For many of us the pain of Endometriosis and the fear of infertility are twisted spitefully together like the cords on your earphones.

“There were nights when I was babysitting and would cry when checking on the sleeping child, there were days when I couldn’t stand another minute in the swarming playground.”

She doesn’t have Endo but Sydney author Julia Leigh’s personal IVF journey in her new book Avalanche is deeply relevant to us.

“As month after month passed and I did not fall pregnant the obligation to make love on the days around my time of ovulation became wearisome.”

Trying for a natural pregnancy under these circumstances can be hard enough, but add egg freezing and IVF into the mix and the economic and emotional strain on your relationship and your self-confidence can be devastating.

“I hoped and believed I was pregnant. On day 27 I noticed the slightest discolouration in my urine: a hint of blood. And I collapsed. Howled. Wept… I felt utterly bereft. Alone, alone.”

IVF is the other strand in the conversation about endometriosis and infertility. Observes Leigh: “It’s an industry predicated on failure…. In 2013, of 71,516 treatment cycles only 18.2 per cent resulted in a live birth. Regardless the age of the patient, regardless the exact variant of treatment, most cycles failed.”

Julia Leigh writes honestly and lyrically of her yearning for a child with an unexpected revelation in the final pages.

Avalanche by Julia Leigh is available through Penguin Books.