Naturally Pregnant at 44 After Five Miscarriages and Secondary Infertility

Beth Gulotta, host of the Quiet the Clock podcast, shares her journey from freezing her eggs at 37 and easily conceiving her first son at 39 to navigating secondary infertility, failed embryo transfers, and five miscarriages while trying for a second child. She ultimately conceived naturally at 44 and welcomed her second son.

After giving birth to her first son at 40, Beth expected growing her family to be straightforward. At 42, the pressure she felt around age led her straight to the eggs she had frozen five years earlier. Those eggs produced five euploid embryos, but her first transfer did not implant, and her second ended in miscarriage.

Beth began searching for answers beyond being told to keep trying. She learned she had Hashimoto’s, pursued additional uterine and immune testing, and sought out practitioners who would take her concerns seriously. Along the way, she worked with Aimee while continuing medical care, making nutrition and lifestyle changes, and developing an individualized reproductive immunology treatment plan with her doctors.

While preparing for another transfer, Beth became pregnant naturally again, despite trying to avoid pregnancy that cycle. With a treatment plan already established, she and her care team moved quickly to arrange her medications and monitoring. She also speaks openly about the anxiety of pregnancy after repeated loss and the months she spent waiting to hold her son.

We discuss what secondary infertility felt like after an uncomplicated first pregnancy, the emotional and financial burden of searching for answers, and why Beth began questioning the pressure to rush. She shares what it meant to have another advocate beside her, change clinics when she felt unheard, and use her platform to help other women ask questions. Her story reflects her own experience with treatment and pregnancy, rather than a prediction of anyone else’s outcome.

Key Topics

* Beth’s Quiet the Clock podcast began as a conversation about societal expectations and timeline anxiety, then expanded as she shared her fertility journey.

* At 37, Beth froze 14 eggs while she and her partner were not yet aligned on when to have children. She describes the financial, physical, and emotional weight of that decision.

* She conceived her first son quickly at 39 and gave birth at 40, which shaped her expectations about trying for another child.

* When she was ready for baby number two at 42, Beth went straight to her frozen eggs because she believed using younger eggs would give her the best chance.

* Beth reports that 12 eggs fertilized, eight embryos reached the blastocyst stage, and five were euploid.

* Before her first transfer, she learned her TSH was elevated and began thyroid medication. The transfer did not implant, and she later learned she had Hashimoto’s.

* After an impersonal experience and unclear communication at her first clinic, she moved her embryos and care to another clinic.

* Her second transfer implanted, but the pregnancy ended in miscarriage at about eight weeks. Beth describes both the grief and feeling unprepared for the physical experience of the loss.

* When she began asking for further investigation, Beth says she was told she needed to have more miscarriages before some practitioners would evaluate her.

* She sought nutrition and functional medicine support and worked on food, supplements, lifestyle, and thyroid care. Finding an approach that suited her took time and changes in practitioners.

* Beth experienced additional losses after IUI and naturally conceived pregnancies. She came to understand her immediate struggle as staying pregnant rather than becoming pregnant.

* Uterine biopsies identified endometritis, and a later hysteroscopy found scar tissue. These findings prompted questions about which tests had been offered before earlier transfers.

* Her third embryo transfer, in January 2025, did not implant. She then sought a clinic willing to investigate further, including reproductive immunology testing.

* Aimee and Beth review the immune and clotting-related findings discussed in her report, including antiphospholipid syndrome, and how those findings informed her individualized medical care.

* Beth worked with Aimee during this part of her journey and describes the value of having support while communicating with her medical team.

* After five miscarriages in total, Beth was preparing for a fourth transfer when she discovered she was naturally pregnant again at 44.

* Because her treatment plan was already established, Beth and her care team worked quickly to arrange medications and immune monitoring for the unexpected pregnancy.

* Beth describes physician-managed treatment that included IVIG, Lovenox, and prednisone, with monitoring and medication adjustments during pregnancy.

* Pregnancy after loss brought anxiety between appointments and on the way to ultrasounds. Beth relied on her partner and family for support.

* Beth welcomed her second son and still has two embryos remaining from the eggs she froze at 37.

* Aimee and Beth discuss why it can be difficult to pause treatment, seek a second opinion, or change clinics after investing so much time, money, and hope.

* They discuss informed consent, access to testing, clinic communication, and the importance of being able to ask questions about a proposed plan.

* Beth has carried changes in food and household choices into family life and discusses combining those habits with the medical care she received.

* Her closing message centers on finding support for self-advocacy, asking questions when choosing a clinic, and noticing when fear of time is driving decisions.

Timestamps

00:00 - Welcome to The Fertility Authority01:48 - Introducing Beth’s Story of Hope and life with her second son03:24 - Beth joins Aimee and introduces Quiet the Clock05:08 - Timeline anxiety and the value Beth found in motherhood at 4007:42 - Freezing her eggs at 3708:30 - Conceiving her first son at 39 and giving birth at 4009:41 - Trying for a second child at 42 and choosing her frozen eggs10:08 - From 14 frozen eggs to five euploid embryos10:55 - Thyroid concerns before the first transfer and learning about Hashimoto’s13:17 - An impersonal clinic experience and learning to trust her concerns14:21 - The second transfer and miscarriage at about eight weeks15:50 - Searching for answers and being told to wait for more losses17:23 - Nutrition, lifestyle, and finding the right thyroid care17:57 - IUI, naturally conceived pregnancies, and repeated losses18:26 - Uterine testing, endometritis, and questions about informed consent19:56 - A third transfer does not implant20:26 - Changing clinics for immune testing and further uterine evaluation21:55 - Reviewing Beth’s immune findings and individualized treatment plan24:46 - Preparing for another transfer and discovering a new pregnancy26:00 - Sponsor break: Aimee Raupp Beauty27:05 - Naturally pregnant at 44 while trying to avoid pregnancy28:36 - Moving quickly to arrange medication and pregnancy monitoring29:30 - Why having another advocate mattered30:31 - IVIG costs and waiting for insurance clearance31:05 - Changing clinics during pregnancy and adjusting treatment32:00 - The emotional reality of pregnancy after loss32:28 - A frightening Doppler appointment and the need for sensitive care35:19 - Welcoming her second son and the two embryos still remaining35:54 - Looking back at the search for reproductive immunology care38:14 - Why it can be hard to reassess treatment or leave a clinic42:44 - How age-focused fertility messaging shaped Beth’s decisions44:23 - Discussing gaps in communication across approaches to care46:00 - Testing options, costs, and having a say in the plan47:21 - Beth’s experience of being dismissed and advocating for herself48:50 - Questions Beth wishes she had known to ask about a clinic50:40 - Different paths to parenthood and the emotional work they can involve51:38 - The fifth miscarriage, slowing down, and the work already in place53:57 - Why sharing personal fertility stories matters55:43 - What Beth carr…

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