Megan McKenna Details Difficult IVF Journey Amid Rare Health Diagnosis

Reality television personality Megan McKenna has shared details of her challenging fertility journey, including a diagnosis of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), a rare condition she experienced during IVF treatments.

McKenna, 33, and her husband, footballer Oliver Burke, 29, faced difficulties conceiving their son, Landon, who recently turned two. In a conversation on the Happy Place podcast with Fearne Cotton, McKenna recounted the intense experience of being hospitalized with OHSS, a condition triggered by an overreaction to fertility medications.

After being diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) as a teenager and trying to conceive naturally, McKenna decided to pursue fertility treatments. She explained her desire to freeze her eggs, particularly as she approached 30 and hadn't yet found a partner. However, after meeting Burke, her plans shifted, and they began trying to conceive.

During the process, doctors informed McKenna that her uterine lining was too thin for implantation, necessitating a course of medication and injections. It was during this period that she developed OHSS.

"It was crazy. And then I basically just didn't move for two weeks," McKenna stated. "I was so nervous because I'd had this horrendous four months of having this condition called OHSS. I'm not sure if many people know about it, but oh, it's awful. Basically, it's like you're pregnant, but there's nothing in there."

She described being hospitalized with significantly enlarged ovaries, experiencing fluid in her abdomen, and the condition delaying her pregnancy attempts. "It was stressful," she added.

Despite these challenges, McKenna eventually had two high-grade embryos survive the thawing process. She underwent implantation with one embryo and successfully became pregnant with Landon, who was born in October 2024.

McKenna also revealed that she had been hospitalized with OHSS shortly after her UK home was robbed, compounding the stress she was experiencing. She was undergoing therapy and pregnancy acupuncture to prepare her body for the injections and did not want the OHSS to derail her plans.

"I wanted to still go through with the process even though this had happened to me. But maybe me getting ill with the OHSS happened for a reason because it kind of delayed me falling pregnant. Things happen in a funny way. When it did happen, I felt like I was in a bit of a better place."

McKenna and Burke, who began dating in 2023, divide their time between the UK and Germany, where Burke plays for football club Union Berlin.