09/03/2026
Many women going through IVF recognise themselves in one of these three phases.
Hope.
Survival.
Protection.
When a woman first starts IVF, there’s often hope.
You believe this cycle might finally work.
You feel ready.
You’re willing to do whatever it takes.
But as time goes on, and especially after difficult cycles, many women move into survival mode.
Appointments.
Injections.
Waiting.
Google.
Your body is exhausted.
Your mind is constantly racing.
And after enough disappointment, something else can happen.
Protection mode.
You stop letting yourself hope.
You prepare for bad news before it even arrives.
Not because you’re negative.
Because you’ve been through so much and you’re trying to protect your heart.
This is the stage where many of the women I work with arrive.
Over the years I’ve supported women through this part of their journey, and around 90% of my clients go on to fall pregnant, many during their first IVF cycle.
Not because we control the outcome.
But because when a woman feels calmer, supported and emotionally safe in her body, she moves through treatment very differently.
And that can make a profound difference to the whole experience and, for many women, the outcome too.
If you’ve been through IVF, which phase felt the hardest for you?
Lucy
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