Nurturing Fertility: From Idea to Reality – An Inspiring Interview with Co-Founders Bryant Liggett and Erin Attaway of The Fertility Resort

Discover the heart and soul of The Fertility Resort—an online community designed to provide information, community, and coaching to couples navigating the complex world of fertility treatments. From evidence-based research to time-tested wisdom from practices like Chinese medicine, the platform offers a holistic approach to fertility support. Explore the content, community engagement, and coaching that define this nurturing haven for couples striving to conceive. Learn more how these two co-founders, Bryant Liggett and Erin Attaway took their own lived experiences to launch a community like no other. 

Bryant + Erin, how did your partnership come to be? 

Wow, we met a few years ago when Bryant was referred to my clinic for acupuncture by her fertility doctors.  I got to know her as a patient first and we had these great conversations about how challenging fertility is. Over time, it became an idea.  She told me about a business plan that she pitched in a workshop and played the pitch deck for me, and I thought it was great.  Then she asked if I wanted to be her partner in it and of course I said yes!

Tell us about the Fertility Resort and what it’s been like bringing this idea into a reality? 

It’s been one of those great challenges.  We are both idea people, creatives, and we have had to work hard to refine our product and really hone in on who we are, what we want to do, and how we want to solve problems.  We had so many ideas and day by day distilled them down into something accessible and usable for the majority, not the minority.  We’ve also worked to create a supportive partnership that allows us to continue having a life, despite having a lot of work to do. 

The Fertility Resort is an online community that we have designed to bridge the gap between IVF patients and providers, attempting to bring quality information in a timely manner.  We aim to be provider backed and endorsed, focusing on Evidence Based Research and Traditional Wisdoms that come from practices like Chinese medicine.  

The Fertility Resort provides content, community and coaching to achieve our goals.  The members are encouraged to develop relationships within the platform and support each other in the ways only peers can.  We provide content that comes from cutting edge science and tried and true principles to create lifestyle strategies for couples trying to conceive.  And we provide group coaching formats for educational purposes, where individuals can ask questions and receive feedback. 

For those interested in learning more about the Fertility Resort, what’s the best time to join in? 

As of Aug 1, 2023 The Fertility Resort is live!  You can follow our FB and Instagram pages for back stories, sneak peaks and insight into who and what we are.  We actually planned to launch a month earlier as a result of our beta testing group results. 

What sort of community and programming can we come to expect from the Fertility Resort? 

The idea is to streamline the hours of research that become common when you’re undergoing IVF.  You don’t know what you don’t know, and we aim to relieve those pressures of trying to figure out what to do to improve your outcomes.  We post educational content that includes overviews of current research ideas, as well as simple action items to take, based on need and circumstances. 

We host live events as well, some just for informational purposes, but also for mental health, emotional support and relaxation.  We are trying to be a one stop shop of support where members can gain access to valuable information from a variety of providers, as well as find ways to be supported on their journey, even if they aren’t ready to enlist more personal outside providers. 

In a partnership and navigating your own businesses how are you dividing the responsibilities of the Fertility Resort? 

Bryant handles the marketing and much of the administrative side, where I focus on content and recruiting providers.  We are both still managing our own business day jobs, and The Fertility Resort fills up a lot of our free time.  But it’s worth it.  We have so much family support, people are helping us when they can.  People have been very generous with us when we’Ve had an ask.  We are hiring a third person on the 2024 to do list. 

Lastly, do you have any advice for people navigating their fertility journey? 

• Focus on self advocacy and self-education.  One of the biggest hazards is waiting for a doctor, nurse or clinic to tell you what to do, when that may  never happen.  

• Rely on reputable sources.  Someone that got pregnant from IVF isn’t necessarily a resource for information and advice.  Find practitioners or groups that will provide guidance and counsel and what to do. 
• Be willing to make changes.  It’s not always easy but it’s usually worth it.
• Simplify your life.  We have a tendency to fill every moment, especially when we are avoiding loss, procrastinating or waiting for the right time.  Sometimes the best answer is to slow down and stop doing, learn to relax and be okay.  Fertility can be long, hard and surprising, so you need to reserve a little bit of energy to handle it.