Egg Freezing, Sperm Donation & Fertility with Dr Zoe Williams
In this bonus episode, Hannah is joined LIVE by NHS GP & TV Presenter Dr Zoe Williams, who shares her experience of egg freezing and sperm donation. Dr Zoe discusses the lifestyle choices that can affect fertility, and why fertility decreases with age. Her and Hannah also talk about whether men should be more involved in the conversation around fertility, and why we should talk about fertility as part of sex education. Finally, they chat about Zoe’s decision to become a solo parent and what the next steps involve.
Read the episode transcript here!
SHOW NOTES
What we chat about…
The term ‘body clock’ and whether it’s a useful phrase
What it means to preserve fertility as opposed to prolonging it
Dr Zoe’s segment on the One Show about egg freezing
The pros and cons of egg freezing
Will egg freezing be covered by the NHS in the future?
What qualifies a person for IVF
The differences between men and women when it comes to fertility preservation and treatment
Why we should share more about the phase of trying to get pregnant, including infertility and miscarriages
The importance of talking about fertility, and introducing those conversations, at the same time we start talking to young people about contraception (usually we only learn about not getting pregnant in sex education)
Lifestyle choices that can affect fertility
When a person is most fertile and why it changes with age
Why, nowadays, bodies are typically always in a low state of inflammation and how this affects fertility
The link between bodily and mental stress
How to find your fertility window
How fertility apps have been used as contraceptives , and whether this is safe
What could the future of fertility look like?
Why is the conversation around fertility typically between women as opposed to men?
The male contraceptive pill
How the egg freezing process works
Choosing sperm in sperm donation
Dr Zoe’s decision to be a solo parent
A Q & A with the audience, which covered:
Reasons for miscarriages
Genetic abnormalities
PCOS and how this affects fertility
The affect hormonal contraception has on fertility
The affect mental health have on fertility
Male fertility
Decisions around sperm donation
Cervical screenings and HPV screenings
Useful Links
The Natural Cycles App, which uses information on your fertility to help the user prevent pregnancy. Find out more about the app: https://www.naturalcycles.com/en/ Dr Zoe mentioned on this episode that the effectiveness rate of the app has had to be decreased - you can read more about the backlash to this app here.
Ava bracelets helps track a person’s fertility. Find out more: https://www.avawomen.com/
MORE ABOUT DR ZOE WILLIAMS
Zoe is an NHS GP and also a TV presenter. She is resident doctor on ITV’s This Morning, and has also presented on BBC, including on Horizons and Trust Me I’m a Doctor. She makes complex medical concepts much more understandable, and often discusses issues relating to physical activity, obesity and lifestyle.
Find out more about Zoe on her Instagram and Twitter.