The Waiting Room

The path to parenthood is deeply personal. When that path twists and stalls, it can feel impossibly lonely. Yet within the shared stories lies something powerful – connection, courage and hope. The Waiting Room exists because too many people walk through infertility, loss and longing in silence. Every day in the UK, there are 273 miscarriages, 7 stillbirths, 10 terminations for medical reasons and 5 neonatal deaths. Globally, 1 in 6 couples face infertility. These numbers represent not statistics but stories that deserve to be heard. And yet most of us never talk about it. The silence around fertility challenges keeps people isolated. So, what happens after the failed pregnancy tests, the first miscarriage, the unsuccessful round of IVF, the ectopic pregnancy or the stillbirth? What’s it like to adopt a child, rely on a surrogate, an egg or a sperm donor, or come to terms with a life without children? Drawing on dozens of honest, hopeful accounts, former The Sunday Times journalist Audrey Ward curates a selection of stories from those whose journeys to (or away from) parenthood were anything but simple – including her own. Join us in The Waiting Room – a place for anyone who has ever felt that parenthood is painfully out of reach, and for those who are ready to change how we speak about it.