Join us to campaign for more support in the workplace

Infertility really doesn’t care what job you have does it..?

Judges, midwives, analysts, supermarket workers, policemen, and firefighters to name just a few – even fertility doctors all across the world will be working hard to save lives, deliver babies, and keep the world turning, whilst battling hard with their infertility diagnosis “behind the scenes”. 

Infertility also doesn’t care that you studied hard, or that you lead a healthy life. It doesn’t care that you have a stable home and that you would be the most amazing parent. It doesn’t care at all.

It just happens…..and it happens to millions of us – 1 in 6 people, all over the world

But the world has to keep turning, so those men and women get up, get out, go to work and keep doing what they do. They stifle the tears and deliver at work.

IVF babble’s new campaign, simply entitled ”I am”, will highlight this fact. 

Before we go more into the campaign, let’s just be clear…..

For those of you who are fortunate not to have ever experienced infertility, let us explain. First of all, infertility means the inability to conceive naturally. With this “fault” in the human reproductive system, comes an epic weight of emotional and mental distress that gets heavier and heavier as each year without conception passes – a distress and unease that still to this day is hidden away behind millions of “fake smiles”. 

Why hide the emotional pain?

Well, infertility isn’t seen to be something “that bad” by those unaffected by it. After all, it’s not cancer, or dementia, or Parkinsons, or any of those tragic diseases that attack the body. 

Infertility is not going to kill you is it?

If you were to ask this question to a man or woman who have been trying to conceive for years, who have spent thousands of pounds of fertility treatment, who are trying to stop their relationship from collapsing, who can’t see that they will ever become parents, who are completely drained by the pressure of trying to cope with the pressure of their personal lives, whilst going to work and putting on a brave face and getting their work done, you might get a different answer. 

This is why we are reaching out for change 

We want to highlight just how common infertility is. We want to show people that it exists everywhere, regardless of who you are or what you do. We want this campaign to build strength for those struggling. We want them to see that they are not alone. We want to celebrate their strength and offer them the tools, with the support of their employers at work, so that they can be even stronger.

We hope that by gathering enough voices, we can reach out to those that might not even know that they need support.

So what are we calling out for?

We are calling out to men and women across the globe whose lives have been touched by infertility, whether they are trying to conceive now or have become a parent following fertility treatment. 

We want to know what jobs they have mastered whilst trying to conceive and we want to know how they feel about themselves. We want them to use the statement “I AM”. 

We are asking people to send us a photo of themselves, to record a short clip or to send us your text to be shared anonymously to mystory@ivfbabble.com or DM Instagram.com/ivfbabble that includes the following:

• First name
• Job title
• Infertility cause
• Fertility treatment had

We will also ask people to fill out this short questionnaire to help us understand what support they feel is needed in the workplace for those TTC. 

With thjs campaign, we want to give a voice to the silence of fertility at work. We hope that it will grab the attention of employers – highlighting the impact of infertility and fertility treatments on employees and the need to provide the right support through informed policies.

If you would like to send us a video, please email katie@ivfbabble.com.

The ‘I am’ campaign