Welcome to BFN
Launching in January
We are Gabby Griffith and Emma Haslett – both journalists, and both card carrying members of the infertility club.
In 2018, we were both in the middle of infertility “jourrrrneys” when we decided to start a podcast, Big Fat Negative. That was partly because we wanted an excuse to bitch and moan to each other; partly because we felt that sharing our stories could provide support to others — but mainly, we’ll be honest, because we wanted an excuse to call up a fertility doctor each week (for free!) to ask them increasingly weird questions. Questions you don’t think of when you’re sitting with your fertility doctor, like “I’m spotting! Help!!” and also: “will eating pineapple get me pregnant?” and “will eating McDonald’s chips get me pregnant?” and “will drinking raspberry leaf tea get me pregnant?” (you get the picture).
Since then, BFN has had seven series, over 130 episodes, and almost 2.5 million downloads. We’ve appeared in newspapers and on the radio, and it’s even been turned into a book.
During that time, we’ve interviewed doctors, embryologists, psychologists and big names – people like Emma Barnett, Izzy Judd, Maxine Peake, the writers of the movie “Joy” and even the first IVF baby: Louise Brown. We’ve put those awkward questions to Dr. Tim Child, associate professor of reproductive medicine at the University of Oxford and all-round good sport.
And, most importantly of all, we’ve spoken to ordinary people going through infertility, who have shared their stories of TTC, IVF, miscarriage, surrogacy, adoption, ectopic pregnancies, stillbirth, and everything in between. They’ve talked about getting back on the horse and realising when to stop. They’ve talked and laughed and cried with brutal frankness and openness, so our listeners feel less alone.
Now we’re putting BFN into Substack form, so you can get all BFN’s support and expertise delivered straight to your inbox.
What our Substack will look like
Free subscribers: The Waiting Room
Free subscribers will get occasional (we’ll aim for weekly) posts, sent out on a Monday, by Gabby and Emma, riffing on the latest news and research. Ideal reading for when you’re hanging about before an appointment.
The Waiting Room will take a sideways glance at what’s happening in the world of fertility and reproductive health – whether that’s our view on the latest figures showing a declining fertility rate, a new advance in reproductive medicine, or a horrifying new rule on abortion coming out of the US.
Paid subscribers: IVF WTF?
Apart from the cosy glow you get from supporting us, on top of The Waiting Room paid subscribers will receive a weekly (sent out on a Thursday) email containing actionable advice and support.
Sometimes, this newsletter will ask women to “tell us about your jourrrrney”, sharing a story from an ordinary reader, so you feel less alone.
In other issues, we’ll answer questions from our readers: putting them to experts (including, but not limited to, Prof Tim), as well as women who have been there before you. Think of it as a more in-depth version of our IVF WTF segment.
Topics might include:
Five ways to prepare for IVF
Injections: what to worry about (and what not to)
The science behind recurrent implantation failure
Can you really improve egg quality?
Supplements: sorting the wheat from the chaff
The signs of perimenopause (and what to do if you have them)
Lots more!
Sound good?