See how women's FH success stories transformed their lives

It was lonely and dark before I started yoga. Once I got into the yoga routine and gained the support of others going through a similar journey, I realized that there was hope. I also got great ideas/suggestions or learned about new fertility pathways from Erin and the yoga girls.

I made connections with people who are now some of my best friends. They are people who understand the journey and who have supported me through the good times and the not so good times. I would have given up without them. I am also more mindful in my life which helps me be present with my fertility yoga success babies and I now love yoga!

Erin is a gift! She is wonderful – calming, non-judgmental, warm, supportive, optimistic, and encouraging to even those of us who aren’t flexible (and contrary to public opinion, I also learned that yoga isn’t about being flexible). She met me at my level and I never felt like I was “not doing it right.” To those thinking about joining, I’d say just try one class – it can’t hurt and it could change your life (worst case scenario you will end up relaxed and renewed)! It isn’t as intimidating as it seems.

I made connections with people who are now some of my best friends. They are people who understand the journey and who have supported me through the good times and the not so good times. I would have given up without them. I am also more mindful in my life which helps me be present with my fertility yoga success babies and I now love yoga!

Erin is a gift! She is wonderful – calming, non-judgmental, warm, supportive, optimistic, and encouraging to even those of us who aren’t flexible (and contrary to public opinion, I also learned that yoga isn’t about being flexible). She met me at my level and I never felt like I was “not doing it right.” To those thinking about joining, I’d say just try one class – it can’t hurt and it could change your life (worst case scenario you will end up relaxed and renewed)! It isn’t as intimidating as it seems.

Anonymous | New York City, NY
IUI Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

I had done 8 IUIs, had one miscarriage, switched to CNY for IVF, but that also failed. I had hit rock bottom and was debating calling it quits when Fertile Hope Yoga had been recommended to me by a good friend, so I decided to give it a chance.

I loved connecting with others from around the country. All the things we talked about and what others shared really inspired me to focus on taking care of myself, not just physically but mentally. I REALLY changed my mindset and attitude and I think that, in combination with everything else, was the major game changer for me. After 1 more failed IUI cycle my doctors recommended donor eggs due to low AMH and low response to meds. I found so much support in the yoga group as I processed this. I enjoyed being a part of a support group that actually supported each other. After a very long and complicated donor process, I got pregnant after my first transfer!

My advice for those still trying to conceive: It can’t hurt to try something different. Give the IGNITE program a try for at least a month and then decide.

Laura Schunk | Rochester, NY
IUI Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

I didn’t know how badly I needed the community aspect of the program, but I had a sense I could use some support so wanted to join IGNITE. At the time I joined I was just about to start IVF. I had been doing acupuncture for a while but figured adding the opportunity to do a yoga program designed for where I was in my fertility journey could not hurt!

To those on the fertility journey I would say, this journey is hard, and even harder on your own. This program supports you every step of the way and provides a community of people who understand what you are going through. They cheer you on when you have success and lift you up when you are feeling low.

Anonymous | San Francisco, CA
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

The mindset plays such a big part in helping the body through this process. I knew what I had to do for my mind, body and soul and the Fertile Hope Yoga program truly brought it all to surface.

Now I’m a mother of twins and I still use what I learned in the program. It’s important to have a healthy balance of mind, body and soul, and Erin’s fertility program brought this to life for all of us.

Kristin Guckian | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Fertile Hope yoga was a life saver for me. The support was incredible. Being able to share my innermost feelings helped lessen the pain I was feeling. And the focus on gratitude helped me keep perspective on a journey that can easily swallow you whole and consume your identity at times.

I learned that I was strong and could survive things that I used to think would kill me. While strength is inherent in this process it’s equally important to welcome fear, sorrow and whatever else comes up… feeling the grief and being vulnerable (not always feeling positive or strong) is essential in welcoming and inviting miracles and keeping hope alive. Often when you’re at rock bottom and ready to give up a miracle appears.

Knowing I was not alone and witnessing the strength and determination of my fellow womb warriors multiplied my power and helped me carry on.

Felicia Hershman | Rochester, NY
Natural Cycle Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

I felt lonely until I started this class because I didn’t know anyone I could share with other than my husband and close family. I’ve met some amazing women through yoga that I am now very close with.

I learned that no journey is the same but there are so many women wanting and hoping for the same thing – to be a mom.

Natalie DiMascio | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Having a group of people to talk to, ask questions, listen to your weekly struggles and triumphs became essential for my sanity! It was a nice break to allow myself to open up to someone other than my husband.

The yoga was so relaxing and helpful to calm my nerves during the most anxious steps of the journey. I quickly realized that the more you put into the group, the more you got out of it. The more open and honest I was— the more people connected and became a true life-line for me.

I was able to offer support to others and that in itself provides so much internal comfort and strength. My journey had previously been very “medical.” There was no mention of my anxiety level, breathing, or my emotional and spiritual well-being.

That all changed when I began going to yoga I learned to breath. I learned to let go of things I couldn’t control. I learned to find something every day that I’m truly grateful for. Seeing the positive sides of things was incredibly powerful.

I also learned a lot about my body and self-care. I started to notice when I felt tense and I could use my “tool box” of yoga positions to release tension, calm my nerves and decrease my stress level. I’m able to handle daily stresses and stay calm with much more ease and that positively reflects on my family as well.

Cairy Place | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Having a group of people to talk to, ask questions, listen to your weekly struggles and triumphs became essential for my sanity! It was a nice break to allow myself to open up to someone other than my husband.

The yoga was so relaxing and helpful to calm my nerves during the most anxious steps of the journey. I quickly realized that the more you put into the group, the more you got out of it. The more open and honest I was— the more people connected and became a true life-line for me.

I was able to offer support to others and that in itself provides so much internal comfort and strength. My journey had previously been very “medical.” There was no mention of my anxiety level, breathing, or my emotional and spiritual well-being.

That all changed when I began going to yoga I learned to breath. I learned to let go of things I couldn’t control. I learned to find something every day that I’m truly grateful for. Seeing the positive sides of things was incredibly powerful.

I also learned a lot about my body and self-care. I started to notice when I felt tense and I could use my “tool box” of yoga positions to release tension, calm my nerves and decrease my stress level. I’m able to handle daily stresses and stay calm with much more ease and that positively reflects on my family as well.

Cairy Place | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Before Fertile Hope Yoga, I felt lonely, lots of despair, and severely broken as a woman. After the first class, I was hooked. I had a tribe of women who gave me hope, challenged my limiting beliefs, and acknowledged my body was capable. A group of women who got me and only needed to give me a smile to acknowledge all will be well. They had my back and I had theirs.

Brenda Steffon | Hockessin, Delaware
Frozen Embryo Transfer Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

My fertility journey prior to CNY Fertility and Fertile Hope Yoga can be summed up into one word: CLINICAL! I worked with two other fertility centers before I found CNY Fertility through the recommendation of a colleague.

With the first two centers, I was treated as an individual who was part patient, part guinea pig. I felt that the staff at those offices didn’t have any compassion for how emotionally, mentally, and physically draining the fertility journey is.

Fertile Hope Yoga allowed me to have time for introspection and reflection and through that, gave me the opportunity to make choices that has brought my life to a more balanced completeness. The yoga program gave me tools to make space in my life for good vibes and positive thoughts by putting an end to negative self-talk and focusing on what uplifts me rather than brings me down.

Being able to express my thoughts and emotions about this journey allowed me to truly focus on each yoga pose and how those movements were bringing me closer to my dream of having a baby.

Crystal Peloquin | Henrietta, NY
Natural Cycle Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Fertile Hope Yoga is an amazing program. We would have been completely lost without it. It provided us with much needed information and insights about the process and connected us with some fantastic people! We were clueless and the program helped us feel prepared and informed. Joining FHY was the best decision we made in our fertility journey. – Sarah Pastecki

The magnitude of information and support we received throughout our journey was unparalleled. We felt confused, lost, and alone until we joined the fertility yoga program. I have learned how to process information and how to reach out to others for support and guidance when needed. – Katie Pastecki

Katie and Sarah Pastecki | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

After having two ectopic pregnancies resulting in both my tubes being removed, I kept most of my feelings inside. I didn’t talk much about it and just went through the motions. I struggled with the fact that I couldn’t have kids the traditional way. I think it made me tense and build a wall up.

Now I can talk about my situation and I feel comfortable doing so because I know I’m not the only one and I have a support group I can lean on if I need them. I’m even more blessed because I was able to conceive two beautiful children.

The first one I did IVF before the yoga fertility program and I was really sick from the meds and it took a few tries. When my husband and I decided to try again for baby number two, I was lucky to learn about Fertile Hope Yoga’s program and I didn’t get sick from the medicine because I learned great tips from the support group of yoga. I was able to relax and stretch my body and I was lucky enough to have success with baby number two.

It’s helped me really appreciate the things I have in my life.

LeEllen Despaw | Fairport, NY
IVF Secondary Infertility Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Once you can take that first leap and join Fertile Hope Yoga— a net of love, understanding and support will catch you! I was surprised by how much I needed something like this and didn’t even know (at the time) that I did.

I was so ashamed about my infertility, it was almost like the scarlet “I”. At 28 years old, I had followed all the rules: went to college, gotten a job, gotten married, bought a house. I wasn’t one of “those” people that couldn’t have a baby and needed IVF— I was supposed to be normal.

Your mom, your sister, your best friend and in some ways even your husband can’t understand what you are going through. Even though they love you so much they want to be there for you— they just can’t. This program gave me the support and love of women from all walks of life that could. We were all going through the same journey.

The program educated me so much. I learned about different medicines, protocols, surgeries— so many things! I became a better advocate for myself with all the information I gained. In this support circle, I cried so many tears with other women hearing about their stories of loss, surgeries, egg donor, sperm donor, injections, sadness, I could go on and on.

Yoga support helped me to stop focusing so much on the unfairness of infertility but rather on what I could do, how I could move forward, how I could continue living my life. I knew life had dealt me a card that others didn’t have to go through but I couldn’t let that anger and rage consume me. Laughing, crying, complaining, and celebrating with these women who were dealt the same cards in life helped to keep me from drowning in overwhelm.

I know I could have never survived three and a half years of this torture alone. I don’t know where I would be without these women. I know I wouldn’t be the person I am. I don’t know if I would have my beautiful miracle baby. This group kept me going through the hardest time in my life.

Yoga helped me to come to peace with this terrible journey, that I would never wish upon anyone, that I would endure a hundred times again if I could end up with my angel. That is what infertility yoga has given me. These yoga women have taught me so much about endurance, adversity, sadness, trust, and triumph. The more you learn and feel for others, really, the more you learn about yourself.

Abbey Briggs | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

For the first two years of our journey, I only spoke to my husband and our doctors about what we were going through. For the third year, we finally let some family/friends know— but they couldn’t relate and that made me feel more alone than before.

Once I started going to yoga, I felt free to focus on my mental/emotional health and realized I needed to reconnect with who I was… before all the medical appointments/medications.

During an IVF cycle, it was nice to have time at yoga where I could focus on my breathing versus stress about how my ovaries were doing or worrying about the outcome— even if it was just once per week, it gave me the chance to breathe.

Emily Fogarty | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

Before Fertile Hope Yoga my fertility journey felt clinical… then it turned into an insightful journey in which my eyes were opened to the wonders of my body and soul. I learned how to feel amazing even though everything might not be going exactly as planned. Yoga for fertility supported me and allowed me to trust my body again.

I began to appreciate things more fully after just a few classes of yoga for fertility. I was more aware of my body and how my mental thoughts affected not only me but those around me. It was truly one of the most rewarding times in my life.

Channeling love and support during concentrated yoga moves nourished my body the way the women in the room nourished my soul.

Liz Liming | Rochester, NY
IVF Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate

For the first two years of our journey, I only spoke to my husband and our doctors about what we were going through. For the third year, we finally let some family/friends know— but they couldn’t relate and that made me feel more alone than before.

Once I started going to yoga, I felt free to focus on my mental/emotional health and realized I needed to reconnect with who I was… before all the medical appointments/medications.

During an IVF cycle, it was nice to have time at yoga where I could focus on my breathing versus stress about how my ovaries were doing or worrying about the outcome— even if it was just once per week, it gave me the chance to breathe.

Katya Metidieri | Rochester, NY
Frozen Embryo Transfer Success Story + Fertile Hope Yoga Graduate