This is Infertility is a bi-weekly podcast where we fuse narrative storytelling with experience and science to give you a new perspective on what it’s really like to go through a family building journey. Each episode dives into the emotional, physical, and financial burdens carried by those who experience infertility on their path to parenthood. Be it IVF, IUI, egg freezing, surrogacy, adoption, etc., the path is never the same and it can be long, painful, and lonely. It’s our mission to give those struggling a platform to be heard, a community connection, and an opportunity to raise awareness of the 1 in 6 who, for many reasons, struggle with infertility.
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This is Infertility

Episode 2: Infertility and Mental Health: Coping with the mental and emotional side effects

Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL), also known as a miscarriage, is a heart wrenching and physically difficult challenge many women and couples face when trying to start a family. It doesn’t matter if you’ve experienced a miscarriage once or multiple times, it’s still difficult to recover emotionally and physically. 

Today we hear from Karin Ajmani, President at Progyny. Karin suffered from secondary infertility where she didn’t have a problem getting pregnant, but she had trouble staying pregnant. Karin talks about her experience with her multiple miscarriages, the toll it took on her body – emotionally, physically, and mentally, the impact it had on her family and her career, and where she is now. 

Guest: Karin Ajmani, President at Progyny 

Host: Dr. Georgia Witkin, Clinical Psychologist, Mount Sinai, and Head of Patient Services Development at Progyny 

For more information visit Progyny’s Podcast page and Progyny’s Education page for more resources on how to best handle a miscarriage.  

Be sure to follow us on Instagram, @ThisisInfertilityPodcast and use the #ThisisInfertility. 

Have a question, comment, or want to share your story? Email us at thisisinfertility@progyny.com. 

Podcast-Headshot-Dr-Georgia-Witkin

Host

Dr. Georgia Witkin
Head of Patient Services Development for Progyny

Dr. Witkin is also an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Ob/Gyn and Reproductive Sciences at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, and Director of Psychological Services for RMA of NY. She is the author of 12 acclaimed books, including The Female Stress Survival Guide, The Male Stress Survival Guide, and Stress Relief for Disasters Great and Small, and is a prolific writer of research articles about women, stress, and reproductive medicine. She has been honored by the AIA, AFA, Resolve, and City of Hope. She has also served as a health reporter/host for CNBC, WNBC, and the Fox News Channel, and has been featured as a guest expert on 20/20, The Today Show, Good Morning America, CBS Evening News, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and CNN.

Podcast-Headshot-Dr-Karin-Ajmani

Guest

Karin Ajmani
President at Progyny

Bringing a multitude of specialty health and managed care experience, Karin is leading Progyny’s employer and consumer benefits products. Her mission is to expand employer coverage of infertility services by providing a SMART solution that is a win/win for employers, patients, and clinicians. Prior to joining Progyny, Karin was CEO of US Imaging for eight years, and previously served as CEO of CarePlus Health Plan, a managed care plan in NY, where she led the organization from inception in 1996 through its sale in 2005. Karin also serves on the boards of Autism Learning Partners, a national autism provider services company, and Citra Health, a leading healthcare technology company. Karin has a master’s in Public Health from Columbia Univ. and is a graduate of the Univ. of Pittsburgh.

Music From This Episode:

Artist: Kai Engel
Track: Cold War Echo
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/Sustains/Kai_Engel_-_Sustains_-_07_Cold_War_Echo

Track: Brand New World
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/Sustains/Kai_Engel_-_Sustains_-_01_Brand_New_World

Track: Evermore
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/Sustains/Kai_Engel_-_Sustains_-_06_Evermore

Artist: Cellophane Sam
Track: Run Hound
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Cellophane_Sam/Desire/Cellophane_Sam_04_Run_Hound

Track: Holiday Gift
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/Sustains/Kai_Engel_-_Sustains_-_03_Holiday_Gift

Artist: Rest_You_Sleeping_Giant
Track: Leaving For Chicago
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rest_You_Sleeping_Giant/Songs_for_a_Sad_Guitar/Rest_You_Sleeping_Giant_-_Songs_for_a_Sad_Guitar_-_10_Leaving_for_Chicago

Artist: Philipp Weigl
Track: Even When We Fall
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Philipp_Weigl/Sound-trax/Philipp_Weigl_-_02_-_Even_when_we_fall

Artist: Jahzzar
Track: MainSquare
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Jahzzar/handmade/MainSquare
Track: Curves
URL: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Jahzzar/handmade/Curves