In/Fertility In The City

Trauma, Support and the Stories We Tell — with Dr Ippokratis Sarris

Published: 17 November 2025 at 05:00 Europe/London

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Episode notes

To open Season 6, Natalie and Somaya sit down with Dr Ippokratis Sarris - to explore one of the most complex questions in fertility: How does a high-pressure professional life intersect with treatment outcomes and emotional wellbeing?

Together, they unpack: 🔹 High-Pressure Careers & Fertility

Whether demanding jobs really impact IVF success.
How partner schedules and “just one day” can sometimes matter medically.
The shift since COVID: remote work reducing secrecy, stress, and logistical chaos.

🔹 Personality, Pace & Priorities

Why some people work through infusions or scans — and when it’s personality, not necessity.
Why “try to relax” is unhelpful and unsupported by data.
The importance of fitting life around fertility, not forcing treatment into burnout-level schedules.

🔹 The Emotional Toll — on Patients and Clinicians Dr Sarris shares the cases that stay with him:

The “1 in 300” miracle cycles.
The heartbreak of late losses after everything seemed perfect.
Why clinicians, despite training, feel deeply — and why language matters more than many realise.

🔹 “Unexplained Infertility” — A Term Dr SarrisHe “hHates”

Why there is always a reason, even if medicine can’t identify it yet.
The emerging science of single-gene variants, early embryonic loss and egg/sperm interactions.
Why most fertility medicine remains surprisingly crude compared to the biological complexity it tries to treat.

🔹 Statistics, Probabilities & the Danger of Language

Why 5% sounds hopeless but “1 in 20” feels achievable.
Why percentages work for populations, not individuals.
How careless language (“aim for mediocrity”) can stay with patients for years.
Why his approach is: give honest numbers, never dismiss hope, support the patient’s decision 100%.

🔹 Social Media & Fertility Misinformation Dr Sarris discusses his research analysing 939 fertility posts during Infertility Awareness Week:

Only 2 posts met criteria for accuracy, credibility and readability.
Why social platforms drown out trusted medical sources.
How influencer culture affects patient expectations — and sometimes treatment decisions.
Why he now spends more time debunking advice than giving it.

🧬 NEW: Fertility Fun Fact of the Day In this episode’s fun fact:

Your DNA would stretch 74 billion kilometres if unwound.
You share 60% of your DNA with bananas.
Biology is wild — and sometimes hilarious.

About King’s Fertility (Sponsor) One of London’s most respected IVF clinics, working with King’s College Hospital and King’s College London. King’s Fertility offers NHS and private patients world-leading research, advanced treatment, and compassionate care.

Learn more at kingsfertility.co.uk You can access the research article #Misinformation: The perils of using social media for medical advice regarding infertility https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/14647273.2025.2506787?needAccess=true
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