One of the first things I learned on this path is that for someone who had an absolute obsession with a perfect outcome for every professional marketing campaign that I touched, I wasn’t practicing this behavior personally. Case in point, nutrition and wellness.
Since I moved to NYC 9 ½ years ago, I have survived as a result of eating out and Seamless food delivery. Beyond the taste, I had zero idea what was actually making up these meals. From ingredients to quality control, I was not at all conscious of my daily nutritionally intake. In fact, I really wasn’t even a fan of vegetables. True story, I ate everything in a salad except for the greens. Most meals were focused on an animal protein because the menu items always seemed more exciting. So if I indulged with a cheeseburger, pizza, and more cocktails and glasses of wine than I could remember, I’d solve the program with a Berocca and a spin class the next day. I figured that as long as I wasn’t putting on too many pounds, my lifestyle must be working.
Then my fourth fertility doctor told me to take a pre-natal and focus on eating a Mediterranean diet. (Seriously what does Mediterranean diet actually mean to someone that defines cuisine type based on restaurant reviews and delivery site filters?) So I did what I was told and incorporated grilled octopus, Greek salad, hummus, and pita chips from the local Greek restaurant as staples into my diet.
My IVF outcomes were less than stellar for my first two rounds at the beginning of 2016 and I was also plagued with a flu or cold every month for the first four months of the year. Following my second failed IVF and sick once again, I lapsed into a slight depression fueled by an overwhelming feeling of helplessness. I had just wanted someone to tell me what to do to get pregnant so that I could focus on the rest of my life, but clearly that wasn't working.
Then something happened…. I decided that I was going to figure out what part I could actively play because I didn't feel like it needed to be the end of this journey. I called it after three days of a major pity party and dove head first into the sea of the Internet. After sifting through a lot of junk diguised as schemes and products to get pregnant quickly, I stumbled across an incredible book that I proceeded to download off of Amazon. “It All Starts with the Egg,” by Rebecca Fett, gave me hope and actual, tangible tools that got me started with my journey.
The book focuses on egg quality as the key to improving IVF odds and reducing miscarriage. It also has great research-backed concepts that might actually help natural conception. I wish I had found it so much earlier and credit it as my learning springboard. Rebecca’s personal story of trial turned to success inspired me to begin an action plan of my own centered around nutrition and wellness.
If you are interested in checking it out for yourself, you can find it here.