An Empty Seat at my Table

An Empty Seat at My Table is a memoir rooted in longing-fora second child for love for autonomy-and the often silentsacrifices women make in pursuit of all three. At its heart this is astory of motherhood earned through relentless determination anddeep personal cost. When I left the UK at 35 I believed I washeading toward a bright future: a career in the U.S. a promisingrelationship and the possibility of becoming a mother. InsteadI encountered a toxic marriage an unplanned pregnancy I wascoerced into ending and a long emotionally brutal strugglewith IVF.I wrote this memoir for every woman who has made sacrificesshe could not take back for anyone grappling with infertilityreproductive choices or emotionally manipulative relationships.It's a story of how dreams bend but don't break how love fora child can anchor you and how reclaiming your story-evenlater in life-is an act of profound power.This isn't just a story of motherhood. It's a reckoning with regret alove letter to resilience and a guidepost for those navigating themurky waters of fertility treatment and marital coercion. My hopeis that it becomes both mirror and map: a place where others seethemselves and a path forward they can claim.