April 18-24th. 

Disclaimer: What I’m about to say WILL BRING SOME HEAT. I say these things to raise awareness. 

At 16 I was told I’d never have kids, devastating news at any age but at that young of an age, it was a blow to my identity. 

We know now that this wasn’t the case because hindsight is 20/20 BUT it sticks with me nonetheless. 

I have PCOS & Endometriosis. Two things that each carry a lot of weight and present their own challenges but together can feel like you’re living in a personal hell. Why aren’t they talked about more?!

Mostly because when people do speak they fall on deaf ears. When people reach out for help they’re dismissed, their desire to advocate for themselves and others crushed in the process. 

I’ve had several surgeries just to ease the pain and lessen the damage done by my own PCOS and endometriosis. 

To paint a picture imagine an invasive vine-like plant growing where it shouldn’t somewhere in the wild. It completely takes over, wrapping itself around anything in its path. Robbing other plants of the nutrients and space they need to thrive. 

That is endometriosis. 

Now picture a child with a multi bubble ball. 

The innermost ball being an ovary, that ball doing what is supposed to do creates a bubble or natural cyst when told to, in this case by the child squeezing. BUT. what happens when it defies the natural order and instead of one there are two, or 4, or 8?

what then happens when one or more of those multiple Bursts? It causes the child pain. Their ball no longer works properly. 

This is PCOS. 

this is just speaking on things that apply to  ME.. let that sink in. 

there are thousands of things that can cause or add to infertility. 

Infertility is a blanket term for a storm of things that no one should have to face. 

My husband and I had it easy compared to some and we say all the time how blessed we are but for us, our journey was anything but easy. 

My problem was more in sustaining a pregnancy than conceiving, believe it or not, this is infertility. 

All the medications, procedures, surgeries, ultrasounds, tears, sleepless nights, and physical pain only scratch the surface.  Just one of the reasons no one should ever ask anyone when they are having kids. 

Not if they’re single,

Not if they’re married,

Not if they have one child, 

Not if they have three. 

YOU. DO. NOT. ASK. 

Yes, you can suffer from infertility even if you already have children. 

It doesn’t lessen it. 

1 in 8 face infertility of some kind. 

1 in 4 have lost a child. 

With statistics like that odds are that you know someone affected by one or both and may not even know. 

Be kind. 

Advocate. 

National infertility awareness week

(NIAW 2021)

April 18th – 24th