What does it really take to build a family when the path isn’t traditional—and no one gives you a roadmap?

In this conversation you'll get to meet my friend who I recently reunited with at a high school reunion. Toby shares about the personal journey he and his husband took to become parents.

If you’ve ever assumed that becoming a parent is just a series of medical steps and legal checkboxes, you might be overlooking the emotional weight, trust, and intentionality required—especially for same-sex couples navigating IVF and surrogacy.

In this episode, we unpack the parts people don’t always talk about: the vulnerability of choosing an egg donor, the leap of faith in finding a surrogate, and the emotional complexity that unfolds long after the paperwork is signed.

My long time friend, Toby shares how leaning into support, honesty, and empathy became the real foundation of parenthood—and how that journey reshaped not just his family, but the way he shows up for his patients. Dr. Toby is a medical doctor and Adjunct Clinical Instructor at Stanford Children’s Health in California.

BY THE TIME YOU FINISH LISTENING, YOU’LL DISCOVER:

· What the IVF and surrogacy process actually looks like behind the scenes

· How intentional decision-making plays a role in building a family through nontraditional paths

· The emotional and legal challenges same-sex couples face—and how to navigate them

· How becoming a parent transformed Toby’s perspective on empathy, genetics, and patient care

This is a heartfelt conversation about love, trust, and redefining what it means to create a family—on your own terms.

Connect with Toby here: https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/doctor/tobias-g-hays.html

CONNECT with Lisa & get IVF COACHING SUPPORT

Download IVF Mindset Shift Guide https://ivfmanifestingamiracle.myflodesk.com

BOOK a complimentary DISCOVERY CALL

BOOK: ‘HOLD ON, BABY! A Soulful Guide to Navigating the Ups & Downs of Infertility & IVF.’

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**Please Rate the show & Subscribe! THANK YOU so much for your Reviews of the podcast!

Music Credit (Closing Song) by Sam Costigan. Follow her on Spotify and IG

What if your fertility journey wasn’t asking you to try harder—but to get more aligned?

In this powerful conversation, Human Design expert Anna Nichols shares how understanding your unique energetic blueprint can support your fertility path, regulate your nervous system, and help you stop fighting your body—and start trusting it.

Anna is a Human Design expert, master business strategist, author, and podcast host who helps us explore how Human Design can support you on your fertility path —emotionally, energetically, and spiritually.

Together, Lisa and Anna draw powerful parallels between building an aligned business and navigating fertility with more trust, ease, and self-compassion. Anna vulnerably opens up about her own fertility journey, including multiple miscarriages, and the full-circle healing she experienced years later—revealing how moments that once felt like setbacks were actually guiding her toward deeper alignment.

Key Takeaways:

• What Human Design is and how it helps you understand your unique energetic blueprint
• Why alignment (not force or hustle) matters on your fertility path
• The five Human Design energy types—and how each experiences stress, rest, and decision-making
• How frustration, anger, bitterness, or disappointment can be signals that something is out of alignment
• The role of environment in supporting your nervous system, energy, and fertility
• Why you’re not meant to do everything on your own—and how receiving support is part of your design
• Anna’s personal fertility story, including miscarriage, healing, and divine timing
• How Human Design can help you release self-blame and reconnect with trust in your body

Remember, alignment isn’t just for business—it’s for your body, your life, and your fertility journey too.

Connect with Anna:

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iamannanichols/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamannanichols/

Check Out the Book & More! www.SpiritualBusinessIncubator.com

Aligned Biz Quiz https://www.spiritualbusinessincubator.com/hd-quiz

CONNECT with Lisa & get IVF COACHING SUPPORT

Download IVF Mindset Shift Guide https://ivfmanifestingamiracle.myflodesk.com

BOOK a complimentary DISCOVERY CALL

BOOK: ‘HOLD ON, BABY! A Soulful Guide to Navigating the Ups & Downs of Infertility & IVF.’

INSTAGRAM

WATCH on YOUTUBE

LISTEN to the PODCAST on Apple and Spotify:

**Please Rate the show & Subscribe! THANK YOU so much for your Reviews of the podcast!

Music Credit (Closing Song) by Sam Costigan. Follow her on Spotify and IG

This episode feels especially sacred.

Today we are celebrating 100 episodes of the Soulful IVF Podcast and officially stepping into year 4 of this show—a space that was created for you.

If you are navigating a challenging, emotional, or uncertain fertility path, I want you to know this first and foremost: You are not alone. You were never meant to do this in isolation. This podcast exists because of YOU.

When I first created Soulful IVF, it was born from my own lived experience—walking the long road of IVF, holding onto hope through setbacks, surgeries, and uncertainty, and learning how to stay connected to myself, my joy, and my faith in possibility along the way. This show has always been meant to be a companion, a guide, and a reminder that your path can be different.

This Episode Is a Thank You -- To every person who has listened, shared an episode with a friend, sent a message, left a review, or quietly tuned in during a hard moment—THANK YOU. This community means more to me than words can express.

An Invitation for you.

As we move toward the Fire Horse year, we are entering a powerful energetic chapter—one that calls us to live more courageously, more truthfully, and more embodied.

This is a season for women who are ready to: Shift out of survival mode and constant fixing. Release the identity of “just getting through IVF. Step into a new way of being—open, receptive, courageous, and rooted in possibility.

I believe deeply in the identity shift that is possible for you—moving from striving and bracing… to embodying the frequency of a Manifesting Mama. Not because the path is easy, but because you are supported, resourced, and aligned.

If you are feeling the pull for deeper support, I would love to walk alongside you.

1:1 Soulful IVF Coaching
Personalized, intuitive, and grounded support to help you regulate your nervous system, shift your mindset, align your energy, and navigate IVF with more peace and trust.

8-Week Group Experience (Starting Very Soon)
A powerful container for women who are ready to shift how they show up on their fertility journey—together. This group is for women who want to feel held, seen, and supported while stepping into a new frequency and way of being.

If you feel the resonance, trust that nudge. You don’t have to do this alone anymore.

A New Frequency Is Available

This next chapter isn’t about forcing or controlling outcomes. It’s about LIVING in POSSIBILITY, staying open to miracles, and choosing to meet your fertility path with presence, courage, and self-trust.

If you’re ready to explore what’s possible when you stop doing IVF the “old way” and begin walking it soulfully—I’m here.

Thank

CONNECT with Lisa & get IVF COACHING SUPPORT

Download IVF Mindset Shift Guide https://ivfmanifestingamiracle.myflodesk.com

BOOK a complimentary DISCOVERY CALL

BOOK: ‘HOLD ON, BABY! A Soulful Guide to Navigating the Ups & Downs of Infertility & IVF.’

INSTAGRAM

WATCH on YOUTUBE

LISTEN to the PODCAST on Apple and Spotify:

**Please Rate the show & Subscribe! THANK YOU so much for your Reviews of the podcast!

Music Credit (Closing Song) by Sam Costigan. Follow her on Spotify and IG