Mindy Keller

Mindy Keller (42), Rosie (9), Finnegan "Finn" (6). Mindy has also lot two babies to miscarriage. Mindy is a previous project participant. You can view her original photo and story here.  

St. Louis

Mindy shares - 

"After having my two healthy, normal pregnancies, we experienced infertility. Lost two babies within 8 months. The first loss being very traumatic which has caused undiagnosed PTSD. We then sought fertility treatment, had IUI done, but still didn't get pregnant. Ultimately, due to endometriosis & adenomyosis, I had a full hysterectomy in December of 2016. I grieve my fertility to this day and am not sure I made the best decision. I wonder if we should have tried fertility treatments longer.

After my live births, I don’t think I was too surprised with how my body looked. It was doing what it was supposed to for my children. After my losses, however, I could barely look at myself naked or shower. My body failed me and I was mad, sad, and too emotional to care about my self worth, all because my body failed me and couldn’t carry children again like it previously had!

So much has changed since my first photo shoot! This is partly healing for me, to have my heavenly children represented in a photo for the first time by their siblings who wanted them as badly as I did. Plus the movement is just a perfect idea and I have to participate and be part of it. 

{My advice to other parents} It all goes so quickly. Allow yourself and your baby to get in sync the first 2 months at least. Stay home, bond, walk around naked/topless so you can nurse at a moments notice! Don’t stress yourself to be perfect!"

Jessica Fischer Manuel

Jessica Fischer Manuel (40), James (5), Cooper (4), Hadley (23 months)

North Shore, Mass | Photographed in Portland, ME

Jessica shares - 

"I was diagnosed with PCOS in my twenties so I knew it was possible that I would have trouble getting pregnant. I married my husband at 31 years old and we started trying to have a baby right away. We went through four years of infertility tests, hormone replacements, and treatments before I finally conceived in March of 2010. At my 8 week ultrasound we discovered it was a twin pregnancy. We decided not to tell anyone because we wanted to reveal it to our mothers first, at our 12 week ultrasound.

Because I was considered a high risk pregnancy we went to see a specialist for the 12 week scan. As soon as the wand touched my belly, I knew something was wrong. My mother was there, my husband's mother was there, neither of them knew that it was twins and they were both so excited that they didn't notice. But Corey and I both knew. One of the twins had stopped developing shortly after my 8 week scan. The technician was very quiet, I could see the difference in the two embryos' size and she excused herself to get the doctor. When he came back in he asked our mothers to leave. He told us that yes, we had already lost one of the babies but that he was concerned for the other baby as well. The second baby had a rare neural tube defect called Anencephaly. It is a condition in which the babies body grows but it never develops a brain or skull. It is 100% fatal.

They told me I might miscarry on my own at any time during the pregnancy, I might give birth to a stillborn baby, or I might give birth to a baby that could live for a few moments. The only other option was to have a D&C. This was on a Friday and I would have to wait until Monday for the procedure. This was the only option as far as I was concerned. So I spent the weekend with the shades drawn. On Monday my husband and I went to the operating room and I had to sign paperwork that stated that I was consciously terminating my pregnancy. It seemed like a sick joke. All I had wanted was these babies, but because the baby with no brain still had a heartbeat, it was an abortion. It took another six months for me to feel like I could try again.

I got pregnant pretty quickly because we had figured out what combination of fertility treatments had worked for the first pregnancy. At the first ultrasound (this time at 10 weeks), I could hardly breathe because as soon as the wand touched my belly again, my husband and I saw two sacs and only one developing fetus. The technician couldn't say anything but we both knew we had lost another twin. After the scan we met with a doctor from the practice that I was using who walked in and said, "You have a demised fetus that probably stopped developing at about 8 weeks, and you should feel grateful that the other fetus seems to be developing normally." I'll never forget the words "demised fetus" or the notion that I should feel grateful after having lost three babies.

In my early twenties, I weighed well over 300 pounds. I had a gastric bypass surgery and lost about 175 pounds and had a tummy tuck and breast lift to remove twelve pounds of skin from my chest and abdomen. I wasn't comfortable with my body - fat, thin, pregnant, or postpartum. I have come close, a few times, to feeling confident with my size and shape, but only when I'm fully clothed. Having my babies has certainly given me a chance to be in awe over the strength, capabilities, and resilience of my body, and I definitely don't feel worse about myself postpartum, but I don't feel better either.

I have spent forty years dieting, eating, having surgical and laser procedures, and electrolysis, (to name a few things), all in an attempt to look beautiful. I will always have skin that sags on my arms and thighs, I will always have PCOS and fight hair removal, I am covered in stretch marks, and scars, and my belly button (which was created after my tummy tuck) is totally off center. I realized after my babies that I will never look exactly how I picture a beautiful person to look. And I had to stop chasing it, because if I didn't, the diets and surgeries and insanity would never end. And even though they would never end...I would still never be totally happy with how I looked.

Because of my first experiences I was a nervous wreck through both of my son's pregnancies. I didn't enjoy them and I had really hoped to. I wanted to be pregnant, to feel the baby kick, to feel my milk come in, to embrace each strange occurrence as I grew someone inside of me. But all I felt was fear. And every time there was a spot of blood in my pants, or a movement that took too long to feel, or I accidentally drank caffeinated instead of decaf, I would run to my doctor in a blind panic. Fortunately, both were very typical pregnancies even though I was high-risk and it was mostly my own irrational concerns that kept me up at night.

I didn't expect to get pregnant with my daughter. We thought because I had done fertility treatments to have the boys that I would need to do the same when we wanted to try for a third but I had to change a fertility appointment to a prenatal when I got pregnant on my own. I was far more relaxed with my third pregnancy even though it was the most physically difficult and the first time I experienced sciatica. Sciatica is no joke.

All three of my labors and deliveries were different. My water broke with James at 3 AM and I labored naturally for 18 hours and felt amazing. I couldn't figure out why women thought labor was painful. Then I hit transition and was begging, not only for an epidural, but for someone to knock me out cold so that I might have a shot at not remembering the rest. They started my epidural but had a difficult time with it and by the time I started to feel even a small amount of relief they told me to start pushing. I pushed six times and James was born.

When I started feeling contractions with Cooper, I told them to give me an epidural as soon as I walked into labor and delivery (hardly even dilated). They did and I progressed comfortably and quickly and after eight pushes, out came Cooper. I had false labor with Hadley twice so by the time it was the real deal I hardly made it to the hospital in time because I didn't want to be sent home again. I labored for a very short time with her and pushed about four times before she was born. I guess my easy births were a trade off for a terrible beginning to pregnancy.

I nursed all three babies. James had a weak latch because he was three weeks early and I used a nipple shield for about a month before we got a good rhythm. Cooper and Hadley latched immediately and Hadley was my most demanding nurser. Both boys weened around 10 months even though I wanted to try to go a full year. I had gone back to work when they were about three months old and they preferred the bottle so I pumped for the whole year and supplemented when I started to lose my supply.

The nursing was hard. The sleeplessness was hard. Each of my babies has been very different in their nursing, their sleeping habits, and their personalities. James talked before he turned one but didn't walk until he was 15 months old and needed PT for a year. Cooper started RUNNING at 10 months but hardly spoke until he was almost two. And Hadley. She's the boss. But they all turned out okay. Not just okay. Amazing. Every time I thought I ruined them, they bounced back. Every time I thought a screaming phase wouldn't end, it did. Every time I think it can't possibly get any better than this - that they couldn't possibly get any cuter, or funnier, or smarter, or more polite, ...it does, and they do.

I tried for a long time to create a perfect body, or what I thought a perfect body should look like. I had surgeries, I gained and lost hundreds of pounds, I grew, birthed, and fed, three complete beings. And I still never liked my vessel. This is the only body I get. I am trying so hard to love and appreciate it. I'm not there, but I'm getting closer. These photos are a step in that direction for me."

Kimberley Page

The lovely Kimberly Page, John (3), Jessie (almost 2) and Nick (2 months).

Kimberly and her husband had trouble conceiving and needed the help of a fertility specialist for both John and Jessie's conceptions. She had great pregnancies but they were both born a bit prematurely, John at 36.5 weeks and Jessie at 35.5 weeks, though both were healthy.

Kimberly had thought they were done having children and says that she was ready to not be pregnant or breastfeeding anymore and was looking forward to reclaiming her body as her own. When Jessie was around a year old, Kimberly conceived naturally by surprise and went on to have a very difficult pregnancy. From the beginning, things were different, she was very sick and nauseous in her first trimester and her vision began to worsen. Her OB referred her to an optometrist who diagnosed her with double vision and prescribed glasses to help. Going through all of the changes in this surprise pregnancy and then wearing glasses for the first time in her life was difficult for her. However, her vision came back in her second trimester and she felt quite blissful. Kimberly's vision worsened again in her third trimester and she also began having horrible migraines. She went back to the OB who again just brushed it off as more strange side effects of pregnancy. Kimberly let it go for a bit thinking everything would be okay but looked in the mirror one day and realized her pupils were two different sizes. This time she went in to see an ophthalmologist who sent her immediately to the ER for an MRI because he saw something pushing on her eye. 

Her MRI at 34 weeks revealed that the pressure on her eye was a brain tumor. The tumor was found to be a benign meningioma but there was some fear that if it continued to grow she could lose her vision. Kimberley found that this type of tumor responds to progesterone which could have caused it to grow during her pregnancy. In the 10 days following her diagnosis, she met with 6 neurosurgeons to discuss treatment options. 5 of the 6 assured her that she was fine to have a typical delivery and wait to address her tumor until after the baby was born. The remaining neurosurgeon, who she liked the most, felt that because her symptoms were worsening so quickly she should see a doctor of maternal and fetal medicine (MFM) to see how the baby was doing and if was safe to deliver early so she could have a craniotomy to remove the tumor and save her vision.

Kimberley saw an MFM at 35.5 weeks who felt that the baby was doing well and was developed enough that she should be going into labor soon. She ended up carrying until 37.5 weeks, longer than she ever had before. Her water broke and she went to the hospital but wasn't able to get an epidural. They had asked her to "labor down" and allow her body to expel the baby without pushing so that she didn't cause any additional pressure in her brain. Nick was born healthy without any complications. 

Kimberely's next step was to have an MRI with contrast once the baby was born but her symptoms began to lessen and she decided to hold off. She scheduled the MRI a month later and the craniotomy for later that same week on December 8th, 2015. She was terrified about undergoing such a dramatic surgery while having a newborn. She pumped as much as she could in hopes of protecting her breastfeeding relationship and set up childcare for the month of December. Two weeks after Nick was born she started to feel better - her vision was coming back, her pupil was responsive to light, she didn't feel the swelling of her tumor and by time she had the MRI she was almost symptom free. At this point, the risks of the craniotomy or radiation were too great and her surgery was cancelled. Kimberely is now on watch and wait monitoring to keep an eye on the growth of her tumor but she's doing well and has felt such relief that she is feeling better physically, emotionally and mentally. There's a chance that she will never need intervention and she's trying not to stress out about what she can not control.

Kimberley had learned about this movement just after her daughter was born and thought that it was beautiful and powerful but didn't necessarily feel compelled to participate.  After the year she's had she's decided it's imperative to treat herself more and do the things that she wants, it's not just about her husband and kids, life is about what she wants too. Everyone's story is so inspirational and she wanted to have a space to share hers as well. 

Janessa Sanders-Newman

The stunning Janessa Sanders-Newman, Jeremiah (11), Malakai (10) and Jessah (21 months).

Janessa got pregnant with Jeremiah when she was 14 and had him when she was 15. It was a very heavy experience but she had a lot of support from her family. Jeremiah's father chose not to parent which she says, in the long run has been easier for them.

When she was 17 she met her husband and his son, Malakai, who was then three. He had been born to 15 year old parents also and his mother had also chose not parent so at 17, Janessa welcomed him as another child.

She was able to finish high school and go to college while her husband left for the Army. They were married and had talked about having more children but she wanted her next pregnancy to be planned and on her own terms. She was birth control for a while and when she decided to get off they were unable to conceive which was very hard for her. Fertility testing showed that everything was fine medically which made it even more difficult for her. She hadn't been getting a period or ovulating so they talked about fertility treatments and she stated progesterone to give her a period, metformin as treatment for PCOS and clomid to help her ovulate.

She didn't conceive on the first round, so they waited a few months before starting a second round. She found that she was having very amplified emotions and while out with her family one day she had a gush of fluids and thought she had lost control of her bladder. She realized it was her period and she was gushing so badly she thought she was miscarrying or something was seriously wrong. She called the doctor who told her that with the medications it was totally normal.

They decided to do another round of medications and she waited for that 28th day to come and her cycle to start again like a giant dam breaking but it didn't. And the next day it didn't either. She took a pregnancy test and was thrilled to see it was positive - she was pregnant with Jessah but was also scared and terrified because it had taken so long and found herself very worried about miscarrying. An 8 week ultrasound looked good but they couldn't find her baby's heartbeat at 12 weeks. They decided to do an internal ultrasound and Janessa learned she has a tilted uterus and her baby was just hiding out in the back. They got a 3-D ultrasound later on and were told they were having a boy. Janessa was disappointed, already having two sons she had really wanted a daughter. A later scan at her doctor's office however, showed that she was having a girl and the gender reveal ultrasound had been incorrect.

When she was in her early third trimester, Janessa started getting really sick. She was throwing up and having contractions but the hospital told her she just had the flu, stopped her contractions and sent her home. It happened again and she then began having horrible sharp pains in her back as well. They gave her some Zofran and again sent her home again. The third time she was really sick and stuck it out at home no longer wanting to go to the hospital if they were just going to send her home.

The following day she couldn't feel her baby moving. During a time of day she was normally bouncing around she was still so Janessa went to the hospital with her sister to check on things, assuming that everything was likely okay. They were able to hear a heart beat but it wasn't fluctuating and they couldn't get the baby to move. The OB arrived and everyone started rushing around and told her she needed to have an emergency cesarean right then. She was only 32 weeks and didn't know what was going on. Her husband wasn't there, they were shaving her, starting a catheter, making her sign papers and she couldn't stop crying. Her husband arrived and they prepped her for surgery, but when they got Jessah out she wasn't crying and they still didn't know what was happening.

They had to transfer Jessah to a NICU an hour away and Janessa was still getting mixed information about what was going on and whether or not her baby would be okay. She was able to see and touch her Jessah before they took her and then they just had to wait. Janessa's extended family were able to go with the baby while her husband stayed with her. The hospital wouldn't discharge Janessa because of her surgery and kept her on the maternity floor. She could hear all the other babies crying and her baby wasn't there.

Nurses helped Janessa learn to pump and she did so diligently every three hours as it felt like that was the only thing she could do, the only thing she had control of for her baby. Janessa's family had been sending her photos of her baby and she she was able to call the NICU to check on her. She was thrilled when she was finally able to be discharged and went to take a shower but she passed out and had to stay an additional day for a blood transfusion. Janessa finally got to meet her baby but couldn't touch her, they had to wear full gowns and everything felt so distant.

Janessa later learned that she had formed a blood clot and her placenta had ruptured. Jessah had stopped getting oxygen and was dying when Janessa went to the hospital. If she had waited any longer her baby wouldn't have made it. Her intuition had saved her babies life and possibly hers as well.

Unfortunately, Janessa found herself sick again just after she'd finally been able to see her daughter, and went to the emergency room. There she learned she had gall stones and that was what had been making her sick all along. They told her she needed to have surgery right away but she wanted to wait so she didn't miss out on time with her daughter in NICU. Changing her diet helped a bit and she was able to delay surgery until the week that her baby was scheduled to come.

Through it all Janessa learned to navigate life with a baby in NICU an hour away and two kids at home. She worked out  schedule where she was able to stay for a few days and come home for a few days. She had a friend who had also been through life in NICU who was great about encouraging her to get out and take some time away. Jessah had been born 8 weeks early but did so well she was able to come home from NICU after just 4 weeks on Valentine's Day. They have had to follow up with a neurologist due to a brain bleed, a cardiologist due to now healed hole in heart and monitor her growth but Jessah is doing great and meeting all of her milestones at her actual age. Janessa has been able to continue breastfeeding Jessah, she transitioned exclusively to the breast once she was home and they're still nursing today.

Even though this pregnancy and birth were far more difficult than her first Janessa found it so nice to have someone by her side feeling what she felt. A partner, another parent,  to walk through it with her.

Janessa was worried she had postpartum depression and asked her doctor about it at her six week check up. He told her that because she was sleeping, she was just fine. She followed up with her regular doctor who was also a bit dismissive but was able to refer her to a therapist.

Janessa is a strong feminist and wants to help show other women that what happens when you have a baby is okay - all the emotions you're feeling, all the stuff that comes out of you, the stetch marks, the saggy leaky boobs - all of that is okay. Her stretch marks grew with each pregnancy, she can see where Jeremiah's started and ended and where Jessah's continued and Malakai has given her plenty of gray hairs so she gets to have those too. Janessa says she's never been good at a lot of things but she's good at this. She's a good mom and wouldn't want to do it any other way, she looks forward to every day.

Nancy Smithe

The amazing Nancy Smithe, Wilder (2) and Odessa (7 months).

Nancy had always had irregular periods but was told it was because she was thin. She and her husband knew they were ready to start trying and she asked her doctor the best way to know she was ovulating. Her provider decided to go ahead and do a transvaginal ultrasound which revealed cysts on her ovaries. With her history she was able to diagnose her with PCOS on the spot. Armed with that information, Nancy and her husband were able to get a referral for a fertility specialist right away and started treatments a few months later. After just one trigger shot injection she was able to conceive Wilder.

Nancy had a wonderful pregnancy with Wilder, and went into birth knowing that she wanted to deliver in hospital without interventions. Her midwife ended up breaking her waters to jumpstart labor and things progressed well until she decided to get an epidural. Nancy says that she may have misjudged her ability to handle to the pain and was upset at herself for needing help. She was worried that she had jumpstarted a cascade of interventions that would impede her ability to birth the way she'd hoped. Hours later Wilder just wasn't coming and she needed to deliver via cesarean. Her surgeon told her that Wilder's head had been tilted in the birth canal and was conical in that area, there was just no way he was going to come out safely that way. Even with that information she struggled.

Knowing that conception could take awhile and that they had hoped to avoid having a baby at the time of year that is difficult for her husband as a CPA, they reached back out to their fertility specialist and began medication to help ovulation with the plan to also go back in to begin injections. She realized she was ovulating so they gave it a try and were able to conceive Odessa a bit sooner than they'd hoped. Pregnancy went well again this time and she knew she'd hoped to VBAC. She chose the same doula for this labor and again was progressing well until she had her epidural. This time, however, Odessa was born vaginally shortly thereafter.

Nancy says that as a planner she had put so much stock in her part of the birthing process that she hadn't considered the fact that every baby is different before the birth of her second. Having a different birthing experience with her daughter allowed her to take a lot of the weight off of herself and realize that sometimes, there are other factors outside of our control and desire at play. Breastfeeding has gone well with each of her children, Wilder weaned on his own while pregnant with Odessa and Odessa is still nursing today.

Growing up, Nancy always thought that she wanted be a CEO and make money because that was what she knew was valued by our society. She found herself pulled towards social work, something that she absolutely wasn't in for the money and found that when she became a mother, she felt the brunt of the lack of value our society holds for mothers and parents in general. She wishes our society would value the role of the parent more as it's so worthy of celebration.

Michelle Freshwater

Michelle Freshwater with her boys Liam (2.5 years) and Ronan (6 months). Michelle and her husband went through years of fertility treatments before turning to IVF. They tired three rounds of IVF locally which resulted in one ectopic pregnancy and two failed attempts. She says the clinic was great but they weren't trying anything different so they ended up traveling to another state for treatment after she'd had a surgery to help. On their first IVF attempt with the new clinic, Liam was conceived. They were very surprised when after all of that, Ronan was conceived the old fashioned way. She went on to have two healthy pregnancies without complication and felt great throughout. She had hoped for a natural delivery with Liam but her water broke without the onset of labor which led to pitocin and a more difficult labor and delivery. Her second delivery she was able to avoid intervention and have the natural delivery she'd hoped for. Breastfeeding was challenging due to supply concerns and weight gain issues with Liam. They started supplementing at 3 months and breastfeeding ceased soon after. Things this time are going beautifully and Michelle hopes to hit her goal of one year.

Michelle is a physician, currently practicing weight loss medicine. She sees her patients all too often not accepting their bodies, they have a desire to reach a certain weight or a certain size rather than a desire to be healthy. She has struggled with similar thoughts herself and instead wanted to take a step back to celebrate where she is right now rather than try to fix things. Shifting that focus off of weight and instead positively embracing where she is right now with herself and her boys is so important.

Christine Juliani

Christine Juliani, Eden (3.5 years) and Iris (11 months)

My wife and I conceived our older daughter Eden in February 2011 using a donor after several rounds of fertility treatments and one miscarriage.  I always assumed that breastfeeding would be easy so I didn’t really give it much thought.  I was induced at 40 weeks due to being high risk and Eden arrived 26 hours later.  She would not latch in the hospital so I ended up pumping, using a nipple shield, and supplementing with formula.  Once we arrived home, I continued to have latching issues despite my best efforts.  Eventually, I accepted the fact that nursing directly wasn’t going to happen so I decided to exclusively pump.  I weaned when Eden was 10.5 months old and had enough milk frozen to give her some each day until she was 14 months old.

When we conceived our younger daughter Iris in September 2013 using the same donor, I once again had high hopes that I would be able to nurse.  Iris was born at 38+6 a perfectly healthy little girl.  Once again, I had latching issues with her and decided to exclusively pump.  At a year old, Iris is having a hard time transitioning to solids so it is most beneficial that I have continued to pump.  And since I was blessed with an oversupply, we have several hundred ounces in the freezer.  In addition, our 3.5 year old daughter Eden is able to get some of the benefits of the breastmilk as well.

Initially I was sad about not being able to nurse directly, in part because pumping is a lot of work.  However, there are positive aspects about it, such as allowing my wife to share in the feedings.  

Josiane Bergeron-Lord

The joyful Josiane Bergeron-Lord with her sons Raphaél (6), Julien (5) and daughter Margot (6 months). Josiane and her husband knew they may have trouble conceiving due to her cycles being irregular. They were teaching in South Asia at the time and decided they wanted adoption to be their first option rather than a back up plan if they weren't able to conceive. They made the choice to adopt from South Korea and by time they were able to bring their son home at 8.5 months of age she was actually already 3 months pregnant with Julien who was conceived by surprise while she was actually on birth control. It was quite an adjustment to having two little ones at home but her husband was able to take a year off at home to help their family unit solidify. Josiane's birth was not bad she says but not necessarily good either. She gave birth in a hospital and it simply wasn't the experience she had enjoyed. She knew at some point she'd wanted to try for a third but didn't wanted to disrupt things early on so they waited and were able to conceive Margot with the help of fertility treatments. Josiane had a healthy pregnancy and was able to deliver at home with midwives and breastfeeding is going very well.

La joyeuse Josiane Bergeron-Lord avec ses fils Raphaël (6ans), Julien (5ans et sa fille Margot (6 mois). Josiane et son mari savaient qu'ils seraient peut-être difficile pour eux de concevoir à cause de ses cycles irréguliers. Ils enseignaient en Asie du Sud à l'époque où ils ont décidé que l'adoption serait leur premier choix plutôt que leur plan B. Ils ont choisi d'adopter un enfant de la Corée du Sud et avant même qu'ils ne reviennent avec leur fils de 8 mois et demi, elle était déjà enceinte de 3 mois de leur petit Julien qui fut une surprise puisqu'elle prenait la pilule contraceptive. Ce fut tout un ajustement que d'avoir deux petits à la maison mais son mari a pu prendre une année sabbatique pour aider à consolider sa famille. L'accouchement ne se déroula ni mal ni particulièrement bien. Elle a donné naissance à l'hôpital et ce ne fut simplement pas une expérience agréable. Elle savait qu'éventuellement, elle voudrait essayer d'avoir un troisième enfant mais n'a pas voulu troubler trop vite leur vie familiale. Ils ont attendus et conçurent Margot par procréation assistée. Josiane a eu une belle grossesse et a pu accoucher à la maison avec des sage-femmes et son allaitement se déroule très bien.

Veronica Butler

The beautiful Veronica Butler with her son Jonah (3) and daughter Ava (9.5 months). Veronica and her husband tried to conceive for about 3 years before they pushed to find more answers. After being told that everything was okay she pushed to be seen by a fertility specialist and finally conceived. Sadly, at 9 weeks she lost the pregnancy and had to have a D&C. Veronica was very depressed and worried whether even with help she'd be able to carry a pregnancy. She and her husband decided to try IVF and if that didn't work, they'd adopt as she couldn't picture her life without children. They were able to conceive Jonah and she went on to have a healthy pregnancy. Veronica planned for an unmedicated birth but had to transfer in hospital and ultimately delivered via cesarean. The experience was very difficult for her and it took some time to feel ready to do it again. Ava was conceived with the help of IVF also and Veronica had another uneventful pregnancy and very healing VBAC in hospital. Veronica has been able to breastfeed both of her children without complication and says she was so grateful to be able to breastfeed without complication after her struggles with fertility, she also counsels and supports other breastfeeding mothers and is just beginning to start work helping women overcome birth trauma.

La belle Veronica Butler avec son fils Jonah (3 ans) et sa fille Ava (9 mois et demi). Véronica et son mari ont essayer de concevoir pendant 3 ans avant de consulter en fertilité. Après qu'on leur ai dit que tout était normal, ils ont du insister pour être vu par un spécialiste et ont finalement pu concevoir. Malheureusement la grossesse s'est interrompue à 9 semaines et elle a du subir un curetage. Veronica, déprimée et inquiète, se demandait si elle pourrait, même avec de l'aide, mener une grossesse à terme. Le couple a décidé d'essayer la fécondation in vitro en se disant que si ça ne fonctionnait pas, ils se tourneraient vers l'adoption puisqu'ils ne pouvaient pas imaginer leur vie sans enfants. Elle a pu concevoir Jonah et a vécu une belle grossesse. Veronica avait prévu une naissance naturelle mais a du être transférée d'urgence à l'hôpital où elle a finalement accoucher par césarienne. Cette expérience fut pour elle très éprouvante et ça lui a pris quelque temps à se sentir prête à recommencer. Ava a aussi été concue par fécondation in vitro, cette deuxième grossesse se passa aussi très bien et se conclu par un AVAC très réparateur. Veronica a allaité ses deux enfants sans problème et exprime toute sa reconnaissance d'avoir pu allaiter facilement après toutes les difficultés qu'elle a eu à concevoir. Elle conseille et encourage les femmes qui allaitent et commence maintenant un travail où elle aide les femme à guérir de traumatismes liés aux naissances.

Kirsten Wallace

 The wonderful Kirsten Wallace with her daughter Aviana (2). Kirsten is also 33 weeks pregnant with her second, due in November. When Kirsten was 18, she was told that she had Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and would never have children of her own, or if she did she would have to utilize fertility treatments to get there. Despite the warnings, she conceived without issue unexpectedly. Aviana's pregnancy was great, Kirsten struggled with morning sickness but was otherwise okay. She was born vaginally with an epidural due to her posterior position and was able to breastfeed right away. Aviana is still breastfeeding, and Kirsten hopes to tandem feed once the new baby arrives. They decided to try again very quickly so that the kids could grow up close in age. Conception took a lot longer this time and Kirsten had to rely on Clomid and other fertility treatments. She hasn't been as sick this pregnancy but has had a few complications. The baby has a single vessel umbilical cord and is measuring quite small. Thankfully he's growing steadily, just in lower percentiles, so everything is looking great this time around. Kirsten had hoped to have a homebirth but is going to deliver in the hospital with a student midwife assisting. She is hoping for a natural waterbirth this time. When Kirsten was growing up, she had family members who forbid her from having seconds and told her to suck her stomach in at age 6 or 7, things they would never have said to her brother. She doesn't feel anyone should be subjected to that and wants to set a better example for both her children.