Ep. 93: Client Story - Hannah

Caitlin:

Welcome to the Woven Well podcast. I'm your host, Caitlin Estes. I'm a certified fertility care practitioner with a master of divinity degree. Each episode will cover a topic that helps educate and empower you and your fertility while honoring the deep connection your fertility has with your faith. Let's get started. Welcome back to the Woven Well podcast. I believe that a part of empowering and educating women is connecting them with other women who are on the same journey. That's why we have episodes devoted to hearing the fertility journey of a woman who is a part of Woven. Whatever your situation or fertility goal, the fertility journey can sometimes feel isolating, but I assure you that there is a whole community out there asking the same questions you are. That leads us to today's guest, Hannah. Hannah has been a nurse for the past 10 years and also has a masters in biblical counseling. She's originally from West Virginia, but she currently lives on a hobby farm in North Carolina, which I think is pretty fun. And she's been a Woven client for the past few years. I'm so excited for her to share her story with us today. Hannah, welcome to the show.

Hannah:

Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be here and get to share what I've learned.

Caitlin:

Yeah, me too. I'm really excited about it. So why don't you go ahead and share a little bit about yourself, just so our listeners can get to know you a little bit.

Hannah:

Yeah. So my name is Hannah. I live in North Carolina with my husband Colton, and we just had a new baby girl, Naomi, that's two months old. So she is my newest joy in life. I love the Lord. I love to be a nurse and get to help people and I just find a lot of joy in getting to help other people.

Caitlin:

Yeah, that's great. Oh, that's so good. I love all of those things. And little Naomi is with us and I love that. I love that she's a part of it. So what initially brought you to work with Woven? What made you interested in what we do?

Hannah:

Yes. So I feel like going back, probably like my teenage years and my college years, I always felt like I had like normal periods. I never really had to like be on birth control or anything like that, but I always wanted to be a mom, so I clearly thought about those things, especially being in the medical field. And so when I got married, I thought that really the only option was like birth control or other methods like using condoms. And so I really didn't think there were any other options out there. So I have a friend Rachel, and she was posting about the Creighton method and I was very curious as to like, what is that? I've never heard it. I'm in the medical community. And it just seemed very like neat concept, but I mean, since I had never heard of it, I'm like, does this really work?

Hannah:

And so I reached out to Rachel and just asked her about it, and I really trust Rachel and so she was just like raving about it and how she loved it and how it really worked for their family. And so I asked her to tell me more. And so she told me all about what she knew about it and how it had worked for them. And so then I started following you Caitlin, and I was like, oh, like this is actually legit. Like this is an option, which was really good because I have a family history of breast cancer. I have a genetic predisposition to breast cancer too, and so I really shouldn't be on hormones. And so anyways, I reached out and did the session where I learned a little bit about it and that's where it all started.

Caitlin:

That's great. I love so much about that. I love that you were interested in finding different options instead of birth control. I love that you had a friend who was talking about it and that's how you heard about it first. And you mentioned that she was a trusted friend. And I think that matters so much when you have somebody that you can ask about and you can hear their story. And that's a little bit of why we do these client stories, because we're all one big community of women and we don't always have people in our lives who have been walking the same particular journey or have the same questions, but they're out there. And so I love that you did, you had a friend, Rachel, who connected you. So once you started learning the Creighton system, as you mentioned, you went to an introductory session, which is everybody's first step, and then you began learning. Like what was that process like for you? What do you feel like you learned along the way?

Hannah:

Yeah, honestly, it was a little overwhelming at first, just because, I mean, I had never heard it, so I had no concept in my mind about, you know, anything about it. And so when I first started, I sort of went back and forth about like, do I really want to like, invest? You know, I felt like I'm either like not going to like invest or I'm going to like go all in. And once I got to that point of like, after the, the first like learning session, I feel like I just was like, all right, let's just do it. Like there's really nothing to lose. If it doesn't work out, like then that's fine. I'll just go back to what I was doing, which I really didn't want to do. And so anyways, yeah, I just, I feel like everything changed once I, like every step along the way, I became more and more confident of like, oh, this is like for anyone that wants to put the time and effort into it.

Caitlin:

And, and I'll say really quick there that I so appreciate you sharing that because I think that's a really common experience of you attend the intro session, you get started and you're like, okay, is this going to be worth it? Is this actually going to work? Am I going to invest myself in this process? That is so real, and I know that there are a lot of other ladies listening who either felt like that in the past or maybe in that season right now. And so I love that it sounds like, and I know because we've chatted that it was worth it for you and it's been a good experience for you. So, what has that journey been like for you? Or are there things that you learned or understood about yourself that maybe you didn't previously?

Hannah:

Yes, for sure. I felt like I could go on about this for a long time, but like I said, I always had normal periods and so I never really thought there was like a problem. And so whenever we decided we were open to, you know, trying to have a baby, I had already heard from other women like Rachel that, you know, she was able, she had a miscarriage and that she was able to prevent that miscarriage with knowing more about her body and like having low progesterone. And so long story short, I sought out a NaPro doctor because Caitlin kind of shared like, oh, you know, I might have a short luteal phase and like loved my experience there and he identified, you know, my progesterone was variable and it just happened at that same month that I got pregnant, and I really wouldn't have known that had I not had the charting and been able to see like my cycles and identified that potential problem.

Hannah:

And so from there, got to be put on progesterone and you know, only the Lord knows if that really prevented any complications, but I really felt like it made me feel confident in the fact that like God gives us these resources and I was able to utilize and use them to potentially prevent, you know, what a broken world brings. I feel like I have learned so much about my body and just specifically, I mean both how to prevent pregnancy and achieve pregnancy now, but just that there was a problem that I wouldn't have known about other otherwise had I not done that or maybe learned the hard way, or the harder way.

Hannah:

So I'm really thankful for those things.

Caitlin:

That is so important to feel like you understand what's going on with your body, with your fertility, with your pregnancy, and being able to have the tools to advocate for your needs during those different seasons. And that's how I envision Creighton, any of my clients know this. I talk about Creighton being a tool and you can use it in the way you need it in whatever reproductive season of life you're in. And so I love so much that you were able to use the system to avoid pregnancy and then conceive pregnancy and then advocate for that pregnancy when it occurred. And like you said, there are lots of reasons why pregnancy loss happens, but knowing that we're doing all that we can do to prevent that possibility really does bring a peace and helps in those early weeks especially. And so I'm glad that you had that experience. We talk a lot about NaPro technology medical professionals on the Woven Well podcast, and I'm so glad that you were able to get connected with one and get those kind of resources early on as well. So I know that your faith is very important to you. It is to me as well, and a part of this journey, just like any other journey in life, is faith. That's a very real part of our lives. I'm curious to hear how God was showing up for you as you began to understand more about your fertility.

Hannah:

As I was thinking about this, I was just thinking like God is truly like in the details, and I think that's something that we can easily forget that, you know, it didn't take long for us to get pregnant, but it took longer than I expected. And so I feel like sometimes we think like, God, do you really see us? You know, do you really, you know, know my heart and know my desires? And I feel like time and time again, he's just reminded me, you know, from me getting to meet Rachel, know Rachel, you know, see her post, her reaching out and sharing, getting connected with you and then seeing Dr. Williams, getting pregnant and then like having a child. Like there's so many details that he is just like over and in and through. And, I feel like I guess this process and journey has shown me that again and reminded me like he really is in the details of things. And like Matthew 10, he, you know, it says, are not two sparrows sold for a penny and not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your father. And so he cares about the sparrow that was sold for two pennies, so how much more is he going to care about the details of our life? So I feel like whatever we're dealing with or our expectations are not being met with, you know, having a family or preventing pregnancy or what, whatever it is that he's in the details of those things,

Caitlin:

I think a lot about how fertility feels like a topic in life that, or an area of life that we feel responsible for. You know, it's up to us to make it happen no matter what it is, avoiding pregnancy or trying to conceive or even walking down the road of infertility. It's up to us. We bear this great responsibility, but God is so involved in every aspect of this journey and sometimes it's easier to see God's presence in other fields, you know, but God is so incredibly present and I love that you felt his presence in the details, not just the big picture, which is also important, but in the small details of things. As I mentioned at the start of the episode, I think the hardest part of beginning to rethink our relationship with our fertility is feeling really alone in the process. It can feel overwhelming, and we can feel uncertain. So what word of advice or encouragement would you like to share with other women who may be listening?

Hannah:

I think I would say just give it a chance. I think that, like I said, and from where I came from, you know, I didn't even think that it was an option and didn't really know how it would work for me, but it really works. It's a proven system. Just like you take a birth control pill or whatever method like you're using or, you know, trying to achieve pregnancy, it, it works. And so I think that do research, learn even if you don't want to jump right into, you know, meeting with Caitlin, I think that it's most definitely worth it in whatever stage of life that you're in as a woman, and as your family. And so I would also say it's a journey and it does take effort to learn and to grow and your confidence in it, but if you put the time in and give it a chance, I don't think that you'll regret it.

Caitlin:

I don't either. I don't either. I'm completely with you.

Hannah:

Like it's really been life changing for us. I mean, not only has it brought us Naomi and been a tool to bring us Naomi, God brought us Naomi, but it has just really changed my outlook on like preventing breast cancer, potentially doing the things that I can do to really have a healthy reproductive life.

Caitlin:

And that change of perspective is massive. Like you said, life changing. A lot of times we're only given one option. You mentioned earlier you are a nurse. I mean, this is what you've been doing for 10 years and you had never heard of this, and yet when you did your research, as you mentioned, you saw the science behind it, you saw how incredibly tested it is. And I say it like that because there are so many research studies that have been done on it. And maybe I'll link one in the show notes just to have one there that people can start out looking at, and I'm happy to provide other resources and research articles and things like that too, but it's out there and it's a great, great option. I'm so glad that that was your experience as well. Well, Hannah, thank you so much for being on the show. It means so much to be able to hear your story and your words of encouragement to all those listening,

Hannah:

Thank you for having me. Caitlin.

Caitlin:

Thrilled to, thrilled to! Our Woven community is made up of some pretty incredible people. We ask honest questions of our fertility and our faith. We believe that our bodies were made with beauty and purpose, that we are intimately designed and loved by our Creator, and that fertility plays a meaningful role in our lives. We believe this matters for all of us, regardless of our marital status or pregnancy intentions. I would love for you to be a part of that community. Our website at wovenfertility.com has tons of free resources and a way to sign up for our newsletter. That's a great way to hear from me and Woven once a month. But if you're feeling ready to get started and use Creighton for your family planning like Hannah has, then I want to invite you to our next introductory session. This is a perfect way to learn more. It's exactly what Hannah did, and you can decide if you'd like to get started with Creighton or not. You can register at wovenfertility.com/join us, or click on the link in the show notes. As always, thanks for listening as we continue to explore together what it means to be woven well.