What balancing work and IVF really looks like, with Fertility Matters at Work

Show notes:

Fertility Matters at Work 

How to create a supportive environment for aspiring parents

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[00:00:00] Nancy: I was talking to an HR leader the other day about what she wished she had known before she started looking into fertility benefits and what advice she would give to other HR leaders who were considering benefits. One thing she said that I thought was interesting, was that going into the decision making process, she really didn't know anything about fertility treatments and the different ways that people form families.

[00:00:42] It was something that was really new to her. And it was something that was new to pretty much everyone on her team. We talk a lot on this podcast about how common these journeys are, but it's very possible depending on where you are in your life or what happens in your life that you might not have ever had a reason to know [00:01:00] anything about fertility and infertility.

[00:01:02] At Carrot, we've heard that this lack of knowledge can be a block for HR teams advocating for fertility coverage. A decision maker might just not understand the value or why a company would need something like this. Something the woman I spoke with said helped her team was having employees share their personal experiences and be champions for these benefits.

[00:01:24] She said that was a really important piece of how her team made the case. This is Baby Steps, a podcast from Carrot Fertility about the intersection of work and fertility health. Today on our show, you'll hear from two of the founders of an organization in the UK called Fertility Matters at Work. They educate employers on fertility and share guidance on how to create a fertility friendly workplace.

[00:01:48] Founders Becky and Natalie were inspired to start this organization after their personal experiences balancing work and fertility treatments. While they have this in common, you'll hear that their stories are also pretty [00:02:00] different. It's a good example of how no two fertility journeys are exactly alike.

[00:02:04] Hi

[00:02:10] Natalie. Hi Becky. Thanks for joining.

[00:02:13] Natalie: Hi, nancy. Lovely

[00:02:14] Becky: to be here. Hi Nancy. Thank you for having us.

[00:02:17] Nancy (2): I'd love to just start by having you both say your names and your titles at fertility matters

[00:02:22] at work. So I'm Becky Ks and I am co-founder of Fertility Matters at Work

[00:02:28] Natalie: and I'm Natalie Silverman and I'm co-founder of Fertility Matters at Work as well.

[00:02:34] Becky: Perfect.

[00:02:35] Nancy: Thanks so much for joining me today. I, I thought it would be good to start since you're both advocates, obviously for fertility support in the workplace, just by hearing your, your personal stories about your experiences with fertility in the workplace. Natalie, do you wanna

[00:02:51] Natalie: start? Sure. So. At the time of needing to go through fertility treatment, I was hosting a breakfast radio show.

[00:02:59] [00:03:00] So I had to be up and on my way to work at half past four in the morning. And the whole kind of job was very much a performance based job. So I always talk about having to be upbeat and jolly, and despite being in the same role for four and a half years. I didn't have any idea what the kind of etiquette was in terms of speaking to somebody in HR.

[00:03:23] And as I learned more about what treatment was gonna involve, and knew how my job went, which was that my name was literally on the show. So I couldn't just not turn up. I had no idea how I was gonna navigate that. And I really didn't wanna tell my boss. I ended up picking up the phone and speaking to a, a faceless person in HR to say, this is what I'm going through.

[00:03:45] I've got no idea how to manage it. And it was very limited support to be frank. They said, you need to say something or your boss will think you're looking for another job, but good luck. And so I chose to tell my co-host and my producer, what was [00:04:00] going on so that we could in essence, record a show for when cuz during the treatment, the key point is the trigger injection, where you are unlikely to know and you just have to not be at work the next day, we had a show in the bag and I said to my boss. I'm going through some medical treatment that I'm going to need this time off. And he just looked terrified and didn't ask anymore questions. And so for me, then the navigating was more logistics because I was driving forty five minutes to work.

[00:04:26] And then an hour to the clinic after my show, I wasn't able to do early morning. So I was able though to do them after I'd finished, which was about one o'clock in the afternoon in terms of scans and stuff. So there was a lot of logistic. Travel, but in terms of support, I didn't get any, the people that I had told that I had to tell were lovely.

[00:04:44] They had no idea what they were asking, but they were like, is it okay? Are you okay? Are we okay? It was a pretty daunting experience. I was fortunate that my treatment worked first time. So compared to what Becky's going to tell you, my, my experience [00:05:00] of length of time of treatment was short in comparison to many others, but still the overwhelm of still having to be.

[00:05:06] A performer in a role whilst going through what was very overwhelming was, was, was a real challenge. Yeah.

[00:05:12] Nancy: And how were you feeling physically during the, the treatment process?

[00:05:16] Natalie: I wasn't feeling great, but I wasn't feeling too bad. I was quite excited cuz I was quite naive. About for me, this was a really exciting thing that was happening.

[00:05:27] I I'd purposely avoided a lot of the forums. I had a best friend who had been through treatment and she said, whatever you do, don't look at anything. Don't read anything. This is seven years ago that I had treatment. So the, the, the amazing Instagram community and all the different platforms that there are now available for support.

[00:05:43] Weren't really as developed as they were. So I didn't know all the kind of negatives I had, my friend who'd been through it and had had success and she was who I went to the whole way through. So I was able to talk about how I was feeling with her. I didn't have huge side effects apart from one [00:06:00] quite significant side effect where I was quite unwell at one point of the treatment, but that was a conversation with my clinic and we tweaked it a bit.

[00:06:09] So it was more just getting over the overwhelm. I hated needles. I, on day one had this lovely setup of candles and everything. And by day three, I had to be in the toilet, injecting myself cause I was hosting an event. So it was quite a quick adjustment. Um, I just had to adapt and get on with it, really. And as I say, I know that in the grand scheme of things, my kind of experience of having to inject was quite limited.

[00:06:30] So I, I do always say to people that are needle phobic, that you can very quickly adapt it. So not as, as scary as you might think. And

[00:06:36] Nancy: for anyone listening, who isn't familiar with the process, you have to, to take the shots at very specific times. Right. And that's why you had to do it while you were at an event.

[00:06:45] Yes.

[00:06:46] Natalie: Yes, because people either choose morning or evening. And I was working very early in the morning. So I chose, I think about half past six in the evening and hence the, the, the toilet visit with my stash to do the injection. And, you know, even with that, I was [00:07:00] then on stage hosting this big film award ceremony, which was in itself quite daunting yet I just nipped off to the toilet. And I do remember looking back thinking, wow, you know, you just carry on. You just carry on, regardless with this kind of.

[00:07:13] Nancy: Yeah, Carrot actually did a survey where we asked people where at work, they did their injections. And most people said that there wasn't really a good place to do it.

[00:07:23] Some people actually went out to their car or went into the bathroom like you're just saying. So, yeah, I think that that's a common experience that a lot of people just don't know about. So thanks for sharing that. And Becky let's hear your story.

[00:07:38] Becky: Yes. I was working in a corporate HR role when I was going through my fertility experience. I was 27, just started a new role, my husband and I had thought, well, let's start trying and see what happens.

[00:07:50] And it was after I'd come off the pill, that things didn't seem quite right. So I was having periods sometimes every 12 days. So really, really frequent [00:08:00] periods. And I was going to my GP, same my doctor to say, what's wrong. I was told not to worry, cause I'm still young. Go away, keep trying. And it was a few months later where I kept pushing for some more tests. And I was finally given some tests through our, our local doctors and that came out with high follicle stimulating hormones. So high FSH, which indicated that my egg reserve was low. My body was having to work really hard to produce an egg. And so I was diagnosed over the coming weeks with, um, early menopause and was told that if I wanted to conceive, I would need to act really quickly and we would need to go straight into IVF. And so within the course of just a few weeks, I went from, we were, we're just trying, let's see, let's have a few tests to suddenly we need to do it now.

[00:08:49] Time is of the essence. And so I was suddenly in a position where I was in a new job. And I was then having to say that I was having fertility treatment or I could have kept it to myself. [00:09:00] Now being in a client facing role where I was very much relied on and I had to be a face with my client group. I, I personally felt it was best to talk to my manager and say, this is what I'm going through.

[00:09:13] And if I'm honest, that was one of the most scary conversations I've ever had at work, because I had no idea what the reaction would be. I had these fears that I know many people who are going through this have, that they would potentially think that I was less committed to the job, that I was more focused on having a baby.

[00:09:31] And I worried about how they would perceive me given the fact that I just started with them and committed to them. But yeah, I sat down, I, I explained the situation said, look, this is what's happening and I'm gonna need to go for some appointments. And I was really fortunate because she was actually going through IVF herself and was able to empathize and understood and said, Yeah, take what you need work around it, work flexibly.

[00:09:54] And that was really helpful for me.

[00:09:56] Nancy: Yeah. I know. Natalie mentioned your process ended up [00:10:00] taking a lot longer. Can you share more about that?

[00:10:04] Becky: Now, my story was quite a long journey in comparison. So we conceived on the first cycle of IVF, but unfortunately I had a miscarriage just over eight weeks there. So I went from a situation of going through IVF appointments and feeling guilty for taking time off to then having quite a bit of time off for the miscarriage as well.

[00:10:22] But then we went into four more cycles of IVF. So one after the other, and eventually that led us down the path of egg donation as we didn't have success with my own eggs. And yeah, we used donor eggs and now I'm a mom of three girls. So to cut a very long story short eventually after sort of two years after starting, we finally conceived and I had my little girl, but I look back now and I realize just how hard that was when trying to navigate it with her. Even though I had been open with my line manager and I think about having worked in HR myself, you would think that I [00:11:00] would be the best prepared to navigate this because I work in, in, in that space, but there was nothing really in the policy other than a little line about it.

[00:11:09] I was very much given freedom, but with that freedom came great responsibility to try and think, okay, I've been told to take what I need, but what is too much and what are they really thinking? And I could feel that after cycles, especially when I was really struggling emotionally as well, that patience was wearing a bit thin and I felt like the Goodwill was wearing off.

[00:11:28] It was hugely difficult. And I came to a point where I think it was after IVF cycle. Number four, I actually asked for a career break because I couldn't see how I was going to manage the two. I felt like I was letting people down. I was getting up in a morning. I was having my, I was traveling an hour to get to the clinic.

[00:11:45] And then another hour back to the office, I was walking in only at nine 30. It wasn't like I was walking in the middle of the day, but I still felt guilty. I suppose, the toll that, that took on me led me to almost leave my job. And eventually I was [00:12:00] fortunate that we found a solution in that I reduced my hours.

[00:12:02] I moved to a different role. So I took a step outta the succession pipeline, put my career on hold in away just so I could focus on this. I didn't want to have any regrets. So I started working four days a week and, um, thankful that I was still in a job at the point I conceived because with the pressure of it all I could have very easily stepped away. I say easily, it wouldn't have been easy financially, but the impact was that great. We know through the work that we do at Fertility Matters at Work, that the impact on so many people is that great that 36% of people who we surveyed here in the UK have considered leaving their jobs because of going through through fertility treatment.

[00:12:39] And that's a huge number. I

[00:12:41] Nancy: think it's interesting that you mentioned at first people seemed more supportive and then it, it felt like maybe their patience was running thin, but. Why do you think that is? Do you think they, they didn't have a real understanding of what's involved in the whole process?

[00:12:55] Becky: Yeah, I think there's a real, there there's some real MIS misconceptions when it comes to going through [00:13:00] fertility treatment. And I was guilty of it as well. I assumed that IVF worked every time and that IVF was the answer. I think that is quite common in society as well. So if I'd have been working in HR and somebody had come to me to ask me what they were entitled to, or, or what support they could have.

[00:13:15] I would not have thought that it would be a process of more than a year. I would've thought it would've been quite an instant thing. One of the things that we are trying to do is, is create better awareness within organizations that there can be a long journey. It can be a really complex journey for some, it's a very emotional journey and for there to be better understanding of that will hopefully lead to more empathy and, and better support for people as well. Because at the end of the day, we think about it as a process and it may be a process that takes longer for some people. But the last thing an organization wants to do is to have to replace that person who they've trained and who's a part of that organization. And, and there's so many benefits to supporting someone through this in terms of employee engagement, [00:14:00] um, retention. And you think about as a woman of working age or as a man as well, and you are looking for an employer, you would want to know that they're gonna support you through something like this.

[00:14:11] And, and in particular, the LGBTQ community who. Need to use fertility treatment to, to have a family. They would want to know that that employer is gonna be there to support them and not just to support them at the very beginning, but through that whole journey. And we talk about employers being family friendly and, and what we really want to try and do is encompass that, trying to become a family stage as well, because that's also part of, of life and a, a huge part of people's journey to parenthood.

[00:14:38] And I'd

[00:14:38] Natalie: just like to add to what Becky was saying about the kind of the people involved, cuz from, from our experience, we went through treatment due to a male factor. So whilst I was physically going through the treatment, the reason was due to my other half. And from an emotional point of view, that impact is hugely significant on the relationship. [00:15:00] And I think from an employer point of view, understanding the people involved in this process and the impact that this process has on a relationship and what that adds from an emotional point of view to the stress on the person or people then at work, cuz we've talked with people about understanding why your colleagues might not be on their a game, cuz there's so many different elements to this from what Becky's just highlighted from the people affected, but from the emotions of the worry, the loss that comes with it, all these different things, but then that nuance within the relationship I think is also so important to be understood by the employer.

[00:15:33] Becky: Definitely.

[00:15:35] We' talk about when we educate employers about the emotional impact, the physical impact, as you mentioned with Natalie just before, but also the financial impact as well. And it is knowing that it, it, it's all of these things. And quite often people are spending their life savings on this or taking out loans for this.

[00:15:52] And then obviously you think about the impact of employment alongside that. And you're having to make these decisions. It, it can cause a huge amount of [00:16:00] stress on what already is a hugely stressful process in itself. So I think there's a lot of work to be done to make people realize that the magnitude of, of what it is to go through something like this, and to realize that it's not just a simple lifestyle choice that you're having fertility treatment.

[00:16:18] I think that's a huge misconception as well, whereas nobody would choose to go through this process necessarily over having a baby in the let's say, conventional way. It's something that circumstances lead you towards and it's, it's something that is so little understood in terms of the impact. I think people just feel like, I mean, we've seen policies in workplaces where IVF is listed alongside cosmetic surgery as, so it's, if you need elective cosmetic surgery or IVF, then you need to take holiday or unpaid leave.

[00:16:51] And we know how many appointments are involved in IVF. We know that it might not work first time. It's impossible to take just your holiday allowance or your annual [00:17:00] leave to, to cover that. And also, why should you have to do that when it's a medical appointment? So there's just so many different layers to this.

[00:17:07] It's about that time off, but it's about flexibility. It's about enabling those conversations, allowing people to feel comfortable enough to disclose even, and to ask for that support within an organization.

[00:17:21] Nancy: So when you're talking to employers, what do you feel like are some of the aha moments or what kind of stories or information do you feel like then employers say, oh, I get it now.

[00:17:32] Natalie: One of the first things that always hits home is that is the world health organization's definition of infertility being a disease. We often start with that because that really does actually go. People stop and, and realize that this is not like we've been saying a lifestyle choice, but I reckon we'll, we'll flip back and forth on, on the, the list of things, cuz we're definitely seeing that people don't realize the extent of this in these [00:18:00] conversations.

[00:18:00] And we've now had many since our launch and we are constantly finding the, the surprise on people's faces about it.

[00:18:06] Becky: Yeah. I also think it's how common it is as well, I think surprises people, when we talk about the stats, the one in six, the one in eight, and then also even just mentioning the fact that the LGBTQ plus community will need to use it.

[00:18:20] They suddenly go, oh yeah. I've not really thought about it in that way. I think the issue is that it's a bit of a chicken and egg situation because people don't talk about it cuz they feel like they can't talk about it. Employers don't know it's a problem. People hide it, people, our co-founder Claire, she didn't tell her employer and tried to work away round appointments and, and they had no idea when she was going through her first two cycles. The extent of the issue is just not known and that's what's creating the problem, really. So employers aren't doing anything because no one's talking about it, but no one's talking about it because employers aren't giving them that permission to talk about it or [00:19:00] that security.

[00:19:00] So what we're hoping is that through the conversations that we're starting and, and we go into organizations and we hold panel discussions where we get their team members to come, who have been through this and talk about it. The feedback we've had when we've held these panel discussions is that it's like a domino effect.

[00:19:17] People come out and say, me too, that's me. Or I know someone and I'm about to go through this and then suddenly that's where you see conversation starting and that permission. And then. Internal support networks start to be formed even really informally. I became that go-to person within my corporate organization, that line managers knew I'd been through it.

[00:19:39] So if they had a team member, they would send them to me and I would go for a coffee with them. And we'd, we'd just talk about. What it was like was someone who truly

[00:19:47] Natalie: gets it. The other thing just to add in there is the assumption that people have about how families are made. And we had a really powerful conversation with a lady who'd gone down the solo motherhood route. Employers understanding that [00:20:00] women in particular now are much more confident and content to think about their careers and their family building maybe side by side, rather than one or the other. And we know that there are organizations that support egg freezing that's enabled women to not choose one or the other, but to decide whether they are going to maybe freeze their eggs, to continue with their career, to then look later and maybe look at solo motherhood.

[00:20:25] And I think that understanding of things like solo motherhood and at the other extent of that, childlessness, because we try to ensure that the people that we are talking to know the many alternative routes to parenthood, the LGBTQ plus community, and we highlight that route to parenthood. We highlight the solo motherhood route to parenthood, the kind of heterosexual couple route to parenthood, the, the single gay man route to parenthood as well, not to forget, but also that this doesn't guarantee a baby. And so that childlessness not by choice, which is the terminology that, that we use is also a really important part of that conversation. Often [00:21:00] we find when we talk to people they're coming away going, wow, I totally underestimated the scale of what this conversation actually is.

[00:21:07] Nancy: I'm sure that organizations you work with are, are pretty open to being more supportive, but do you ever get any pushback or questions about, oh, this would be too expensive to implement or, or anything like that?

[00:21:19] Becky: I don't think we've had much pushback so far. We tend to have people coming to us who organizations who are quite forward thinking and are really wanting to progress and push in the wellbeing space. I'm aware of other organizations who maybe are more male dominated who may go, this isn't an issue for us.

[00:21:36] And actually we would say it's an issue for everyone. Men are just as affected as women. And so in terms of pushback, we haven't had huge amounts of pushback. What we've had is, is people going. Oh, my goodness. I can't believe we've, we're not already doing this. And it almost feels like there's a bit of a revolution taking place in terms of employee wellbeing as well.

[00:21:55] I think particularly in the UK more recently, there's been lots of talk [00:22:00] around menopause and supporting women going through menopause in the workplace. And so that has really taken hold in the UK. We really feel that fertility is that next big thing, because I think it's one of those things you don't realize is an issue until you really look into it until you understand it and, and organizations are, I think they're trying to see the benefits of engaging, retaining.

[00:22:24] Attracting talent, but also thinking about the fallout of the pandemic as well. We ran a poll and 83% of people said they found managing fertility treatment easier whilst going through the lockdowns that we had and the, the restrictions. Because they had more flexibility to work from home around appointments and everything like that.

[00:22:45] So I think the shift towards more flexible working will also benefit as well. So there's lots of things that have happened in the last few years. I think that have really started to change the way organizations think. And what we're finding is those organizations that are a bit more [00:23:00] pioneering and saying, look, we need to do something here.

[00:23:02] I'm really gonna trail blaze this and say, look, we're not just offering. Fertility benefits, which is amazing. That will take a huge pressure off people. But we are thinking about their day to day experience whilst they're also in the workplace. And that's what is really important to us. It's the policy piece, the education piece, the conversations, the support, and the benefits as well, and that holistic view of supporting people through fertility treatment, it will create.

[00:23:28] Greater engagement. It will keep them within the organization and they will go and tell people about it. And that's, what's gonna really set you apart as an employer, just

[00:23:36] Nancy: really creates a better work environment and Goodwill among employees. And it creates a better reputation for the company too.

[00:23:44] Especially since it, it is something that helps set a company apart from another company that maybe doesn't offer at this level of day to day support and acknowledgement of that experience.

[00:23:57] Natalie: We've also heard people say [00:24:00] I was lucky that my manager was supportive. And what we want to ensure is that it's not luck of the draw as to who your manager is and how they feel.

[00:24:07] And if they've bothered to look at that bit in the policy, what we want is that cultural shift. So we're seeing what's happening in, in the us, and we're seeing how it's being adopted in the UK, which is amazing. But we want to make sure that said manager know. That if this person comes to them to say, okay, well, I've taken that.

[00:24:24] And now this is happening that they really do understand what that means and what that person needs. Yeah,

[00:24:30] Nancy: something we hear, I think to both of your points is there is a misconception, you know, oh, I'm gonna use these fertility benefits and then a manager might say, oh, okay. So what are you thinking for parental leave?

[00:24:40] Especially in the us, since, you know, we don't have a national leave policy, but it's so true that there's no guarantee at all that oh, nine months from now, you know, it's time to take your leave. So just developing empathy and, and more understanding that it sounds like it really starts with education.

[00:24:56] Natalie: Because that could be really triggering just that conversation if the person's already [00:25:00] experienced loss. And then they've decided to speak up about what they're now going through with their employer. And that's the first kind of conversation. So that little bit of awareness will help with the empathy and will help that relationship build.

[00:25:13] As we've been saying.

[00:25:14] Nancy: It's great to hear too, that it sounds like once you two have shared your stories, that then people come to you for support and just kind of unlocks these conversations in the workplace. What kind of questions have you gotten from colleagues or, or from friends?

[00:25:29] Becky: I think in my HR capacity, I'm always asked, what did you do for people?

[00:25:33] Or, or what would you recommend? And I suppose one of the striking things we found is obviously Claire and I both work in HR and in 35 years experience together, nobody ever came to us for advice around that. Now with my HR hat on, I feel like I've got that balance of personal and professional experience to really think about, okay, as an organization, what do you need to do for this?

[00:25:57] And, and I think what Claire and I have have [00:26:00] done is call together all of our experience and. Create resources for our organizations so that they can create a policy that meets people's needs. And it's not just a tick box exercise. So I would say that if an organization is looking at putting a fertility policy in place, it's really thinking about what that policy means and, and how people are going to access that policy.

[00:26:21] What guidance does it give in terms of entitlement, but then how does it signpost them to support as well? It's a document that's going to give them that safety and that feeling that they can speak out and they can talk to their manager, but also gives guidance to a manager as well, because we understand that managers only know what they know and, and they can't know everything about everything. It's a learning process. And I think quite often with these sort of conversations, people are scared to say the wrong thing. And so sometimes they avoid saying things, they avoid the questions, they just let someone get on with it.

[00:26:51] But what we really want to do is equip and, and enable them to feel comfortable in asking what they need, let the employee lead, but also [00:27:00] check in on them, release some of that burden.

[00:27:03] Natalie: When Becky just mentioned where things are, one of the things that we also try to highlight is that this conversation and this information shouldn't be in the family parenting space in an intranet, it needs to be in its own space because that's unfortunately, some of the mistakes that we're seeing as well is that this family building conversation is encompassing the, the assumption around fertility and that type of thing. And we need it to be pre family and kind of over here because otherwise people are gonna feel even more isolated and not feel that they can reach out.

[00:27:36] So that's quite a kind of interesting distinction that we've been highlighting.

[00:27:41] Nancy: That's something I've heard from a few guests, actually, that employers mean well, putting this information in the parental leave section, but it can actually be upsetting to have it there.

[00:27:50] Becky: We have lots of people coming to us to say that we founded something in a policy, but it sat in the maternity policy and there's nothing more triggering when you're trying for a baby [00:28:00] and can't have one to have to go and have look through the, the maternity policy to find out whether you're entitled to anything.

[00:28:06] And usually it's a very small line in there. So just a huge part of it is that recognition it's that permission. And that's the power of having a policy in place. And we are really clear to say that it's not just a policy on its own. It's a cultural shift. So what we help organizations with is, is putting that policy in place, making sure it meets their needs, because like we say, it's so vast.

[00:28:28] There's so many different elements to this, that somebody going down, the route who's needing to use a surrogate for example, will need much more specific support than somebody who is just starting out on IVF. It's huge, but that's why we're hopefully here to try and make it easier for employers to navigate their way through this and, and become what we call fertility friendly..

[00:28:48] Natalie: And we just heard actually back from an employer that we're working with this week to say that that they'd had such positive feedback on the different types of conversations that we've been sharing. And the impact of the conversations was really [00:29:00] clear for them to see, because we're purposely doing different viewpoints, different journeys to parenthood.

[00:29:05] To make sure that you realize all the different people that might be needing to be represented within your organization. We've had a lot of conversations in a very short period of time and have got a lot of information as a result. And, and we've adapted how we are kind of sharing everything to make sure it's covering everybody's needs.

[00:29:22] So it was really exciting to hear that

[00:29:26] Nancy: you can learn more about the work Becky and Natalie do at fertilitymattersatwork.com. I also added a few resources on creating a supportive workplace for aspiring parents to our show notes,

[00:29:42] Baby Steps is produced and edited by Eric Montgomery and Christopher Olin. To get notified when new episodes are released, subscribe to Baby Steps on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.. Thanks for listening.[00:30:00]

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