Stress & Fertility: The Known Invisible Link & Role of the Workplace
- Stephanie Sullivan
- Jun 17
- 4 min read
It's believed that "June" comes from "Juno", the Roman goddess of marriage and fertility. Consequently, this month carries a deep-rooted symbolism of new life and hope. In modern times, June is also recognised as World Infertility Awareness Month—a time to uplift, support, and empower those navigating difficult fertility journeys.
Infertility & Stress Awareness
For many, the journey through infertility is ongoing for years. It’s not just a personal matter — it’s a deeply human experience with far-reaching emotional, physical, financial, and even workplace impacts.
Many say, “I would do anything to be a mum / dad”, and truly believe you are doing everything within your power and control – taking all the supplements, losing weight (if recommended), following recommended fertility diets / eating plans, getting acupuncture for fertility, doing the hormone injections, maybe seeing a naturopath, getting lost of testing, and even stopping drinking alcohol. You are really doing everything you can and doing your best and give yourself the best chance of conceiving.
But, maybe there is something else going that’s not being addressed. Not through lack of desire or care, but through lack of awareness and knowledge. From my experience, I believe that many women don’t understand or realise the significant impact stress can have on fertility. And frustratingly, despite the known connection between stress and infertility, and all the experts involved in trying to medicate you with hormones to get the desired outcome, they many never asked about a potential root case that is getting your hormones out of whack in the first place -- your career / lifestyle and the stress you are under on a daily / weekly basis.
Stress and fertility are both prevalent health issues, which impact workplaces and which workplaces also impact. If you’re not experiencing the struggle of infertility yourself, then you know someone who is whether you realise it or not. Surprisingly, 1 in 6 couples globally experience infertility. Many quietly endure the emotional and physical demands of fertility treatments, doctor’s appointments, and monthly hope-despair cycles — all while trying to show up at work like everything's fine. It involves extensive, if not gruelling medical treatment, riding an emotional rollercoaster hoping to conceive.
The reality is that fertility treatment involves:
• Frequent, time-sensitive medical appointments with unpredictable scheduling
• Hormonal therapy and physical demands
• Time-off for day surgeries and recovery
• Needing to be in your “hometown” whenever stipulated
• Financial pressures and drain
• Serious emotion and identity strain (you feel broken as a woman / man, that you can’t conceive as nature intended)
Add stack on top of that client meetings, travel expectations, limited sick-leave, and the pressure to be mentally and often physically present at work — and it becomes nearly impossible to balance, especially without compassionate policies and people in the workplace.
Later this month I’m planning to host a FREE WEBINAR for World Infertility Awareness Month, focusing on the impacts of stress on fertility, and what we can do about it. Details to follow soon, or shoot me a message now if you’re keen to attend (or missed it), and I'll share the details with you. You may also want to check out the book I co-authored last year on Courage, which was an International Best Seller (Amazon US, UK, & Australia) and won an Impact Award. You can find the book and some free downloadable resources here.
Countries & Companies Leading in Fertility & IVF Support
Partially thanks to the COVID pandemic, we’re at a place in time where people now expect workplaces to be flexible and supporting, and if they are not, people have and will continue to walk out the door. And if you’re sticking around a workplace that isn’t flexible these days, don’t! Expect more for yourself and go find it!
Here are a few examples of organisations that offer support and flexibility, including leave days for reproductive health, emotional wellbeing programs, and some even provide medical coverage for fertility treatment. For example…
🌏 Many European countries offer complete funding for a set number of IVF cycles (conditions apply), and Isreal offers its residents extensive IVF coverage for multiple cycles. In Australia, the government has recently introduced or increased government subsidies for lower-cost subsidised fertility treatment and medications, and opened the first public IVF clinic in Melbourne (Oct 2022) offering free IVF treatment to women under 42 years old. Some Australian states also provide up to 10 days of paid reproductive health leave.
🏢 Globally, companies like Google, Microsoft & Apple offer fertility treatment benefits and emotional wellness support.
💻 Many workplaces now
offer flexible work hours and WFH or hybrid location options.
These governments, companies and their policies are not only kind, but wise. They attract and keep valuable talent in the workforce. People don’t leave places where they are treated well, and they’re able to manage their work around their life outside of it.
What About the Men in Our Lives?
Generally, women tend to talk about our worries and struggles and seek support, but men are notoriously bad about not doing so. Last week being International Men’s Health Week, helped to shine a light on this. Let’s be sure we support the men in our lives and encourage them to speak up about their struggles and worries, and get support and help when needed.
It's time to redefine strength as the courage to seek help. Join us in supporting the health and wellbeing of the men in our lives. Check out my new blog article Supporting the Wellbeing of Men in Our Life for insights and anonymous support lines. There's also a special offer within the blog article for a free coaching session for men this month (June 2025).
Stephanie Sullivan is a certified Life Coach, Health Coach, NLP Practitioner and founder of Elevate Your Life Coaching PTY LTD. After 25+ years in demanding, high-stress corporate roles as a business consultant, then a corporate executive, she knows first-hand about stress and trying to balance career and parenting demands, along with personal needs and wellbeing. Now Steph’s purpose is to help high-achieving professionals create the career & personal life truly desired –boosting confidence and courage, navigating change, achieving balance, growth, & career fulfilment.
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