Episode Zero

Welcome to the very first episode of the woven well podcast. I'm so excited that you're here!

Before I even introduce myself, I really want to thank so many clients who had the suggestion of creating a podcast. This was not my original idea. This came from clients who wanted other women to have an easy way to learn about these topics. So I love that this is coming out of a desire from women to educate and provide this opportunity to other women that they know, or even outside of their circles. So, I just love that kind of community. So introducing myself, my name is Caitlin Estes. I am a certified fertility care practitioner. I have a master of divinity degree and I've been working with women and couples to help them better understand and care for their fertility since 2017. So all of the topics and themes and questions that we're gonna discuss in all of our future episodes, those all come from the many years of work and follow up sessions that I've done with some of these women that I already mentioned.

So again, the initial desire came from these clients in wanting an approachable avenue in which to talk about these questions related to fertility while also honoring that deep connection that there is between fertility and faith. But I think we ought to start with what I mean by fertility, because when many people hear that word, they think of it only as the thing that you need when you're trying to have a baby. But when I use the word fertility, I'm using it to encompass really everything about a woman's reproductive system and health around, you know, from puberty all the way until you reach menopause. So your fertility through that entire time has something important to teach you about your body's overall health, stress levels, hormonal balances, and so much more. Having these regular windows of fertility is actually important for each and every woman regardless of her reproductive stage or goals.

And there is a huge variety in those. Each woman has her own combination of reproductive stage, goals, and concerns. So over the years I've had the privilege of hearing hundreds of women's stories of how they are navigating their personal fertility journey. Some didn't feel ready for children as a couple, but just couldn't stomach the side effects from hormonal contraception and were out there looking for another option. While others had been trying to have a baby for many years and went from appointment to appointment, just to be told in the end "you have unexplained infertility." They're not given any answers at all. And other women, they just knew something was off about their cycles. Maybe they were irregular or their periods were painful, or they noticed that they felt sad or depressed in those days leading up to their cycle. And honestly, they were tired of being told that those are normal or fine when they knew in their gut that they were not normal.

So each situation is different. Each woman has a different experience. And I know that I don't know yours, but I do know that most of all of those women share two things. And I really wonder if you share these too...the first is that you believe that there has to be a better way. And the second is that you're eager to know that whatever your journey, God is with you in the midst of it. So if those two things speak to you and if you resonate with those, then I really feel like you're in the right place. I'm not sure what avenue led you to us today, but I'm so glad that you found us, because here you've found a community that believes those same things and we're all pursuing them together. I know for me, I could have never anticipated 10 years ago that this would be such my passion and work, because it was about that time that I was first struggling with these questions myself.

I was recently engaged, was about to graduate with my master divinity degree, and was thinking about how we could prevent pregnancy. I didn't know a lot, but I knew I was not interested in hormonal contraception. Too many of my friends were on it and hated it. They felt off physically or mentally, like with unusual bleeding or depression or all kinds of symptoms. And some had huge side effects like blood clots or liver tumors and others who obviously were using this to avoid conceiving a pregnancy were still getting pregnant <laugh> so I had my concerns. Plus I had some hesitations about how it actually functioned. Not only about whether it was good for me, because I was pretty sure that it wasn't, but also whether it actually prevented the fertilization of an egg or if it just prevented implantation of an embryo. So I just wasn't interested, but I knew that there had to be another way and that other way opened to me a whole new world.

I found it fascinating and informative. And, to my true surprise, I suddenly became the person in my friend group with the most knowledge about this topic. How in the world <laugh> I did not see that coming, but it turns out most people don't know much about things like ovulation, menstruation, hormones, and conception. Most couples, in fact, think that they can get pregnant any day of the month, which spoiler alert, is not true. So I already knew that there was this huge need for practical education, but, in addition to that, God was moving so meaningfully through the conversations I was having around these topics. And I discovered that fertility is an intimate, personal, meaningful topic. It is full of questions and hopes, fears, and dreams, assumptions, desires, all of that wrapped up together. And God is right in the of those things. Over and over again, I was witnessing God offer insight, affirmation, and healing to women through these quick lunchtime or coffee conversations.

And when I think back to it now, I just think, I don't know that I've ever felt so passionate about a field of work before. And so that's what led me to complete a 15 month education program and coursework back in 2017 to continue being a participant in God's work within women. But this time, officially, as a fertility care practitioner. Since then, I've gone on to become a certified fertility care practitioner. And it is an honor and a privilege to walk this journey of discovery and redemption alongside so many women. I may not know you personally, but if any aspect of what we've even touched on so far has connected with you, then this is a podcast for you. We're going to talk a lot about what's normal in your body and your cycle so that you can actually know when something's off or actually not normal.

We're gonna talk about the real physical and hormonal issues that you could be dealing with. We're gonna talk about how to address the underlying issue and avoid those band-aid treatments. And we're gonna talk about encountering God in the midst of all of it. Health struggles, marriage and relationships, infertility, lots of topics there. Sometimes we'll talk with women going through something that you may be going through, or we may talk with a professional about a topic that they specialize in, but we know your time is short. And so these episodes will be short too. No matter the topic we'll be here with the goal of empowering women in their bodies and honoring the deep connection between those bodies and their souls. As human beings, we are so interwoven - mind, body, and soul - in a beautiful, intricate, harmonious way. Trying to pull those aspects apart, pretending that we can so ignore one and have it not affect the others really has consequences that we've all felt at one time or another - whether that's in our health, our marriage, our families. So if that's true, then what could be the impact of embracing that intricate connection in considering how our bodies affect our minds and our souls, and how our minds and our souls can benefit from caring for our bodies, from seeking God, in decisions about our healthcare and intimacy and family size and infertility and so much more. There is a ton of richness there, friends. Here is the thing: you deserve to be as healthy as you can be, regardless of whether or not you're ready to have a baby right now. It's about your health spiritually, physically, right here and now - not just in the future. So with all this in mind, I really cannot wait to get started.

I would love to meet each one of you. That would be so exciting. I can meet some of you. If you're interested in doing that, then the first step would be to attend an online introductory session. This is a group session where you can listen and learn about your anatomy and physiology, how to accurately chart your body cycle for personal health, medical reasons, etc. And we even learn about the research behind how all of this works. After that, we work in one on one follow up sessions, where we look at your body, your goals, your intentions. So if any of that's interesting to you, then go to wovenfertility.com and click join us to attend this month's session. So let us know you joined from the podcast. I would love to know that this is how you found us and that you're listening, but otherwise we invite you to send us a topic you're hoping we'll cover over at woven well podcast on Instagram. We would love to address what matters most to you. Thank you so much for listening to our very first sneak peek of all that's to come. We'll see you here next time as we embrace together, what it means to be woven Well.