The Hormone Puzzle Podcast - Learn How to Solve Your Infertility Puzzle to Get and Stay Pregnant · Dr. Kela Smith - Fertility and Hormone Doctor

The Missing Prep Phase: How to Get Your Body Ready for IVF with Courtney Saye

·47 min·3 clips

Courtney says conventional labs can look “normal” while functional testing still finds early clues.

1. The Hormone Puzzle Podcast opens Season 7 with Dr. Kayla Smith and Courtney Say on the missing prep phase before IVF. 2. Courtney Say is the founder of the Functional Fertility Clinic and the IVF Prep Method, and Dr. Kayla Smith is the host and a holistic doctor specializing in fertility and hormone health. 3. The episode asks what changes when fertility care starts with body optimization instead of moving straight to IVF. 4. Courtney says reproductive endocrinologists have advanced tools, but their training leaves a gap in preparing the body for conception and pregnancy. 5. She says her clinic works with women and couples preparing for natural pregnancy or IVF, and the team includes clinicians with 10-plus years of experience. 6. Courtney describes her own fertility journey, including health issues that Western medicine could not explain and a later shift from tech CFO to functional nutritionist. 7. She says her clinic often sees couples after one or many IVF attempts, and the same underlying problems can also interfere with natural conception. 8. Courtney says the main pattern is not just a procedure problem but a body-readiness problem before medical treatment begins. 9. She says more than half of female clients have suboptimal thyroid function, often tied to Hashimoto’s or other autoimmune thyroid issues. 10. She adds that metabolic dysfunction, insulin resistance, micronutrient deficiencies, and gut issues are common on both the female and male sides. 11. Courtney says low progesterone is the most common female hormone clue, while low testosterone is a frequent male finding. 12. She says conventional labs can appear normal while functional testing still finds early clues that matter for fertility. 13. She explains that standard lab ranges reflect population averages, not optimal health for conceiving and carrying a pregnancy. 14. Courtney says the clinic uses blood labs, a Dutch test for women, GI-MAP testing for both sexes, and sometimes vaginal microbiome or genetic testing. 15. She says the team tracks hormones, iron, lipids, fasting insulin, A1C, thyroid markers, and micronutrients rather than relying on a single blood draw. 16. Courtney says many clients arrive under-eating, often around 1,500 to 1,800 calories when she believes an active woman may need about 2,500. 17. She says women often need a 30-gram protein breakfast, meals every four hours, enough sleep, and higher-quality foods like protein, fruit, vegetables, potatoes, and rice. 18. She also says men should lift weights, both sexes should get sunlight and vitamin D, and supplementation like prenatal vitamins, omega-3s, CoQ10, and NAD precursors can support egg and sperm health. 19. The conversation is practical, clinically detailed, and supportive, with Dr. Smith and Courtney comparing notes throughout. 20. People preparing for IVF, unexplained infertility, or hormone testing will get the most from it; listeners wanting a purely medical procedure discussion may skip it.

As heard by us

A steady look at the emotional groundwork IVF asks for.

The episode keeps IVF at the center, but it gives equal weight to the quieter work around it: fertility and hormone health, practical support, and the emotional strain that comes with not having answers.

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Why you'd press play

When fertility treatment feels emotionally exhausting, this gives you somewhere steadier to land tonight.

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