should sweep under the carpet. There's a difference between privacy and secrecy: privacy is voluntary, it's a choice you make to keep information to yourself - whereas secrecy is involuntary, when information is kept private out of fear for the consequences. The decision about what, when & if to share information about fertility, infertility, pregnancy and all outcomes thereafter should be a personal choice for YOU to do what's right for YOU - not an enforced societal expectation.

As a non-journalist, it’s a real honour to see my words in print - I’m chuffed to bits, and profoundly grateful to everyone who shared their thoughts on the 12-week rule with me. There's so much more I could have said, and I'd have loved to have explored the different perspectives around the decision to 'tell' - but unfortunately I was up against the constraints of a limited word count! Extra thanks to Prof Arri Coomarasamy, director of the Tommy's National Centre for Miscarriage Research and Dr Jessica Zucker, a clinical psychologist specialising in women's reproductive and maternal mental health and creator of the incredible #IHadAMiscarriage campaign, for their input.

As Jessica says - we may not be able to cure miscarriage, but why don't we at least attempt to cure the conversation?

 

The reaction

There were a few snarky comments in the Guardian comments section (as you’d expect), but on the whole the reaction to the article has been astonishing and overwhelming in the best way. So many comments on social media brought me to tears: not just because they said how because the conversation about this subject was happening and visible - and both women AND men were stepping out of the shadows to talk about their experiences of loss.

It then got really surreal when the Daily Mail published a response to my piece, co-authored by the brilliant Jennie Agg from The Uterus Monologues and Jenni Murray - describing the reaction to the article as a new campaign to overturn the 12-week rule!

And then even more surreal when a dear friend told me that the BBC ad shared the article on the official CBeebies for grownups Twitter and Facebook accounts - reaching a whole different audience than I’d ever imagined.

I’m deeply sad that so many people have had their own experiences of loss for this piece to resonate, but if it’s helped just one person feel less alone, then to me it’s a job well done.

Tommy's: Tell Me Why

So lovely to catch up with @jenniemonologues, @mrskmeaks & @thisisalicerose

So lovely to catch up with @jenniemonologues, @mrskmeaks & @thisisalicerose

Thank you to Tommy's for inviting me to the launch of their Tell Me Why campaign, calling for more research into the causes of miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth.

A shocking 71% of parents are not told why their baby has died in pregnancy or has been born prematurely - and in many cases, doctors simply don’t know why it’s happening.

“Without a medical reason for their stillbirth, miscarriage or premature birth 82% of women worry that it was caused by something they did.”
 

WHY we need more #PregnancyResearch

We need more research and investment in reproductive health.

Stillbirth, miscarriage and premature birth, in contrast to most other medical conditions, are linked to deep feelings of guilt and failure in women.

The lack of medical explanation for pregnancy complications and loss underpins this self-blame.

Not knowing WHY leaves parents feeling alone, powerless and full of worry for future pregnancies.

Tommy’s research proves that we can find answers and prevent babies from dying before, during and after birth.

But we need to know more and do more.

We need to be able to tell many more parents why it happened to them and how we can prevent it happening again.

Parents deserve to know WHY it happened. Only then can it be prevented in the future.

 

#TellMeWhy miscarriage happens

As a patient, I was honoured to visit The Miscarriage Clinic at the Biomedical Research Unit in Reproductive Health at University Hospital, Coventry - which is part of the Tommy's National Centre for Miscarriage Research -the UK’s first national centre dedicated to miscarriage research). Prof Jan Brosens and Prof Siobhan Quenby specialise in researching the role of the endometrium (womb lining) in implantation and miscarriage - which is the very issue that is the root cause of my infertility.

Sadly the issues with my endometrium were too severe to be overcome: Prof Brosens told me I was ‘the weirdest case’ he’d ever seen, and that there was no point in continuing treatment, as my womb was simply unable to support a pregnancy.

But the samples of my womb lining that were taken during my visits to the Coventry clinic contributed to the body of research to understand the role of the endometrium in infertility and miscarriage.

And it’s this research which has informed the development of three key checkpoints on which a successful pregnancy depend, as outlined in this brilliant animation:

Although I never ended up with my rainbow baby, I’m so proud to have perhaps contributed in some small part to the incredibly important research that Tommy’s are doing.

Prof Quenby gave the most incredible talk at the event, highlighting some of the key developments and innovations being developed out of her clinic, which are already saving babies lives.

 

#TogetherForChange

Pregnancy loss isn’t ‘just one of those things’.

1 in 4 people will lose a baby during pregnancy or have a premature birth.

It’s not OK that so many parents cannot be told why their baby died. It’s simply not good enough to say ‘It wasn’t meant to be’.

Please, please check out Tommy’s #TellMeWhy campaign hub, watch the films, share the message, and talk, talk, talk about miscarriage, so we can challenge these misconceptions and fight for more research.

In Media Res: Representations of Infertility in Comics and Graphic Novels

I’m thrilled to have collaborated with Dr Anna Feigenbaum (Principal Academic in Digital Storytelling) and Alexandra Alberda (PhD researcher in Graphic Medicine) from the Civic Media Hub at Bournemouth University on a project about infertility in Graphic Medicine (the use of comics in medical education and patient care).

In Media Res is an academic blog exploring contemporary approaches to studying media that has theme weeks focusing on particular subjects - we contributed to their Infertility theme week by creating a zine exploring how comics represent the emotional effects of infertility, often nuancing and challenging mainstream media narratives:

Graphic Infertility: Representations of Infertility in Comics and Graphic Novels

A big thank you to participating artists Sarah Glidden, Cara Gormally, Sheila Alexander, Jenell Johnson, and Emily Steinberg for contributing to the zine. Permissions to use images was granted by the artists included; if you would like to use the images please reach out to them via the links provided in the zine.

For more from these artists please see the following works:

Sarah Glidden: Barren

Cara Gormally: We Doubled Down

Sheila Alexander: IF: A Memoir of Infertility

Jenell Johnson: Present/Perfect

Emily Steinberg: Broken Eggs

And thank you to Alex for the wonderful avatar she created of me!

DrawingOut: Drawing Experiences of Infertility

Emotional impact of disease gallery from DrawingOut

Emotional impact of disease gallery from DrawingOut

As we know, infertility is an ‘invisible’ condition, and it’s really hard to to explain what we’re are going through. As a writer (and someone with a massive gob!) I’m rarely short of a few words to say, but it can often feel impossible to articulate emotions that I’m not sure can even be put into words. Finding an outlet for our emotions when going through infertility is so, so important - to get stuff out of your head in some way, shape or form.

Maybe it's talking to a counsellor.

Maybe it's going to a support group.

Maybe it's posting on social media or in an online community.

Maybe it's writing in a journal.

Maybe it's a mix of all the above.

Or maybe it's drawing.

 
‘Infertility Rift’ from DrawingOut

‘Infertility Rift’ from DrawingOut

 

Drawing as therapy

A picture is worth a thousand words, and visual expression can communicate thoughts, feelings and ideas in a way like no other.

Art therapy is well understood as a therapeutic tool for addressing painful feelings and difficult experiences without having to talking about them

It can help to get a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions out of your head, and give you a voice without having to find the words

Which is why I wanted to share a fantastic initiative called Drawing Out

Patients with invisible diseases often struggle to have their needs recognised. DrawingOut is a project that explores what it means to live with diseases that are not immediately apparent to others by creating and sharing simple drawings.

 

About DrawingOut

Infertility is an ‘invisible’ condition, and so affected people can struggle to explain what they are going through.www.drawingout.org encourages people to reflect on their experiences of such invisible conditions through a series of simple drawing exercises, and to share their drawings through online galleries. 

People with ‘invisible’ conditions (e.g., infertility, endometriosis, Cystic Fibrosis, ME, depression) may find it especially difficult to explain their experiences to others. A new website, www.drawingout.org, uses simple metaphor-based drawing exercises to help people express and share their thoughts and feelings about their condition. The online galleries showcase the artwork produced by individuals, as well as providing links to information and support through our partner charities. 

The website is the result of collaboration between two academics at Cardiff University: Dr Sofia Gameiro is a psychologist who focuses on understanding and improving the healthcare experiences of infertile patients. Dr Lisa El Refaie’s work has shown that visual metaphor can express people’s illness experiences more creatively and often more accurately than just verbal descriptions. They originally developed DrawingOut as a group workshop tool to help people with invisible diseases overcome language and cultural barriers, and to facilitate the expression of sometimes very emotional, taboo views through drawing.

 
 
“‘The drawing makes it fun and makes it easier for everybody to open up’ ”
— DrawingOut participant
 
 

Drawing your own experience of infertility

You can see some of the incredible drawings created at two DrawingOut workshops above, but you don't have to attend a workshop to have a go yourself - there's a step-by-step guide designed to give you the tools to express your experiences in new, creative ways.

It will help you to communicate those aspects of your disease that are invisible to others by drawing about them - and to rediscover the joy of drawing we experienced as children.

Everyone can draw - the only thing you need is some paper, coloured pens or pencils and your imagination!

 

Share your drawings

If you'd like to share your drawings to help others (and encourage them to have a go themselves) please do consider submitting them here so they can be displayed (anonymously) in the online gallery on the DrawingOut website.

And if you'd like to share your drawings with the infertility community but don’t want to do so publicly, you can email them to me and I’ll happily share them (anonymously) on your behalf.

Happy drawing!