Meet Megan Cavato

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Megan Cavato a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Megan, 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.

The path to my purpose was unexpected, painful, and ultimately very rewarding. My experience through infertility and multiple pregnancy losses over the course of our three year journey reshaped my perception of myself as a person and solidified my focus as a mental health therapist. This journey stripped me into the most vulnerable version of myself, living my story out loud as a message to other women that pregnancy loss at any stage and infertility are not conversations to be had alone in your thoughts at night. It showed me how deeply unseen and misunderstood people can feel when they’re carrying an invisible grief while the world keeps moving on.

For a long time I kept the struggles that my husband and I were experiencing mostly to myself. We tried medicated cycles, acupuncture, working with a naturopath, IUI, and working with a functional nutritionist. This eventually led to going through IVF alone while my husband was deployed on the other side of the world. I was an experienced therapist by this time, working for an agency that I had been with for nearly 10 years and took pride in my ability to hold it together and perform at a high level. I went to appointments early in the morning, told only a couple of close friends at work and my manager what was happening, and sometimes had to administer my medications in between appointments. As a high achiever I was used to working hard at something and getting results. The constant whiplash of hope and disappointment felt like failure and it was exhausting.

After years of fertility treatment that ultimately resulted in a third miscarriage, this time our twin daughters, I was done trying to hold it together. We had moved to a new state and I knew I would be opening a private practice at some point. I realized that the parts of my story that I was hiding were what would allow me to sit with others in their darkest seasons. Infertility taught me about patience, hope, vulnerability, the importance of community, and allowing myself to be imperfect — something many women who experience infertility struggle with. Finding this purpose through the most painful and devastating experience of my life means that I can offer true, authentic understanding for the women and couples sitting in front of me. There’s no need to explain the nuances of medications, fertility treatments, or what it feels like to fight back tears when you receive a baby shower invite. Helping people through this experience has become more of a calling. I’m fighting with them on their journey with the same fervor and determination that I carried through my own, hoping to light the same spark that helps them to keep going and to find hope. It gives meaning to my own experience and allows me to transform something deeply painful into something purposeful while I help people reclaim the pieces of themselves that they’ve lost along the way.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I’m Megan, the founder of Fertility Nest Therapy, a counseling practice dedicated to supporting women and couples navigating infertility, pregnancy loss, and reproductive trauma. I am a licensed clinical therapist, registered art therapist (ATR), a perinatal mental health counselor (PMH-C), and trained in a specialized form of therapy, EMDR. Currently, I am serving clients in the state of Ohio and virtually in Arizona. What makes my work unique is that I blend my training in EMDR, creative expression, and other trauma informed approaches to help people get to the root of their experience. My lived experience through the spectrum of infertility and pregnancy loss means that I have true insight into the experience of the people I work with. I offer a space where clients can be fully seen and supported during a time that often feels isolating and overwhelming and help individuals to reconnect with themselves, develop tools to become more resilient through what is often a very difficult time, and to honor their grief.

Alongside my clinical work, I am developing resources to support the fertility and perinatal community. This currently includes the development of an art based mindfulness journal with creative prompts and reflections that can be used alongside the journey of trying to conceive. However, as I continue to develop my practice I hope to collaborate with local fertility clinics and other providers and to expand into offering workshops and support groups.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Beyond my skills and training in mental health counseling, the qualities of determination, purpose, and compassion are ultimately the common threads through my journey as an entrepreneur and as a therapist. My advice to others, particularly someone who is considering this field, would be to get out and talk to other experienced therapists. Surround yourself with people who do good work and continue to seek out quality supervision or consultation throughout your career. Also, to live vulnerably and openly in your story. I found that while networking with other professionals and sharing parts of my story that drive my passion for working with this population led to building positive professional relationships because they understood that I cared about the work I was doing and that I would do so authentically.

How would you describe your ideal client?

My ideal client is a woman navigating infertility, pregnancy loss, or the emotional strain of trying to conceive. She’s someone who is exhausted from the rollercoaster of hope and disappointment. She is ready to get to the root of what she is feeling and wants to feel stronger and more confident through this journey. The individuals I work with are tired of feeling like they’ve tried everything and are open to deeper healing, whether through EMDR or other modalities. They want to feel understood and to not have to explain the meaning behind medications, procedures, or fertility treatments. My clients value a therapeutic space that is validating, warm, and honest. They’re ready to invest in their emotional well-being and want to work with someone who truly understands the complexities of the season they’re in without judgment.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.fertilitynesttherapy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fertilitynesttherapy/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megan-c-289a7559/
• Other: Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/profile/1565831