My husband Robert and I got married shortly after graduating from college and began trying for a baby right away. As the years went by and no baby came, we uncovered diagnosis after diagnosis. Through NaPro Technology, we found out that I have hypothyroidism, PCOS, endometriosis, endometritis, and luteal phase defect.

I have used conventional medicine to manage my thyroid and progesterone. I had surgery in 2016 to remove ovarian cysts and stage 3 endometriosis, and again in 2023 to remove stage 1 endo. The small amount of endo present showed me that the targeted supplementation and lifestyle changes I had implemented were successful in limiting the disease, as well as in managing my PCOS, which was heartening. I am also a big fan of holistic, functional medicine and love acupuncture for hormonal support! We have also addressed fluctuating sperm health and my husband’s thyroid cancer.

Over 12 years, we were able to reasonably resolve every issue, but we never got pregnant or found an answer why, leaving us with an unexplained infertility diagnosis. I’m now facing the likelihood of early menopause due to the damage from endometriosis and the surgery on my ovaries. As Catholics, we respect the Church’s teaching on IVF.

Infertility forced me to grapple with my idea of God, the concept of God’s will, the meaning of suffering, the efficacy of prayer, and my purpose as a woman. My faith was both a challenge and a comfort in the hardest moments.

My husband and I were foster parents open to adoption for a couple of years. We had a baby boy for nine months who went home to his birth parents, and then we had a 2-year-old boy who went to live with his grandmother. I’ve lived some of the challenges of foster care and can speak to both the pros and the cons of the experience. We ultimately decided that we couldn’t pursue fertility solutions and do foster care at the same time. So we made the hard decision to walk away from foster care to pursue one last year of fertility treatments. 

In 2023, using my personal experience with infertility and my background in teaching and media, I founded Catholic Infertility Resources, a website and an Instagram account of information, insights, encouragement, and community for other Catholics walking the road of infertility and miscarriage. I also run a women’s infertility ministry at my parish. 

2024 brought more growth – I launched this Catholic infertility coaching business!