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Karen Pittman plays Dr. Nya Wallace going through IVF.
Craig Blankenhorn / HBO Max

How And Just Like That... Addresses The Complex Journey Of IVF

Charlotte’s journey was totally different from Dr. Nya Wallace.

And Just Like That..., the Sex and the City reboot on HBO Max, delves into the IVF struggles of Dr. Nya Wallace, Miranda’s professor, in a way that honors the complicated emotions around infertility.

If you’re not caught up with the season, be warned: Spoilers ahead!

Craig Blankenhorn/HBO Max

Dr. Nya Wallace has been trying to conceive via IVF, but she’s conflicted. In Episode 4 of And Just Like That..., she tells Miranda, “When my last round of IVF didn't go through, um... I felt a huge wave of relief.”

Nya admits she’s worried about whether motherhood is “worth it.”

“My husband and I, we love our life,” she tells Miranda. “Nobody's life is perfect, but my life? It's really f*cking close, right? But I'm also afraid that if I don't have a child I'm going to regret it one day.”

Episode 6 delves deeper into Nya’s journey when she goes to dinner with “Fertile Myrtle,” a friend who has been pregnant several times in the last few years. Nya tells Miranda she’s worried about the dinner, especially since asking husband Andre to “give her a little space about the baby decision” after IVF.

Craig Blankenhorn/HBO Max

During dinner, Nya and Andre find out “Fertile Myrtle” and her husband are expecting a third child. “Slow down, brother, give someone else a shot,” Andre jokes and his friend responds, “Get moving man, pick up the slack.” Myrtle reprimands her husband and things get awkward.

Myrtle asks them how things are going, and we see Andre and Nya might be on different schedules. “Maybe think about another IVF,” Andre says while Nya notes, “IVF is really hard on my body and it’s expensive, we’re trying to save money.”

Craig Blankenhorn/HBO Max

Myrtle responds to Nya’s valid concerns by saying, “It’s never a good time and it’s always a good time,” while her husband adds, “A couple like you? You’ve gotta have babies.” The scene perfectly encapsulates the intense social pressure to have kids.

Nya and Andre get home, have sex, and she immediately says, “If that didn’t put a baby in me I don’t want to try the other thing.” A reminder that, no matter what she’s doing, fertility is constantly on the brain. The push-pull never leaves her.

Craig Blankenhorn/HBO Max

Nya’s IVF experience is so different from Charlotte’s in the original Sex and the City series. Charlotte was desperate to have children while Nya is still unsure. And the two stories are a potent reminder that everyone needs to find their own way to being a parent.

Or not.

More of Nya’s IVF story will surely be explored when new episodes of And Just Like That... air every Thursday on HBO Max.

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