EP 269 | are fad diets & unaligned nutrition impacting your fertility health?

Kaely McDevitt is a Registered Dietitian specializing in nutrition for women's health. She owns a virtual private practice where she and her team help their clients reclaim their energy, optimize fertility and overcome hormone symptoms through personalized nutrition. Having experienced the pitfalls of a conventional approach to women's health firsthand, Kaely is passionate about empowering women to build health from a place of connection: to self, to nature and to community.

Links:

Kaely’s Gift: https://kaelyrd.kartra.com/page/foptin

Instagram: @kaelyrd

Website: https://www.kaelyrd.com

Doors are closing soon for my Wholesome Fertility Transformation Program! Join us today! https://www.michelleoravitz.com/Fertility-Transformation-Group-Coaching

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

Transcript:

Michelle:[00:00:00]Welcome to the podcast.

Kaely: Thanks so much for having me, Michelle.

Michelle: love to have you on love to talk to dietitians, nutritionists, and I would love for you to share your backgrounds and how you got into women's health and fertility.

Kaely: Sure. Yeah. So I'm a registered dietitian and I went that path with my career thinking that I would work in sports nutrition. It's what I was passionate about at the time. I kind of grew up as an athlete and as fate would have it, I dealt with a whole bunch of hormone health issues while I was in school, becoming a dietitian and was spending all of my free time outside of school trying to understand more about how the female body worked, how the menstrual cycle worked, the influence of hormones on nutrition and ultimately had a bit of a crisis of faith of what I was learning because it really wasn't helping me optimize my hormone health.

Kaely: A big part of my story was actually some pretty significant symptoms related to birth control. So shortly after getting my credentials, came off birth control,[00:01:00]navigated that whole chaotic season of my life of getting back into hormone balance. And when I looked up from that, I realized how a lot of women, friends, family members even, were hungry for nutrition for women's health specifically.

Kaely: Because almost no nutrition research is ever done on women. So pivoted away from sports nutrition to women's health a little over a decade ago, and have been running a virtual private practice where my team and I help women all over the country end hormone symptoms, optimize fertility, get pregnant, and really just feel at home in their bodies again.

Kaely: And I'm very thankful for that pivot because I can't imagine working in another space.

Michelle: Amazing. I love it. I find working with women personally, like so rewarding, especially when it comes to fertility health, it's really amazing because the thing is, you know, what you're talking about is so important food is like at the center of everything, but here's the thing. I think what a lot of people think.

Michelle: Is that their symptoms are just[00:02:00]genetics or it's just something that they have to deal with and little is talked about. How our choices and food choices can make a difference. And the thing is part of like having a choice is really knowing what to look for because sometimes you don't really know that you even have a choice.

Kaely: Yep, totally.

Michelle: And when you talked about, you talked about birth control, that's like abig thing too, because I think that that's another aspect. I mean, that's really beenmy story is that I didn't realize that I had a choice with my regular periods and theonly choice I was given. By professionals that I turned to was the birth control pill for many, many years until, and I always knew intuitively that there must besomething else that's out there that's better because I'm like, there's just no way that this cannot be fixed.

Michelle: And I knew that it was a bandaid because obviously if you take it off, it's right back to what it was. And the doctor told me that. So I remember thinking like, this[00:03:00]just doesn't make sense. However, I didn't have a better option at the time. So a lot of people are in that same position. They really don't think that there's a better option.

Michelle: And a couple of things with the birth control pill, number one is that when you're on it for a long time, it can impact. Your body's nutrients and how you process nutrients that can impact your gut. I mean, there's so many things So I want to start with that because I mean there's so much to unpack but like I want to start with that what have you seen like that?

Michelle: The pill does to the body What are the things that it depletes? What are the things that you like to address? After a person's been on the birth control pill for so many years.

Kaely: Yeah, absolutely. So we don't have a ton of research on this yet. I think it's growing slowly. But what I've seen in practice and even experienced personally was a depletion and a lot of really important nutrients. So at the time that I came off birth control, I was working for a corporate wellness[00:04:00]company that did Micronutrient testing for their corporate clients, which was a little unusual for the time, but really cool.

Kaely: And so I'm like, I'm a dietician. I'm following all these food rules that I was running marathons. I thought I was gonna have this like beautiful report come back and it came back and I was deficient in more things than any of the clients that I had been helping. And it was a big aha moment for me to start digging into the influence of birth control on nutrients.

Kaely: And what I've continued to see over the last 10 years in practice is a big depletion in our B vitamins. So kind of the whole B complex, a lot of antioxidants are lower too. So we'll see things like vitamin E, vitamin C and selenium be lower post birth control. Magnesium and zinc are commonly lower post birth control.

Kaely: And when we think about the nutrients involved in ovulation, in fertility, in being able to carry a pregnancy, I mean, everything that I mentioned is part of that. It's part of energy production and protecting an egg and[00:05:00]follicle health.So those not only can contribute to a lot of the symptoms post birth control, but definitely have an impact on, on fertility post birth control too.

Michelle: Yeah. No doubt. And what about as far as gut health have you seen with a birth control pill?

Kaely: Yep. So we see a change in the microbiome with hormonal birth control use, and it's a shift away from gram positive to gram negative bacteria, which can influence the way that we recycle estrogen in the body. So it can contribute to that state of estrogen dominance. We see an increase in like the gap junction between cells in the gut or a common term for that would be leaky gut.

Kaely: So more likelihood to have systemic inflammation, more likelihood to have inappropriate reactions to food post birth control. And then another big area thatgets taxed while on birth control is the liver, gallbladder, and kind of greater biliary tree. You know, the liver is already an[00:06:00]extremely busy organ and it is having to work over time to process and filter the hormones coming in from birth control.

Kaely: And those hormones influence the contractility and the composition of the bile, so we see that whole biliary tree impacted by birth control too, which of course influences the way that we're able to get excess hormones out of the body, the way that we're able to absorb fats from our food and our fat soluble vitamins.

Kaely: So those would be the main areas. So nutrients, gut and then liver and gallbladder health.

Michelle: And what are some of the protocols? And I'm sure similar to my work. Every person is unique, so the protocols are gonna change depending on the person and the condition. There are symptoms as well and like just how their body reacts but typically if somebody's been on the birth control pill for a very long time what are some of the things that you suggest for them to do?

Kaely: Yes. So we'll start with food, right? Being in the nutrition space,[00:07:00]we always want to start there. And I always say that nutrient dense whole food diet is non-negotiable when we're talking about coming off of birth control and recovering from However long that season of life was so sticking with food and in the real form as often as we can.

Kaely: So good quality proteins, nice pigmented produce, healthy fats alot of just micronutrient rich foods to help accommodate for the deficiencies that came from the pill. So we would start with that, the foundation of the diet. We'd work on supporting the gut. So looking at the types of fibers in our diet, potentially leveraging some probiotics support.

Kaely: In my experience, spore based probiotics have been really helpful at trying to adjust the changes that happen post birth control. And then I love to bring in some liver gallbladder support too. So maybe we'll do things like castor oil packs or bitters or bring more bitter foods into the diet to help get that good bile flow going again.

Kaely: Those would be my kind of three areas to start with.[00:08:00]

Michelle: And, okay, so let's talk about spore based probiotics, because a lot of people listening might not realize the difference between the probiotics. And I, I personally love them as well. I think they're great. And just talk about the differences and why that would be more beneficial over the typical probiotics that you'll find.

Kaely: Sure. Yeah. So spore based probiotics are delivered almost identical to how we would find them in nature in the soil, which I think is a cool and important detail here. So they're going to be encapsulated inside that spore, which means they have protection from our digestive process. So they're a lot less likely to get broken down by stomach acid in the stomach and actually make it to their target site, which is the large intestines.

Kaely: One of the main complaints of your kind of run of the mill probiotics is that they're either not even viable, you know, at room temperature, or that once they'reingested into a body that is warm and has stomach acid and digestive enzymes, itgets broken down and denatured.[00:09:00]So the spore based probiotics, in my experience, have just been a lot more effective at actually changing the terrain of the large intestines and actually a lot better tolerated to what, which is what I've seen because they're making it to the large intestines and not the small intestines where they might contribute to some symptoms.

Michelle: Right. For sure. And for SIBO, that's like the big one because sometimes people with SIBO, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, don't really do well with the type of probiotics we used to use because they already have too much bacteria so that it can also exacerbate it.

Michelle: So. Yeah, I personally love spore base because it goes right to the targeted area and I've seen a lot of amazing results with my patients as well.

Kaely: Absolutely.

Michelle: And then another thing that you brought up, which I thought was really interesting is the bitter taste. So it's interesting because we do take a lot of supplements sometimes and those supplements are, have[00:10:00]certain bitters are supposed to be good for your liver. However, The taste of bitter is also part of the medicine, tasting it.

Kaely: Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, we've got those taste receptors all over our tongue and they're not there for no reason when they interact with bitter compounds in foods. They're actually stimulating our digestive juices and, you know, ancestrally speaking, bitter foods would have been a lot more common. I think the modern human palate has been refined to the most degree of comfort.

Kaely: So we've like stripped the bitter stuff out of our diet. We like cut the things out of our food that we don't want anymore. And so we're missing out on that interplay of bitter foods and how that actually really supports digestion and even blood sugar. So bringing in things like fennel seeds, like that's a really nice DIY bitter is just chewing on a couple of fennel seeds as we're preparing our meal, we could sip some diluted apple cider vinegar and water.

Kaely: We could have a splash of cranberry juice and some sparkling water, or we could even[00:11:00]just start to bring in more bitter foods into our day to day, like adding some arugula into our salad mix instead of just spinaches or lettuces. Bringing more citrus zest into things instead of just the fruit. So I think that bitter influencing or including more bitter compounds in our diet as a whole is great.

Kaely: And then we can also use bitter tinctures to actually interact with those taste receptors right before meals.

Michelle: Yeah, it's it's something that for sure we've like really veered from because we do like our certain tastes. And I think about like Indian restaurants, sometimes you'll find that they have a bunch of, well, they're coated in sweetness, but they have fennel seeds and they have a bunch of seeds for people to have.

Michelle: Like at the beginning of the restaurant, so you could take a little bit, putit in your hand or take it afterwards and it helps the digestive process, which Ayurveda is based on really using a lot of spices, to help digestion. And I think that's another[00:12:00]thing that we lost more modern times.

Kaely: Yep. Absolutely. We've just like restricted and restricted the acceptable range of flavors to very bland things and lost out on that.

Michelle: And also, I mean, another really important aspect is just all of the excess ingredients and fillers and You know, something that is really terrible for a microbiome, which is like thickeners that they use in a lot of processed foods. And it can really make a huge impact on your microbiome, which impacts how you absorb those nutrients.

Kaely: Absolutely. We have a lot of fake foods now in addition to losing out on the nutrient density of food. So we're hungrier than ever for nutrients, even though we're getting more and more processed foods.

Michelle: And I tend to see a lot of people with lower progesterone symptomssuch as like mid cycle[00:13:00]spotting or like a shorter luteal phase. What are some of the things that you've seen and what have you, how have you approached that? 

Kaely: Yeah, we see a ton of low progesterone in our practice. And actually something that I've said for a number of years now is that it feels like we have an epidemic of low progesterone. And that's because we only make progesterone if we ovulate. And we only ovulate if the body feels safe and has the raw materials that it needs to.

Kaely: And, I'd argue that, you know, the lifestyle of the modern woman isn't conducive for safety or nutrient availability either. So, a lot of the main symptoms that we see, like the ones you mentioned, you know, a short luteal phase symptomatic periods, and that's because progesterone helps balance out the effects of estrogen.

Kaely: So, without enough of it, we tend to have heavier, more painful, clottier periods. We see fertility issues because progesterone is necessary to carry a[00:14:00]pregnancy, so whether it's not conceiving at all or early miscarriages we see a lot of sleep and digestive symptoms in the luteal phase with lower progesterone.

Kaely: And then because there's such a close relationship between progesterone and the thyroid, we see a lot of hypothyroidism as well with low progesterone.

Michelle: And also people can in fact, ovulate, but still have low progesterone.

Kaely: Absolutely. Yep. And it's all in relation to how much estrogen, right? So we could have true low progesterone or just low progesterone relative to the amount of estrogen at that time.

Michelle: So if it's like estrogen dominance.

Kaely: Right.

Michelle: And did you have you ever noticed, see, this is actually something interesting. I had a guest on talking about the menstrual cycle and she talked about how the corpus luteum, which means yellow bodyis yellow because of the, betacarotene..[00:15:00]And so she said that sometimes she will give like a therapeutic dose of beta carotene.

Michelle: And I started using it in my practice and I have seen impacts. Now I wouldn't use it for everybody. I also kind of look at it as sort of a more young You know, yin and yang, it's more of like a heating, usually progesterone and kind of the second half of the menstrual cycle is more of a yang phase, which is like amore warm energetic phase of the cycle.Michelle:But if you look at also foods, and I've learned this with Ayurveda, some of the warming foods have warmer colors, which is kind of interesting in its own but what are your thoughts on that and have you worked with that in your practice?

Kaely: Yeah. Yeah. I, I definitely agree. And I think, you know, vitamin A or betacarotene is one piece of that puzzle, but there's so the corpus luteum is soantioxidant rich or an antioxidant meeting because of the[00:16:00]mitochondrialdemand on that area. So we see a lot of benefit from vitamin a, we see vitamin E being really helpful and then some antioxidants like selenium can be really helpful for that too.

Kaely: But yeah, I think if we look at warm foods highly pigmented foods, they tend to be really rich in those nutrients that we're targeting. So I think it makes a lot of sense from like an Ayurvedic perspective too.

Michelle: Yeah, and I just think about egg health. I mean, cause ultimately, you know, egg health, it's like the follicle itself. And then that impacts, you know, if you have good healthy eggs, that's going to impact the corpus luteum. I mean, it's like the follicle with the egg, but it's all one part, it's a whole. And so when you're addressing all of those things, it's going to impact.

Michelle: All of the different aspects, really, of the menstrual cycle. So as far as fertility goes, what are some of the common symptoms that you[00:17:00]see? The, like the most common symptoms that you'll see with the people that come into your practice.

Kaely: Yeah, so for most of our clients that are seeing us for fertility, we've got probably about half of them are on the like proactive side of things they want to start trying to conceive soon, or maybe they've just recently started and realize they wanted to do some like proactive conception planning and make sure that their nutrients

Kaely: And then the other half have been trying to conceive for some time, so maybe they have had no successful pregnancies or maybe they've had recurrent miscarriage. We also serve clients that have been through assisted reproductive technologies without success and want to explore things in the functional nutrition space. 

Kaely: So we kind of see the whole gamut between, you know, just preparing for that season of life and then those that have been in the trenches[00:18:00]of infertility and want to explore some other options.

Michelle: In our pre talk, you were talking about the downfalls of nutrition. What are some of the things that you see in general, like in society? That are impacting people's ability to truly, like, process and then get stronger from within.

Kaely: Yeah, I, this is one of the things that I get most soap boxy about because I just personally really relate to it having gone to conventional schooling for nutrition and just seeing firsthand really what's being taught there and, and see how it didn't play out favorably for my own hormones. But if we think about, you know, the women in childbearing years now grew up in like the eighties, nineties.

Kaely: 2000s. And there was a new diet being marketed to women, like every other day, something completely different each time we went through a season of like really low fat being the main focus, low fat, low calorie. Then we went through really low carb being the focus and cutting out, you know, even[00:19:00]things like fruits and some starchier vegetables.

Kaely: We've just been through a lot of extremes all the while having the message that thinnest is best. For women. So when we take it back to the foundation of fertility, like we've talked about already, this is safety in the body and abundant energy. You know, we can't support a new life. We can't even support the hormone production and ovulation without those things.

Kaely: So if we're consistently under eating either from just a caloric perspective or cutting out large amounts of macronutrients, whether it be carbs, proteins, or fats, you know, we can't expect fertility to happen. Unhinged at that point or uninhibited at that point, because we lack safety and nutrient availability.

Kaely: And then even just maintaining really unrealistic goals for body composition for women can be a big hindrance for fertility as well. You know, stored body fat is. safety net. So if we have really, really low body fat as females, which would[00:20:00]be the recommendation on your average grocery store tabloid we're going to run into some fertility issues too.

Kaely: So I just think between the diet culture and body image messaging that most women grew up with paired with the fact that almost no research in the nutrition space is done on women because we have the variables of hormones that make a laboratory setting, really difficult. We have, you know, half the population that is struggling to figure out how to eat in order to support their own physiology and that confusion and kind of applying what we're seeing other people doing or applying what men are doing has led to a lot of hormone infertility issues.

Michelle: No doubt. I see that with intermittent fasting, too, because it was mostly tested on men. And nobody really checked on women and what I've heard is that if you were to do that, because there are some benefits of fasting to not do it all the time, maybe to do a periodically to kind of like reset the system.

Michelle: But another thing too, is that I[00:21:00]see, you know, besides sometimes people being really underweight and not having the energy stores, but. Sometimes people have the energy stores, they become overweight, but they're not, it's not because they're eating a lot. It's just their body's not able to process that energy.

Michelle: And perhaps they're not getting the nutrients they need to get the energy to break down the energy, if that makes sense.

Kaely: Right. Absolutely. Yep. Yeah. That's that whole, you know, predicament of the modern human eating more food than ever, but being nutrient starved. You know, we're, we have access 24 seven access for the most part to really calorie dense foods, but they're not nutrient dense and we need both in order for that system to work well.

Michelle: Yeah. Because if you don't have both, then you're not able to even use the energy that you do have. It just doesn't, it doesn't process. It doesn't translate.

Kaely: Yep. And something that you mentioned with the intermittent fasting and just, you know, if we want to leverage the[00:22:00]benefits of fasting in women, you know, we do it in a, in a different way than we would with men. We would do things, you know, for shorter duration or for specific seasons. And I think that hits on a really big point for nutrition for women's health.

Kaely: And that's having to acknowledge that we're cyclical beings. And that it's okay that we need to change our approach to food, to exercise, to the way we're living our lives based on what's going on in our cycle. And I know this is something that you speak on often. It's one of my favorite things as well.

Kaely: You know, our culture thinks that we should feel the exact same way andshow up the exact same way every single day. But if you're a cycling female, I mean, you're going through four different seasons every single month and those have different demands.

Michelle: Absolutely. And so what have you seen? I know how I see it from kind of a little bit more of a Chinese medicine perspective, but I'd love to hear your takeon like the different seasons and because I just love this topic. It's so much fun.

Kaely: I love it too. And I think it's so liberating.[00:23:00]Yeah, it is. I remember feeling like so much relief when I realized that it's actually really normal that my motivation is not the same every single day. I remember feeling like I should show up as the same version of me all the time as a, as a business owner.

Kaely: And even in, you know, my relationships and that's not the case. So what we see in our clients or just a general overview of this, you know, the, the menstruation or period phase being winter leading into spring, which is the follicular phase and the building up of estrogen and then ovulation being summer, kind of like peak.

Kaely: And then coming into fall in the luteal phase and then back into winter and the hormone environment of each of those seasons influences the way that we metabolize our food and even the way that we keep blood sugar stable. So what we find to be most supportive from like a purely nutritional standpoint.

Kaely: Is that we actually do better with a little bit more carbohydrate in that follicular phase. So kind of[00:24:00]spring season leading into summer because estrogen keeps us insulin sensitive so we can handle more carbohydrates more efficiently. And that can support that increased like external energy output that comes with the spring and summer seasons or follicular inovulation.

Kaely: And then once we move into the fall season, so we start to have progesterone produced after ovulation, and progesterone actually helps us metabolize fats a little bit better, and then it stimulates our thyroid. So our metabolic rate and actually internal heat is highest in that second half of the cycle, but we're not quite as sensitive to insulin anymore.

Kaely: So we finda little bit less carbohydrate in that season, a little bit more fats for the satiety. And then we even find reducing the intensity and even volume of exercise in that second half being really important too, because our external energy output tends to be lower in the fall and coming into winter.

Kaely: And[00:25:00]then during the actual period, we see this so often in our clients, and I definitely live this personally, if we don't allow for a true winter. Like a true couple days of actually just resting and not putting our foot on the gas pedal and not forcing workouts, even if we don't feel well. If we skip that wintering, we see that impact the energy and output of the next cycle.

Kaely: So if we can really honor the winter, slow down, take care of ourselves,listen to ourselves, we feel so much better throughout the subsequent cycle.

Michelle: I just love that you just said that. It's so true and I, when I finally got to the point in my life where I honored it. For myself because I was I would work out throughout my period and and now I get to this place where I actually honor it and I don't and I give myself a couple of days where I'm just like allowing myself to rest and once you accept it because it's always habit.

Michelle: You know, you get[00:26:00]into habits and you almost have to change your your definition of what things are, because in your mind, it's like, I have to do things in order to be productive and that's my reality. And then when you start to realize, I can also listen to what that reality could be and listen to my body and what my body's telling me.

Michelle: And when you start to really honor that, it's a game changer. I mean, I'll say that it's a game changer.

Kaely: Yeah. Oh yeah, I totally agree, and when I finally started to honor thatmyself, it was like a huge lightbulb moment, and it just changed things for me, you know, personally and professionally, if I could actually fill my cup during that winter, things just played out so much better.

Michelle: Yeah. And I see it also just with how we eat, you know, and just like eating past our feeling full or not eating enough and just kind of holding out because we want to be thin and, you know, we, you discussed that before, but[00:27:00]it's just not listening to our body. Our body is so intelligent. Also, the mindfulness of eating is a big one. 

Michelle: It's just, if you chew your food more, just that alone can make such a difference on how you're able to process it and getting all those enzymes from your saliva. It's like the simple things. We have teeth. For a reason,

Kaely: Hmm. Yeah. And like eating away from some kind of other distraction, like the TV screen or your computer for work or scrolling emails or social media on your phone, it is, it's always the simple stuff. And I think at the end of the day, if we really want to feel amazing as women and support fertility, it's just getting back in touch with the amazing innate wisdom that the body has.

Kaely: And knowing that the entire, like, diet and like, body image culture isdesigned on you being disconnected from that. So, it's literally an act of rebellionto do it differently, and it's it's really how things will change[00:28:00]in the women's health space.

Michelle: It's the best kind of rebellion you can get into. And

Kaely: Yes.

Michelle: I'll tell you this, like another thing that is that the spleen and stomachthey, they have a very important role. I mean, they, they are the role for our digestive system in our body from a TCM traditional Chinese medicine perspective.

Michelle: And the spleen, one of the functions of it, or it's connected to a lot ofthinking. So when we think too much, and it's funny, cause when I was. studying this, the guy, our first teacher when we first started said, your spleen is going to get crazy, you know, and your digestive system is going to get impacted by all the memory and all of the studying that you have to do in this course.

Michelle: So just keep that in mind. You might need to start like working on it,taking extra herbs tosupport that. And. What you said was so important because when you're eating and you're watching TV or your mind's going somewhere else, then you're taking that energy, that mental energy[00:29:00]that could go towards your digestion somewhere else.

Michelle: So it's interesting that we say that, but it's even separate from traditional Chinese medicine. People say that or realize that, but this is a thing in Chinesemedicine. It really is like your mental energy gets taken away from your digestive system. And if your digestive systems off, it will impact your, your gut microbiome impacts.

Michelle: We know this through science, your brain activity and how you canthink and function. So I find it fascinating when. Modern daytimes, like the thingsthat we discover really do correlate and have a connection with what traditional Chinese medicine has been talking about for so many years. And Ayurvedic medicine as well.

Michelle: Pretty cool.Kaely:Yeah, that's really cool. Thank you for sharing that. I also, I'm just fascinated when you see the same themes in really different schools of thought. So that's really cool.

Michelle: Yeah. But it comes down to really listening to our[00:30:00]body because our bodies are so intelligent. I mean, it's before we were able to rely on any other person to tell us. You know, animals don't have that. They don't go to doctors if they're out in the wild, you know, they have, they have their instinct because their bodies have to tell you, like, it's a survival thing.

Michelle: Your body has to tell you, you have to have that communication. However, our minds can overpower a lot, like our thinking brain can overpower alot of that. So coming back to yourself and your senses and your connection with your intuition. And your own body awareness to let you know, I think even if you have that down, you can even figure out what you're sensitive to, like what kind of foods agree with you, don't and most people do, they don't just don't realize it or they don't listen.

Kaely: Yeah, completely agree with that. And it's something that we often work on kind of right in the beginning of serving a client is trying to get more in touch withthat[00:31:00]intuition and build that autonomy muscle, because it really does take some practice and agood Question that we like to ask, and if you're listening and curious where you fall on this, it's taking inventory of the, like, health decisions you make, and asking yourself how many of those decisions are coming from someone else's recommendation, or a list, or an idea of what you should do.

Kaely: And I know when I was kind of early on in my hormone health journey myself, I was thinking like, wow, I'm eating these foods that I actually don't feel great when I eat, but I'm eating them because someone else decided that they were healthy. Or I'm limiting my intake to X.

Michelle: My God. Yes.

Kaely: Yeah, you know, we're doing, we're outsourcing all of those decisions andignoring the fact that we actually don't feel well, or we actually aren't seeing theoutcomes that we want to see, but we're like, somebody else said this was healthyand what I should do, so I'm gonna do it.

Kaely: So I would just spend some time evaluating that. How many of thosedecisions come from someone outside of you, and are they in complete opposition with[00:32:00]how you're feeling, and where can we start to honor that? Because Like you said, you know, your body knows. It's so smart. It's so wise. And it has really great ways of communicating its needs.

Kaely: We've just got to get back into the practice of listening to that.Michelle:Yeah. No doubt. I mean, even spinach. I mean, there's certain things thatare great for some people, but for other people, they just don't do well with it. And they can, you know, totally ignore that cause they're like, no, but that's supposed to be really good for you. It's your vegetables. It really, it could be the best thing ever for person A and for person B it's like the worst thing ever.

Michelle: So it really depends on your, how your body's responsive to that specific food. Even bone broth, which I love, there are certain people that tend to have higher histamines when they take it. So it impacts them in a really adverse way. So it, it truly, truly depends because for some people, for many people, it's like liquid gold.

Michelle: I call it, it's really great for the[00:33:00]body. It has amino acids. It's really building and has good fats, healthy fats and great for your with collagen for your gut. But for some people, they just don't dowell with it.

Kaely: Yeah, we are all very unique in that sense and that's where kind of blanketed one size fits all nutrition gets us in a bad way because it plays out so different from person to person.

Michelle: Yeah, for sure. So well, this is great information. I really enjoy talking to you. I think nutrition is so key. It's really, really important for anybody who's trying to conceive. And for people who want to find you or would like to work with you, how can people find you?

Kaely: Yeah, so you can find me. I mostly on Instagram. So my handle is Kaley RD, so K-A-E-L-Y-R-D, and my website is the same. So you'll find information on our general philosophy and ways to work with us there. And then I believe I sent you[00:34:00]guys a link if I didn't already I will right after this call Michelle, but We've got a free six part email series on Pregnancy prep process and it outlines kind of key nutrients to be thinking about in that season some good books the typeof testing that would be helpful to do in the 6 to 12 months before conception time frame and They're just things that we've gathered over the years that can really helpPrepare someone mind body spirit for the conception journey and just a real proactive approach to that.

Kaely: That's totally free

Michelle: Awesome. Well, I appreciate that. Thank you so much for bringing thatto our audience. And I loved having this conversation, Kaylee. It's definitely a passion of mine and really is just so important. So thank you so much for coming on today.

Kaely: Thank you so much for having me. This was a blast.

EP 268 Four Ways to Harness Nature's Powers & Support Your Fertility Health

On today's episode, I'm going to talk about how you can access nature to help your fertility.Nature synchronizes with our bodies and nature is kind of like our mothership and when we follow nature, we allow it to synchronize our bodies.Harmonizing with nature is one of the core principles of Chinese medicine because we do talk about elements and then you can see the yin and yang really superimposed into every aspect of nature.

In this episode, I will cover:

-How to regulate your circadian rhythm through elements of nature.

-Ways nature can regulate your nervous system.-How to optimize any breathing exercise.

-Ways that nature’s elements can improve egg and sperm quality.

To check out my Top 10 Fertility Boosting Tips E-book, go to https://www.michelleoravitz.com/mytop10fertilityboostingtips

Click here to save your spot in the Winter Cohort of The Wholesome Fertility Transformation! https://www.michelleoravitz.com/Fertility-Transformation-Group-Coaching

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus

Before I get to today's podcast episode, I have an exciting announcement to make. Over the past few months, I've been working very hard to create a program that gives you the main things you've been asking for. Hands on support for me, access to my proven foundational framework, and community and accountability.

Most importantly, I've created this program to take you off the roller coaster of your fertility struggles and give you the tools to transform your fertility in just eight weeks.  I am honored to introduce you to The Wholesome Fertility Transformation.  A live eight week coaching program  designed to guide you through a proven, evidence based method of my signature program called The Wholesome Fertility Method. And that is the framework, but it will also provide hands on support with me to help you improve your chances of conceiving. So 

I'll be running this program only four times a year, and each cohort is aligned with seasons, winter, spring, summer, and fall.

Because each season only supports 10 people, it will have limited spots available. I will be putting a link on the episode notes that you can find it, and if you're interested, I would definitely do it as soon as possible because I am limiting the amount of people because I want to make it an intimate experience for all the participants so that I'm really able to help each individual.

This program not only includes coaching calls, but it also has an initial onboarding call with me, which is a one on one. So it definitely. is catered to customize your specific needs and your specific questions. And I'm so excited to announce this. It is the first time ever that I'm doing this and it is open for a limited time.

So if you are interested and you've been listening to this podcast , and you feel aligned with the things that I've been sharing, this will be that times a thousand so it really is my heart and soul poured into a program. It's also something where I will be there live with you to walk you through and help you to absolutely boost your chances of conceiving.

And I work very hard to make sure that everybody I work with gets the most benefits and gets the outcome they signed up for. So I look forward to seeing you there!

Click here to save your spot in the Winter Cohort of The Wholesome Fertility Transformation! https://www.michelleoravitz.com/Fertility-Transformation-Group-Coaching

Transcript:[00:00:00]Welcome to the Wholesome Fertility Podcast. On today's episode, I'mgoing to talk about how you can access nature to help your fertility. And yes, 100percent nature synchronizes with our bodies and nature is kind of like ourmothership. So when we follownature, we allow it to synchronize our bodies.

Then we are able to come back to our own nature and vitality. So to learn moreabout this, stay tuned. So if you've been following my podcast, you may haveheard me talk once or twice or maybe three or four or five times about how amazing nature is and really it is One of the core principles of Chinese medicine because we do talk about elements and then you can also see the yin and yang really super imposed into every aspect of nature and ultimately it[00:01:00]is because we are nature and this is why TCM traditional Chinese medicine has been around for thousands of years and doesn't seem to go out of style Because it bases its concepts and its methods on nature And understanding nature is really understanding ourselves When we understand ourselves and our own nature, thenwe're able to get to a place or access a point of healing where our bodies naturally love to thrive, which is when they are in their normal rhythms.Typically nowadays, especially in modern day times, we have a lot of things that take us out of nature, like artificial light. There's many, many things and factors that can throw us out of nature and out of sync with our own nature. And that typically takes us out of our natural ability to also heal ourselves, which is one ofthe reasons why Chinese medicine works so well when you're doing acupuncture and[00:02:00] you're also implementing balance in the body, then it's able to create self healing and regulate itself.And how you start to see that, of course, reflects in reproductive health. So reproductive health always, always reflects overall health. So Overall health is the foundation and there are certain ways that we can harness nature typically overtime when we have a lot of artificial means and artificial food and artificial light and artificial times, our own circadian rhythm gets thrown off over and over andover again, it becomes almost like an assault to the body.

And that eventually really takes us out of our natural rhythms. So I'm going to actually discuss four different ways you can synchronize or use nature and harnessit in order to improve your own reproductive health. And some of these actually instudies have been shown to impact reproductive health.And I'll talk about it and[00:03:00]sometimes indirectly. You know, by otherthings, other means, and I will discuss more in detail, so you will know what I'mtalking about. But I also am aware that some people listening to this right now maylive in New York City or in the city,and they're not really able to access some ofthe things that I am going to be talking about.So don't even worry because I have you covered. I have some other ways, thoughthey might seem artificial. But we can utilize artificial things to our benefit aswell,and I will explain. So all of this will start to make sense as I progress in thisepisode. It is very exciting to me because I remember growing up, my grandmotheralways talked to me a lot about natural medicine.She always talked to me about food,and she always talked to me about howimportant it is. To connect with nature and how, even when you're looking atsomething really beautiful, a scenery, it's[00:04:00]really healthy for your body.And I remember her saying that and it made sense to me,although I didn't reallyknow how to make sense or understand where.The logic came from specifically or how it worked, but it did make sense to mebecause when I would go on vacations or I would get to look outside, and saw abody of water, it did have animpact on how I felt and typically how you feel is areflection of how you're feeling. body feels and that is the way that the bodycommunicates with your mind to let you know if things are right or things need toget changed and it will motivate you andthat's why.A lot of imbalances eventually motivate people to make changes and that you canthank your incredible intelligent design and how your body knows to get yourattention. So let's begin with number[00:05:00]one. And number one. Is sunlight.Sunlight is so important in anchoring our own rhythms. It is how our bodyresponds to its own cycle. So you'll notice, and this is a great example, when you'removing to a different place that has different time, so you're moving from onerhythm. of time, onecycle of time, and your body starts to have its own internal clock.

And that internal clock typically will synchronize with your environment. That iswhy when you go to a different time zone where you're flying to a different place,you'll feel jet lagged and you'll start to have a lot of different symptoms and thosesymptoms are actually letting your body know something's off.And one of the ways that you can bypass that or get. more synchronized quicker[00:06:00]is by sunlight. So your body needs to recognize light in order to anchoryour circadian rhythm. And that circadian rhythm does impact your menstrualcycle. And in fact, Having shift work for certain women who have had to doovernight shiftsand when their circadian rhythm gets disrupted, it actually impacts their fertilityhealth as well. So it's actually been shown that people who do shift work or likeovernight shifts. it Does compromise fertility, unfortunately, there are certain waysaround it, and if you do have to do that, and I know that sometimes you can't reallyget away from it, it's important to at least get sunlight on days that you are not Inthat night shift time so that you are able to anchor back to that time or at leastdarken the room when you are sleeping so that it mimics nighttime.And there are certain ways around it, but ideally it would be[00:07:00]better tohave a normal daily consistent rhythm and consistent time because it does take alot of energy for the body to move back and forth and adjust.If you happen to be in aplace where you don't always get the sunlight early in themorning and You're in winter and it's hard to get sunlight and you're indoors andyou're working something that you can do or you're in New York city. This isalways something that I've given my clients in New York city.This is the advice I give them is you can order a light box and a light box isbasically something that mimics. The sunlight, and it helps with things likeseasonal affective disorder and it can actually work on your circadian rhythm. Soyou can have the light box, not look directly at it, but have it sitting on the side ofyour desk towards you, almost like it's a window and that can compensate for nothaving as much light.[00:08:00]Or being in winter, and I personally had seasonalaffective disorder when I was in New York, and I really respond a lot to the sun, sohaving that light box can really make all the difference, So it is an alternative.Another thing with the circadian rhythm is that there have been associations orlinkswith circadian rhythm disruption when your circadian rhythm is not functioning optimally and then there is a connection between that and menstrualcycle disorders or sometimes PCOS. Interestingly enough, when I had issues withmy period not coming on timeyears ago for like many years, during that time Imyself had issues. It's going to sleep early enough. Like I'd have a really hard timegoing to sleep and I'd always go to sleep really late and I'd always be exhausted inthe morning.

And if you left me tomy own devices, I would just sleep in[00:09:00]till two orthree, even on other days when I was in college and I did. All nighters. I mean, Iwould sleep till 6 PM, but that's obviously not always like it wasn't something thattypically happened, but myclock just did not know where I was and I wasdefinitely off with that.And it also impacted how I felt my emotions, depression. All of that. And it's soamazing how our own internal rhythm and clock can impact so many things. So it'skind of like if you have a clock, I always compare it to the second hand and theminute hand and the hour hand. If the second hand, which let's compare the secondhand to sunlight, a daily 24 hour cycle, if the second hand is thrown off.Then, yes, it's going to impact the minute hand and the hour hand, the hour hand.Let's compare that to like the 30 day cycle or like the 28 day cycle of[00:10:00]your period. So every aspect of our cycle matters and every aspect of our internalcycle impacts everything. And that will typically also impact.The time of day you poop, and there's certain times where that can become moreregulated as well, where you have it at a certain time of the day and your bodyknows, and your body does like that rhythm. And yes, it's important to have someelement of variety for sure, but there are certain things that you would benefit fromhaving as a regular pulse.So that is number one, sunlight. So important. And then also at night, taperingdown the artificial light and the device light and all of that,because that willconfuse your internal rhythm as well, because it's going to think that nighttime isactually daytime because it's getting that blue light. So that is really, reallyimportant.And then also[00:11:00]with sunlight, cause there's just somuch when you getsunlight, especially early in the morning, and if it's in a warm. Place or a climateyou want to do it early in the morning because it's a safer type of light It doesn'thave as much UV rays. So it's a little lower It's a little safer and that's the time where you're really able to absorb the nutrients as much as possible from thesunlight and that also induces cellular melatonin, so not only is it good for yourcircadian rhythm, but Cellular melatonin is different than the melatonin thathelpsyou to fall asleep at night It's a same melatonin, but it's used differently in the bodywhen it's in the cells, it acts as an antioxidant, which is incredible.

6where you're really able to absorb the nutrients as much as possible from thesunlight and that also induces cellular melatonin, so not only is it good for yourcircadian rhythm, but Cellular melatonin is different than the melatonin thathelpsyou to fall asleep at night It's a same melatonin, but it's used differently in the bodywhen it's in the cells, it acts as an antioxidant, which is incredible.It's incredible for your body. It's anti aging and think egg health, sperm health. It'sreally, really great for the body. You want that natural antioxidant. So it's veryregenerative and good for the body. So that's like another incredible aspect ofsunlight that can[00:12:00]help your fertility health. So number two.is nature walks. Walking in nature can calm your nervous system. A calm nervoussystem allows the body to heal. Think about how rejuvenative it is to get sleep.When your body is able to rest, it is able to repair itself. It's able to balancehormones and a calm nervous systemcan really impact hormones and the balanceof natural hormones.And you're also getting fresh oxygen, which is incredibly chi enriching. So she islife force vitality. When you're getting fresh oxygen, I always say the best time todo. Exercises or breathexercises and pranayama pranayama is another word forbreathing exercises or breath control from ancient India.It's part of the yogic tradition, and[00:13:00]there are tons of exercises that youcan do to really expand the capabilities of the lungs andto also be able to take inthat fresh oxygen, utilize it in the body and I always suggest if you are gonna dobreathing exercises, it's preferable to do them outside, whether it's warm or cold,however you can go outside and do that is really, really important. So that isdefinitely something that I highly recommend.Another great thing that happened on nature walks is you get to listen to the soundof leaves and you get to hear the sound of water, hopefully, because that's just. Sonice. And, sounds of birds. So the sounds of nature synchronize the body to a stateof calm, and it actually does impact. The mind when you are exposed to sounds ofnature, it, it is naturally calming and a lot[00:14:00]of meditative music uses thatuses sounds of nature and sounds of birds or sounds of water, and it has a verycalming effect on the mind and.I always say it's almost like a, when I listen to birds and I'm meditating outside, Ifeel like they're tuning my energy literally. And so one alternative to nature walks, if you are not able to go out and do that, you can listen to certain, you can find thison YouTube or, you know, Spotify or any like music.

App that you use and you can find meditative music or Pandora sometimes has thatand you can find music that has sounds of nature and listen to those sounds. So Ihad one patient that specifically really connected to. Water into the beach and shesaid just throughout her whole life She always felt really calm at the beach, but shehad a hard time meditating So I[00:15:00]suggested for her just find a YouTubevideo with the sounds of the ocean and just listen to that and And so she startedlistening to that and it actually impacted her.Because that was specifically something that triggered peace in her mind andbrought her back to positive memories, she was able to find that and that be thetool to get her almost like induce that state. It's almost like an anchor inhypnotherapy. We always find an anchor, sometimes an anchor. Is bringingyourself back to a state of mind or something that puts you in that state of mind orsomething that you can remember a time where you felt a certain way that'spositive and then using maybe a mudra, like a hand gesture, a specific one that youkeep doing over and over again.They call that an anchor. And then you would use that in a time of need once youreally like get that software in your mind. So[00:16:00]similar. To that is oursounds or any really like stimulus that brings you back to a certain state So usingthat that's something that calms you down or makes you feel good is a great way toget yourself quicker into a state of peace, especially in times that you need it.So the third way you can harness nature is earthing, and that's huge because therehave been a lot of positivestudies that show that earthing can, lower inflammation in the body, which is huge,huge, huge when it comes to reproductive health and really to overall health.Inflammation could be something that really, It takes a lot of energy in thebackground, and it also is something that can impact your gut health.It can impact so many systems. It can also impact your cells health, and thatimpacts your egg cells and even sperm. So it's important to lower inflammationwhen you're trying to conceive for men and[00:17:00]women. Earthing also helpswith your circadian rhythm. It helps with better sleep and calming your nervous system.

It is really an important aspect of healing What earthing is, in case you have neverheard of it before, and actually, if you want tolearn a little more, I would highlysuggest, and you can find this for free on YouTube, looking up the earthing movie,and you can find it for free online. Highly recommend it.It's a documentary, and it explains exactly how earthing works. And they haveshown in studies that wounds heal faster. It really gets the body's healing process tomove much faster and lowering inflammation. Like I said, it's just incredible. Andsome people even believe that you can get sick without earthing.So it's something that That is interesting because nowadays we only have likerubber soles that we're walking on, whereas back in the day they used to haveshoes that were not rubber, like if you[00:18:00]think about moccasins and thingslike that, where it conducted the energy from the earth and it also absorbs excessenergy in our bodies, but now we are so bombarded with excess energy Just fromdevices from, EMFs and there's just so much going on like the wifi and signals andradiation.So it's extra important that we earthand get some grounding. So an alternative, ifyou are in a city is you can get a grounding mat, you can actually purchase agrounding mat. And what that does is it actually, it goes into the grounding wire.It's basically like, the plug is only the grounding wire and it connects with that,which the grounding wire always goes into like that part of the outlet always goesdown into the earth and it's used forgrounding electricity. So it is, it's important for electric devices as well. And[00:19:00]we'reelectric, so it is important for us as well. One thing that I alwaysjust mention is. Just don't use it if it's, if there's lightning because, during that time,I don't, I don't know. It just, that is always something that would scare me becausethat is where it grounds the lightning.So that's the only time I would say be careful, but usually those devices when youget it online, they will have information and, a little instructional guide. Make sureif you do get a kit that it has a testing device. So they're usually, they'll come with alittle testing device that when you plug it into your outlet, it'll give you an orangelight.And that orange light shows that that outlet is okay. It gives it kind of the okay touse. So always make sure to get it with that. Sometimes I think they sell it withoutit. I think the earthing movie. Might have a company that's affiliated with that.

There is one that's a little bit better. Look at the reviews, check them[00:20:00]out, and then just make sure that it has like the full kit.Sometimes they'll even send a book with it about earthing, which is kind of cool.So I definitely suggest doing that. But again, there is definitely an alternative if youare in the city and you're not able to, to do that on actual earth.Keepin mind, too, if you are to go out in earth, you can pretty much use any areaon the earth, and that includes sand at the beach, anything that there's no barrierbetween your feet and the earth. So that can mean sand, it can mean dirt, it canmean grass,like anything that you are able to access the earth from.And number four, swimming in the ocean. So swimming, if you can Access theocean is incredible. First of all, you will get a lot of negative ions, which is very,very healing. It's just something that nature often gives off and is very healing forthe body. It can help your circadian rhythm as well. It calms your[00:21:00]nervous system.It's very cleansing. The salt water is incredibly cleansing and it's very calming forYour well being. So definitely something that I highly recommend. It kind of alsoimpacts you just by the view of the water and the sound and the smell. So it kind ofhas all of that which we talked about with the nature walks.So swimming in the ocean, having that salt water, thatpurification is incredible. Ifyou do not have access to that, what you can do is take a salt bath if you haveaccess to a bath. I actually do not. I wish I had a bath, but I don't. So, if you don'thave a bath, I actually recommend pink Himalayan salt. It's really purifying. It hasa lot of minerals, so you can use that. And if you don't have. a bath, then you canalso use it as a scrub. You could put it with oil and use it as a scrub.[00:22:00]Gogentle because it depends on how rough it's cut. But I also have seen bars ofHimalayan salt, which is really cool.So they have these bars and you basically use it almost like a bar soap. But again,be careful because sometimes the way it It dissolves. It starts to get a little bumpy.So you just want to makesure that you're smooth on your skin. Sometimes I wouldjust put a little bit of that salt on my hand and then use whatever's on my hand torub it on.Like if it's a kind of dissolved, like salt on my hand. Like if I would lick it, it wouldbe salty and Iwouldn't recommend that. Then you can use that and put it on your body and you'll feel it. It has like a different feel to it. So that is an alternative ifyou are not able to get to nature by yourself directly.

So those are my four suggestions on how youcan harness nature to help yourfertility and overall health. So I[00:23:00]hope you enjoyed this episode. If youare enjoying my episodes, please subscribe and review so other people can find itAnd you can always reach out to me on Instagram at the wholesome Lotus fertility.You can DM me. I get a lot of DMS from my listeners and I always, always love tohear from you guys. So thank you so much for tuning in today and have a beautiful day.

EP 267 | Five Things You Should Look Into If You’re Trying To Conceive

On today's episode, I'm going to talk about five things you should look into if you're experiencing fertility challenges. And some of these things may actually provide answers if you have been diagnosed with unexplained infertility. It’s important to note that this episode is not meant to give any medical advice and it is not meant to override what your healthcare provider has diagnosed you with or has advised you to do, but it is something that may help uncover a lot of questions that you have. So, staytuned.

In this episode I will go over:

-Common ways to uncover hidden reasons for unexplained infertility.

-Why your gut can be a key factorin your fertility health.

-What type of doctor you should choose to get baseline tests

Click here to save your spot in the Winter Cohort of The Wholesome Fertility Transformation! https://www.michelleoravitz.com/Fertility-Transformation-Group-Coaching

Pick up your free e-book mentioned in the podcast here:

https://www.michelleoravitz.com/making_the_clean_choice_for_fertility

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus

 Before I get to today's podcast episode, I have an exciting announcement to make. Over the past few months, I've been working very hard to create a program that gives you the main things you've been asking for. Hands on support for me, access to my proven foundational framework, and community and accountability.

Most importantly, I've created this program to take you off the roller coaster of your fertility struggles and give you the tools to transform your fertility in just eight weeks.  I am honored to introduce you to The Wholesome Fertility Transformation.  A live eight week coaching program  designed to guide you through a proven, evidence based method of my signature program called The Wholesome Fertility Method. And that is the framework, but it will also provide hands on support with me to help you improve your chances of conceiving. So 

I'll be running this program only four times a year, and each cohort is aligned with seasons, winter, spring, summer, and fall.

Because each season only supports 10 people, it will have limited spots available. I will be putting a link on the episode notes that you can find it, and if you're interested, I would definitely do it as soon as possible because I am limiting the amount of people because I want to make it an intimate experience for all the participants so that I'm really able to help each individual.

This program not only includes coaching calls, but it also has an initial onboarding call with me, which is a one on one. So it definitely. is catered to customize your specific needs and your specific questions. And I'm so excited to announce this. It is the first time ever that I'm doing this and it is open for a limited time.

So if you are interested and you've been listening to this podcast , and you feel aligned with the things that I've been sharing, this will be that times a thousand so it really is my heart and soul poured into a program. It's also something where I will be there live with you to walk you through and help you to absolutely boost your chances of conceiving.

And I work very hard to make sure that everybody I work with gets the most benefits and gets the outcome they signed up for. So I look forward to seeing you there!

Transcript:[00:00:00]

Welcome to the Wholesome Fertility Podcast. On today's episode, I'm going to talk about five things you should look into if you're experiencing fertility challenges. And some of these things may actually provide answers if you have been diagnosed with unexplained infertility. Now, this episode is not meant to giveany medical advice and it is not meant to override. What your healthcare provider has diagnosed you with or has advised you to do, but it is something that may help uncover a lot of questions that you have. So, stay tuned. So the following five things I'm going to be talking about are things that I think can help uncover, especially if you have been diagnosed with unexplained infertility.Number one, I'm going to talk about testing. So hopefully you guys have already been tested, but this is something that sometimes I do get patients and they're experiencing fertility challenges and to my surprise, they[00:01:00]haven't gotten baseline tests, which can really help a lot. Especially just to rule out anything major. So number one, I do suggest that everybody get baseline tests with their doctors.And most of the time. Either your OB will cover these tests, and a lot of times they do. A reproductive endocrinologist is a better choice just because they specialize in reproductive medicine. And the OBs usually do understand a little bit, but they're not as well versed as a reproductive endocrinologist.

And typically a reproductive endocrinologist will pay a little more attention to things like your thyroid and more anything really that has to do with fertility. So they are types of doctors that I recommend going to if you are experiencing fertility challenges, just because you're going to get a lot more of a[00:02:00]thorough workup.

And some of these baseline tests they usually do are day two, three of your period.And typically blood is drawn during that time. And they check for lots of different hormones, but that's where they find out your FSH and how high it is. And if that means that your ovaries aren't responding as well.

And then they also check typically a full thyroid panel.

So basically it's a bunch of different hormones that give a lot of insight to the doctor to figure out what's going on. And again, this is a baseline and typically this is really where a lot of doctors will start. Another thing that they will recommend, and it is a little bit more of a procedure, but it's not terrible.

It's not like they put you under, but an HSG to make sure that your tubes are clear.Again, it's a, bit of a procedure, it's not the most comfortable thing in the[00:03:00]world. But once it's over, typically, you should feel fine. And I do highly recommend doing that because You could look into everything and not figure out why things aren't working But then when you find out if your tubes are partially or fully blocked it's important for so many reasons because you need toknow if that's the reason why you're not conceiving and then it can also lead you into Looking into other things like was there pelvic inflammation, or you can also look into possibly endometriosis, like what could it be that's possibly blocking your tubes?

And that can kind of lead you into a whole host of other things, but things that are actually really important to look into. And also, if it's partially blocked, it can cause an increased chance of ectopic pregnancy, which is dangerous. And that's something that you really want to look into. So, those[00:04:00]are the reasons why I think it's really important to look into an HSG, because everything thatyou're doing, taking care of yourself, you can go to acupuncture, you could do lots of different natural ways of trying It's not going to make a difference if your tubes are blocked.

So that's something that's really important to look into. Typically they'll also do an ultrasound and that's where they'll look at like your number of follicles and how they're growing. If there are too many, which typically you'll see with PCOS andt hey call it polycystic ovary. And the cysts are actually lots of follicles that are growing, but they're not fully maturing and not fully ovulating.

So, that will also give you insight on which direction you should go into. And then also, let's not forget about the men, a semen analysis, and they also do ultrasounds, and they look into the sperm and how they're operating, if they're Shape is optimal, and that typically will be the morphology, the look at the number,[00:05:00]is it high enough to make a difference, and also the motility, how they move, and how much semen there is.

Sometimes they can be dehydrated and not have enough seminal fluid. So all those things are definitely important to look at and then with an ultrasound They'll look to make sure that all the parts are okay and like with women they'll look at like the tubes and men Sometimes they'll see that there's a varicose cell, which is basicallyAn enlarged vein that can cause issues with the sperm as well so it's important to really just get baselines for everybody and typically that will be covered with insurance and But that really, it depends on the office, it depends on the state, I don't know, like, or it depends on the type of insurance you have, but typically labs are covered by insurance and so that's number one.

You really want to rule out like the big stuff and that is with mainstream medicine[00:06:00] conventional medicine baseline testing you want to make sure that You just rule out like all the big things. So that's number one I think everybody should be doing this regardless if you end up wanting to get IVF or not I think a lot of people gethesitant about going to a fertility clinic because they think That that means they'regoingto do IVF. They may suggest IVF. You don't have to say yes or no you couldjust go and get the tests One thing that I can say is they will know what they'redoing as far as the testing goes So it is important to at least just gather informationand they will be better to go to them for information when it comes to fertilityThen your OB because your OB does a bunch of other things, but they're notspecifically specialized in fertility You want somebody who's specialized andreally understands what it meansand what the body's supposed to do And what isout of whack and what are things that are like red flags to pay attention to?So that's something that I definitely[00:07:00]suggest Number two, connected totesting, but functional testing, so that's a little bit different. It's a little bit more detailed, so for example, the Dutch test, that's something that I run. It stands for Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones, and it really is an amazing test. Ilove it. And all you have to do is really urinate at a certain time of the month, and that basically, they'll have you urinate at different times of the day so that they can see how your hormones fluctuate. That's really why this test is so superior is because Usually when you go and get tests, it's one snapshot at one time of the day and this test will take those snapshots throughout the day throughout to see like what is your waking cortisol and are you waking up enough?Do you possibly have signs of adrenal fatigue and sometimes[00:08:00] even though we're not diagnosing, sometimes you will see patterns that typically happen with low thyroid, but what that could do is it can alert. The person that you're working with or, you know, as a practitioner to go and get further tests done with your doctor. And also we can look into progesterone. So perhaps you might need progesterone.It also looks into how your estrogen is metabolizing in your body. And if you're estrogen dominant, if you have the right type of estrogen, your, your body's really processing it correctly. It also looks at your melatonin at night, which is really important. It's important for many different reasons, and it also looks into your DHEA and confirms if you're ovulating. So there's so many things that it does, and it even looks into certain nutrients that you have in your body. Like glutathione or B12.So, do you need to supplement with[00:09:00]more glutathione? It gives thepractitioner a little more detail and a little bit more guidance on how to treat youmore specifically.So, I highly recommend the Dutch test at least once. to really get a clear picture ofwhat's happening in your system. And then if it is imbalanced, I would definitelysuggest doing it again after a couple of months of implementing certain diet andsupplement regimens and lifestyle suggestions that your practitioner gives you.So that's definitely something that I would look into. So another thing that I highlysuggest from functional testing is food sensitivity tests. Because that's going tohelp you understand if there are certain foods that are irritating your system. If youare sensitive to foods that can cause inflammation, it basically is going to drainyour body because when your body is resistant to something and it's causing kindof like a hyper immunity,then it's going to drain the energy of your body.

And we don't[00:10:00]want that. That's number one. Number two, if you do endup getting more inflamed, then you're not going to be able to absorb nutrients correctly. You want your nutrient absorption. to be as efficient as possible because you want your energy, which happens from nutrient absorption. You want yourenergy to be as efficient as possible because conception takes a lot of energy.High energy is required for reproduction to occur. So that is definitely something that I would highly recommend and I think is very important. So related to that, I would definitely recommend, if you can, gut testing as well. And that you could doat home from a functional test for gut. And typically, you'll get a small sample ofthe stool. It's not as bad as it seems. You just take a little like sample of your poop.While you're wiping and then you send it you put it in a little vial and you[00:11:00]send it in and what that does is they check your microbiome, andtheycan also look at factors that contribute to inflammation in the body and I've workedwith people for months and then once we started to do, we've done a gut test.like months later, my patient decided she wanted to do it. Not everybody wants todo itbecause it is costly, but her choice to do it actually helped me as thepractitioner to see, to get more insight on shifting our supplements.And I'll be honest, that was huge. It was a key factor and it really did change a lotbecause she ended up getting pregnant. Like shortly after so it definitely helpedlower the inflammation. We got a little bit of a better Insight on what was going onin her gut and the guts really important when it comes to fertility health Somethingelse I recommend.This is another test which is often[00:12:00]ignored or Maybe not even ignoredpeople don't even know about it And that is vaginal microbiome testing. So,basically, it's a swab in the vagina and you basically send it in and it tests for themicrobiome of the vagina.Like, basically, if also not just the microbiome but alsothe acidity.And what they found is that there is a correlation, which is fascinating, withinflammation in the uterus. and an imbalanced vaginal microbiome. And there'salso a correlation betweenunexplained infertility and an imbalance of vaginalmicrobiome. And it's also linked with frequent miscarriages, and it's also linked with failed IVF transfers.So that is really, that was blew me away when I saw it. I remember going to Megasporobiotic, the company that makes it, it's[00:13:00] a probiotic that I highly recommend and the company that makes it, they're called Microbiome Labs, and I went one weekend and saw a bunch of speakers, one of which was Dr. JoleneBrighton, and she talked about this.She talked about the importance of vaginal microbiome, and I was floored becauseI couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe What it was connected to and all of thethings, I mean, just to think that women are going through months and months andmonths andmonths and not even realizing that this is the case or if they're trying toprepare their body for a transfer and not realizing that they need to protectthemselves and, and make sure that this is not an issue because they're spending somuch money.So that was fascinating. And another thing that I found fascinating was once Istarted learning more about this and implementing it. I had one patient who wasdoing her retrieval and transfer in Spain, and so she already did the[00:14:00]retrieval. She had eggs, and she was going to go for her transfer in Spain.In Spain, it is commonplace to check the vaginal microbiome, and they actuallyalways give vaginal suppositories, so that would be the solution if there is an issue,is vaginal suppositories that are probiotics. And that should start to regulate it. Soshe was getting ones from Spain. I was really fascinated.And interestingly enough, she ended up getting pregnant. So it was a successfultransfer, but I thought it was so fascinating that that is something that is so ignoredreally in the US. So that's something that I started. to a lot of my patients who arehaving unexplained infertility, frequent miscarriages or any kind of imbalance thatseems to point in that direction.So that's something that I definitely suggest looking into.And what these tests can do is provide more insight on what's going on, moreclarity,[00:15:00]really, to understand. So you're not guessing, and you're nottrying so many different things for so long, almost like a shot in the dark, withoutrealizing, like, really what's going on.And the difference with functional testing, I mean, the, I guess the con is thatthey're out of pocket. They're not really covered by insurance, but they're a lotmore sensitive to things that are often missed in conventional testing. So that Idefinitely recommend doing if you can. And then number three.

Look into your energy. So I touched on this a little bit on the functional testing about energy and how important it is to have energy when itcomes to conception.Conception is a very energy dependent process on your body and it needs a lot of fuel. A lot of fuel. And oftentimes, We are having energy leaks that we[00:16:00]don't even realize are goingon. And ask yourself, are you energy deficient? So, typically, if you feel especiallyafter eating, you feel really drained, there might be something that you need tolook into with your digestion.Or are you feeling drained at the end of the day? Are you getting enough sleep?Are you sleeping solid throughout the night? Or is it disrupted? It's not even aboutquantity, it's more about quality when it comes to sleep. Are there things orrelationships that are draining you emotionally? I'll be honest, emotions areincredibly taxing if there are like certain negative emotions that you're feeling orsadness or frustration with certain relationships and sometimes you might need toreally Make those boundaries firm so that you are not exposing yourself to thingsthat are very energy draining Especiallywhen you're going through this journey.So in this[00:17:00]journey, I always tell my patients my clients It's important toprotect yourself. It's important to protect your personal energy and You shouldn'thave to feel bad about it. So like if it meanslearning to say no, then that's what itmeans you have to learn to say no because ultimately, this is more important and ittakes priority over everything and sometimes that means you have to draw firmboundaries around yourself and you're around your spouse and just really protectyour own energy and not be around certain relationships or certain people orcertain things that can drain that energy.So, it's really important to look into your energy and I highly suggest Even startingto journal could be like a little energy journal prompt looking into what is drainingyou Are there certain things that you feel like you're putting up with and justwriting a[00:18:00]list and I remember doing that one time Because I had a coachthat was telling me to do thatLike what are the things that you are putting up with?I think that is such a great question What are things that you're putting up withbecause we all have things that we put up with and then just writing a list and then you can obviously Take out the ones that you can't not put up with. I mean, there's certain things that you just can't avoid. Okay. So that those are important things that you really can't escape, but then ask yourself, what are the things that you really don't need to be putting up with and how are ways that you can shut that down or close it off so that you won't have to put up with it?Because little by little, all that does is it really sheds light. on what it is in your life that's like sucking little bits of energy. So it could be little leaks. It doesn't have to be big. And I'll be honest, I'll give you one example, having a pile of clutter in the corner of your[00:19:00]room that you're like, you know, I'll get to this one day.living with that, every single time you see that clutter, it's going to leak a little bit of energy. So sometimes just taking that day out of your weekend and just saying, this is what I'm going to do. I'm going to actually take care of this list. I'm going to get rid of these things that have been hanging over my head.And that is a way to close an energy leak. Creating boundaries with people that drain you. That is another way. Setting boundaries at work, that's another way. I mean, there's little things. Expressing yourself for something that has not been expressed or you've been afraid to express.It might be uncomfortable, but that's another way that you can protect your energy.Because when you are holding onto something that you're not expressing and that needs to be said, That could be draining your energy. That's just like holding on to something that's like slowly brewing and sucking your energy.So forgiveness, that's another way of protecting your energy. Letting go ofsomething, letting go of[00:20:00]certain resentments. I know it's very simplisticand it's not something that's going to happen overnight in certain cases, but theseare things to just keep in mind because it's almost like a great example is likeiPhone.All the things that are running in the background. Make it less energy efficient. It'snot going to function as well So what are the things that are lying in the background of your life and they could be on all levels that are making you?Drained so those are things to keep in mind. Are you also over exercising and thenI'm going toactually go into eating because that Definitely can impact if you're overeating that is not energy efficient if you're under eating that is not Energy efficient.So that takes us into number four, which is, are you eating enough or are you overeating? Are you eating what is good for your body? Are you eating energy richfoods? Are you eating processed foods, which are pretty much dead food in a package?[00:21:00]And yes, there are some freeze dried foods that are not so bad and they are made from whole foods.from real grown foods and they don't have tons of ingredients that you can't pronounce. So those are not so bad. They're kind of like in the middle, but are you eating things with lots of processing? Basically food that has no life or are youeating whole foods things that are nourishing your body?Things that your body's compatible with because it could be something that's grown that your body just doesn't respond well to. And that kind of takes us back.See, this is kind of everything's connected. It takes us back to the functional testing, the food sensitivities. Are you eating things that are right with your body?And truthfully, you can figure that out without necessarily having to do a test.Sometimes just writing a journal of how you feel when you eat certain foods, oreven just paying attention. Like, you know what, whenever I eat dairy, I havediarrhea. Well, that can't be[00:22:00]good. So like things like that, like how doesmy body Feel.Do I get really bloated after I eat bread? I was bloated for years and years andyears and I ignored that. And eventually I quit gluten and my energy shot up. Sothat's another thing. So like, are you eating the right foods? Are you eating avariety of foods? So the gut microbiome loves, again, we're makinganotherconnection.The gut microbiome loves variety. Trying to, you know, eating different things, eating different fibers, different like really the rainbow when it comes to your vegetables and your fruits and having healthy fats, having seeds, nuts, you know, things that feel good to your body and give you energy and also not overstuffing yourself because then your body can't absorb correctly your food.Are you taking time to chew when you are eating? When you're taking time to chew, you're helping your digestive system. You're pretty[00:23:00]much preparing it so that it's almost like that sous chef. You're the sous chef for your body's kitchen. And when you're chewing it, and properly chewing it, you're preparing it so that it's able to cook well and transform into nutrients that yourbody can use.So doing that plus obviously the chewing, but as you're chewing longer, you're alsomixing in that amazing enzyme rich saliva. which is also helping your digestion. So those are things that are really important to do. Making sure that you have areally good proper diet that is nourishing for your body.And I'll be honest, the diet alone can make such a difference for fertility health.Just the diet alone.So, on to number five, and this is The last one, and it's a very important one, isyour home clean of toxic ingredients?[00:24:00]And I'm going to mentionsomething before I even go into this. Nobody's going to get it 100%. So don't try,because that can cause a whole other level of OCD that I've seen. However, it isimportant enough, and it really does make a difference, that It is important enoughto bring up.There are many ways that Endocrine disruptors can come into our life and one ofthem which I see a lot is plastics If you can avoid all plastics andnot just the onesthat say BPA free Really try to avoid all plastics that being said if I'm away AndI'm pretty because I know all of this stuff. It does make me a little OCD, I guess,but if I'm away and all I can have is a plastic bottle of water, I have a plastic bottleof water.It's not like you have to do things 100 percent all the time because you don't wantto stress yourself out. It can be. too overwhelming.[00:25:00]But if you can,instead, at home at least, you can get yourself a container, a bottle that is glass orstainless steel, and then you can look into like green pan or like more non toxic Ihonestly, sometimes I'll just, green pan I'll have if I want to do something that'snonstick for certain foods, but for the most part, I will have stainless steel.I just cook with stainless steel. Those are great. There's a little trick to not makingit stick. You can actually put the stainless steel. Pan on the fire or like the stovetopfor a little while. You let it get to a certain level. One of the ways you can test isyou could take a drop of water and put it in.If the drop of water creates a bead. You can wipe it off really quick, and then thatis a perfect temperature. Then you can put the oil, and you can put even a chicken,and it will not stick. So the trick with that, with making it non stick, is to[00:26:00]let it heat, kind of like a fun fact, let it heat to a certain point.I actually remember seeing that online. You could find information, you can evenGoogle on YouTube if you really want to see exactly how to do it. You Google or you search on YouTube how to make a stainless steel pan non stick. And so that is the simplest way to have clean products. Ceramics are good too, so you have to just be aware of that and then there are certain ones that have been tested with less, the ceramics as far as plates, not having lead because there have been tested products that have shown that they do.So those are things that you can look into. And then, ingredients for products.There's many ways. There's ewg. org. You know, there's certain ways that you can look it up so that it's not as overwhelming. There are definitely ingredients that can be endocrine disruptors[00:27:00]to make it simple so that it's not as overwhelming I actually created an e book so you could check that out I'm going to put it in the episode notes and it's called making the clean choice for fertility whereI really outline Everything there. It'll also direct you to websites and resources where you can look up certain ingredients to see or products themselves to see what their rating is. So that's going to help a lot as well. So just to simplify it without getting into the details of unpronounceable words. That could be really overwhelming. Just check out my ebook cause it's free. It's got all the information and I will cover pretty much like the big ingredients to avoid and what to look forand how to make it really simple and easy. And the truth is once you do that, once you start to just.Change the ingredients of your products, then it's just going to get easier because you're just[00:28:00]reordering and then you just stay on one specific pattern. So it's not as hard as it seems. It becomes second nature, I promise. So those are the five things that I highly recommend looking into if you're trying to conceive.I think everybody should look into it and that is why I created this episode. I do hope you enjoy this episode and if you have any questions for me, you can always feel free to find me on Instagram. I'm there every day. You can DM me and myInstagram handle is at the wholesome lotus fertility. So thank you so much for tuning in today.

Have a beautiful day.

EP 266 Unexpecting – The Honest and Raw Experiences of Repeated Pregnancy Loss & Infertility | Tara Lipinski

Tara Lipinski, internationally acclaimed figure skater was catapulted onto the world's
stage when she won the gold medal at the 1998 Nagano Olympics – earning her the distinction as the youngest individual Gold Medalist in the history of the Winter Games. As the official correspondent and commentator for the Olympics, Tara was the primetime analyst for figure skating at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing and hosted NBC’s coverage of the 2021 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in Tokyo. She has served as the host and commentator for many
NBC events such as the Kentucky Derby, the Superbowl, and the National Dog Show, as well as hosted Food Network’s Wedding Cake Championship. Released in January 2022, she produced a three-part docuseries for NBC’s streamer Peacock, entitled “Meddling: The Olympic Skating Scandal that Shocked the World.” Most recently she started a production company called May Fifth Productions with her husband, Director/Producer Todd Kapostasy.

Tara recently shared her own fertility journey struggles which you can hear about in her and her husband’s podcast “Unexpecting”. When I began listening to their podcast, I couldn’t stop! If you are on the fertility journey, you must give their podcast a listen!

Tara’s website: https://taralipinski.com

https://www.instagram.com/taralipinski

https://www.facebook.com/TaraLipinski

Unexpecting podcast: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwii__PW_fuCAxVokoQIHTeEA14QFnoECBUQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpodcasts.apple.com%2Fus%2Fpodcast%2Ftara-lipinski-unexpecting%2Fid1703350436&usg=AOvVaw0DrbzYpVRMqngykpkd_n85&opi=89978449

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

Transcript:

Michelle: [00:00:00] Welcome to the podcast, Tara.

Tara: Hi, so excited to be here.

Michelle: I'm so excited to have you here. First of all, I'm a little starstruck. I actually remember the time when you were against Michelle Kwan. And I was like, Oh my God, I remember that. It was incredible. So, and first of all ice skating is my favorite winter sport. So

Tara: Good. That's a good thing. I love it. That's

Michelle: sure.

Michelle: And. So I know that your story has so many ups and downs and I've been listening to the podcast and I almost don't even want to get too into detail because I don't want to ruin it if people are going to listen to the podcast. Cause I literally was hanging on the edge to listen to the next one.

Michelle: And the next one, it really was like cliffhangers.

Tara: I know.

Michelle: And at the same time It was it definitely captured the emotion. I remember specifically episode 10. I was like bawling listening to that it was really really emotional and touching and [00:01:00] knowing your background and That you're a figure skater and that you're an athlete and just really what goes into being an athlete In that kind of competition and like the personal development that you have to have and the strength and it seems like nothing prepares you for this.

Tara: Nothing does and I think that Being an athlete and growing up as an athlete You just have this mentality that the harder you work the more effort you put in Then you'll achieve your dream. You will get results. And that's just not the case with a medical diagnosis or infertility. And that was a really hard lesson for me to learn and to accept, because I'm such a type A controlling person, if I'm being honest, where I want to have control over things in my life, that it was the first time where I realized, this is so out of my, hands, this is something that I can't control, and I had to really try to learn patience and acceptance and Realize that you can't just will yourself to [00:02:00] have a baby or, you know, to, to fight this awful path that sometimes people are put on when you get an unexplained infertility diagnosis or even any type of fertility diagnosis, it still can be a day to day struggle of trying to find out what's wrong and that's It's really hard to live in that anxiety inducing space.

Tara: And that's, you mentioned it with the podcast of sort of these cliffhangers. Our journey in particular felt like I was solving a mystery every single cycle and it's, it's life altering when that becomes your world.

Michelle: 100%. And I remember you mentioning also, even though you went to like the best RE and she was amazing. I mean, she really was like looking into everything. She's really honest with you. Even though you did that, it still wasn't like, you couldn't figure out that you actually needed to talk to an immunologist.[00:03:00]

Tara: Right, and it's because, you know, I, I think what's interesting about infertility is there's a large community and you hear, there are so many people that are experiencing pregnancy loss or going through infertility, but in the grand scheme of things. There still is a population that just gets pregnant very easily and you can have multiple children very easily without problems or complications.

Tara: And IVF isn't an exact science. So, as amazing as it is, and it's incredible that we ha I wouldn't have my daughter without IVF. So, it's incredible that we have this, but it also isn't a guaranteed. Result when you go into IVF, it's not like you are guaranteed a baby and I think doctors are just trying their best to Find the problem and I think when people go into IVF The great thing is is usually within two retrievals or two transfers You have positive results, [00:04:00] and that is great that those are the statistics, but there is a community out there where, where my husband and I fell into, where that's not the case.

Tara: We went through six failed transfers, we had four miscarriages, we did eight retrievals. And there's a world where you can be the best doctor in, in the world and not know exactly why my body isn't keeping a pregnancy. And, you know, my doctor says it. She said, I have tested you more than any other of my patients.

Tara: And we couldn't find an answer until the reproductive immunology result came about. And we finally got a little bit more information.

Michelle: yeah, and I remember like listening to your stories I loved listening to you and your husband and I love the connection that you guys have together and how you can infuse humor and you know in a time that is so difficult and just listening to like the rawness and the realness of the whole situation and I can feel the frustration like I was like like what what is it, you [00:05:00] know, cuz I'm like Following as you're going,

Tara: Right. And we just hit so many different obstacles, too, where then all of a sudden, you know, I had a septum that was a residual septum and you think, oh my goodness, we found the answer. And then you lose another embryo and, you know, it's just, it really is a rollercoaster ride when you're, you're part of this world.

Tara: It's traumatizing.

Michelle: sure. And also, I mean, you know, everybody wants that positive pregnancy, but then when you go through that positive pregnancy and every single time you're waiting for that heartbeat and you're going through the PTSD over and over and over again. It was just, it's traumatizing for sure.

Tara: It really is traumatizing and I think especially, I mean, obviously any type of loss, any type of miscarriage, but when you start having repeat or recurrent miscarriage, it really is like reliving that first trauma over and over again and it feels like the worst, you know, nightmarish movie [00:06:00] of deja vu playing out in front of you and it's, it's really hard to know how to cope and I, you know, obviously I, I started therapy, but.

Tara: You know, it's just dealing with grief and loss, and that's a lot to take on while also still pursuing and going down the road of trying to build a family through it all. So I think people that don't experience pregnancy loss or infertility or any of these types of journeys or IVF, that you don't really realize what this world entails and how there are no guarantees and how there are so many failures and there's so much.

Tara: grief and loss associated with every kind of failure that people are really struggling in this world, you know, emotionally and mentally, let alone the physical feats they have to put their body through.

Michelle: And also the fact that you are having to perform during this time and be out in the public. And I mean, yeah, it's like one thing to be a public figure, but then all of a sudden to actually [00:07:00] express your journey with the public is a whole different level of courage.

Tara: Yeah, it's terrifying. I remember for the first time, I've always been so open, but the, the night before the podcast came out and we released that we, you know, We're going to talk about this journey. It was just, you know, I was so nervous. I was so anxious. I felt so unsettled to just be sharing this information.

Tara: Just because also it's, it's a subject that's not talked about enough. It's a subject that's still, there's still shame and, silence that surrounds infertility and pregnancy loss and miscarriage. So it was really hard to just put it all out there.

Michelle: And so what was the final reason? I mean, obviously you probably wanted to get the story out there because you knew it was going to help a lot of people. I know it was hard for you because you were talking about how when you were speaking about it, one of the days you came home and you cried, you really felt it.

Michelle: And you're like, that's weird. I thought I was like, I dealt with this. And all of a sudden all these emotions are coming up. And then also [00:08:00] did you feel on some level, it was also healing to, to speak about it? Yeah.

Tara: I mean, of course, I want to help people and connect people. But I think it was something that Todd and I went through together that was, you know, very traumatic. And of course, we had tried to process all the feelings as they were happening, but that's hard to do. And I think for us, it was really nice to sit down and do this together alone.

Tara: You know, there was no one else. You know part of this podcast but the two of us and to reflect back and to Really see it all laid out. And I think Todd said it in one episode where he just said, you know, you go through it and you're always getting to that next step. But when we started to plan out this podcast and write it down on cards, we really realized all that we had been through and it was healing for us to talk about it and I guess sort of even just honor our own journey and all the embryos we lost and, kind of come to terms with this was five years of our life. And at a certain point, another reason I wanted to do it was it just. It's [00:09:00] one thing to be like, oh, I went through IVF and had a loss and then had a baby and I don't really need to go into detail with the world about it, but this was such a huge, life changing, life altering thing that happened to us that I think it would have always felt very strange to just not share that part of my life and let people in on exactly what was happening.

Michelle: Yeah. And I'll be honest. I mean, it's, it's a big thing. It's not easy to do that at all. Like even, if it's just sharing, a lot of people don't even share it to their families

Tara: And that's fine. And I think that's another thing that I continue to say is like, protect your heart. And if you don't want to talk about it, you don't want to share, you don't have to. And there was a reason I didn't for five years because I really was not able to cope with sharing and continuing.

Tara: Treatment and trying to figure out my own emotions. It was way too overwhelming to share with people and I think that's okay as well

Michelle: 100%. And I think that you [00:10:00] really do have to be ready for anything. And I like that you mentioned that a lot in the podcast, you talked about if people don't feel comfortable with this, that is their journey and it has to be a personal thing. So I thought it was really important to mention.

Michelle: And one thing that actually struck me is the fact that you didn't get your period until 25, that was like, wow, like nobody said anything to you at that point.

Tara: no I brought that up because I just think it's it's it's an important topic of just women's reproductive health in general how So little we actually know and so little is being tested for us throughout our twenties or thirties when it comes to fertility or really the education there for us about fertility and, you know, making informed decisions about, you know, family building for me, getting my period so late, didn't have an impact on my journey and, and wasn't any part of the reason for IVF I didn't go into it because it was [00:11:00] just very long winded in the podcast, but I simultaneously were, I was having a ton of other symptoms and we found out that I had a pituitary disorder.

Tara: So we had to, I went on medication, thyroid medication and we sort of addressed that with other medications as well and it immediately brought on my cycle. But it goes to show that. You know, when it comes to women's health, something like that probably would have been found way sooner if people were actually concerned about why, you know, that wasn't happening for me.

Tara: And I think sometimes it's like, Oh, it's, it's okay. Or it could be because she's an athlete or Oh, it's, you know, periods are, cycles are, sort of, you know, they can be mysterious, but clearly there was a, an underlying problem and thank goodness we found that, because that could have affected my health in other ways, too.

Tara: You know, but I was diagnosed with secondary pituitary thyroid disease as well when we found this, which was obviously, [00:12:00] affecting my, hormones.

Michelle: One of the things too you mentioned is is going to the OB at first and then the OB is not having like the same information as the REs.

Michelle: That's a big thing because a lot of times people won't know. that there's a reproductive endocrinologist and sometimes they'll think, okay, I'm not, I don't need IVF, so I shouldn't go. But it's something I mentioned a lot is just really uncovering. They understand fertility it's a little more specialized.

Tara: Yes, I think to just in general, like I'm saying, whether it's women's reproductive health or fertility, it's so crazy that in 2023, we don't know so many things that would help us make, different informed decisions about our life. And I just think for, me, even just waiting until my late thirties to begin the process of family building is interesting for me to think about just because. I, I never even thought to do it sooner.

Michelle: And also, when you were taking us through your journey, it's interesting to kind of note that like, initially , you were, [00:13:00] looking into the surgery for the endometriosis, but then you're like, no, and you were reading about it. And. And you were like, definitely no, like a no on that.

Michelle: And then you eventually changed your mind and then you were like, thank God I did it. But what I, what was interesting about it is that that's kind of how life is. you change your mind, you look more into things. You realize that even though you make decision, it can change and that's okay.

Michelle: And so that was interesting. And then similar with having a surrogate.

Tara: Yes. I think for us at that point you know, that wasn't the first, journey that I ever expected that we'd be on towards, our daughter. But when you go through so much for five years, you get to a point where you stop worrying about the experience of, for me, at least I stopped worrying about the experience of pregnancy that I wanted so badly.

Tara: And I had already experience for pregnancies and sort of the charm of it all was taken away from me. And it would've been lovely if I could innocently go through a pregnancy [00:14:00] and, birth a child, but that just isn't my story and it finally got to the point where I realized I wanted to get to the next step of actually having a family instead of focusing on this nine month experience.

Michelle: Yeah, it's interesting how things play out but you did mention when you were going into the surrogate process That's like a whole other animal and you were also saying which is something that really struck me is you vibed with The surrogate.

Michelle: You just knew it was like an intuitive knowing or feeling like, Oh my God, this, this is it. You found alignment.

Tara: Yes, and I think for me, it was one of the best blessings that has come along in our journey. Not only just, you know, a surrogate in general, that we're so lucky to have surrogates who can, help families or people or women going through infertility or pregnancy loss, but to find someone who I really connected with.

Tara: And to find someone that we had [00:15:00] this communication, daily communication, and we had this, this feeling of being teammates was just super special. You

Michelle: Even though you had a surrogate, you still went through that initial fear. That was like the one feeling that you had and then eventually tapered down, like, once the tests came and everything was like looking

Tara: It really was in the beginning so hard because it was the ultimate test, right? We had these, these genetically normal embryos that weren't working in me and now we take that variable out of the mix and we have a surrogate and we kind of felt this pressure of if it doesn't work, which of course there's a chance it wouldn't, but it really felt like there was so much hanging on this actually working to prove that, you know, our embryos were able.

Tara: To produce a baby, finally, we kind of knew that it was probably the immunology [00:16:00] in my body, but now is the ultimate test and the anxiety just leading up to that was, was so overwhelming.

Michelle: I mean, I felt it, I felt it listening to you guys and I felt it following your story. You could, you could really feel it, but of course you can't feel it like you guys felt it. But I felt what it must've been like to go through that because that's all you've known in the past. So it's hard to see a different future when something like.

Michelle: Has repeatedly happened over and over and over again, so I can completely see how petrifying it could be.

Tara: Right. And it's just, you know, what do you do then? You know, we have tried and exhausted so many options. We were just getting to the point of,, I think it was just the sitting with the fear of like, Can this be a possibility for us? Because if this doesn't work, where do we go next?

Michelle: And then you were also simultaneously performing around that same time, which is the most like

Tara: Right. And,

Michelle: that you felt

Tara: right. And to be keeping that [00:17:00] a secret as well just felt and I think that's why we did the podcast because at a certain point it just felt like, all right, Tara, just, just share because it's so hard to keep the sadness and pain and put on a smile and pretend like life is okay. When it's really not.

Michelle: and you've had people approach you guys and mention or say certain comments during this journey. That you guys were having to deal with while you were going through this simultaneously.

Tara: Right, and you, you, I think anyone in the infertility world experiences these feelings or during pregnancy loss or again, just an IVF journey, whatever it may be, unless you really walk in those shoes, it's hard to explain the feelings that you have and then to know that. You know, your family or your friends may not truly understand the pain you're in can make it even more isolating or make you feel even more alone.[00:18:00]

Michelle: That's one of the reasons why I find like communities or people that really understand where you're coming from or going through it as well can be so healing and I noticed also you were mentioning that it brought you and your husband so close on a different type of bond

Tara: we did, and we went through, you know, hard times through infertility trying to understand where he was at, where I was at, you know, at one point, I think he was really rethinking how much he, he wanted to continue, whereas I was, you know, desperate to continue, and we had to figure out how to get on the same page a lot of times.

Tara: And I think infertility has helped us now, even as we move forward in life and marriage find ways to understand each other and know what each other really needs in that moment and to be able to support them because it's hard when you're going through loss or infertility to always be on the same page.

Tara: But I also think the podcast has helped us too, as we had to relive all of these moments in detail and [00:19:00] not skim over them kind of like we were doing in real life. To kind of go back in and even re examine them even more and I think that's brought us closer You know, we'd finish these episodes and feel Very close and bonded obviously through what we just talked about or what we went through

Michelle: I think that was just one of the amazing things about it because you don't often hear the couple, both. Talking about their different perspectives and really hearing what they went through throughout the process.

Michelle: And then you do feel at times where you guys have different emotions or dealing with it in different ways. So I thought that brought more realness to the whole.

Tara: Right. I'm so glad ty was able to be part of this and add his perspective because I think any partner in this situation has a lot of feelings if they're the one not going through the treatment and You know, they probably feel that they have to support their partner, but they're also feeling so many emotions and [00:20:00] they probably don't understand exactly what their partner is going through.

Tara: So I hope that the podcast was able to open up those conversations or if partners listen together to, to really relate or. To re examine or think about what that other person is going through to see how they can support them even more.

Michelle: No doubt. And for people listening that are still on the journey and they're still in the unknown what words would you like to share with them?

Tara: You know, I never really have an advice because I don't know if I have any perfect answers and I, every time I went through it I just tried to do the best I could. And my advice would be to feel all the feelings and none of your feelings that you're feeling are abnormal. And the thing I would like to say is.

Tara: More than anything, I, I see you, I hear you, I understand you. I may not know you, you may be a stranger, but we probably have a [00:21:00] shared experience that creates a bond more than, you know, many people I know in my life because we've gone and walked down this road, and I know what you're going through, and I know that type of pain, and you know, looking back at my career, the Olympics, of course, I'm proud of the things I have done, but I'm very proud of being able to get through pregnancy loss or IVF Or infertility.

Tara: And those are maybe my proudest moments. So I just hope that everyone listening knows how strong they are and how proud they should be because success of a live birth is you know, one dream that people have. But you are accomplishing so many little things, even through all of those failures and losses by just being able Yeah.

Tara: To get up the next day and start again, or maybe making the decision of, no, this is no longer for us. I've learned so much through this process, but I need to take care of myself in a different way.

Michelle: Yeah, that's beautiful. [00:22:00] And for people who want to find you, and of course, I'm sure a lot of people are already following you, but what is your, the best way for people to reach out to you? Cause you had mentioned DMs, right? Sometimes

Tara: Yes.

Michelle: going through,

Tara: Through the podcast, I've

Michelle: I know that must be overwhelming DMs, but

Tara: little overwhelming, but responding to so many DMs and connecting with all of these beautiful people, which has been so meaningful, but you can find us on Unexpecting Pod on Instagram or Tara Lipinski at Instagram, and then of course Unexpecting is on Apple, Spotify, anywhere you find your podcast, iHeart, as well as my YouTube, which is Tara Lipinski.

Michelle: awesome. Tara, thank you so much for coming on and sharing your story. And of course I. Suggest for everybody to listen to unexpecting. It is incredible. It's amazing. It's all the details. It's everything. It really is everything So I highly recommend. Oh, I loved I really enjoy it. I really did I really enjoy it and I couldn't stop listening to

Tara: Yeah, I love it.

Michelle: I want [00:23:00] to hear it happens. And I felt like, I really got to know you and your husband and the connection that you guys had together and it was just really special. So thank you so much for coming on the podcast and it was such a pleasure talking to you today.

Tara: Thank you so much.

EP 265 The Intricate Process Surrogacy and Who Can Benefit Most? | Perla Piekutowski

Perla Piekutowski has over 14 years of experience in the ART field, including operations, case management, and executive leadership. She is known for her first-class level of service to intended parents and surrogates

Perla and her husband also needed assistance growing their own family through IVF. Her journey to have her children has gifted Perla with more empathy and appreciation for intended parents. Between her professional and personal experiences, Perla serves everyone she meets with enthusiasm and compassion for their goals and understanding their trials.

Perla was born and raised in Peru, where she studied communications and public relations. Since then, Perla has compiled a unique and diverse body of experience that helps her understand a wide variety of cultural backgrounds and beliefs. She is bi-lingual in English and Spanish.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter):

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FairfaxSurrogacy

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fairfaxsurrogacy/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fairfax-surrogacy/mycompany/

X: https://twitter.com/FairfaxSurrogacy

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thesurrogacychannel

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 264 Timing, Alignment, and Life Missions of Spirit Babies! |Emily Greene

Emily Greene, known professionally as Emily the Medium, is a highly acclaimed psychic medium, who specializes in supporting families connect to the energies of their children, or their ‘spirit babies’, at all phases of their journey: whether they’re struggling with fertility challenges, in the preconception phase, or while they’re pregnant. In addition, Emily also supports families in raising their sensitive children, and helping them to acclimate to Earth, as well as helping individuals understand and master their innate intuitive abilities.

Website & Social media links:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilythemedium/

Website: https://www.emilythemedium.com/

Book: https://www.amazon.com/Cosmic-Bond-Communicating-Spirit-Preconception/dp/1738987124/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=&language=en_US&currency=CAD

Meditation: https://carefree-sound-99712.myflodesk.com/wmihi98uyw

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 263 What to Consider for a Fertile Gut and Mind | Dr. Kelsey Stang

Dr. Kelsey Stang is a naturopathic physician specializing in reproductive health + fertility. She runs a private practice in Portland, OR as well as an online fertility program, Fertile Future.

Her primary focus is in bridging the gaps in fertility care to not only include thorough medical work up and treatments targeting the root cause of imbalances but to also provide comprehensive support for women during their potent transformation into Motherhood.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

website: https://www.drkelseystang.com/

instagram: @drkelseystang

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 262 Aligning the Energetics of Your Fertility | Lindsay Goodwin

On today’s episode, I interview an amazing acupuncturist and graduate of my online fertility coaching program Lindsay Goodwin!

Lindsay Goodwin has over a decade of fertility and women's health expertise. She is a licensed and board-certified acupuncturist, Chinese Medicine herbalist, and certified fellow on ABORM: The Acupuncture & TCM Board for Reproductive Medicine. In addition, Lindsay is a certified soul-mastery coach, hypnotherapist, EFT practitioner, meditation instructor, intuitive medium, and spirit baby channel. Lindsay's approach combines scientific knowledge with spiritual energy healing, allowing her to provide highly effective treatments. She has successfully assisted numerous women with their fertility and hormonal issues, and many clients have credited her programs and healing style for completely transforming their lives.

Lindsay's mission is to integrate science and energy to support women and couples struggling with infertility, offering them the best possible results. She was inspired to pursue this integration after realizing that some of her patients on a fertility journey needed more support they were not receiving. By providing spiritual support alongside traditional evidence-based treatment methods, Lindsay witnessed quicker and more profound manifestations of miracles in her patients' lives.

One of Lindsay's most significant accomplishments is her ability to help even the most challenging cases, often leading to healthy pregnancies. In addition to supporting women on their fertility journey, Lindsay offers programs focused on intuitive development, gaining clarity from universal wisdom, and healing from past traumas using neuroscience and mindset techniques. Currently, Lindsay is working on two books: one about the energy of fertility manifesting and another about healing from past traumas and overcoming self-limiting beliefs.

Lindsay resides in Denver, Colorado, where she runs a local women's health natural medicine and acupuncture clinic. She also has a product line, Garnet Moon, which features organic skin and beauty care, all-natural healing products, and crystal healing stones.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

https://garnetmoonlove.com/

IG: @garnetmoon_love

FB: garnetmoonlove

Online fertility coaching program: https://www.michelleoravitz.com/thewholesomefertilitymethodcertification

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 261 Miscarriages, Birth Control, and Patient Centered Care|Dr. Byungyol “Bill” Chun

Dr. Bill Chun, who wants people to refer to him as “Bill”, is a board certified ob-gyn with 30+ years of experience and 200,000+ patient interactions.

One of the most sought after OB-GYNs in greater Boston, Dr. Chun is one of the top surgeons in the greater Boston area specializing in Gynecologic Robotic-Assisted Surgery

He is an advocate for women’s rights and a Korean-American immigrant who understands struggles minorities face.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

Billchunmd.com

Womenonlyorganics.com

Doc & doula on IG,FB and TT

Byungyol Chun MD on LI and Twitter

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 260 Our Journey Into the Quantum Field at a Joe Dispenza Retreat | Rosanne Austin & Michelle Oravitz

What happens when you get Rosanne Austin and Michelle Oravitz at a Dr. Joe Dispenza weeklong retreat? Lots of leaps into the quantum field, personal transformation, and insight on fertility! Join our conversation as we dish all the goods on our weeklong retreat where we met in person for the first time. Find out about our very crazy synchronicities! You won’t want to miss this!

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 259 What to Consider When Choosing a Prenatal | Joni Davis

Joni Hanson Davis is the female founder of Kirkland, Washington Femtech company Beli, modernizing reproductive, prenatal, and fertility health based on the latest nutritional science with one small, yet significant act of a daily prenatal vitamin for both men and women. After a long successful career leading Fortune 500 companies and technology startups to IPO, Davis founded Beli in 2018 with a personal mission to address the growing crisis of infertility and modernize the stagnant prenatal vitamin market. The fertility market is a $24B market, and yet prenatal vitamins still haven’t caught up with modern nutritional science. 50% of all infertility can be traced to male infertility and nutrition plays a major role in successful pregnancy outcomes and science led Beli to look deeper at how nutrition plays a vital role in sperm health, launching the first modern male prenatal in 2019. Today, thousands of men across the country are using Beli and the company has built a following of loyal customers including heavy-hitter celebrity customers. The success of the men’s prenatal vitamin led Beli to launch an exclusive women’s prenatal in 2021 based on the latest folate and choline research to address both male and female fertility nutrition together. Beli has grown organically to become a profitable company with a multi-million dollar run rate with a small investment from strategic angel investors in the direct to consumer space in less than two years. Beli will be raising a Series A round this summer to further accelerate its strong growth. Prior to Beli, Davis held executive positions with Microsoft, InfoSpace, and Tableau Software.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

https://belibaby.com

https://www.instagram.com/beli.baby/

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 258 This Could be the Missing Link to Unexplained Infertility | Kela Smith

Dr. Kela Smith is a Holistic-Integrative Fertility and Hormone Doctor. She holds a Ph.D. in Natural and Holistic Medicine from Quantum University and Double Board Certification as a Doctor of Natural Medicine (DNM) and Doctor of Humanitarian Medicine (DHM) from the Board of Natural Medicine Doctors and Practitioners and the Board of Integrative Doctors. Dr. Kela is also a Board-Certified Functional Nutritionist (BCFN) from Functional Nutrition Lab, a 5x Board-Certified Health Coach (BCHC) from Health Coach Institute, and board-certified through The American Association of Drugless Practitioners. She founded The Hormone Puzzle Society and the Fertility Coach University. 

The Hormone Puzzle Society is a health hub for fertility, hormones, and pregnancy. Through this platform, Dr. Kela and her team work with women/couples coaching them on how to optimize their body/mind/spirit so they can get and stay pregnant, bring home a healthy baby, have an easy postpartum, and eliminate symptoms of hormone imbalance.

Fertility Coach University is an accredited and certified institute of higher learning for anyone wanting to become a fertility coach.

With over 25 years of experience in integrative health, Dr. Kela has created seven online courses and published multiple books on fertility, hormones, pregnancy, and total body wellness. Some of her books include- The Complete Hormone Puzzle Cookbook, The Hormone Puzzle – Solving-Infertility Workbook, The Cycle Optimizing Scheduler, The Hormone Puzzle – Optimizing Pregnancy Guide and her newest cookbook will be out in late 2023. 

Dr. Kela also hosts The Hormone P.U.Z.Z.L.E Podcast, Solving-Infertility Summit, and Healthy Happy Pregnancy Summit.

You can learn more about her at www.coachkela.com.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

www.coachkela.com

https://www.instagram.com/kela_healthcoach

https://www.facebook.com/kelahealthcoach

https://coachkela.com/the-wholesome-fertiity/

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 257 Is Your Follicular Phase too Short?

Is your follicular phase too short? If so, how can that impact your chances of conceiving and what can you do about it?

In this episode, I will cover:

-       The different phases of the menstrual cycle

-       What factors can impact a short follicular phase

-       Why it matters for you to have an adequate length for your follicular phase

-       Things that you can do to improve it

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 256 Balancing Fertility with Homeopathy & Some Quantum Healing Talk | Cassie Everett

Cassie has practiced Homeopathy for the past 17 years and has specialize in fertility for the last 13 years.  She also lectures, provides practical courses and supervises students. Her client base extends worldwide. Cassie trained at the Centre for Homeopathic Education and is a Foresight Practitioner which is the charity that pioneered the concept of preconception care.

Website:

Instagram: @cassie.everett

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 255 An Underrated, Yet Powerful Ingredient that May Support the Heart-Uterus Connection | Nikki Bostwick

Nikki Bostwick is the Founder and Editor in Chief of THE FULLEST and host of THE FULLEST Podcast. She has always been passionate about providing wellness content that offers a perspective outside the mainstream narrative - one that is holistic, diverse, and inclusive. Since launching, Nikki has grown THE FULLEST to include a daily digital platform, a podcast, a botanical product line, and a wholesale business alongside her amazing team. Nikki has been in the wellness scene for 10+ years - after receiving a B.S. in Entrepreneurship, she studied plant-based foods at Matthew Kenney Culinary, is reiki and yoga certified, and has traveled with wellness pioneer, David Wolfe, to Peru and Iceland.

Founder and CEO of THE FULLEST

**Use coupon code TheWholesomeFertility to get 15% off any of the items on The Fullest website! https://thefullest.com/shop/?ref=108

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

@thefullestco and @nikkibostwick

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 254 Mindfulness, Self-Hypnosis, and Mental Health on the Fertility Journey | Amira Posner

Amira and her husband experienced secondary infertility. After several failed in uterine inseminations, Amira conceived her twins through IVF. It was her own personal experience with infertility that was the catalyst for healinginfertility.ca.

Amira Posner is a therapist with a private practice in Toronto, Ontario. Amira has both a Bachelor and Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Manitoba. She works with individuals and couples who are struggling with infertility. Amira developed and now facilitates the Mind-Body Fertility Group and co-facilitates the Online Mindfulness Fertility Series.

In addition to working with individuals, couples and families providing therapy in a secure and safe setting, Amira is a member of the Ontario Association of Social Workers (OASW) and Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW). Amira is a certified Hypnotherapist and Reiki practitioner.  Amira is also the mother of three miracles. She supports couples worldwide.

www.healinginfertility.ca

Instagram: @healinginfertility

You can find Amira’s first episode (#38) on The Wholesome Fertility Podcast.

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 253 Surrendering to the Big O & Why it Matters for Baby Making | Willow Brown

DR. WILLOW BROWN holds a doctorate in Chinese Medicine. She blends ancient Taoist philosophy with sexual and spiritual practices that ignite the soul's true calling. She is devoted to the sexual healing of humanity and works to promote and open receptive pleasure pathways in each person she works with.

As these pleasure pathways open, your cellular body begins to open with sensuality and love, and your body shifts somatically. Clearing away all previous pretenses about who you think you should be so that you may become who you are meant to be. According to modern neurological studies, being in peace, happiness, and bliss is better for a long and happy life than any diet fad, exercise regime, or supplement.

These avenues to health and vitality can augment the inner peace and happiness that you will arrive at when you work with Dr. Willow. She works with her clients and patients on every level, physical, spiritual, emotional, and psychological. You will not find a more holistic approach to a long, happy, healthy life.

www.drwillowbrown.com 
IG @Drwillowbrown 
TT @drwillowbrown

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 252 How One Woman Activated Her Innate Healing Power to Overcome the Odds of a Terminal Illness | Ania Volovique

Ania Volovique is a self-proclaimed queen of personal reinvention. A move across the world at the age of 10 led her on a lifelong search for a sense of belonging.  

Through many years of personal development, reinvention and looking within, Ania found what she was seeking….only it came in the form of brain cancer. 
Recognizing the undeniable link between the mind and body, Ania firmly believes in the accessibility of this power to everyone. That is precisely why she developed her life-changing program, appropriately named "REBIRTH", which serves as a catalyst for profound transformation. 

Ania Volovique is a Somatic Coach, Master NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming) and Mental and Emotional Release Practitioner.

  
But beyond these titles, Ania is deeply devoted to her own spiritual growth and using her experience and personal healing journey to guide women on their transformative paths of self-discovery - especially during significant transitions like birth, death and rebirth.

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

volovique.com

https://www.instagram.com/ania_volovique/

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com

The Wholesome Fertility facebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/

Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/

EP 251 How Fertility is Impacted by Creativity | Dr. Deanna Minich

Deanna Minich, MS, PhD, CNS, Certified Functional Medicine Practitioner (IFMCP), is a nutrition scientist, international lecturer, educator, and author, with over twenty years of experience in academia and in the food and dietary supplement industries, currently serving as Chief Science Officer at Symphony Natural Health. She has been active as a functional medicine clinician in clinical trials and in her own practice (Food & Spirit™). She is the author of six consumer books on wellness topics, four book chapters, and over fifty scientific publications. Her academic background is in nutrition science, including a Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Illinois at Chicago (1995) and a Doctorate (Ph.D.) in Medical Sciences from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands (1999). She has served on the Nutrition Advisory Board for The Institute of Functional Medicine and on the Board of Directors for the American Nutrition Association. Currently, she teaches for the Institute for Functional Medicine, University of Western States, Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and Institute for Brain Potential. Through her talks, workshops, groups, and in-person retreats, she helps people to practically and artfully transform their lives through nutrition and lifestyle. Visit her at: www.deannaminich.com

Website & Social media links (Facebook, instagram, twitter)

FB: https://www.facebook.com/deanna.minich/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/deannaminich/

EP 250 What Can Cause Hashimoto’s and Can it be Reversed? | Dr. Anshul Gupta

Dr. Anshul Gupta is a best-selling author, speaker, researcher, and the world expert in Hashimoto’s disease. He educates people worldwide on reversing Hashimoto’s disease. He is a Board-Certified Family Medicine Physician, with advanced certification in Functional Medicine, Peptide therapy, and also Fellowship trained in Integrative Medicine. He has worked at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic Department of Functional Medicine alongside Dr. Mark Hyman. He has helped thousands of patients to reverse their health issues by using the concepts of functional medicine.

https://www.anshulguptamd.com/
https://www.facebook.com/drguptafunctionalmedicine/
https://www.instagram.com/anshulguptamd/
https://www.youtube.com/c/AnshulGuptaMD

For more information about Michelle, visit www.michelleoravitz.com