Natalie was in her late 30s when she started IVF treatment after surgery for endometriosis.
The now 48-year-old says she was "extremely optimistic but also completely naive" about how the difficult journey might be.
"When I reflect upon it, it would've been great to have had that discussion up-front [with the clinic], but it wasn't something that we talked about," Natalie, from Anglesea in Victoria, says.
"We sort of just didn't understand that, sometimes, especially as you age, you often need more than just one cycle."
It was the start of a decade-long IVF journey for Natalie and her husband as they tried desperately to fulfil their dream of becoming parents.
Natalie says the journey hasn't just taken a toll physically and emotionally, but the financial burden has been profound.
Yumi Stynes, host of ABC podcast Ladies, We Need to Talk, explored what the true cost of IVF is for couples and where the line is when it comes to stopping treatment.
After her first IVF cycle failed, Natalie and her husband took a year off treatment to think about their goals.
"It's not just a physical process, it's a mental process, and it's an emotional process," she says.
"And [we were] figuring out, 'What is it that we want to do?'"
