Ep.68: Welcome Woven Affiliate, Elizabeth!
Caitlin Estes:
Welcome to the Woven Well Podcast. I'm your host, Caitlin Estes. I'm a certified fertility care practitioner with a master 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.
Caitlin Estes:
Welcome back to the Woven Well podcast, y'all. This is going to be a really good one. I know it even before we start recording, because not only is today a client's story when we get to hear from a woven client about what their fertility journey has been, but it's also when I get to share an exciting announcement. So woven natural fertility care is growing. If you're on our email list, then you're getting an email today with all the details. And if you're not on the email list yet and you would like the juicy details, then you can easily sign up through the link in the show notes so you can learn more there. But for now, I'll say that we have welcomed Elizabeth Randall, our guest today as an affiliate of Woven Natural Fertility Care. Elizabeth became a client of Woven Fertility about two years ago, and while she was working with her church at the time, she was also diving deeper into her health, into her own story, and so much has happened during our time working together. But one of those things is that she recently began the education program as a fertility care intern. So I would love for you to hear way more about all that from Elizabeth herself. So Elizabeth, welcome so much to the podcast today.
Elizabeth Randall:
Thank you. I'm excited to be here.
Caitlin Estes:
I am really excited to have you and intro introduce you to everyone so that they can get to know you a little bit. So I started giving a little bit of an overview, but I'd really love for people to get to hear from you. So why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Elizabeth Randall:
I grew up in Huntsville, Alabama and moved to Birmingham quite some time ago. I went to college here at Sanford University, graduated in 2017. I went to nursing school and so I'm a registered nurse. I worked for a few years as a nurse. And then as Caitlin said, the past two years I worked at my church on the missions team. And just recently I started working on the mother baby unit at a hospital here in Birmingham. And I have really loved working specifically with women's health and with the Sweet Mamas and babies. I've loved taking care of these sweet patients.
Caitlin Estes:
It's amazing how all these things start coming together. Your background in nursing, your experience working within the world of faith and missions and your heart for women's health and women in general. It's really beautiful to see all of those things start to come together in that way. But I would love to hear how did you first get connected with Creighton? Why don't you share that with our listeners?
Elizabeth Randall:
I have a pretty significant health history with my period, which led me to Creighton, so I started my period when I was 15 and didn't have another one for about a year. So my mom took me to an O B G Y N to figure out what was going on, and without really looking into why I was not having a period, she just prescribed the birth control pill. And, you know, that's what the doctor says to do. So I did it, and this led into 10 years of no true period. I would have a withdraw bleed on the pill, but I would come off for a year or so and I wouldn't have a period at all. So I knew that that wasn't normal and went to a bunch of different doctors throughout that time period, including an infertility specialist, because I knew something was off and I knew, you know, I, I want to have a baby one day, and if that's the case, I can't be taking birth control and I need to have a period. So
Caitlin Estes:
That's true.
Elizabeth Randall:
Whenever I was not on birth control, I wouldn't have a period. So I was, I was scared and, really was trying to figure out what was going on, and I didn't know. but the doctors, including that infertility specialist, just told me not to worry about it right now since I wasn't trying to achieve pregnancy at the time. She said, we can just wait and worry about it whenever that time comes. And I just remember the anxiety and fear that I felt, knowing that something was wrong and not having answers, not knowing why. So of course, I was not satisfied with that answer, and I ended up doing a deep dive personally, into all the natural ways for how to get my cycle to return on its own. But this, I didn't really have much luck, with this. I, I mentioned anxiety that honestly was continuing to grow during that time as I was just trying to control every little thing, especially with my diet and supplements and just trying all the things. not really looking into resources that were medically sound necessarily, but just things that I could find, about why a wouldn't, a woman wouldn't be having a period.
Caitlin Estes:
Well, and you went to medical resources to get started. Yeah. But you weren't given any valuable resources from them, you know? Right. So you did try, I don't blame you for doing the supplements and doing other things, and I love that you kept pushing, kept finding,
Elizabeth Randall:
Yeah, you're totally right. so about two or three years ago, I have a dear friend who ended up referring me to Laura, who has been on the podcast. She is a NaPro medical consultant, and she is amazing. Just a little plug for her
Caitlin Estes:
Yes. Laura Ducote.
Elizabeth Randall:
Yes. So she pointed me to Caitlin, actually to you. And, at that point I started learning how to track my cycle, even though I didn't even have one at the time that we got started. Yes. so Laura helped me to actually for the first time figure out what was going on with me. Mm. And why I wasn't having a period. She helped me to learn the root cause of what was going on for the first time. So I was diagnosed with something called hypothalamic a. So AIA is no period. Hypothalamus is part of our brain that tells our bodies, all kinds of things, but it was my hypothalamus was suppressing the production of estrogen and progesterone. So the reason why I learned was because of stress. I learned that I was over exercising. I was undereating, I was under a lot of emotional stress that I didn't even realize.
Elizabeth Randall:
And so she helped me to see all of that really for the first time, and told me to stop running and to rest and to eat good, nutritious, dense foods and to, seek support and counsel. And within a month, I got my period back. Wow. And, which is crazy. It is. I mean, saying that out loud is pretty crazy. and I will say it has been quite a journey of healing since that point. I've wrestled with a lot in that time with changes in my body and I, I loved running and I don't run as often anymore, but, you know, I've really learned more of, honestly, my identity in Christ as a beautiful woman that God created me to be. I've learned what surrender looks like and letting go of control of every little detail and learning how to trust him more fully. And I can say with a big smile on my face that I have a regular cycle now. And, you know, it's just amazing how the Lord has brought healing and has used Laura and Caitlin to help me to get to that point after so long of not knowing what was going on. and so I yeah. Am just so thankful for this journey and I'm still on it, honestly, still working through a lot of things and for sure still healing. But yeah,
Caitlin Estes:
It is a journey. We, sometimes I'll refer to fertility journey, and I think in our culture, a lot of times people assume that means when a couple is trying to get pregnant, but fertility journey is so much bigger than that because our fertility is very precious to us. Yes. And it opens up a place in our soul that I think can only be opened through that particular topic, which is why it's so meaningful and why God is always there to meet us. so you mentioned that you started using Creighton, you started charting in the midst of this that Laura asked you to start charting your cycles. Yes. And you weren't even having cycles. Yeah. I love, I love that you shared that, because a lot of times women will wonder, why am I doing this work? Because I'm not even having a period but our bodies are giving us so much information, even outside of when a period happens. There's so much more that we're learning. But I'm curious, what was Creighton like for you? What was using Creighton like for you?
Elizabeth Randall:
Caitlin, you probably remember I, at the very beginning was pretty unsure about for sure, using Creighton. I was hesitant because as a single woman, I felt like this is, this is only for married couples, this is not for me. I'm just not sure But over time, the more I learned about Creighton, the more I saw on my chart, what my body was doing. I grew to love it. Mm. And I, I could just see on the chart how I was healing and this was so encouraging for me. I could also see, how about a year into charting. I went through a pretty hard season of stress, and I could see the effects of that on my chart. I started moving towards losing my period again. And that honestly caused some more anxiety because again, I could see it, but that was at the same time, so helpful for me and helped me to be aware of what was going on in my life and how how much my body carries stress, whether it's emotional, physical, and I, I really think that awareness is so valuable.
Elizabeth Randall:
And yes, this helped me to be aware of my fertility and my health, and it gave a lot of clarity for direction in the, for my future, direction in regards to how I was carrying myself and my stress. So I am really thankful for being able to see, through Creighton the healing, yeah. That my body has gone through. And it's brought me to a place where I just, I'm so amazed at how God has created our bodies to be able to tell us different things, to tell us when we're fertile in our cycle, when we might be under too much stress and so many more things. Yeah. So I really love that part about Creighton, and I think it has become just a habit. I really don't think about observations, charting, it's just a normal thing, normal part of my daily life. And even though it took a minute to get into that habit, it's, yeah, not too much for me. I want to say too, that I am a nurse, as I mentioned, and I learned a lot about women's health in nursing school, but there is so much more that I have learned through charting and through starting to actually pursue a certification and to become a fertility care practitioner.
Caitlin Estes:
That's one of my favorite things about your particular story is that you did start off so skeptical about the whole thing, and now you feel so passionate about it. And, I'm thrilled that you are a part of woven. I'm thrilled that you are going to be educating more and more women because we need more and more educators out there, practitioners out there teaching. but what made you want to be a part of woven specifically?
Elizabeth Randall:
I truly love everything about woven. I love how it is so centered on Christ. That's my favorite part for sure. just how we are beautifully created in God's image and woven in him and walking our out our lives as women that he created us to be. Yes. I love how you have an Instagram and a podcast that really gives so much helpful information to empower women in their health and for them to be encouraged in their faith and in wherever they are in their fertility journeys. and I love that woven really focuses on teaching women and couples one-on-one in tracking their cycle, walking through different stages in their, in their fertility journey. Yeah. so I love all of those things about woven. And as I am, learning how to become a practitioner myself and want to walk alongside women and learning how to track their cycle, I hope to care for them not only physically, but also emotionally and spiritually. I think we as humans are holistic in nature. There are so many layers to our lives, and I think that woven does a beautiful job, acknowledging that. And I, I want to care for women and couples holistically, and I'm excited to be a part of that.
Caitlin Estes:
And that is exactly why you are an affiliate with Woven, because those are our shared values. And I love your passion. Like I said, I love seeing you, coming from this place of hesitancy and feeling skeptical to, really seeing the big picture beauty in how God wants to meet us within our individual fertility journeys. And God is always right there. It's really cool to see you respond to that and just come alive with passion and purpose for this work. And it, it reminds me of my calling to this work. and I do think it's a calling. I think it's something very unique. and I love that you are also especially drawn to single women and even to teens. I think that's a population that often feels like Creighton could never work for them, or Creighton is not meant for them. But you are exact proof that it is, it is for every woman out there. So I really believe that your experience will help them to embrace all that Creighton can reveal about their health and their identity and more. So thank you so much for being on the episode today, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth Randall:
Yes. Thank you for having me.
Caitlin Estes:
So listeners, if you would like to work with Elizabeth, she is already seeing clients as a fertility care intern. So if you'd like to connect with her to schedule an introductory session, you can do that through our affiliate page on our website, woven fertility.com. It's also going to be linked in the show notes for you. So at Woven Natural Fertility Care, we seek to provide education that empowers women in their health decisions, family planning options, fertility treatments, and more. It covers everything while honoring the deep connection between fertility and faith. So if you'd like to stay up to date on how we do that and what events are coming up next, then put your name on our email list. We use this very sparingly, but it is the best way to stay informed and involved. So you can sign up in the link in the show notes, or through the newsletter button on the bottom of our website. Again, wovenfertility.com. As always, thanks for listening as we continue to explore together what it means to be woven well.