We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tara Angeles. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tara below.
Tara , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
“What can I personally do to improve my chances of conceiving?”
I heard this question over and over from patients during my time as an IVF nurse at one of the top 20 fertility clinics in the U.S. While I supported hundreds of couples through the IVF and IUI process as an IVF nurse, many couples still went home empty-handed and broken hearted and this question I received so frequently helped spur a new journey and purpose for me.
I found that there is a massive lack of preconception care for couples trying to conceive. 86% of women and couples do not receive preconception care from their primary care provider, and this lack of preconception care and support makes it much more difficult for couples to successfully conceive. Many couples feel completely lost trying to navigate the complexities of conception and trying to figure out what factors are impacting their ability to successfully conceive. Many couples do not want to rely on artificial reproductive technologies (IUI, IVF, donor eggs, surrogacy, etc) and are searching for other answers.
So in 2019, determined to help address this lack in preconception care, I went back to school to study integrative nutrition with a specialty in hormone health. I wanted to learn exactly how couples could naturally improve their fertility, and I immersed myself in all the latest cutting-edge fertility research. What I learned and discovered was amazing! Research over the years has shown that there are numerous ways for couples to naturally improve and optimize their fertility and that our bodies have an incredible and innate ability to heal, if given the right support and tools! I founded the Fertility Academy in 2022 to bring those findings to women and couples searching for ways to improve their ability to conceive and prepare for a healthy pregnancy and baby, providing a variety of evidence-based practices to help them heal and transform their fertility.
I’ve since utilized my unique background as an IVF nurse, mother, and holistic fertility and hormone health coach to help numerous couples successfully achieve their dream of parenthood. Helping couples to have their dream families is my greatest passion and I am so grateful for the opportunity to help in this way.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
WHAT I DO:
Through a personalized blend of holistic practices and nursing expertise, I empower couples to naturally enhance their fertility and prepare for a healthy pregnancy and baby, whether through natural conception or increased success with artificial reproductive technologies. I help couples target healing on a cellular level, which helps them to heal and optimize their reproductive health as a whole and address the root causes of their fertility challenges. When couples have been trying to conceive for 4 months without success, there is something deeper going on that is keeping them stuck that needs to be addressed.
Many couples wonder why it’s necessary to address fertility on a cellular level and to take the time to prepare for conception. I love to use a garden analogy here. If you have a seed that you want to plant, would you plant that seed in rich soil that has been lovingly prepared with plenty of minerals, light, water, and nutrients? Or would you try to plant it in a bit of exposed earth in a cracked sidewalk? The rich soil, right? Proper preconception care is like growing a beatiful healthy seed and then feeding it with the right soil, minerals, nutrients, and water for that seed to thrive. If proper care is taken to grow a healthy seed in rich soil, it will reach its full potential and turn into the most beautiful flower. The same goes for our fertility. If couples know how to support very healthy eggs and sperm and prepare the body’s entire fertility system to support a fertilized egg properly, the chances of conception go up, miscarriages decrease, and the stage is set for a healthy pregnancy and baby.
WHAT IS MOST EXCITING ABOUT IT
I’ve found that the most exciting thing about what I do is that couples learn that they are empowered to take back control of their fertility journey. They don’t have to feel like they are at the mercy of time, chance, or invasive options anymore. Most couples don’t know that there is this alternative natural option to optimizing their fertility that is very effective! Numerous studies published in peer reviewed journals over the past several decades have shown that specific holistic approaches to diet, nutrition, and lifestyle can significantly enhance fertility. For most couples, adopting these holistic practices is sufficient to support successful conception. But not only that, it also helps couples to transform their own overall health and the health of their children. I founded The Fertility Academy to provide couples with this education and support.
NEW NEWS:
I am so excited to announce that I recently launched my Fertility By Design Program, my signature 12-week holistic fertility program where I help couples naturally transform their fertility on a cellular level.
This program is 12 weeks long as this is the average amount of time it takes to see significant improvements in fertility health, specifically egg and sperm quality. This program provides the necessary steps that benefit EVERY couple trying to conceive. Couples will finally get access to the holistic fertility education and support they deserve! I designed this program to address every major factor that can impact fertility and give couples the tools and resources to naturally optimize and transform their fertility. This program is the answer to addressing the preconception care gap that sits between trying to conceive and artificial reproducitve technology fertility treatments.
The Fertility By Design Program allows couples to benefit from this incredible self-paced program, get access to my experience as an IVF nurse and fertility and hormone health coach, tap into a mechanism for weekly accountability, get their questions answered via Live Q&A sessions with me twice a month, and get free access to special live events and workships I hold!
A little bit more about Fertility By Design:
I chose the name “Fertility By Design” because conceiving a child is not just a biological process; it’s a beautiful, creative journey that a couple takes together. Just like an artist designs a masterpiece, I want couples to feel empowered to take control of their fertility journeys. I provide the tools and knowledge to help couples build the family of their dreams with intention.
I know firsthand what couples struggling to conceive are going through, as I’ve witnessed the desperation and the heartache while supporting couples as an IVF nurse. That’s why I’m on a mission to provide this preconception care for couples.
This program isn’t just a project—it’s my passion.
I’ve poured my heart into gathering these resources and education, making them accessible to every couple, regardless of financial standing.
Expensive fertility care shouldn’t be the only option.
I’m so excited to continue pushing the boundaries for women’s health and to support couples on their journey to building their dream families.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The three qualities/skills that have been most impactful on my journey and that I use every single day are empathy, taking imperfect action in the moment, and self-care.
Empathy, is kind of like a bridge. Just as a bridge connects two shores, empathy is how we can connect our hearts and experiences to the experiences, needs, and feelings of others. Building empathy requires effort and a lot of intention. We have to lay the foundation of our empathy by actively listening and seeking to understand the other individual, step-by-step. When I get to know a new client, I listen to all of their stories, their feelings, and their perspectives, and I respond with compassion and kindness, helping them to feel safe and secure in their care. But it doesn’t stop there – whenever we are dealing with another person, it takes consistently checking in to see how they are doing, and making sure there are no misunderstandings. It takes an open mind and a lot of patience. Developing this quality has helped me enormously when it comes to supporting my clients on their fertility journeys. It helps me to understand where my clients are at and the steps I need to take to help them be successful. The best way to start developing empathy is to actively listen to another, seeking to really understand them rather than to judge, and putting yourself in their shoes to truly understand how they see the world.
“If you desire a glorious future, you must change the present. There is no other choice”. I love this quote by Indian philosopher Sri Aurobindo. The meaning is simple, if you want change, then change what you are doing right now. So how do you do this? Take daily action, even imperfect action, towards your goal. Just taking one small step forward every day is enough, but it’s so important to keep taking those small steps. Over time, you’ll start developing confidence and belief in yourself that you can get to your goals and you’ll start to feel a sense of accomplishment and pride in the direction you’re heading. With consistent small steps you can climb any mountain. Even if the steps you are taking feel insignifiant on some days, you’re still making progess. I embed this philosophy in my coaching practice with every couple I work with, as that commitment to small steps can make all the difference in getting to successful conception.
The last skill that has been most impactful in my journey is self-care! Self-care equals success! What does this mean? It means that if you are to be successful in your life, no matter what you are hoping to achieve or what is going on, it is imperative that you prioritize taking care of yourself first. This last skill has personally taken me a lot longer to learn. I have put others’ needs before my own for a very long time. Sometimes having this skill will be perceived as being selfish, but it’s actually the opposite. You are showing up for yourself first, so that you can show up for everyone else, for your kids, your partner, your family, your community, etc. as the best version of yourself. You see, no one knows your needs as well as you do and when we give this responsibility to someone else, we tend to suffer. You are the leading character in your life and you deserve to take the time to take care of you. Now developing this skill does take some effort and a daily reminder that you are worth being taken care of by the person who should love you the most, YOU! Here’s where you start: Take out a piece of paper and write down your “Happy List”. Your happy list includes everything that makes you happy, and everything that you’ve dreamed of doing that would make you happy. Don’t hold yourself back here. Write down everything you can think of that has brought you joy at some point in your life, as a child, teenager, adult, etc. and everything you dream of doing that brings you joy. Now choose one thing from that list and commit to doing it in the next week. Put it on your calendar like you would a work call or a doctors appointment. It is THAT important! Adults do too much “adulting” and we need more things that bring us joy. Once you’ve done that, part 2 is creating a short daily morning ritual for self care. In your morning ritual you can take time to move your body, journal, say affirmations, read, journal, pray, visualize, etc. Building a morning routine is a chance to start your day off right and on your terms.
How would you describe your ideal client?
Every couple needs to find health care providers that match their health needs, goals and desires, and vice versa. And I’m so excited to work with couples who want to take back control of their fertility journey to naturally boost their chances of conceiving, and prepare for a healthy pregnancy and baby.
If you and your partner have been trying to conceive for more than 4 months without success and are starting to feel like successfully conceiving is tougher than solving a rubik’s cube blindfolded, I’m excited to help! If you are hoping for a natural solution to optimize and transform your fertility and are ready to take action and change up your diet, nutrition, and lifestyle, then you’re in the right place. You are not alone on this fertility journey.
Ready to go on this incredible fertility journey with me? Ready to embrace whole body fertility wellness, armed with the belief that your body has powerful, untapped healing potential? Let’s get started! I’m beyond excited to support you in your fertility transformation!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thefertilityacademy.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefertilityacademy/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefertilityacademy.tara/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-angeles/
- Other: FERTILITY BY DESIGN PROGRAM: https://www.skool.com/fertilitybydesign/about
Image Credits
Chocolate Moose Images Photography
