Erin Andrews says she’s undergoing her 7th round of IVF in 8 years

Infertility looks different for every person experiencing it, but it’s universally stressful, emotional, and exhausting. Veteran sports broadcaster Erin Andrews is opening up about her own infertility journey, and her years-long experience with in-vitro fertilization. She is currently 43, and says she’s been undergoing treatments since she was 35 years old.

In a personal essay shared on Bulletin, Andrews says she’s currently undergoing her seventh round of IVF, which she describes as a “time-consuming and emotionally draining process.”

“I have been trying to do IVF treatment for a while now, but sometimes it doesn’t go the way you want it. Your body just doesn’t allow it,” writes Andrews.

“Every cycle is different in a woman’s body, so some months are better than others,” she continues. “When I heard this was the best time to go through another treatment, I had to figure it out all over again. How am I going to juggle this treatment on top of my work schedule? I got so stressed out. When this happens, it really makes you question: Is it the future of my family or is it my job?”

Andrews has been married to former NHL player Jarret Stoll since 2017. She says that while she’s kept her infertility experience private for years because of her job, she feels ready to open up about it now.

“I work in an industry where I think women feel the need to keep things like this quiet,” she explains. “But no, there are so many other women who maybe put their careers on the back burner because they don’t want to miss out on any opportunities. It’s so common that people are starting families late and put so many other aspects of their lives on hold.”

She says her producers were encouraging and helpful about her having to miss work for IVF appointments.

“They encouraged me to be open about it because this is real life,” she says. “It’s not like I’m leaving to go take a hot yoga class, I’m trying to have a baby. I am not ashamed, and I want to be vocal and honest about this.”

And she is honest. In her essay, she describes the process and the “mental and emotional toll” it takes on her body. She also talks about how much of a commitment it is to do, both with time and finances. And the “mental and physical anguish” when the IVF attempts are unsuccessful—one reason she and many others don’t talk about it.

“I think that’s why a lot of people choose to be quiet about it,” she says. “Because maybe we feel as if this is something we have to do, and we don’t want to jinx it. On the other hand, we can also feel like we’re a failure as females or to our partners. But we are all warriors for going through this!”

Andrews also touches upon another important point—more people are going through fertility struggles than we all likely realize. Just because people aren’t talking about it doesn’t mean they don’t need support.

“The fertility clinic can sometimes be so full, it’s heartbreaking, but we really aren’t alone here,” she says. “You never know who else is going through this; it could be another co-worker or the person making your coffee every day. There are more people than you think.”

She concludes her essay by saying there’s no need to feel shame about enduring infertility when it’s simply just a part of life for so many people.

“Instead of feeling ashamed, we need to give ourselves more love. It freaking sucks, because it can seem like it’s such a lonely thing. There are so many of us going through this though, and it’s just not talked about.”

Sending so much love and light to Erin Andrews and everyone else who may need it on their journey to becoming a mother.