Kaillie Humphries

Kaillie Humphries is a Canadian-American bobsledder who has won three Olympic gold medals, one Olympic bronze medal, and five world championships. In this episode of Dear (In)Fertility, Kaillie shares the challenges and triumphs of going through IVF as a competitive female athlete. Brought to you by Kindbody.

Published on March 7, 2023

Dear Infertility_Season 4_Ep 8_Kaillie Humphries: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

Dear Infertility_Season 4_Ep 8_Kaillie Humphries: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Hi, I'm Kristyn Hodgdon, an IVF mom, proud fertility advocate, and co-founder of Rescripted. Welcome to Dear (In)fertility, the first-ever podcast that doubles as an advice column for fertility, infertility, and pregnancy loss. This season we're going back to our roots, highlighting personal fertility stories from those who have been there, through IVF, egg freezing, donor conception, surrogacy, and more. Now, let's dive in and work towards ending the stigma around fertility, infertility, and pregnancy loss.

Kindbody Ad:
Did you know that age is the most predictive factor of fertility? A consultation with a fertility specialist can give you more information about where you stand and what your options are. I'm Dr. McKenzie Purdy, a reproductive endocrinologist at Kindbody. Visit Kindbody.com/Rescripted to get started.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Hi, everyone. Welcome back to Dear (In)fertility. I'm your host, Kristin, and I'm here today with Kaillie Humphries. Hi, Kaillie.

Hi. Thanks for having me.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Of course. I'm so excited to have you. For those of you who don't know, Kaillie, Kaillie Humphries is a Canadian American bobsledder who has won three Olympic gold medals, one Olympic bronze medal, and five world championships. Since starting IVF to grow her family, Kaillie has used her platform to share the challenges and triumphs of dealing with infertility as a competitive female athlete. Welcome, Kaillie.

Kaillie Humphries:
Thanks for having me. I'm excited to be here.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
I'm so thrilled to have you. You have quite the resume. And I think we need to start with how do you do it all? As someone who's been through many IVF cycles, it's so hard to balance as it is being quote-unquote regular person, but you're an Olympic athlete. So tell me what that balance is like.

Kaillie Humphries:
It's challenging. I'm currently still trying to figure it out. So I don't think and I bet you anybody going through IVF will tell you, there's no secret magic pill that is like, here's how you do it. We can give you pointers, but everybody's journey is so individual and the medications you take, how you react mentally, physically, all of that is so personal, and we know that. And even within sports, even within the Olympics, there's a lot of parallels actually, because at the end of the day, there's no guarantee you're going to make it to the Olympics. But you go through each and every day the sacrifice, the dedication, and it's the same going through IVF. So sometimes I really feel like being an Olympic athlete has prepared me for the IVF process and journey and having to reevaluate and understand what's happening. I know how to read my body as well, but it doesn't exclude me from going through the motions of what everybody else goes through. I think, as like most people, this is my job, it's what I do, it's what I love to do. So although as an Olympic athlete, a lot of the time I have to be very aware of what goes in my body and how my body reacts to stimuli, I'm also just a normal person that, you know, wants to have a family. And this is unfortunately, however you want to look at it, this is part of the process, this is part of the journey for my husband and myself. I have stage four endo, endometriosis, so that's what's causing my infertility. And we found out a couple of years ago. And so we've now been taking steps to rectify it, to, to have our IVF babies. And yeah, it's hard. It definitely is a balance. I had planned on it in my mind going super smooth and everything was going to be perfect and I was going to do one egg retrieval and have so many eggs. And I think that's just optimism and blind faith as a whole, and that's not been the case. However, it doesn't stop the process. I also, do want to continue my career as an athlete, and so I've had to find balance. I don't think there's a way that you do it, you just make it work for you. And so far that's what I've been trying to do. I compartmentalize things pretty much. Here's the IVF portion of time that I'm going to spend, and if I need to push pause like I did for this past competitive season, I push pause for a bit and then I move forward at another point. And I think by doing that, it allows me the mental space to focus on the things I need to focus on when I get there. So am I in athlete zone? Am I in IVF zone? What phase am I in? And just having a bit of a plan helps me feel like a little more in control, especially when it's a very out of control IVF process and feeling, and that's helped me kind of balance all of it.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
So it's kind of like you have forced breaks from IVF sometimes, which, I remember pushing through my first time around, IVF cycle after IVF cycle, and it was like I refused to take a break. But this time around I've been trying for a third and I've had to take a break. And like you said, you have to do you, take breaks when you need to, and you make it work for your family.

Kaillie Humphries:
So last summer was when we really started the IVF journey process. We did two egg retrievals. So I am happy to say we now have ten genetically healthy, normal embryos to implant. But the first cycle, I got 49 eggs and out of the 49 eggs, only three were viable embryos. And that was a shock, and my first lesson, because I'm happy I got three, but I would have expected way more with 49 eggs and they didn't all develop and they weren't all great, so we had to do another round. And in the second round we changed medications and doses, I actually changed doctors, and in completely changing the process from the way we did it first round to the second round, we ended up with seven, so we have ten total, which is great. But I noticed, and that was months worth of work. That was pretty much an entire summer. I started to really get very competitive. It started to overwhelm me, I started to like, look, everything was like, how do we get pregnant right now, right away?

Kristyn Hodgdon:
I know.

Kaillie Humphries:
And I had to push pause because I wasn't handling it super well. The meds definitely between the birth control and all the medications, it affects you and hormonally there's not much you can do. And so we decided, my husband and I, that I was going to go and compete this past winter, push pause for a couple months. It also was a bit of a strategic move because in order for me to continue competing while being pregnant, I only get one year maternity leave per se, I get one year off. And so I'm going to want that year for either when I'm pregnant or right when the kid's born. And so until we have a kid, I can't afford to not be competing every year. My insurance is bound by my stipend, which is bound by getting monthly payments in order to be an athlete. And so I, we pushed pause for multitude of reasons, I went and competed this past season and now we're actually going March 7th to start the whole embryo transfer process. So it's been a learning curve, but pushing pause as hard as it was throughout the season, also gave me a bit of purpose, I knew why I was competing this season. When things got hard, I was like, okay, just get through to this point. It allowed me to take Lupron depot for two months, which I had to do anyways, and it gave me a distraction because I really think had I been sitting here at home for two months just waiting for the Lupron depot to do its thing, I would have definitely been in agony. Just, okay, why can't we move forward? Like, let's go with this process. When you want it, you want it and you want it right now, so.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Yeah, I always say that sometimes the lead up is worse than actually when you're in it and going through it because you're just anticipating the side effects and the time commitment and all that stuff. Whereas sometimes that like cycle day one, you're so motivated because you're like, okay, we're finally here.

Kaillie Humphries:
Yeah, the waiting! I think I agree with you, that's the hardest part. The periods of waiting and having to wait between your periods and like, what does this mean? And then all of it, it's the unknown and it's the stuff you can't control. And it becomes very visible and very real when you can't do or be taking steps, so that's definitely a hard part.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Yeah, absolutely. I want to touch really quickly on your endometriosis diagnosis, because you mentioned that you have stage four endo. For those who might be listening who have endo or suspect that they have endo, how did you come to be diagnosed? What were your symptoms and then how did you realize that you needed fertility treatments?

Kaillie Humphries:
I found out kind of on a fluke. I would love for people to do more research into all of it and for it to not take, on average, 7 to 10 years to diagnose for most women. I really think we need to be a lot more aware. However, I found out about it because I went in for a hip MRI. My hip had been bugging me, so it was a sports injury that led me to go to an MRI. Thankfully, I had nothing wrong with my legroom and my hip is totally fine. However, they found a really, really big cyst on my ovary and in finding that a part of the MRI, they led me to go to a new doctor. With it being the year before the Olympics, we decided to try and go remove it instead of hoping it would go away. And when they went in to surgically remove the cyst, that's when they found the endo. So I had no idea what it was. I didn't even know going into the surgery what it was that I had it, none of the above. It wasn't till coming out and then the doctor telling me, oh, by the way, you have stage four endo and it's on your rectum and it's on your kidneys and it's in certain parts, it's blocking your fallopian tubes that, he's like, we got as much as we could out, but because it's on your kidneys and your rectum in certain parts that you need to live, we can't remove it all, which is what classifies at stage four. So at that moment he told us then that the chances of conceiving naturally were going to be very limited and that we should just go seek an IVF specialist and help immediately when we wanted to start family planning. So fast forward we went through the Olympic year and it was about a year and a half later or so that we then got in touch with a doctor to to begin the family planning IVF process.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Okay. Has it been helpful for you at all, actually doing IVF, being able to sort of schedule your cycles around? Because what would have happened, if you had just been trying naturally, I guess I'm just trying to think about like logistic-wise, like if you got pregnant, you would have just got pregnant and it would have been what it was, I guess.

Kaillie Humphries:
As Olympic athletes, there's moments when, you know, you can try and moments, you know, and you can't. If it's a couple months before the games, you ain't trying. You're using all the protection you possibly can. With the endo diagnosis, it makes sense because we've been trying for a couple years. We always, in the bobsled season, end of February and March through to July-August, you're trying. And I was taking my little clearblue ovulation strips and tracking everything, taking everything I possibly could, and that went on for years, so it makes sense as to why it didn't happen naturally. Part of me feels like we wasted a bunch of time and so that I struggle with, I'm 37, I turn 38in September, so I wish I would have known about it earlier. At the same point, we now have the diagnosis, we know why and how and how we're going to fix it. And yes, it does make it easier to plan as an Olympic athlete. I know when my bobsled seasons are. It also makes it more challenging because, like with anything, there's no guarantee. We can implant end of March, it may or may not take. And then you have to wait, I don't even know how long you have to wait until you can do another embryo transfer, the next month or two months away, or what happens if a miscarriage occurs? There's so many unknowns with pregnancy as a whole, especially with IVF, that it makes it easier to start the process and plan. But it also makes it more challenging and a lot less fun, way less fun. So there's good and bad to both.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Of course, yeah. I'm always trying to look for the silver lining. Sometimes, like maybe we can plan a little bit, but no. I mean and you got like a fantastic number of eggs for someone with endometriosis. You don't have PCOS too, do you?

Kaillie Humphries:
I do not know.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Okay. Wow, that's amazing. And so you have ten chances at your baby.

Kaillie Humphries:
We have six boys and four girls. So now the question everybody always asks, are you going to implant a certain one or do you want to know? And we're still trying to figure that out. My husband and I, we don't really know what next steps look like. We're, we're trying to take it one step at a time. I learned throughout this process so far, even with the egg retrievals, if I go too far ahead and try and take too many steps forward.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Of course.

Kaillie Humphries:
It's hard and you get disappointed. So we're literally, we go in in March 7th, I have to do my, I always mess this up, history or her.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
...gram, the HSDX, yes.

Kaillie Humphries:
Not the HSC. I did the HSDX.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
...sonogram.

Kaillie Humphries:
The one where they go check your uterus for fibroids and the lining and make sure, yeah, I've been on Lupron depot for the last two months, so if I start fanning myself, that's why. You get really hot, but at the same point I have to go in and check that the Lupron depot has worked and has decreased the inflammation in my uterus too. So I go in March 7th for that. And after that, if everything's good, we can start the FET. If not, then we're going to have to wait. And so I don't want to plan for the future until I know we can start that process.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Of course. Spoken like a true fertility warrior.

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Kristyn Hodgdon:
So you said that being an Olympic athlete helped you prepare yourself for things being sort of out of your control, but what about the physical aspect being on the meds while you're competing, like you just were on Lupron depot and competing during the bobsled season and then the bodily changes, I know that I struggled with that on my journey. How do you handle all of that as an athlete?

Kaillie Humphries:
I didn't know how Lupron depot was going to affect me physically, mentally, all of the above. The doctor warned me their side effects. Not everyone has the same side effects, so we kind of decided that we were just going to wing it. We could have waited till the end of the bobsled season to start Lupron depot, but that felt wrong because I felt like I was delaying a process that I've already delayed. So we knew that there were going to be challenges. The hot flashes and night sweats turned out to be the worst of them, managing them, especially around competitions. It helped, so this year my husband came on tour, so he was with me for the last couple of months, traveling, going to all the places and all the races, so I wasn't doing it alone. My teammates would make fun, like it'd be sitting at dinner or I'd be warming up or we'd be in the truck and I'd have to roll down the window and just like strip off all my clothes, it's minus ten outside, and I'm like fully just sweating. So my team was very aware and that helped, especially as I was going through it because I knew I wasn't doing it by myself, I wasn't crazy. These are just the effects and I had to just acknowledge and push through them. It didn't make them nicer or easier, but I knew that there was a purpose, I knew that come March we were going to be able to hopefully start the FET process, but start the process of all of these things to transfer the embryo. So in knowing that it made going through it that much easier, because every time I went through it, I went, okay, this is part of the process, I've got to do it, so it helped. The sleeplessness, sometimes I would take Tylenol PM or NyQuil that seemed, although I'm not a doctor, I'm not recommending this, this is just how I got through it. It helps on the big races the nights before, about two nights or the night before the big races, I took my second injection the night before world championships and it felt great because I was like, okay, we're moving forward, like we're getting closer. At the same point, it caused a lot more symptoms and they were a lot more severe and I just felt off a little bit. And it made it frustrating when I was competing because certain fields or the way I see things on the bobsled track, how I react, how my body warms up, the energy levels, some days I just would have none, and that was hard. It was also hard because I didn't know how much was just overdoing it in sport, or is it the meds that's causing it? What's the combo? I had to look at it and go, it doesn't matter why I have it, just that I have it. So I really had to monitor recovery, I had to make sure that on times I was off mentally and physically, I had to take days off. And on those days I couldn't, I would go for a walk for like an hour maybe, and then that's it. Like I had to really try and curb a lot of the extracurriculars or not get overwhelmed, shut off email. I was like, I can't. I would just get so stressed and so overworked. So I really had to create a very simple life in order to help get through this season. If it was bobsled and it was mandatory, my teammates also stepped up, which was great. So on days I was super tired, they were like, look, we got it, we can help flip the sleds, we can polish the runners. We'll help do more work so that you don't have to, like, go and rest because now's the only time that you can. And so that also made a really big difference in competing successfully throughout the season, while on Lupron depot. The season was exactly what I needed it to be and it was what I wanted it to be, which is great. But it was hard, it was work, to definitely get to that point. But I also knew that this was part of the plan. This is what we chose, and I was going to get through it one way or the other. So instead of think about why is this happening or just acknowledging that it is, and then taking the athlete mentality and go, okay, if I'm tired, if I'm exhausted, here's what I do from an athlete side. If I've overtrained, here's what I do to get back. And so taking that side of things, if I'm having ..., how do I put myself in the best possible positions in order to be successful as an athlete? And using that philosophy over on the IVF side definitely helped.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Yeah, that's great advice for, I think, anyone going through it. You need to compartmentalize a little bit and accept what you can't control.

Kaillie Humphries:
Yeah.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
And it sounds like you have an amazing support system in your teammates and your family. Speaking of your family, how is your infertility diagnosis affected and your whole IVFjourney affected your relationship with your husband?

Kaillie Humphries:
There's definitely been things my husband and I have struggled with. We had to have a conversation the other day actually, just it was like intimacy. Sex drives really low on Lupron depot and he was worried I didn't want him anymore. He was worried I didn't find him attractive and we had to communicate. And it's been good because it's forced us to communicate and determine what the definition of intimacy is. Is it just the physical attraction? Is it holding hands, saying I love you, what's a communication piece? What exactly does he need? What exactly do I need? Why? You know, he's like, I just feel like you just want comfort. And I'm like, this is what I'm seeking in the intimacy department in order to get it, where he requires different stuff. And so it's forced us to work on communication a little bit, at the same point, it's definitely, I don't want to say hurt us, but it's pushed us into a direction I hope we wouldn't go. You know, I don't think it's a nice side effect, it definitely is a crappy one. You just don't feel yourself, in retrieval process it was the same. I gained about 12 pounds, just sex drive goes way down when you have massive amounts of estrogen and everything else in your system and it's hard because it's not something you just all of a sudden wake up one day and you're like, oh, well, today it's this way. It's a gradual and it's over time and it accumulates a little bit by little bit every day. And so understanding the side effects of the meds definitely helps because when you don't know you think nothing's wrong or like you just don't know you're missing certain stuff until it's kind of too late. And so making myself aware of what the side effects are and then having conversations around those and then having communication with my husband to go, okay, if this is how you're feeling, you need to let me know and we need to have a discussions on it and vice versa. Because I think the hard part for him throughout this process and he'll be the first one to tell you he feels really disconnected sometimes. I'm doing all the work and I don't want to feel that way, I don't want him to feel that way, but there's not much he can do. He can help give an injection, but that's it. So I'm here, hot flashing, going through these processes, taking all the meds and physically carrying the load. But he's still a huge part of this process and it's taken away from him too, because it's not the normal how you conceive a child process. It's not easy, just you have some fun and here you go, surprise. I think it's taken away a bit of that feeling of I can do it and make a baby and it's not him, it's me. We had his sperm tested, 100%, he's A-plus, I'm the issue. And so I've got to do the work. But it decreases how much he feels he can be a part of the process. And so I think that's been a challenge, too, is trying to figure out how I can incorporate him and/or how he can feel a part of the process without being a part of the actual, like, physical process.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Yeah, it's an ongoing battle for all couples that are going through IVF. I've been at the point where I'm like, want I want to try one more time. And he's like, well, I don't want to see you go through that. I'm like, but it's my body. But when transfer has failed in the past, I'm like all angry that I was the one that had to, you know, do all the shots. And it's a constant push and pull. But it sounds like you guys are communicating well, and that is definitely something you learn through this process is you have to communicate or it all seemingly falls apart.

Kaillie Humphries:
Definitely. And we haven't gotten to that part. So I'm not looking forward to if a transfer doesn't become successful, I'm hoping it doesn't happen to me. But at the same point, I'm very aware that it does to everybody. So I'll be coming to you after because ....

Kristyn Hodgdon:
I always say, in our support groups, those about to embark on their first transfers, you have no reason to believe that it won't work for you and all good vibes.

Kaillie Humphries:
It has. It's worked for people right off the jump and it has not. And this is the part that you don't know. And I think this is what I've learned throughout the process is and why we can all say everybody's journey is so different because it is, there's no reason why it can't work, but also be prepared that it might not, so here's the steps in case it doesn't, and you're not alone if it doesn't, and so I think that's what's great. And I've had huge support from this community just as a whole, once I've started talking about it, a lot less shame, I felt a lot less alone. And it's definitely talking with people that have also gone through it, like yourself and others. It definitely has given me a plan. It's not just happening to me and people you don't even know that have gone through it. And it definitely is a support group and a family. And so I think that helps is huge because it just means that if and when I do get there, if it works perfectly, great. But if it doesn't, I'm going to be get through it. I'm going to be fine, I'm going to survive it, and other people have and been successful so I can do it too-tight mentality.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Absolutely. So what advice would you give to someone currently in the trenches or about to begin an IVF cycle, or what do you wish you had known sooner?

Kaillie Humphries:
I wish I'd known about Endo sooner. I wish that I.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
And you didn't have like painful periods or anything like that?

Kaillie Humphries:
Oh, no, I did.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Oh.

Kaillie Humphries:
But I also just assumed that was normal, and I think a lot of people do. You get told and I've always been told from a young age, like painful periods is just part of it, period sucks, they hurt and everyone's pain threshold is so different. There is no like barometer on how painful a period should be, because everybody is so different. So you always get told and I just thought, well, this month they have a really bad period.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
And that's why it takes so long for women to get diagnosed, because a lot of OB-GYNs end up saying go on the pill or.

Kaillie Humphries:
And I wasn't on the pill. The pill, which I'm also struggling with from the IVF part of things, the pill really screws me up. I get really foggy and cloudy, I get really moody, I get the hangry symptoms but all the time and it fluctuates with my hormones real bad. So I haven't been on the pill since I was 26 and going through this process and having to be on it. I think that's also, my husband will notice a change too, and he's like, great. But it definitely affects my mood and my tone and just how I act, and when I get super hyped or really down. And I know that throughout this process I have to be on it at certain points in order to make sure my period comes on a certain day and my levels are at a certain specific time. But that was hard to know that I'm taking something that is going to alter my state. And I've known this through sport for a really long time.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Yeah.

Kaillie Humphries:
But it's part of the process and I have no choice. So we're going to do it and I have to embrace it because you don't know, but embracing this stuff you don't know or embracing the stuff you know is going to affect you in a negative way and trying to make it positive, I think that's a challenge, but when you can do it, it's very rewarding. Yes, okay, we got through this part, but there were signs earlier, probably once a week I would get like this really, really painful, this might be TMI for some people, but I would want to go poop, and when I did, it would cause this lightning reaction of pain, like when your body is working through and you've had a coffee and you're like, oh, I got to go. But at the same point, everything would tighten and I would get this like shooting, like it was like period pain. But the shooting pain right up, and it would like drop me to the floor and it would last about five seconds and I'd have to, like, breathe and hold something and I'd be like, against the wall or like, it didn't matter where I was, the grocery store, the dentist office at home, I would just for five seconds and it would happen like once every couple of weeks. And I just assumed, oh, maybe this means my period is coming. I didn't put two and two together because it kind of all feels the same, now when that happens, and the same thing would happen when I'm trying to go to the bathroom during my period, my body would tighten and it hurt to pass number two, and I just assumed that was just part of being on your period. And turns out that's not the case and should not feel that way. But it definitely made my period cramps, and not every single month, but certain months where I'm like taking a bottle of Advil, I'd upgrade to naproxen and like bigger doses because I was like, I can't, this can't be good for my liver, I'm taking so many meds to get through this week on my period like I'm in severe agony over here, and it would just extremely hurt. And so in talking with my doctor, since then, I've learned that, and having this diagnosis, that, what I was experiencing makes sense. But again, how do you go from experiencing these, and again, all I can do is suggest that people talk to their OB-GYNs, talk to your doctors if you think that you potentially have it. Most people get diagnosed when you go to try and have kids and you don't because it blocks your fallopian tubes. So if that is the case, definitely have conversations. If you don't have it, great. Have the conversation if you think that you do and whether you're trying to have kids or not, living with endo is painful and it shouldn't be so, or there's ways of understanding and knowing. After I had my laparoscopy and they cleared it all out, it definitely helped. My periods weren't as painful, and not because the cramps weren't bad, but because when I would cramp it wouldn't pull that scar tissue or where the endo, the lining was outside it wouldn't rip it or pull off of things, and that's what makes it so painful. So when they could clear a bunch of it out, everything internally can work a lot more normally, and period cramps are still period cramps. But I wouldn't get those like shooting pains of like ripping scar tissue inside my body, and so it's helped for sure.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
I think everything you're sharing is so important because there's someone listening who is like, wait, that's how I feel every single month or every single week, and we need to go talk to my doctor now. Well, this has been so wonderful, Kaillie, last question I would like to ask, our company's name is Rescripted, and I'm wondering, what would you rescript about how people think about infertility and IVF, specifically female athletes?

Kaillie Humphries:
I would rescript how normal everything isn't. I wish we could normalize infertility a lot more for whatever reason, whether it's due to endo or any reason whatsoever. I just wish more people knew that they weren't alone and you don't know why and how someone got there to have a baby or to be able to start a family, but that it's not anybody's fault, whether it's genetic condition or not, the situation is what it is. But infertility is hard, and you're not by yourself. And there is a great community of super supporters and just knowing someone else has gone through it and that it's possible helps a lot knowing it's not your fault and that you did nothing wrong to deserve this or to get to this point is also an important thing and that it's not you failing at having a kid. There's an infertility issue, that's why IVF and IUI and like all these other modalities exist because it's a lot more common than people talk about. So I would rescript how many people are more open about it and how much more normal we can make the conversation so that people can get through it a lot easier.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Amazing. I love it. It's all about awareness and education. If only we were taught about our bodies and sex ed, right, instead of how not to get pregnant. But the more you talk about it, the more you hear someone who either went through it themselves or have a friend or a family member that went through it, and then you just realize that you're not alone and there's others out there. And like you said, it's so important to know that it's not your fault. Well, thank you so much, Kaillie. This was awesome and so great meeting you and thank you for your time and super excited for you on your transfer. All of the baby dust and good vibes, sending everything your way.

Kaillie Humphries:
Well, thank you. I appreciate that. And it's women like yourself that make it possible for us to normalize it, but also talk about it and have hope and have positive outcomes and believe that it's all going to be okay, and that's a very important part of the process. So thank you for doing this and educating people and also being very open yourself.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Oh, thank you.

Kristyn Hodgdon:
Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Dear (In)fertility. We hope it left you feeling more educated and empowered about your reproductive and sexual health. Whatever you're currently struggling with, Rescripted is here to hold your hand every step of the way. If you liked today's episode and want to stay up to date on our podcast, don't forget to click subscribe, and to join Rescripted's Free Fertility Support Community, head to Rescripted.com.

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