Some really good news

5 recommendations from my pregnancy journey so far

Today’s newsletter  - trigger warning - talks about infertility and miscarriage.  It is for anyone that would like to read about my longed-for journey to motherhood as well as everyone who is interested in recommendations generally on women’s health, hormone support, different types of therapy, loss and grief.  

I know all too well that fertility and pregnancy loss can be a very tender subject for many, so with love, please feel free to skip this newsletter if that best suits you. We’ll be back to food, Valentine’s feasts and Spring Is Coming recipes next week. 

On to the newsletter…

In case you missed it this week, we’ve love to share with you our good news… Henry and I (and Sweet Nelly) are overjoyed to be expecting a baby this summer.

We have been very lucky that IVF worked for us this time. We are eternally grateful for the support, skills and care we’ve experienced from a whole host of experts over the last 3 years. 

My gentle plan of action is to write about my journey to pregnancy and our fertility adventures (sometimes rollercoasters!) in this newsletter, perhaps a post once a month or so in and amongst the ‘usual business’ of quick recipes and the joy of leftovers.  Reading about others' journeys really, really helped me and Henry through the hard times. When I didn’t know how to put my feelings into words, I’d screenshot someone else’s words and send them to him to read instead. 

I’d like to share some of my personal experiences alongside the invaluable expert advice from those that have helped me in *Team Baby Making* including my functional doctor, a fertility expert, a gynaecologist, embryologist, acupuncturist, psychologist, hypnosis meditation practioner, women’s health advisor and others. Kind, clever, supportive people, I’m grateful to each of them and looking forward to sharing their insights and knowledge with you.

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Having never been through this wild and beautiful motherhood journey before, I have no great strategy as to how much to share, but based on all the comments and direct messages (thank you) and the community’s response to my post last summer about my fertility journey, I wanted to share more on how we got here, the adventures so far, because though many of us may experience or have experienced both fertility and general hormonal issues, there just doesn’t seem to be nearly enough science, alternative support or therapy articles about it. Over the last 4 years, I have dug and dug and googled and googled and asked and asked everyone I know for info, recommendations, contacts and tips. 

I have also been very touched by messages from mother-in-laws, grandparents, friends and bosses who have said they too would like to know more so that they can best support their children, grandchildren, employees and loved ones in their fertility journeys or asked how they can comfort after a pregnancy loss.

I don’t have all the right words nor all the answers but hope my sharings might help a little. So this is just my experience so far, as you know I’m not a qualified medical expert, just a 37 year old London gal, who cooks for a living, has had 2 miscarriages (still grieving) and am now pregnant with a much longed-for IVF baby, our *rainbow baby* - a term I hadn’t heard of before but is used to describe a much longed-for baby that comes after a pregnancy loss.

Henry and I started on the IVF journey together in early 2022.  We have tried to make each other laugh through it all because it’s grueling - complicated, frustrating, painful, LONG, stressful and depressing at times. It’s a minefield and a marathon of needles and syringes and pills and pessaries and scans and appts and last minute changes of doses and hormones (my god the hormones) and blood test after blood test and medications that sound the same as each other and phone alarms for each of them! 

To start with… here are 5 recommendations I’ve taken a lot from and I hope you’ll get something from them too….

1. Total Fertility by Emma Cannon, my dear friend, acupuncturist and fertility expert.

2. A podcast episode starring Aimee Raup, an American fertility expert. I listened to lots of her podcasts on long walks.

3. East london kind, affordable, wonderful acupuncturists Sean and Uma at E5 acupuncture who Henry and I have visited regularly for the last 3 years For a central london recommendation, massage and acupuncture with Eva at The London Acupcunture Clinic . Check out British Acupuncture Council website to find a registered acupuncturist near you.

4. Grief work with Donna Lancaster and for her group online and in real life workshops like Deepening into Life.

5. Yoga with my dear friend Sarah Malcolm - either online or for a real treat, join her in Norfolk in March for a very special retreat of yoga, lake swimming, soundbaths and more.

Please do share below what you’re most interested in finding out more about, I’d love to know and I’ll use this info to guide my next newsletters.

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