My 1yr old is currently giving me the pleasure of that most precious gorgeous sound and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Mind you, it is accompanied by the lovely crying of, ‘why did you put me down Mum, just so you can go to the toilet, that’s not a good enough reason Mum, pick me up NOW’!!! So many joys.
It is such a magical journey, with so many expectations, hopes and desires. I think especially for many women, it can feel as though it’s their sole purpose for living, a lifelong dream, and couples or even singles can be so invested in fulfilling that dream.
I love helping to support women and couples on their journey with fertility for this reason.
My own journey into motherhood has been one of ups and downs. I remember having that niggling fear of ‘would I ever get to be a mother, would I feel the special movement of my baby kicking inside me’, hovering in the background of my every day life.
I had a vision of how motherhood would pan out for me and I was already parenting my non-existent children in my head hypothetically, it was great I had it all figured out.
I wasn’t expecting to fall pregnant easily, due to circumstances in my early 20s (which I’ll save for another post/blog), so I knew I was starting on the back foot, and knew I wanted to give my body every chance of being able to fall pregnant.
The best way I knew how was to do some preparation of gentle cleansing and nourishing the body 3 months before trying to conceive.
I must admit, there was a part of me that wanted to just ‘semi-start’ trying, to not really do anything different and occasionally if the opportunity arose (which I’d make sure would) have sex around ovulation. This was safe because if I didn’t immediately fall pregnant, I could tell myself it was ok, because I wasn’t ‘really’ trying yet. I realised though that if I didn’t fall pregnant after a number of months, I would start to wonder, and then when it came time that I did want to ‘really’ start trying to fall pregnant, there would be a more worried mindset, of wondering why I hadn’t fallen pregnant yet in the first place. Which really isn’t helpful.
I wanted to give my body every chance on the outset, we are at our most fertile in the first 4 months of trying. I knew I could save time in the long run, because if I didn’t fall pregnant after a number of months, I would at least know I’d been doing everything to have my body in its best shape, and that if further investigations were needed to be made into reasons why, then I could do them without delay. Generally, most fertile couples should be able to fall pregnant in 6 to 9 months of trying, with a majority even sooner.
I mostly ate certain foods to improve fertility such as including Maca powder in my morning smoothies and including plenty of foods that assist cleansing such as the cruciferous and sulphur vegetables (broccoli, brussel sprouts, garlic, onion, asparagus) which ramp up your phase II detoxification pathways in the liver. I would also take a good quality pregnancy multi vitamin which contained active vitamins every day. I threw in a bit of exercise when I could manage it to. What I felt made the biggest difference was in this time I undertook 3 weeks of a more specialised detox cleanse using the help of supplemental herbs and specialised nutrients.
I must say I’m tempted here, (because I love sharing the nitty gritty) to delve into the why’s and how’s the detox cleanse can be so important to preparing the body for conception, but again I’ll save that for another blog, (which you can find here). Just know, that it can only make sense to clean and prepare the ‘vehicle’ which is about to grow your most special little human being.
I really didn’t think I was going to fall pregnant right away, so it was much to my fiancés (now husband) and my delight that we did and I truly loved being pregnant, even with its discomforts. I was basking in my pregnancy glow and loving every minute of it.
Fast forward 9 months and we welcomed our first-born beautiful baby girl into the world. It was a difficult labour, approximately 30 hours starting from when I arrived at hospital with my contractions at 2 minutes apart. I couldn’t eat or drink during this time, due to my discomfort and sudden acute reflux (which I now have tips in preparing for). To top it off, in the last 2 hours of labour, I had a tearing ligament that my baby was trying to push its way past, causing me to be in more pain in-between contractions then when I was having a contraction. Through sheer determination we managed a natural vaginal birth and were lucky enough to finally welcome a healthy baby girl. Needless to say, my body was severely depleted at the end of this labour. Post-partum care of your body is such a vital part of your fertility journey, one that it is easily overlooked. This is when the real work begins of ‘actually’ caring for your little bundle, and it really helps if you’re not depleted in any essential vitamins or minerals. Check out my blog here for tips on post-partum care.
There are two important aspects I’d like to share when embarking upon your conception journey.
Number 1 is:-
Prepare the vehicle that will grow your precious human being.
Key points to remember:
Giving your body a ‘spring-clean’ through detoxification and super fertility nutrients, allows it to reset, and provides your body with the best materials to grow new reproductive material and support a healthy pregnancy. It is also a chance to identify any underlying hormonal imbalances that may need to be addressed;
New eggs and sperm take 3-4 months to mature. Ensuring the best quality biochemical materials are available for this process is such a vital first step. Having the best quality sperm and egg, creates the best quality zygote (fertilised egg). Which in those first few crucial hours and days after fertilisation, when the cells begin to divide and multiply, helps to increase viability and prevent errors, which could lead to abnormalities and or miscarriages;
Number 2 is:-
Allow things to simply be, knowing that your dreams are coming true.
You can feel empowered and in control when you are taking steps to prepare your body and this is a great feeling and something great we can do for ourselves and our future family. We also need to be mindful of letting nature ‘do its thing’, which can often be according to its own timeline. Trust that your dreams are coming true and don’t overthink the process.
Rather than focusing on how you can have a baby, focus on how you can be as fit and healthy as you possibly can. Use this pre-natal period as a chance to look after yourself, enjoy nutritious wholesome foods, and above all to relax and enjoy this exciting time.
Are you wondering sure, but where do I start?? How do I start cleansing my body without turning my world upside down. Trust me, I know the feeling, as even I, who had a good grasp on what I needed to do and was studying nutrition, herbs and detoxification pathways, found it overwhelming.
It can seem daunting and a bit scary, especially if you are not sure exactly how to start. I can promise you though, it isn’t that difficult once you have an action plan. That hardest part is making the decision. All you need to do is book now. That’s where I love to provide step by step support and advice on how to navigate in preparing your body. I can’t stress enough how helpful and vital to a happy healthy you and a successful pregnancy this is. It’s an exciting time, you receive so many benefits, I’d love to be a part of this journey with you.