10 Fertility Experts Who Shaped My Fertility Journey Over the Past 10 Years
10 years of fertility insights and collaboration with 10 fertility experts
Over the past decade, I have met many remarkable professionals working in reproductive medicine and fertility treatment. Each of them has played a unique role in shaping how I understand the world of IVF and what truly makes a clinic, a doctor or a fertility coach exceptional. These encounters were not only professional experiences, they were also human connections filled with trust, collaboration and genuine care for women who dream of becoming mothers.
When we talk about fertility issues, it is easy to focus only on the medical part – the treatments, the embryo transfers, the numbers and statistics. But real fertility success stories are built by people. Behind every in vitro fertilization cycle and every positive pregnancy test stand experts who dedicate their lives to guiding others with compassion, science and experience.
After more than ten years of visiting fertility clinics across Europe, attending conferences and organising webinars with specialists, I wanted to take a moment to highlight ten of these experts who truly make a difference. Some are doctors, others are coaches or educators, but all of them share one thing: they help women feel less alone on their fertility journey.
Tanja Romano – A donor egg mother and fertility coach
Some fertility journeys begin with loss and uncertainty before leading to strength and deep understanding. Tanja Romano knows this path well. After several miscarriages and years of trying to get pregnant, she finally became a mother through donor egg IVF in Greece. Today, she is a mother of four and uses her experience to guide other women through the emotional and practical side of fertility treatment.
Her story is not only about medical success, but also about resilience and transformation. Tanja completed her training as a fertility coach and now supports women who are considering egg donation for various reasons, whether due to premature menopause, the effects of chemotherapy, or simply diminished egg quality later in life. Many of them feel isolated or unsure about which steps to take, and that is exactly where her calm and compassionate approach makes such a difference.
We have often met at fertility fairs and online webinars, where she shared her insights with honesty and warmth. When women hear her speak, they realise that IVF and donor conception are not just clinical procedures, but real-life fertility success stories filled with courage, patience and hope.
Dr Dunja Petersen – Integrating Traditional Chinese Medicine and IVF
Dr Dunja Petersen brings a refreshing and holistic view to modern fertility treatment. She is a medical doctor with extensive training in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and a deep understanding of how physical and emotional balance can support women who are trying to conceive. Over the years, she has become one of the few fertility doctors who truly combine reproductive medicine with natural healing methods. She has written four books about fertility and eleven about TCM, sharing her knowledge with readers around the world.
We first connected through an online business event, and it immediately felt like meeting a colleague who shared the same mission: to help women find clarity, strength and reliable guidance on their fertility journey. Dr Petersen often reminds her patients that the body and mind are deeply connected, especially during IVF cycles or after a miscarriage.
In her online consultations and webinars, she explains how acupuncture and acupressure, Chinese herbal medicine and nutrition can gently complement modern fertility treatments. Many women who have struggled with infertility for years discover through her approach that supporting the body’s energy and emotional state can make a real difference in their ability to conceive.
Dr Petersen works 100 % online and supports patients from all over the world. She also runs her own TCM online school for those who wish to understand Traditional Chinese Medicine on a deeper level. Her work stands as a bridge between traditional knowledge and scientific progress, proving that true fertility success stories are often written when both worlds come together.
“Real fertility success stories are not created by one person alone, but by the many hands and hearts combining medical expertise, emotional support and human compassion.“
Nathalie Wiederkehr
Nadine Ballmer – Training future fertility coaches in Switzerland
In the heart of Switzerland, Nadine Ballmer has built something truly valuable for the fertility community: a professional training programme for future fertility coaches. Her courses attract psychologists, therapists and women who want to support others on their fertility journey, especially those going through IVF or donor treatments.
For more than 15 years, Nadine has been working as a fertility coach herself, having supported over 1,000 couples on their path to parenthood. This extensive hands-on experience gives her teaching great depth and authenticity, as she truly understands the emotional and psychological challenges women face throughout their fertility journey.
Although we have not met in person, we have collaborated online, and I was honoured to speak in her classes about fertility clinics abroad and the complex decisions women face when considering egg donation or international treatment. Nadine understands that infertility is not just a medical condition, it is a life experience that touches emotions, identity and relationships.
Through her education programme, she helps others learn how to offer emotional guidance alongside medical treatment, teaching that successful fertility support involves much more than a prescription or a procedure. Her approach combines elements of hypnosis, mental training and neurolinguistic programming, helping women reconnect with trust in their bodies while working with their doctors or fertility specialists.
Nadine’s work is an important reminder that every IVF cycle, every fertility treatment and every attempt to get pregnant carries an emotional story behind it. With her contribution, more professionals are now equipped to walk beside women at every step of this deeply human process.
Dr Dorothee Struck – Hypnosis and holistic approaches in reproductive medicine
Dr Dorothee Struck is one of those rare fertility doctors who connect science with deep emotional understanding. Originally trained in gynaecology, she later specialised in hypnosis and mind-body medicine, combining medical expertise with a truly human approach to fertility treatment. Today she lives and works in Cyprus, where she offers online consultations and courses to women from all over Europe.
Her work focuses on the mind-body connection, showing how emotional stress, fear and unresolved grief can affect the body’s ability to conceive. For many women who have experienced infertility or repeated miscarriage, hypnosis offers a way to release tension and rebuild confidence in their own bodies. During webinars we hosted together, she guided participants through short sessions that often brought visible calm and relief.
I have seen how her gentle methods complement reproductive medicine, helping women prepare their uterus, hormones and mind for treatment. Hypnosis does not replace IVF or medical care, but it supports the emotional balance that is so essential in every fertility journey. Research has shown that hypnosis can even increase the success rate per IVF cycle. Many women who worked with her afterwards shared that they felt stronger, more at peace, and better able to trust the process.
Dr Struck’s work demonstrates that healing the emotional side of infertility can be just as powerful as treating the physical one. She reminds us that success in reproductive medicine is not measured only by numbers or pregnancy tests, but also by how supported a woman feels along the way.
Claudia and Chris Schmid – Founders of Germany’s first egg donation forum
Claudia and Chris Schmid have become true pioneers in the field of donor conception. Years ago, when reliable information about egg donation and fertility treatment abroad was almost impossible to find, they created one of Germany’s first online forums dedicated to these topics. Their platform quickly grew into a safe space where women could share experiences, ask questions and find others walking the same fertility journey.
What makes their work so special is their genuine empathy. Having experienced infertility himself, Chris was inspired to help others navigate the complex world of reproductive medicine. Together with Claudia, he built a trusted network, collaborating with doctors, fertility specialists and clinics across Europe. Their webinars and online conferences bring together experts from various fields, making topics such as IVF abroad, donor conception and embryo transfer more understandable and transparent.
We met through one of these events, and I immediately admired their dedication. Their motivation was never commercial, but deeply personal – to make sure that no woman feels lost or misinformed when facing treatment abroad. Thanks to their work, hundreds of women have found the courage to explore international fertility clinics and to make informed choices that led to their own fertility success stories.
Claudia and Chris remind us how powerful community can be when facing infertility. Sometimes the most meaningful support does not come from a doctor, but from people who have lived through the same emotions and still choose to help others find hope.
Susan Kersch-Kibler – International fertility specialist with roots in Ukraine
When I first met Susan Kersch at a fertility exhibition in London, I immediately recognised a kindred spirit. Like me, she had spent years visiting fertility clinics, comparing their approaches and helping patients understand what really happens behind the glossy brochures. Her expertise lies in IVF and donor programmes in Ukraine, a country that used to be one of the leading destinations for reproductive medicine before the war changed everything.
Susan founded Delivering Dreams, an organisation that supported international couples seeking IVF and later surrogacy in Ukraine. Long before many others, she was already travelling between clinics, talking to embryologists, fertility specialists, coordinators and donors, making sure that the standards were transparent and the treatments ethical. She understood how different each fertility clinic can be, even within the same city, and how vital it is for patients to receive honest information.
During several webinars we hosted together, Susan spoke about the reality of cross-border fertility treatment and the emotional complexity of donor conception. I still remember one session where a former donor answered audience questions openly for the first time. That conversation touched everyone, showing that behind every embryo and every treatment there are human stories full of empathy and courage.
Susan’s knowledge of reproductive medicine and her commitment to ethical practice continue to inspire me. Even now, as she focuses more on surrogacy, her mission remains the same – to help families find trusted experts who guide them through one of the most important journeys of their lives.
Hanna Schiller – Advocate for single mothers by choice and fertility awareness
Hanna Schiller is one of the strongest voices for single mothers by choice in the German-speaking world. Through her blog and books, she gives women the courage to follow their own path to motherhood, even when society still has doubts or outdated views about what a family should look like. Her openness about her own experience and her deep understanding of fertility treatment make her an essential part of today’s fertility conversation.
Becoming a mother without a partner can be an overwhelming decision. It involves not only medical steps like insemination or IVF, but also emotional preparation and a strong belief in oneself. Hanna’s work helps women navigate this process with empathy and practical advice. Her community SoloMamaPlusEins has become a meeting place for women who want to conceive on their own terms, share experiences and celebrate their fertility success stories together.
Adva – Guiding French-speaking women to trusted IVF clinics abroad
Adva is a dedicated fertility and ART consultant based in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Through her company ART Fertilité, she supports women and couples who want to explore IVF abroad, often because their options at home are limited. Like many of us in this field, her motivation came from personal experience. After facing infertility and undergoing her own fertility treatment, she realised how complicated it can be for patients to find clear, trustworthy information in their own language.
In France, for example, women or couples can freeze embryos in certain cases, but the use of PGT-A and embryo banking between consecutive cycles is not permitted. These restrictions, along with longer waiting times, often lead patients to explore treatment options abroad. On the other hand, single women and lesbian couples are eligible for state-funded IVF up to four times. These complex and sometimes contradictory regulations show how different reproductive medicine can be from one country to another. Adva helps her clients navigate these differences and find fertility clinics that suit their individual needs and values.
Her empathy and knowledge make her a true bridge between patients and clinics. She personally visits IVF centres across Europe, speaks with doctors, embryologists and coordinators, and ensures that women understand what to expect at every step of their fertility journey.
To carry out its work with fertility clinics and its patients, in order to help them prepare for and follow their treatments in the best possible wa, Adva co-founded Fertil-In almost 6 years ago. With Fertil-In accompaniments, Adva and her partner clinics have recently reported up to 20 percent higher success rates for patients who follow the personalised support plan alongside their IVF treatment, even in complex cases.
Many of her clients have shared beautiful fertility success stories after working with her, often saying that her support gave them the confidence to continue when they felt lost. Adva’s work is proof that transparency and care can transform even the most complex fertility treatment into a journey that feels guided, respectful and safe.
Simon Hedley – Making embryo transport and cross-border IVF possible
Simon Hedley plays a crucial yet often overlooked role in the world of international fertility treatment. As Managing Director of IVF Couriers, he and his team specialise in transporting embryos, sperm and eggs safely between fertility clinics worldwide. What may sound like a simple logistical task is in fact a highly sensitive process that requires precision, compliance with international laws and a deep understanding of reproductive medicine.
I first met Simon at a fertility fair in Paris, although I already knew of his company through several center for reproductive medicine in Cyprus that work with him regularly. His approach impressed me immediately. Unlike general transport companies, IVF Couriers handle every shipment personally. Their specialists carry frozen embryos or gametes by hand from one fertility centre to another, ensuring that nothing is left to chance.
This service is becoming increasingly important, especially for patients who store their embryos or eggs in one country but continue treatment elsewhere. For example, in Switzerland, frozen eggs can only be stored for a limited number of years. Women who decide to start a family later often need to transfer their gametes abroad to continue their IVF journey.
Whenever I receive questions about whether such a transfer is possible, Simon is the first person I contact. His professionalism, transparency and genuine care for patients’ hopes make IVF Couriers one of the most trusted names in this field. Without experts like him, many international fertility success stories simply would not be possible.
Yvonne Frankfurth – Giving voice and understanding to egg and embryo donation
I first met Yvonne Frankfurth at the Fertility Fair in Berlin, where we exchanged ideas about fertility clinics abroad and the growing interest in egg and embryo donation. Even in that brief conversation, I was impressed by her knowledge and the clarity with which she addresses such a complex topic. Since then, I have followed her work with great admiration.
Yvonne conducted her research on egg and embryo donation in Europe at the University of Cambridge and has been deeply involved in this field for almost ten years. Hardly a day goes by without her being in contact with intended parents, donors or fertility specialists. Her work shows how important it is to support and guide people who are exploring donation options abroad and who often feel overwhelmed by the lack of transparent information.
Through her articles and blog posts, Yvonne offers a rare combination of academic depth and heartfelt empathy. She writes about the realities of egg and embryo donation in a way that is both clear and deeply human. Her research draws from over a thousand family experiences, clinic visits abroad and international studies, making her one of the few people who truly understand this field from every angle.
Her voice has become an important reference for anyone who wants to learn more about donation-based fertility treatments. Yvonne is frequently featured in the German media, including Die ZEIT, WELT and ARD, where she shares her expertise on the ethical and social dimensions of assisted reproduction.
Her approach reminds us that behind every study, statistic or treatment cycle, there are always real people, real emotions and real stories.
What I learned from a decade of fertility journeys and success stories
After more than ten years of collaboration with clinics, fertility doctors and specialists, one thing has become clear to me: every round of fertility journey is deeply personal. Behind every embryo transfer and every positive pregnancy test stands a story of persistence and hope. Some women need advanced IVF technologies to conceive, while others find success through lifestyle changes, acupuncture or emotional healing.
Working with so many experts has shown me that fertility treatment is not only about the uterus, the ovaries or the hormones, it is about understanding the woman as a whole. A fertility specialist can guide you medically, but real progress often happens when medical, emotional and holistic approaches come together. It is in this balance that most fertility success stories begin to take shape.
Why collaboration between fertility doctors, coaches and specialists leads to stronger fertility success stories
When doctors, embryologists, coaches and patients work as one team, the chances of becoming pregnant increase significantly. A fertility doctor focuses on medical precision, an embryologist ensures embryo quality, while a fertility coach helps manage stress and emotions during each IVF cycle. Together they create an environment where women feel safe, informed and emotionally ready to start a family.
I have seen how communication between professionals transforms the entire experience. Women who once struggled with infertility for years finally felt able to conceive after receiving both medical and emotional guidance. Collaboration also prevents unnecessary treatments and helps identify what is truly best for each patient’s body. Whether it is adjusting fertility medications, supporting ovarian health or preparing for a frozen embryo transfer, teamwork really does make a difference.
Some of the most touching fertility success stories I have witnessed ended with women sending photos of their healthy and beautiful baby girls and boys, born after years of trying to conceive. Every message feels like a reminder that compassion and knowledge go hand in hand in reproductive medicine.
Learn more about IVF clinics and fertility treatment options in Europe to start your own fertility journey
If you are still searching for the right fertility clinic or wondering which country offers the most suitable fertility treatment for your needs, you can download my IVF Destination Guide. It explains where certain procedures, such as gender selection or donor egg IVF, are available, and includes examples of clinics in Northern Cyprus with transparent information on prices and success rates.
The guide will help you understand your options, avoid common mistakes and feel more confident when choosing where and how to begin. Whether you are at the beginning of your fertility journey or preparing for another round of IVF, it is never too late to explore new possibilities. With the right guidance and trusted professionals by your side, your dream to start a family can still come true.
