NBC News Washington Correspondent Yamiche Alcindor is expecting a baby boy in June. The exciting announcement comes after years of painful and expensive fertility treatments--and the veteran journalist wants other women in the same situation to know that she understands their pain.

"It is the most incredible, exciting, life-affirming thing for me to have a baby on the way, especially because it comes after years of disappointment, ugly crying and carrying around a deep sense of shame that my body couldn’t do what everyone else’s body seemed to do so easily," she writes in a touching essay that was shared on Today.com. 

She adds that she had been "feverishly chasing motherhood," "hoping, and praying, and deeply wanting more than anything else in this world to be pregnant and to bring home a healthy baby."

Alcindor noted that while she wanted to share the joy of her blessing, she also wanted to acknowledge other women who have struggled to conceive.

"That’s why I knew in my heart that I couldn’t post a photo of my growing stomach with a cheery announcement. I don’t mean to imply in any way that those posts are wrong. In fact, I wish I could genuinely make one of my own. What I mean, though, is that it would not be genuine of me to do that, because I’ve found myself in tears reading those sorts of announcements, feeling agony knowing that unfortunately, that was not my reality."

Alcindor also shared some of the challenges of her IVF journey, writing, "IVF also put me on a rollercoaster of emotions."

Alcindor also touched on the lack of access to care for some women, writing, "As I think about the road I’ve traveled, I’m profoundly grateful to have an employer that offset the cost of this fertility ordeal. I'm aware of how many women don’t have that option and won’t be able to access healthcare that helps make their dreams come true. My heart is with you as you try to get the help you need and want."

Alcindor is married to fellow journalist, Nathaniel Cline. They married in 2018.