ABC host Sharnelle Vella expecting a baby after fertility struggle
ABC Radio Melbourne breakfast co-host Sharnelle Vella has announced she's pregnant after a "harrowing" struggle with infertility. (Supplied)
In short:
ABC presenter Sharnelle Vella is pregnant, with a baby girl due in March.
Vella announced the news to listeners on Wednesday morning while also revealing the heartbreak of years of fertility issues, including miscarriage and failed IVF rounds.
What's next?
Vella will go on maternity leave at the end of February and plans to return to the Breakfast show before the end of 2026.
774 ABC Radio Melbourne Breakfast host Sharnelle Vella is expecting a baby girl in March.
Vella told listeners the news on her show this morning, revealing that she and husband Nicholas Koutrigaros had faced a harrowing struggle with infertility.
She decided to share her story to offer support and hope to other couples, and to shed light on endometriosis, a silent condition which affects one million Australian women.
After enduring the heartbreak of miscarriage and multiple failed IVF attempts over several years, Vella took the advice of a nurse, who suggested that she ask for more tests.
"A simple blood test revealed mild inflammation in my pelvic region. I was told a laparoscopy — keyhole surgery through my abdomen — would be the only way to confirm what was happening," Vella said. "The suspicion was very, very mild endometriosis."
Loading...In March, the surgeon visited Vella in recovery after the procedure.
"I asked, 'Did you find anything?' He half-laughed, shook his head and said a sentence that will stay with me forever: 'Sharnelle, you have stage four endometriosis — we were cutting it out of you for three hours'.
"'How many stages are there?' I asked. 'There are four,' he replied.
"Put simply, I was riddled with it."
Sharnelle Vella says she is sharing her story in the hope of supporting others experiencing similar fertility struggles. (ABC Radio Melbourne)
But the shocking news ended up being a huge turning point for Sharnelle and Nicholas.
By June, Vella had fallen pregnant naturally.
"We are beyond overjoyed. We are also terrified,"Vella said.
"We are still trying to contain our excitement because when you've been on the road of infertility, you always prepare for bad news.
"You put your life on hold, you don't take holidays because … what if you need another round? You don't take new jobs because what if you do fall pregnant? You commit to nothing except this."
Vella said she wanted other couples struggling with the "unimaginable grief" of infertility to know that they aren't alone.
"If you're listening to this and you can relate, I need to tell you, you're so strong.
If you're watching your partner go through this, you may feel helpless, but you're not. You're doing great — make her tea, make her toast, and lay with her while she cries herself to sleep. You've got this."
According to data released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in 2023, one in seven women has endometriosis.
Some women, like Vella, experience asymptomatic or "silent" endometriosis and only realise when they try to conceive.
Endo Australia said it took an average of six-and-a-half to eight years to be diagnosed.
Vella said we needed to keep talking, listening and working towards a future where women were heard, believed, and supported in their health journeys.
Bob Murphy and Sharnella Vella began presenting ABC Radio Melbourne's Breakfast show at the beginning of 2025. (ABC Radio Melbourne)
Vella will go on maternity leave at the end of February and plans to return to the Breakfast show before the end of 2026.
ABC Radio Melbourne will announce a fill-in co-host to join Bob Murphy in the new year.