Kourtney Kardashian has shared an update on how she’s coping since undergoing IVF treatment.
In Season 1 of The Kardashians on Hulu, Kourtney revealed that she and her husband, Travis Barker, were trying for a baby via IVF, aka in vitro fertilization.
However, she revealed that she’d found the treatments to be “awful” after they left her feeling depressed.
“Travis and I want to have a baby, and so my doctor took us down this road of doing IVF, and it hasn’t been the most amazing experience,” she said.
“The medication that they’ve been giving me, they put me into menopause,” she said.
Kourtney, who is already a mom of three, went on to discuss how she gained weight since beginning the IVF treatment.
“Every single person on social media is always like, ‘Kourtney’s pregnant. Kourtney’s gained so much weight,’” she said of the ongoing chatter about her body. “It’s so rude to comment on people when you have no idea what they’re actually going through.”
And Kourt opened up further about her weight gain in Season 2, revealing that “eight months of IVF treatment” had “taken a toll” on her “mentally and physically.”
“Obviously my body’s changed,” she said. “It was all of the hormones that the doctors put me on.”
“Eight months of IVF treatment has definitely taken a toll on my body mentally and physically, and I think it’s taken a lot to get me to the place of feeling really comfortable and happy with the changes,” she went on.
“Everyone always comments on every photo [that] I’m pregnant. And obviously we wish that… But if it’s in God’s plan, then it is,” she added.
However, in a later episode that season, Kourtney revealed that she and Travis had temporarily “stopped” the IVF process while planning their wedding, which took place in May.
“We made a decision to really put all of our energy that we were putting into having a baby into our wedding,” she said. “We decided to put IVF on hold. The physical and mental toll that it can take on me — I felt it was really important not to think about it and enjoy the process of thinking about our wedding.”
In fact, Kourtney ended up revealing in October that she went so far as to undertake a brain scan to see the effects that the IVF hormones were having on her.
“When I went to get the results, the doctor thought it was mostly from IVF because it affects your adrenals, thyroids and hormones,” she said during an episode of the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast.
“My energy levels since starting have been really down and I haven't done it since January or February and still my energy levels are still really down,” she added.
And Kourtney also admitted that she felt “pushed into” doing IVF, telling podcast host Amanda Hirsh: “I felt like we kind of got pushed into doing IVF... I got to a place where I just felt, like, exactly how timing was everything with me and Travis. I feel — truly — like if it’s meant to be, it’ll happen.”
Now, Kourtney has given her fans a positive update on how her energy levels are doing.
Taking to Instagram this week, the Poosh founder shared a photo of herself on a treadmill as she revealed she’s “finally started” getting her energy back.
“Finally started getting my energy back 10 months after stopping IVF, for anyone else going through it, it gets better!” she wrote.
The update comes months after Kourtney praised Travis for his consistent support of her throughout the IVF process and credited him with helping her embrace her changing body.
“Every day, Travis is like, ‘You’re perfect.’ If I make one complaint, he’s like, ‘You’re perfect. You’re so fine… You’ve never been better,’” she said with a huge grin in an episode of The Kardashians. “And now I’m so into it.”
