Lucy Froese: What Male Infertility Can Feel Like
Lucy Froese, Fertility and IVF Coach, shared on LinkedIn:
” ‘I feel like less of a man because I can’t get my partner pregnant.’
These are the kinds of words I’ve heard from men I’ve supported through male factor infertility.
And they stay with me.
Because behind those words is often so much shame, guilt and sadness.
Men who have grown up believing that getting their partner pregnant is something they should just be able to do.
And when they discover there’s a problem with their sperm, they feel they’ve somehow failed.
But infertility isn’t just a women’s issue.
And we really need to start talking about that.
It’s something we experienced ourselves.
After our first daughter was born through IVF, we decided to try for another baby.
But this time, we discovered male factor infertility.
We were fortunate enough to work with Mr Jonathan Ramsay, a specialist in male fertility, who helped us understand that an infection had caused the problem and provided the medical support we needed.
But a diagnosis like that doesn’t just affect your fertility.
It can affect how you see yourself.
And that’s something I see in the men I work with.
They talk about feeling emasculated.
Guilty that their partner is having to go through fertility treatment.
Angry that their body isn’t doing what they believe it should.
And sometimes they withdraw because they simply don’t know how to talk about it.
Yet so much of the infertility conversation still focuses on women.
Men are often expected to be the strong ones.
The ones holding everything together.
But who’s supporting them?
Today is Male Fertility Day of National Fertility Awareness Week, part of this year’s Fertility Unfiltered campaign.
And this year’s message is one we really need to hear.
We don’t talk about men’s fertility enough.
We need to challenge the myths, make conversations about male fertility more normal and recognise that men experience grief, fear and uncertainty too.
Because a male factor infertility diagnosis doesn’t make someone less of a man.
It doesn’t mean they’ve failed their partner.
And it certainly doesn’t mean they should have to navigate it alone.
Men deserve specialist medical care, emotional support and a space where they can talk openly without shame.
Fertility isn’t just a women’s issue.
And it’s time our conversations reflected that.”
Other articles featuring Lucy Froese on Fertility News.
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Nov 4, 2026, 17:20Margaret Cali: Sometimes Grief Simply Sits Beside the Joy
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Nov 4, 2026, 17:11Hossam Elzeiny: Distinguishing Recurrent IVF Failure from True Recurrent Implantation Failure
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Nov 4, 2026, 16:22Hannah Travers: Saying Goodbye to the Reproductive Medicine Research Group at the University of Dundee
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Nov 4, 2026, 16:17Natalie Sutherland: Sharing My Story in Support of the National Fertility Awareness Week
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Nov 4, 2026, 16:07Pleased to Welcome Justin Tan to the Advisory Committee – Fertility Friends Foundation