In this powerful episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, hosts Ciaran and Shaun speak with Olly Brown about his personal experience of miscarriage and his mission to break the silence surrounding pregnancy loss, particularly for men. In this episode, Olly reveals: The Hidden Reality of Miscarriage: After experiencing loss at 13 weeks, Olly discovered that miscarriage affects people everywhere but remains largely unspoken. Once people knew about his experience, countless others shared their own st...
Jul 16, 2025•39 min•Season 4Ep. 12
Ciaran is co-host of The Male Fertility Podcast and a personal trainer with extensive experience in male fertility challenges. Having navigated his own fertility journey, including approximately £45,000 worth of NHS treatment and additional private costs, Ciaran brings both personal insight and professional expertise to help men understand the physical and emotional aspects of fertility struggles. His background in fitness and health allows him to provide practical advice on lifestyle factors th...
Jul 09, 2025•25 min•Season 4Ep. 11
In this episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, GP and male health expert Dr Anand Patel joins hosts Ciaran and Shaun to discuss the shocking gaps in medical education around male fertility and why the current system is failing men. In this episode, Dr Patel reveals: The Training Crisis: How GPs receive virtually no education about male fertility, with 80% admitting they don't feel confident interpreting semen analysis and 90% unable to properly examine for varicoceles - despite male factors bein...
Jul 02, 2025•53 min•Season 4Ep. 10
In this episode of The Male Bag, Shaun tackles listener questions about the emotional and practical challenges of male fertility struggles, offering honest insights from his own three-year journey with azoospermia and donor conception. In this episode, Shaun reveals: Opening Up to Friends and Family: How starting small with "one person, one sentence" can break down the barriers to sharing your fertility struggles, and why Shaun waited three years before telling his mates. Managing Daily Anxiety ...
Jun 25, 2025•19 min•Season 4Ep. 9
In this episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, male fertility advocate Jonathan Luwagga joins hosts Ciaran and Shaun to share his deeply personal journey from childhood surgery to becoming a powerful voice for men facing fertility challenges, breaking cultural barriers and transforming shame into advocacy. In this episode, Jonathan reveals: The Hidden Impact of Childhood Conditions How his surgery for undescended testicles at age 14 unknowingly set the stage for his adult fertility struggles, hi...
Jun 18, 2025•41 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Host Ciaran answers your most pressing questions about male fertility in this special Male Bag episode. From when to get tested to dealing with the emotional impact of diagnosis, this episode provides honest, experience-based guidance for men navigating fertility challenges. In this episode, Ciaran discusses: Why men should be proactive about fertility testing after a year of trying How to cope with feelings of inadequacy after a male factor diagnosis Whether past lifestyle choices cause fertili...
Jun 11, 2025•19 min•Season 4Ep. 7
In this episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, psychosexual therapist Kate Moyle joins hosts Ciaran and Shaun to discuss the complex relationship between sex and fertility, addressing the often unspoken sexual side effects of fertility struggles. In this episode, Kate reveals: Men Do Seek Help : Contrary to common belief, Kate's practice is approximately 50/50 in terms of gender, with erectile dysfunction being one of the most common issues men seek help for. Performance Anxiety and Modern Press...
Jun 04, 2025•52 min•Season 4Ep. 6
In this episode of The Male Bag, host Shaun answers your most pressing questions about his journey as a sperm donor recipient father. Drawing from his personal experience, Shaun addresses six common themes that emerged from questions submitted via email, Instagram, and the NeXYs Fertility support community. Episode Highlights: Coming to Terms with Donor Sperm (00:01:00) : Shaun shares his emotional journey of accepting the need for donor sperm and redefining his identity as a future father. He d...
May 28, 2025•25 min•Season 4Ep. 5
In this powerful episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, hosts Shaun and Ciaran welcome Natalie Silverman and Becky Kearns, co-founders of Fertility Matters at Work. This Community Interest Company is dedicated to improving fertility support in workplaces across the UK and beyond. Both guests bring their personal fertility journeys and professional expertise to the conversation, creating a compelling discussion about the challenges faced by employees undergoing fertility treatment and how employe...
May 21, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Welcome to the very first Male bag episode of The Male Fertility Podcast! In these episodes, we will answer your questions about male fertility. If you have a question you'd like answered, please email: themalefertilitypodcast@gmail.com . This episode covers: How can a man tell if he's infertile, and are there any signs to look out for? Are there specific lifestyle changes or habits to improve male fertility? Is it still possible to have children with a low sperm count? What are the main signs o...
May 14, 2025•17 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Is a mother's instinct innate while fathers have to learn? Evolutionary anthropologist Dr. Anna Machin joins us to debunk this myth and dive deep into the fascinating science behind fatherhood. In this episode, Dr. Machin reveals: The Myth of Maternal Instinct: Both men and women undergo significant hormonal and brain changes to prepare for parenthood. Men do have parenting instincts – trust them! The Fatherhood Transition: While it might take dads longer to settle into their role (around 18 mon...
May 07, 2025•55 min•Season 4Ep. 2
We're back for Season 4 of The Male Fertility Podcast, and what better way to kick off than with a special episode for Testicular Cancer Awareness Month? This time, we're joined by two brilliant guests: former professional footballer Henri Lansbury and fertility expert Professor Allan Pacey. Henri shares his powerful personal story, from discovering a lump by accident to the whirlwind journey of diagnosis and surgery. His honesty about the fear, waiting game, and emotional aftermath will strike ...
Apr 30, 2025•37 min
In this powerful series finale, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Frank Fallon to discuss his journey through male factor infertility, successful ICSI treatment, and what life looks like after. Frank and his wife faced male factor infertility before achieving success on their first round of ICSI. Determined to understand his diagnosis, Frank pursued additional NHS tests, which ultimately revealed an abnormal varicocele. Despite the NHS declining further testing, Frank improved his fertility health ...
Mar 12, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Season 3Ep. 10
In this episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, Shaun and Ciaran sit down with Carl Tracey to discuss his fertility journey—the challenges, emotions, and lessons learned along the way. Carl shares how he and his wife Catherine struggled to conceive for two years before seeking medical help. He opens up about the confusion of receiving his semen analysis results, which revealed low sperm count, poor motility, and abnormal morphology. He describes the frustration, denial, and eventual acceptance th...
Feb 26, 2025•59 min•Season 3Ep. 9
On today’s episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Josh Coulson to talk about his ongoing fertility story. Josh opens up about his story which started back in 2020 after trying to conceive for a year with his wife and nothing happening. Josh, like a lot of people, assumed that this was a female problem, but when they were both referred to a clinic, he soon found out that there was a whole other world he was not aware of. He shares what he has been through up to this...
Feb 12, 2025•1 hr•Season 3Ep. 8
In this episode of the Male Fertility Podcast, Toby Burns joins Shaun and Ciaran to share his story. The guys talk about the strain infertility placed on Toby’s relationship, and how he and his wife supported each other through the hardest times. When they finally opened up to others, it led to unexpected discoveries—Toby’s younger brother also carries the cystic fibrosis gene which is what caused Tony's own fertility issues. Today, after a long and challenging journey, Toby and his wife are ble...
Jan 29, 2025•59 min•Season 3Ep. 7
In this week’s episode of the podcast, Shaun and Ciaran are delighted to be joined by Yiannis Christodoulou, a triathlete for Great Britain, who is here to talk about his infertility journey. Yiannis shares that his sister went through IVF, so he was aware that people can struggle to conceive, but he assumed he and his wife would fall pregnant naturally and easily. Yiannis talks about his low motility and how he was not given much support or any clear advice. Some of the advice he did receive wa...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Joining us this week on The Male Fertility Podcast is Tony Suckling - here to share his long and emotional fertility journey. After years of trying to conceive with his wife with no success, Tony decided to take a basic sperm test. The results showed a low sperm count, prompting him to make lifestyle changes in the hope of improving it. When nothing worked, they turned to a fertility clinic. At their first consultation, Tony was told they wouldn’t be able to conceive naturally. Tony shares how t...
Jan 01, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 5
In this week’s episode, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Marc Bear to talk about his long fight with infertility. From the initial assumption that starting a family would “just happen” to confronting the reality of an infertility diagnosis, Marc shares the highs and lows of his path to fatherhood. After years of trying to conceive he was eventually diagnosed with Klinefelter Syndrome. The diagnosis was both a revelation and a challenge, helping him make sense of his childhood experiences while pre...
Dec 18, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Season 3Ep. 4
This week on The Male Fertility Podcast , Shaun and Ciaran sit down with Matt to hear his deeply personal story of navigating male infertility. After trying and failing to conceive, Matt and his wife went to the GP - however, it was only his wife that was referred for tests. A whole year and a half later, Matt was finally referred for a sperm test. Sadly he was initially misdiagnosed with a low count, whereas it later transpired that they'd misread his results....he actually had no sperm. He ref...
Dec 04, 2024•53 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Welcome to a new episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, where we're joined by another guy sharing his story to help others. This week, we chat with Rob as he shares his personal journey through infertility. After months of trying to conceive, Rob and his partner initially received a misdiagnosis of PCOS. Frustrated and searching for answers, Rob took it upon himself to have a sperm test, and the adverse results led him to speak to Dr. Jonathon Ramsay, who identified a varicocele, and diagnosed R...
Nov 20, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Hello and welcome back to another episode of The Male Fertility Podcast! We are so delighted to be sharing this series with you as this one is all about giving a voice to the audience. And to kick start the series off, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Sean Farrell, who has been listening to the podcast since he started on his fertility quest. And crucially, he is still going through it at the moment. Sean shares how he received his test results of a sperm analysis over the phone, and that they gav...
Nov 06, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 3Ep. 1
So, here we are, the final episode of Series 2. And to celebrate that, Shaun and Ciaran met up to record their first ever in-person episode. This episode looks back on each episode from the series, and sees the lads reflect on the advice and knowledge that was shared by each expert guest. The boys unpick the information, and share their key takeaways from each episode, as well as summarising the information that each guest brought. Shaun and Ciaran also talk about the next series that is on the ...
Aug 28, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 10
This week, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Professor Allan Pacey MBE to talk all things male fertility. What Allan doesn't know in this field isn't worth knowing! Allan is the Professor of Andrology at the University of Manchester as well as Deputy Vice President and Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Biology. For 17 years he was the Head of Andrology for Sheffield Teaching Hospitals where he ran the Andrology Laboratory and Sperm Bank. As an academic he has published over 250 research papers, book ch...
Aug 07, 2024•57 min•Season 2Ep. 9
This week we talk to Robin Hadley about involuntary male childlessness. Robin is a leading expert on the psychological and societal impact of male childlessness. He completed his Masters on the subject, and has subsequently written several academic papers on the topic, as well as his critically acclaimed book on the subject. Shaun, Ciaran and Robin discuss the complexities of being a man, and being childless-not-by-choice. We delve into how childless men are viewed and treated, as well as the so...
Jul 24, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Season 2Ep. 8
*Warning - this episode includes discussions on pregnancy loss and miscarriage* In this week’s episode, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Jackie Stewart, an accredited independent counsellor who specialises in fertility counselling. We discuss miscarriage and pregnancy loss, specifically the impact it has on men - who are so often forgotten in this scenario. Ciaran shares his own experience with pregnancy loss, how he felt, and the mixed emotions that he experienced as a result. We explore the fear...
Jul 10, 2024•58 min•Season 2Ep. 7
On this episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by leading expert in fertility, Dr Tim Child. Having previously focused heavily on male infertility, what that means, the treatments available, and how to process it - the conversation around what happens next is a crucially important one for the podcast. Ciaran and Shaun talk to Dr Child about the process of IVF, from the initial tests your doctor will do beforehand, right through to embryo transfer. We discuss what 'lon...
Jun 26, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 6
This week on The Male Fertility Podcast, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by specialist fertility counsellor, Tracey Sainsbury. Tracey is a specialist fertility counsellor, dedicated to providing compassionate support and guidance to individuals and couples navigating the complexities of fertility challenges. She is an advisory board member for various organisations and charities. Beyond these advisory roles, Tracey is a respected trainer for both the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists (CO...
Jun 12, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 5
This episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by senior fertility nurse specialist, Francesca Steyn. Francesca is the Clinical Services Manager at the Wales Fertility Institute. She has over 18 years of experience in the sector, and is the current chair of The Royal College of Nurses' Fertility Nursing Forum. What is a Fertility Nurse?: Francesca talks about the vital role fertility nurses play, and why they are so important to patients going through fertility struggles...
May 29, 2024•55 min•Season 2Ep. 4
In this week’s episode of The Male Fertility Podcast, Shaun and Ciaran are joined by Melanie Brown, one of the leading nutritionists in the fertility world. She has worked with some of the leading clinics and professionals in the UK fertility industry, and is currently writing a book on how to improve male fertility with the urologist and male fertility expert, Jonathan Ramsay, and the mens health expert Dr Anand Patel. For her Masters, her final thesis researched the effect of obesity and diet ...
May 15, 2024•25 min•Season 2Ep. 3
