About one in six people (17.5%) on the planet are affected by infertility in their lifetime, according to the World Health Organization. That’s approximately 1 billion people. 

That number may underestimate the pervasiveness of the global struggle to have children. The WHO statistic is defined narrowly; it only refers to men and women who don’t produce a pregnancy after a year of trying. It doesn’t include, for example, couples who struggle with miscarriages. 

And this problem of infertility is more than a physical issue. With its complex mix of uncertainty, stress, shame and isolation, infertility can impact mental health, too. 

As a result, fertility challenges can cause disruptions in the workplace — an aspect of this predicament that was explored in a recent LinkedIn Live event hosted by Headspace, Fertility, Family Planning, and Mental Health: Essential Conversations for Employers. But business leaders are in a position to help mitigate employee stress related to fertility and family planning. 

“The workplace plays a very important role in the accessibility of fertility care, and what we’re seeing now is that there is a wider adoption of fertility and family-building benefits,” said Asima Ahmad, MD, MPH, FACOG, Chief Medical Officer and co-founder, Carrot Fertility, who was a panelist in the LinkedIn Live event. “Companies are using this to attract and to retain their talent. They’re showing it as a way to invest in their employees and their well-being. And what we see from our care members is that nine out of 10 members who are using the benefit say that they actually are more likely to stay at their company because of the benefit.” 

On the plus side, as Dr. Ahmad mentioned, more employers are covering in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and other types of fertility treatments. In 2022, 43% of large employers covered IVF — up from 27% two years earlier. Still, the numbers show that less than half of large employers cover this treatment, according to Mercer.

It’s also clear that employers could be doing more to recognize and address the mental health issues associated with infertility — mental health issues that can spill over into work. 

“Fertility journeys are complex and they're unpredictable, and we know one of the biggest indicators of mental health is the having of acute and chronic long-term stressors,” said Jenna Glover, Ph.D., Chief Clinical Officer, Headspace, during the panel. “The type of stress that can degrade your emotional resources the fastest is uncertainty, and that is what marks the fertility journey. And so it's important for employers to know that this is going to impact their employees’ mental health.”

There are many facets to employee mental health that fertility challenges can bring into the workplace. “Those multiple appointments, juggling their work schedule,” Dr. Ahmad said. “There’s anxiety around the treatment working or maybe not working, sadness around the whole process, because they haven’t been able to build a family on their own. And then the fact that maybe it won’t work and if it does you might have a miscarriage, because that’s part of the process, too.”

If IVF and other fertility treatments are not covered by insurance, there’s also the expense. “Because of the unaffordability component, people are not getting the care that they need,” Dr. Ahmad said. “Or in some cases, they are spending thousands of dollars out of pocket and sometimes incurring debt. None of those are good options. It ends up being a stressful process that can take a toll on your body and your mind.” 

Thankfully, HR professionals and business leaders are well positioned to help. In addition to supporting physical treatment, businesses can help address the mental health impact of their employees’ fertility journeys. Employees struggling with mental health related to fertility “don't have to necessarily do behavioral therapy or counseling,” said Mary Lasky, director of benefits, Accolade, said during the panel. “They can do meditation apps for sleeping, which is one that someone just pinged me about, as well as coaching. So there really are various ways to engage.” 

Headspace recently introduced a free content collection (accessible with or without a Headspace subscription), titled “Support for Your Fertility Journey,” within our app to help anyone who may be undergoing a family-forming journey. This collection, thoughtfully designed in part by Headspace’s Evelyn Lewis Prieto, Rosie Acosta, and Shula Melamed, is intended to help people feel seen, heard, and supported as they navigate their own family planning journeys.

“It's very important to note that when it comes to, for example, fertility or infertility, it's not just a woman's issue,” Dr. Ahmad said. “It affects all people. And I think that part is really important as well. Yes, 40% of our members are male. And if you look at those cases of infertility — 40 to 50% of those cases may have a male factor component.” 

Business leaders can also support employees by speaking out about their own fertility journeys, which can go a long way to removing the stigma associated with this issue. “It's really important that leadership plays a role in reducing the stigma,” Dr. Ahmad said. “In many cases, when leaders will share their own fertility or family building or mental health experiences openly, it helps to reduce that stigma around these topics in the workplace.”

By addressing the issue of infertility directly, businesses can help boost employee mental health and maybe even increase employee retention at the same time. “It’s good for people, and it’s good for business,” Dr. Glover said.  

To dive deeper into the connection between fertility, family planning, and mental health in the workplace, listen to our LinkedIn Live event, Fertility, Family Planning, and Mental Health: Essential Conversations for Employers. And, to learn more about supporting mental health for your employees, contact us for a demo today.