Find an Infertility Therapist

Infertility therapy is a specialized form of counseling that supports individuals and couples experiencing fertility-related challenges. These may include:

• Difficulty conceiving (primary or secondary infertility)
• Pregnancy loss or recurrent miscarriage
• The emotional toll of fertility treatments (IVF, IUI, etc.)
• Decisions about donor conception, surrogacy, or adoption
• Navigating relationship strain due to fertility stress
• Coping with grief, shame, or loss of identity

A licensed infertility therapist provides emotional support, psychoeducation, and practical tools to help you cope with the uncertainty, grief, and stress that often accompany the fertility journey. Therapy can also help you process your hopes and fears, navigate tough decisions, and feel less alone.

You don’t need to wait for a crisis to seek support. Consider counseling for infertility if:

• You feel emotionally overwhelmed, hopeless, or isolated
• Fertility struggles are causing conflict in your relationship
• You’re navigating medical decisions that feel confusing or distressing
• You’ve experienced pregnancy loss or failed treatment cycles
• You feel consumed by anxiety, shame, guilt, or grief
• Social events (baby showers, announcements) trigger emotional pain
• You’re considering ending fertility treatment or changing your path to parenthood

Therapy offers a space where you don’t have to pretend you’re okay. You can be vulnerable, confused, angry, or grieving—and receive compassionate support every step of the way.

Infertility is not just a medical condition—it’s a profound emotional experience. Many people describe it as a grief that repeats month after month, often silently. The emotional effects can include:

• Depression and anxiety
• Shame or guilt about not being able to conceive
• Anger or jealousy toward others who are pregnant
• Emotional distancing from friends or family
• Struggles with identity and self-worth

In relationships, infertility can lead to:

• Increased stress and communication breakdowns
• Disagreements about next steps (when to seek help, whether to stop)
• Differences in how each partner grieves or copes
• Sexual disconnect due to performance pressure or sadness

Infertility therapy provides a supportive space to process these feelings, improve communication, and stay connected as a couple through an emotionally taxing time.

Yes—these feelings are completely normal and valid. Grief may stem from the loss of a pregnancy, a future you imagined, or a sense of control over your life. Shame can arise from internalized beliefs about what it means to be a parent or “successful.” Anger might target your body, your partner, or a system that feels unfair.

The pain of infertility is real—even if others don’t see or understand it. Therapy helps you name and process these emotions without judgment. You don’t have to carry the weight alone.

Absolutely. Fertility treatments—such as IVF, IUI, or hormone therapy—can bring hope, but also tremendous physical and emotional strain. Therapy can help you:

• Manage the anxiety of waiting for results
• Navigate emotional highs and lows of treatment cycles
• Cope with invasive procedures, medications, and physical discomfort
• Set realistic expectations and boundaries
• Process disappointment or failed cycles

Infertility counseling also supports decision-making around continuing, pausing, or ending treatment—and helps you define success in your own terms.

In infertility therapy sessions, your therapist will offer a safe, nonjudgmental space to explore your emotions, hopes, and fears. You can expect:

• Time to share your fertility story—at your own pace
• Emotional support for anxiety, grief, or shame
• Tools for stress management and self-care
• Help navigating relationship challenges
• Exploration of your beliefs around parenthood, identity, and worth
• Space to consider all paths forward—including alternative family-building options

Therapy is flexible. Some clients benefit from short-term support during treatment, while others use it as a long-term resource for overcoming infertility-related trauma and grief.

Infertility affects both partners, even if only one is undergoing the medical procedures. But people often cope with the emotional strain in different ways. One partner might want to talk constantly, while the other withdraws. One may feel hopeful after each treatment cycle, while the other braces for disappointment. These differences can create tension, misunderstanding, and even resentment.

Infertility therapy for couples provides a neutral space to:

• Express fears, hopes, and frustrations without judgment
• Improve communication by learning how to listen and respond with empathy
• Rebuild emotional intimacy that may have been disrupted by stress or disappointment
• Address how treatment affects your sex life, routines, or sense of connection
• Navigate disagreements about how far to go with medical intervention
• Grieve losses together, whether it’s a failed cycle, miscarriage, or shifting dream

Importantly, couples counseling for infertility reminds you that you’re on the same team. A qualified infertility therapist can help each partner feel heard and understood, while teaching tools to support one another more effectively. Even if you're at different emotional places, therapy helps you reconnect around shared goals and values.

Yes, and they can be incredibly healing. Infertility can be a deeply isolating experience. Friends and family may not understand, or may unintentionally say hurtful things like “Just relax and it’ll happen.” That’s why support groups and group therapy for infertility can be such a powerful complement to individual or couples counseling.

These groups offer:

• Validation from people who truly understand what you’re going through
• Shared coping tools for handling grief, treatment, or family pressure
• A safe place to talk about topics that may feel “off-limits” elsewhere—like jealousy, shame, or the fear of never becoming a parent
• Reduced loneliness and increased hope through connection
• A structured setting facilitated by a therapist (for group therapy) or peer-led (for informal support groups)

Some groups are general, while others are focused on specific experiences, such as miscarriage, IVF, donor conception, or LGBTQ+ fertility journeys.

Ask your infertility counselor or clinic if they offer group options, or search online for national organizations that host infertility support groups—many of which now meet virtually.