I do not believe the fertility crisis is, at its core, about economic factors. Out of my 20 or so closest friends from Harvard, only two of us have kids at 30. These are all people in top 1-5% of income for their age bracket, extremely privileged wrt job security. They aren’t having kids, and it’s not because they are worried they can’t afford them. They are simply doing other things. They are traveling Europe, or flying to Vegas to see concerts, or focusing on their careers/personal interests/hobbies. They have too much they want to do “before kids”, so they are waiting. A lot of people in my peer group stuck in a kind of statis, trying to extend their 20s infinitely. “Millennials think they are still teenagers,” as Logo puts it. So I see the fertility crisis as more of a spiritual issue. People lack the desire to start families. And why would they when way, way more cultural weight is placed on things like personal growth and career achievement and “having fun”. It’s not high status to be a parent, in the way becoming a founder or a doctor or earning a PhD is. Economic uncertainty has always and will always exist. That’s not going to be what raises fertility rates. Fertility rates will go up when raising children becomes the default first priority, not a second or third priority that you “get to” after a bunch of personal achievements. This requires a fundamentally different cultural narrative that reorients people around a project that is bigger than themselves.

PCOS is complicated, but the fix can be as simple as healing gut health. So many women living with PCOS also have gut issues and inflammation, which lead to the insulin resistance wrecking their bodies. Restoring gut health reduces inflammation and helps get blood sugar under control. The result is healthier cycles, weight loss, and fertility that comes back online.

I was talking to a Ferta patient yesterday and she shared something so powerful. She knew deep down inside that the weight she gained after starting our protocol was exactly what her body needed. But as a woman, it’s so hard to accept that. Especially when your clothes don’t fit and you feel like you’re falling short of society’s expectations to be thin. I’ve been there. I get it. It's hard. One of the hardest truths about fertility is that it often requires a little more body fat than the modern “ideal” physique. But once you see little humans running around that you created, the softness feels 100% worth it.

No woman should have to piece together labs and advice from a dozen practitioners to figure out why she can’t get pregnant. But unfortunately, that is the reality today.

A successful round of IVF isn’t a solution. It’s a bypass. You’re still infertile. The tech just did the work your body couldn’t.

“You’re healthy, but just unlucky.” That’s what most doctors tell or imply to women who can’t get pregnant. It’s gaslighting. There’s always a reason.

Fertility requires overflow. Overflow of nutrients, energy, time, and space. If you are running a tight ship and barely holding on, why would your body ever think it is a good time to reproduce?

So many women blame themselves for not being able to get pregnant. Your body is not broken. It is just getting inputs and signals that are telling it that it is not safe to reproduction. Deep down inside, you are fertile. You just have to rediscover that power within you.

Your “normal” labs aren’t normal. They’re average. Average in today’s world = inflamed and infertile.

Insulin resistance is the root of more infertility than most doctors realize. Insulin is a master hormone. It affects egg quality, ovulation, implantation...pretty much everything. Fixing any blood sugar issues will 10x your fertility.