Who Am I Outside of TTC? Identity Loss During Fertility Treatment

"It was just such an identity shock for me. I'm the kind of person, I'm good at things. This isn't who I am." That is how Jessica Sirias Vasquez describes stepping into infertility and pregnancy loss after a lifetime of working hard and getting results. It is a feeling so many people trying to conceive know all too well.

This week we sit down with Jessica Sirias Vasquez, LMFT, a licensed marriage and family therapist and the founder of Nurture and Bloom, a therapy practice supporting women through trying to conceive, pregnancy, postpartum, and motherhood. We talk about what happens to your sense of self when fertility treatment starts to take over your life, and how to stay connected to who you are while living in the limbo between your old identity and a future you can't see yet. Jessica brings a decade of clinical experience and her own story of infertility and loss to a conversation about boundaries, people pleasing, grief, and learning to let yourself be supported.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why infertility can feel like such an identity shock, especially for people used to achieving whatever they work hard for
• How to live in the "state of limbo" between who you were and who you are becoming
• Practical ways to filter social media, starting with asking whether an account is bringing any value to your life right now
• Setting boundaries with friends and family, and why almost every choice comes with some kind of cost
• Navigating cultural and family pressure to have kids, and deciding how much, if anything, you want to share
• How fertility treatment can bring out people pleasing, masking, and the fear of being a burden, even with your own care team
• Grieving the relationships, plans, and pregnancy story you thought you would have
• Starting with what makes you feel "just okay," and why receiving support matters just as much as asking for it
• Rediscovering and learning to love yourself on the other side, whatever the outcome

More than anything, this episode is a reminder that losing yourself a little during fertility treatment does not mean something is wrong with you. What you are feeling right now is not permanent, and you do not have to carry all of it alone.

If you are in the thick of trying to conceive, feel like you no longer recognize yourself, or love someone who is walking this road, this episode is for you.

Connect with Jessica Sirias Vasquez:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nurtureandbloom.co/Website: https://www.nurtureandbloom.co/