Have you been living in a holding pattern—waiting, hoping, and unsure of when you’ll finally start living again?

For years, infertility treatments dictated your schedule. You held off on vacations, skipped girls’ weekends, and put projects on pause, thinking, Maybe by then, I’ll be pregnant. Maybe I’ll have a baby.

But now, fertility treatments are behind you, and you’re still feeling stuck. You have ideas of what you could do—remodeling a room, traveling, learning something new—but the energy just isn’t there to start.

Why?

In this episode, we’re breaking down the three biggest reasons why moving forward can feel paralyzing when you are childless after infertility:

1️⃣ Fear – Making plans for your future feels like closing the door on motherhood, and that’s terrifying.
2️⃣ Comparison – Nothing seems as meaningful as motherhood was supposed to be, so you tell yourself it’s not even worth trying.
3️⃣ Overwhelm – You don’t know where to start, so you keep waiting for the “right time.”

But if not now… when?

I recently worked with a coaching client who felt this exact way. She had things she wanted to do—remodeling her bathroom, planting a garden, traveling more with her husband—but nothing was on the calendar. It all just felt big.

So we mapped it out.

What mattered most? What was her first step? When did she want to start?

And suddenly, it didn’t feel so overwhelming anymore.

This is exactly what we do inside the Thrive After Infertility Mastermind.
One of the three core pillars of the program is owning your time—because when you start making intentional choices about how to fill your days, you stop feeling lost in your own life.

✨ Want more guidance? My upcoming book, So Now What?, has an entire chapter dedicated to planning your future in a way that feels meaningful and fulfilling.

I’m giving away 10 free signed copies, and you can enter to win using the link in my show notes or by heading to my bio on Instagram or TikTok.

And if you’re ready to take action, book a free Thrive Call with me. We’ll create a personalized plan to help you stop waiting and start moving forward. The time to start is now.

🎧 Listen now, and let’s get you out of that holding pattern!

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• 🎁 Enter to Win a Free Copy of My Book: click here

• 📖 Grab My Free Guide: The Top 27 Things People Say When You’re Childless (and How to Respond)

• 🤍 Book a Free Thrive Call: https://calendly.com/lanamanikowski/strategy-session

You don’t have to wait for your life to start.

The question is: If not now, when?

If you’ve ever felt the sting of someone’s pity—whether it’s the sad look, the heavy sigh, or the “I just feel so bad for you” comment—you’re not alone. When you’ve been through fertility treatments like IVF and IUI, only to walk away without the child you dreamed of, the last thing you need is for others to make you feel like your life is something to mourn.

In this episode of The ‘So Now What?’ Podcast, we’re talking about how to recognize and process both your own feelings of sorrow and the misplaced pity that others place on you. If you’ve struggled with feeling like people see your life as incomplete because you’re childless—not by choice—this conversation is for you.

💔 Why feeling sorry for yourself sometimes is okay—and how to move forward without guilt.
🧠 How to stop internalizing other people’s pity—so you don’t start believing their sadness for you.
👀 Why people pity childless women—and how their words are often more about them than you.
🗣️ How to confidently respond when people say things like “I wish you could have had a baby”—without feeling like you have to justify your happiness or explain your sadness.

Your life is not something to be pitied. If you’ve ever felt the weight of infertility, failed IVF, and the unexpected reality of a childless future, I want you to know—there is still so much for you. You can create a meaningful, fulfilling life, even though it looks different than you expected.

And if you don’t know what that looks like yet? That’s what I help with. Book a free Thrive Call and let’s create a plan that helps you move forward—so you feel connected to your future instead of stuck in the loss of a dream.

📖 My Book So Now What? is Coming Soon!—Want updates on the release? Click here.
📞 Book a Free Thrive Call—Let’s create a plan to help you thrive after infertility: Schedule here.
📩 Join My Email List—Get exclusive deals on Thrive After Infertility and weekly encouragement: Sign up here.
🗂️ Download My Free Guide: 27 Things People Say When You’re Childless (and How to Respond)—So you can handle these conversations with confidence: Get it here.

You are not alone, and your story is far from over. Let’s release the weight of pity and start embracing what’s next.