For the month of June we are talking about infertility and IVF success stories on the Sisters in Loss podcast.  In today’s episode we have Candace Farris who has been on her infertility journey for 10 years due to Uterine Fibroids.  After a failed IVF in August 2017, having her mother pass away in the middle of her IVF cycle, she is currently 10 weeks pregnant from a successful 2nd round of IVF.  In this episode Candace discusses her journey to motherhood, having surgery to remove fibroids, her husband having surgery to help with sperm quality, and preparing her body for her upcoming embryo transfer.  She also discusses her vlog and youtube channel Fruitful Journey as she is documenting her entire story with us.  This episode is for you to listen to if you are still in the wait for your miracle baby!

For the month of June we are talking about infertility and IVF stories on the podcast.  In today’s episode we have Chimyra Powell a wife, mom, and blogger of journeyofchimyra.com.  Chimyra suffered a 5 year journey with infertility and her first natural pregnancy ended due to a life threatening ectopic pregnancy.  She and her husband decided to try IVF and it was successful as she birthed her rainbow baby boy Solomon.  In this interview we discuss how she struggled with depression, severely grieving, and how she was overall unhappy and unfilled.  Chimyra started her blog journeyofchimyra.com to empower women to achieve and obtain all that they want in life.  Chimyra hopes that her transparency will help shed a light on infertility and how we can overcome it while sharing resources and her journey through her blog.  Her desire for us all to be fruitful in all areas of life to include motherhood, marriage and career.

In today’s episode we have Dr. Jerisa Berry a board-certified Emergency Medicine doctor also known as Dr. Jerisa ER.  She is a nationally recognized speaker, media consultant, and author.  In this episode Dr. Jerisa shares her infertility journey with uterine fibroids, multiple surgeries, IVF, and how surrogacy was her final decision to become a mother.  Dr. Jerisa also uses her expertise in partnering with Lab Corp and creating Secure Your Fertility an app to help women identify their ovarian reserve a test that insurance typically does not cover.  For only $97 you can go to your local Lab Corp, get blood drawn, and it will determine how many eggs you have so you can make a sound decision around taking control of your fertility.  Dr. Jerisa and I are on similar journey’s and surrogacy is something I am considering and her experience has solidified that no matter how we become mothers, we have to continue to take control of our health and trust that God will give us the desires of our hearts.

In today’s episode we have Patrice Washington, “America’s Money Maven.” who opens up and shares her infant loss story, secondary infertility journey, and how to Redefine Wealth.  Patrice is a national recognized best selling author, transformational speaker, spokesperson, radio host and leading authority on personal finance, entrepreneurship and success for women.  You may have heard Patrice on the Steve Harvey Morning Radio show where she hosts a weekly segment called Real Money Answers with Patrice Washington. Patrice is the big sister in my head that gets me together, snatches my edges, and teaches me how to Chase Purpose and Not Money on her new weekly podcast called Redefining Wealth.  In this interview Patrice shares her infant loss journey with us, how she lost everything during the recession while she was pregnant with her rainbow baby daughter, and how she is surrendering to God for her desire to have more children after experiencing secondary infertility.  I could not have Patrice on this episode without discussing money and we talk about what it means to Redefine Wealth and her definition of her 6 pillars of wealth.

In today’s episode we have Sosi’s who shares her fertility journey and decision to adopt after going through infertility treatments.   Sosi is passionate about adoption and loves to encourage other woman of color to consider adoption as a way of growing their families. Sosi is a minister, friend, daughter, and wife to Lee of five years.  She would like to add “mom” to that resume!  After several IUIs and too much time spent pursuing fertility treatment, Sosina and her husband Lee said yes to God’s leading to pursue adoption. They are joyfully and patiently (and sometimes not joyfully or patiently) waiting to bring home their child through adoption.  In this episode Sosi takes us back to her initial infertility diagnosis and how she and her husband Lee made the decision to adopt.  We discuss why she has elected to stop infertility treatments and focus on adoption.  Sosi details the adoption process for us and how there are many financial grants and resources for adoptions.  We also discuss adoption loss and how it affects her relationship with God and her husband.  This episode is for your if you are considering adoption after infertility and are unsure of the steps in the process.

Do we need to have grief resolutions or grief goals for this year?  In today’s episode we have Pachuska Vil-Audain also known as Pat who shares her infertility experience and journey to starting a grief coaching business called Top Counseling.  We discuss having and setting grief goals and resolutions.  How can we make this New Year one filled with personal growth and inner peace from grief due to pregnancy loss.  And how we can commit to our grief journey this year.  Pat is a passionate and engaging coach and motivating speaker who works enthusiastically with individuals, couples, families, groups and companies to guide them from turning their dreams into realistic, attainiable & tangible goals.

In today’s episode we have the Thompsons.  Valencya and Jerrell Thompson are the founders of the #fertilityhope ministry.  Valencya Thompson holds Master and Specialist degrees in School Psychology, a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, and has completed seminary studies.  Jerrell Thompson is an engineer by trade with a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering. Considering their diverse areas of study joining their female vs. male perspectives, they have written a divinely inspired personal testimony that is an informative read that was written to help you heal as you read about their healing process from losing children preterm to birthing healthy children.  In “Our Journey To #fertilityhope”, Thompson and Thompson candidly share about their experiences of tragedy & triumph on the road to birthing two children. This text is written on a down-to-earth level intertwined with scholarly-researched biblical scripture and medical commentary by Dr. Desiree’ McCarthy-Keith, MD, MPH, FACOG to encourage others who might find themselves on a similar path.   In the frequent words of the authors, “Hang in there. Keep the faith. Don’t lose hope. Trust God. God has not forgot!”  Here are the Thompsons.

In today’s episode Dareshia Ervin also known as Dee shares her miscarriage story and Infertility journey.  Dee has experienced five miscarriages, two being life threatening and the last one leaving her completely infertile. After her fourth miscarriage, she could no longer keep quiet about her pain, and decided it was time to share her story with the world. It was then; she founded a personal blog by the name of Loving Angel Babies founded in 2016. She feels that the love she has for her angel babies, has allowed her to be completely open about their existence and no longer grieve alone.  Dee’s everyday prayer is that she could be an inspiration to women who feel alone throughout this journey.  Even after the loss of both fallopian tubes, she’s certain that God will fulfill his promises to her, to one day mother a child of her own. Now she is documenting her IVF journey, the ups and downs of it all. Dee vows to never give up and continue to spread awareness regardless of the circumstances, as her strength is found in Christ! 

In today’s episode Dr. Oluwatoyin Bode-Abass shares her Infertility Journey and Loss Story, and how she turned her pain into a book and foundation called Range based in Lagos, Nigeria.  Dr. Oluwatoyin is an integrative health, wellness, nutrition, and lifestyle consultant.  She studied Medicine and Surgery at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, where she finished top ten in her graduating class.  Her and her husband founded TBA Wellness Hub, an Integrative Health and Wellness consultancy where she empowers individuals to take a proactive approach to their health and nutrition.  She wrote Range to chronical how she found love, had a major gynecological surgery that narrowed her chances of having children, her infertility journey to motherhood and eventually suffering a pregnancy loss.  Dr. Oluwatoyin shares a wealth of knowledge of how women’s issues like fibroids effect pregnancy, and how she is helping other women heal through her new organization the Range Foundation.