A Medical Career, at a Cost: Infertility

Physicians are raising awareness of the reproductive toll that work stress, long hours, sleep deprivation and years of training can exact.

From the start, Dr. Ariela Marshall, a hematologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, proceeded with the conviction that if she worked harder, longer and better, she would succeed. And she did: She graduated as high school valedictorian, attended an elite university and was accepted into a top medical school. But one achievement eluded her: having a baby. She had postponed getting pregnant until she was solidly established in her career, but when she finally decided to try to have children, at 34, she was surprised to find that she could not, even with fertility drugs. Dr. Marshall attributed it to having worked frequent night shifts, as well as to stress and lack of sleep, which can affect reproductive cycles. When she reached out to other female physicians to share her story, she learned that she was far from alone; many women in her line of work were also struggling with infertility or with carrying a baby to term.