Are you sick and tired of fertility treatments not working? Are you stuck in a vicious cycle of hopelessness, despair, anxiety, and isolation? If so, today’s episode is for you. Listen to learn how you can bring together your “A” Team for your fertility journey. We will discuss the differences and complementarity with an REI physician and me as your fertility coach. We will also discuss what I offer from a coaching standpoint, which adds significant value and success to what is typically provide...
Jan 09, 2025•25 min
Download The Physician Fertility Roadmap - a 6-step, evidence-based plan to optimize your fertility over the next 6-12 months. https://support.loveandsciencefertility.com/The-Physician-Fertility-Roadmap Have you ever had the experience of seeing numerous follicles on your ultrasound, only to wake up from your retrieval with a much lower number than you expected? If so, this episode is for you. I review the biological inefficiency involved in cohorts of follicles, and why only some eggs are retri...
Jan 02, 2025•36 min
Join us today for a deep and inspiring conversation with Dr. Isabelle Amigues. What a beautiful way to conclude this year's podcast episodes by sharing her story of hope. Dr. Isabelle was once in your shoes--powerless, without control, and feeling threatened by not having a family of her own. She even tried IVF, which did not work for her. However, by believing in possibility and letting go of that which did not serve her, she was able to experience her dream of becoming a mother as well as use ...
Dec 26, 2024•48 min
Most sentient humans have at least some complex emotions around the holidays. Today's podcast normalizes that complexity and provides tools for navigating the triggers. I discuss a framework which helps to prevent most triggers, deal with them in the moment, and then use them as a learning opportunity to better navigate future triggers. I also discuss how to look for gratitude and progress in a world which largely has us focus on scarcity. Let's live in the gain and not the gap this holiday seas...
Dec 19, 2024•27 min
Download The Physician Fertility Roadmap - a 6-step, evidence-based plan to optimize your fertility over the next 6-12 months. https://support.loveandsciencefertility.com/The-Physician-Fertility-Roadmap Today we dive into the complex territory of why some embryos simply do not take, especially when they are deemed “euploid” by the lab. Sometimes it’s the embryo itself, and sometimes the environment, and sometimes both. However, a curious approach is the best approach, and know that I am 1000% co...
Dec 12, 2024•17 min
Today we discuss three strategies to get through the horrible situation when your period won’t come. If this has ever happened to you, you know exactly how distressing it can be, especially when you’re waiting for a treatment cycle to start. Listen and be empowered by my experience of helping thousands of women with this very problem. Support the show As always, please keep in mind that this is my perspective and nothing in this podcast is medical advice. If you found this conversation valuable,...
Dec 05, 2024•26 min
Join us today as we share my guest appearance on Candid Conversations with Dr. Funke Afolabi-Brown. I decided to share this interview on my podcast as I get so many questions from my physician clients about sleep, many of whom need to work shifts at odd hours or take long hours of call. This episode is full of evidence-based pearls regarding the connection between sleep and fertility. I hope you enjoy these valuable insights and take a few with you to augment your fertility journey! Xo, Coach Er...
Nov 28, 2024•34 min
Today Dr. Faryal Michaud shares her immense wisdom from years of taking care of patients with unexpected diagnoses and often at the end of life: the importance of balancing grief and gratitude why some people need to plan as a coping strategy the importance of curiosity and compassion letting go of expectations getting clarity running the mile you are in Dr. Faryal Michaud is a Board Certified Palliative Care Physician, Life and Wellness coach living and practicing in Hawaii. She hopes that by t...
Nov 21, 2024•30 min
Have you ever wondered why you feel so irritable all of the time? Have you ever gotten a call from your fertility clinic which made you go through the roof? Did someone in your life say something which set you off and ruined your day? These are common experiences for women physicians with infertility. Today, Dr. Arpita discusses how we can recognize anger when it’s present, understand what it is telling us, and learn how to meet our own needs. In this way, we can move forward in a much better en...
Nov 14, 2024•45 min
Download The Physician Fertility Roadmap - a 6-step, evidence-based plan to optimize your fertility over the next 6-12 months. https://support.loveandsciencefertility.com/The-Physician-Fertility-Roadmap Have you ever read online about “silent endometriosis” and wondered if you might have it? Today I review what endometriosis is, why it matters, how to diagnose it, and how to treat it for optimal fertility outcomes. Although this is not medical advice, I strive to provide value to empower and edu...
Nov 07, 2024•20 min
Have you ever stared at a semen analysis report and not known how to analyze it? This was me until my Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Fellowship. There are so many lines and reference ranges—what does it all mean? This episode breaks down male factor infertility into understandable clinical pearls. I review the most important components of a semen analysis, when it should be repeated, and when labs and a referral to a Reproductive Urologist is warranted. I review some of the controver...
Oct 31, 2024•23 min
Encore of the very first episode. We explore how we are not alone when we find ourselves with a fertility threatening diagnosis. We discuss how an infertility diagnosis can affect our feelings, our relationships, and our perspective of life in general. At Love and Science, we empower, we educate through evidence, and we use mindful self compassion to start to heal from the inside out. We discuss a few clients and patients who have benefitted from using coaching tools to re-discover their values ...
Oct 24, 2024•17 min
If you are dealing with infertility, have you ever been on the receiving end of an insensitive comment? (Of course you have. I don't know anyone who hasn't). If you are the friend of someone with infertility, have you ever said something well-meaning which went down like a lead balloon? (You probably have, even if you don't know it yet.) Today we discuss my top 5 strategies for how to support a friend with infertility, especially after they have received good news. It is impossible to understand...
Oct 17, 2024•25 min
Today we talk with Dr. Chrissy Guidry, who is also a coach, about her personal journey with infertility. She shares insights from her own life about clean living such as cleaning up the mindset as well as optimizing diet and lifestyle. She discusses what it was like for her to be both a physician and a fertility patient, and how we can better support one another throughout the process. She also discusses her decision to proceed with donor egg IVF and the mindset shifts she needed to be able to m...
Oct 10, 2024•46 min
In this episode, I discuss how you and your partner can come together and leverage your strengths to face the fertility journey together. So often, this process drives a wedge between couples, and in this episode I provide strategies for improved communication and understanding. You will find ways to honor both of your experiences and remember your shared values, even if in the present you are approaching this process from different perspectives. I will help you figure out each of your needs and...
Oct 03, 2024•28 min
In this episode, I delve into the topic of recurrent pregnancy loss. If you suffer from this, you understand well the range of feelings and fears which can exist, often (and especially when) no diagnosis is found. I review the evaluation and coping strategies to reframe this situation. I see you, and you are not alone! Rooting for you always, Coach Erica Support the show As always, please keep in mind that this is my perspective and nothing in this podcast is medical advice. If you found this co...
Sep 26, 2024•18 min
Have you ever wondered what your ovarian reserve values mean, and how your REI uses them to make decisions about your fertility care? Perhaps your OBGYN rotation feels like eons away. This episode will help to go back to reproductive physiology to empower and enlighten you. These concepts matter, especially as they pertain to your next right thing. Rooting for you always! Support the show As always, please keep in mind that this is my perspective and nothing in this podcast is medical advice. If...
Sep 19, 2024•22 min
As most of you know by now, one of my three pillars at Love and Science is evidence. My goal is to empower physician women to make evidence-based choices which will positively affect their fertility journey and their ultimate outcome. Today, we discuss embryo grading and preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy. It can feel a lot like alphabet soup. As physicians we often judge ourselves when we don't understand the vocabulary, especially when it pertains to our own care. I hope you find t...
Sep 12, 2024•20 min
Although it would be wonderful if we could be happy for people who have what we want, it doesn't always work that way, especially on the fertility journey. Today we dive into the 5 things that friends of people on the fertility journey need to know in order to be more loving and supportive. Infertility can be hard on friendships, but this episode will help to mend the gap, which is fundamentally about being seen and understood. Let's change the narrative for friendship during this vulnerable and...
Sep 05, 2024•18 min
What do you do when your friend announces a pregnancy, and you want nothing more than to be pregnant yourself? Today we dive into the 5 things that people on the fertility journey need from their friends without infertility, and how their well meaning (but sometimes relatively insensitive) friends can be more supportive. Infertility can be hard on friendships, but this episode will help to mend the gap, which is fundamentally about being seen and understood. Support the show As always, please ke...
Aug 29, 2024•22 min
Have you ever felt stuck in rumination loops, and all you can focus on is the negative? This is very common, especially when undergoing the fertility journey. It can become so easy to focus on what is not going well, and then we can end up in hopelessness and despair. However, even on the darkest days, there is always something to be grateful for. Perhaps it's having heat or air conditioning when the weather is extreme. Perhaps it's a hot cup of coffee or tea. Or perhaps something as simple as g...
Aug 22, 2024•8 min
What do the beach and the fertility journey have in common? Join us as we reveal the answer through a heartfelt exploration of finding constants in life's ever-changing landscape. We'll share personal stories from over three decades of family trips to a cherished seaside retreat, highlighting how the moon, sun, and familiar geography provide a comforting sense of continuity. You'll discover how sensory experiences like the feel of sand, the sound of the wind, and the scent of seawater can help a...
Aug 15, 2024•18 min
Have you ever felt like your mind was an overgrown garden, full of weeds that choke out the beauty and growth you desire? This week on the Love and Science podcast, we promise to equip you with the tools to transform your mental landscape. Inspired by my own overgrown yard, we'll discuss how negative thoughts and limiting beliefs can take root deep within us, stifling our potential. Through the lens of a fertility journey, we will tackle specific mental weeds such as feelings of inadequacy and d...
Aug 09, 2024•19 min
In this episode, which I'm recording during my birthday week, I discuss 5 strategies for honoring our birthdays with grace and self compassion. We discuss how to acknowledge and process all of the feelings which come along with being another year older, and how to take back some agency and joy to find meaning and support on our special day (and even our birthday month). We can use our birthdays as an opportunity for reflection, instead of something we merely suffer through. Here's to our most au...
Aug 01, 2024•33 min
Today, we have our first ever guest at the Love and Science podcast, Dr. Dana Gibbs! We discuss the nuances of thyroid disease and treatment, especially as pertains to infertility and recurrent loss. Join us as she brings clarity and hope with her detailed understanding of physiology and her decades of helping women who previously have not been able to be helped. Here is her bio and a link to the course she so generously is sharing with us: Dr. Dana Gibbs is an educator, hormone expert, board-ce...
Jul 25, 2024•39 min
Today we discuss regret, which is a very expensive emotion. We discuss why we have it, especially as it pertains to the fertility journey, and how to use self compassion to forgive ourselves and move forward. We all can learn how to move beyond regret to start making choices now which align with our values and our highest purpose. Support the show As always, please keep in mind that this is my perspective and nothing in this podcast is medical advice. If you found this conversation valuable, boo...
Jul 18, 2024•8 min
Today we discuss strategies for steadiness and grounding when you feel off-kilter. We all have those days and sometimes seasons in our lives. The fertility journey is a time where many of us feel off-kilter. Today's podcast is very practical and will help you to find more agency in your day to day life. My hope is to free up some brain space for the things which truly matter. Support the show As always, please keep in mind that this is my perspective and nothing in this podcast is medical advice...
Jul 11, 2024•18 min
What does freedom mean, especially in the context of the fertility journey? Today, I discuss the stark contrast between the sense of control in demanding professions like medicine and law versus the overwhelming powerlessness often felt when dealing with fertility challenges. Let's reflect on what might be holding us back—be it personal fears, societal pressures, or self-doubt—and learn strategies for reclaiming freedom to have a truer, more authentic fertility journey. In this episode, I empowe...
Jul 04, 2024•25 min
Growing up in a conservative Catholic environment, I always felt like I was navigating a labyrinth of expectations and norms that rarely aligned with my true self. On this special Pride Month episode of the Love and Science podcast, I reflect on my own path to self-discovery and how embracing my authentic identity has shaped my professional journey, especially in the realm of fertility. Through personal stories and professional insights, we delve into the unique challenges and triumphs faced by ...
Jun 27, 2024•12 min
Can authentic hope transform your fertility journey? Discover how grounding optimism in evidence and realistic expectations can make all the difference. In this episode of the Love and Science podcast, we unpack what it means to foster authentic hope during fertility treatments. By drawing parallels to structured treatment plans like chemotherapy, we emphasize how clear communication and well-defined roadmaps can help patients feel more informed and less lost. We also discuss tangible factors su...
Jun 20, 2024•25 min
