In this episode, we speak with Lana Manikowski, an author and certified life coach who navigated a seven-year infertility journey that ended at age 44 after multiple rounds of IUIs and IVFs left her without a baby. Lana candidly discusses her decision to forgo further routes like adoption to avoid additional heartache, reframing the choice to stop treatment not as a failure, but as a courageous act of choosing oneself and one’s partnership. Lana opens up about the isolation, self-judgment, and "tiered grief" she experienced when her body didn't work as expected, and how she eventually found the strength to move forward with intention.
Lana shares how she transformed her struggle into a mission to help others rediscover their purpose beyond parenthood. The conversation explores practical strategies for reclaiming joy and relevance when the dream of motherhood does not come to fruition and the ways that Lana introduces a roadmap for life beyond infertility through her coaching program, Thrive After Infertility, her own podcast, and book, So Now What?.We also dive into her creation of The Other’s Day Brunch, an annual event in Chicago designed to provide a supportive community for childless women during Mother’s Day weekend, and her advocacy work with the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) to improve the continuum of care for patients whose treatments do not result in a baby and tips for people tackling the broader social challenges of being childless.
Connect with Lana at https://lanamanikowski.com/.
And get your ticket to the Other’s Day Brunch, May 8-9 2026 at https://lanamanikowski.com/othersday/.
TOPICS COVERED IN THIS EPISODE:
Unexplained infertility, IUI, IVF, childfree, childless after infertility, childless, resources, stories, meaningful lives without children, fertility treatment, So Now What?, Lana Manikowski, ASRM, fertility clinic, guilt, grief, shame, failure, fertility journey, childless not by choice, family building support, infertility resources, navigating infertility, emotional support for infertility, adoption discussions, couples without children, life after infertility, coping with childlessness, infertility treatment options, community for childless individuals, grief and infertility, celebrating motherhood alternatives, connecting during infertility, life coaching for infertility, fertility treatment insights, infertility awareness, support for childless couples, understanding unexplained infertility
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