As many women sadly know, fertility issues can leave you feeling helpless. Unlike other aspects of conventional medicine – fixing a broken arm, for example – trying to conceive can at times feel more like guesswork than a science. Compounding the medical problems that couples face are the psychological stresses and the feelings of isolation: why does every month of trying feel like such a lottery?
Is anyone else going through the same struggle that I am?
My Conception Struggles
My own natural health journey started back in 2016 when, after a year of trying unsuccessfully to conceive, I found that the mainstream medicine options I had available consisted of generic dietary guidelines, or the extreme solution of IVF, with very little in between. My husband and I threw everything we had at the problem, embracing all the doctor’s recommendations, including surgery, but we still were not able to conceive naturally.
Desperation set in, and we made the difficult decision to go down the IVF route – inevitably, the process took a big physical and emotional toll. I endured several weeks on high doses of artificial hormones designed to trick my body into producing a large number of eggs. Every unsuccessful cycle, where the embryo either didn’t ‘stick’, or where we didn’t even yield viable embryos, felt like costly failures. Sharing my journey with others showed me just how far fertility problems extend in our society, with many women speaking passionately about their own struggles of getting and staying pregnant.
Embarking on a Natural Health Journey
I’d had a basic understanding, like most people, of the need to eat right and exercise, but I quickly realized, after reading countless books, blogs, and magazines on natural health and fertility, that my knowledge was superficial and I needed a holistic wellness makeover. This led me to make more and more significant changes to a number of aspects of my life in an attempt to improve our chances of conceiving.
I focused in particular on four pillars: nutrition, rest, exercise, and emotional wellbeing. After I spent time really digging into the science behind these pillars and how proper care for the body and mind can bring significant health benefits, a bigger picture began to emerge.
Once I started down this path, suddenly I began to see warning signs everywhere around me – food, shampoos, toothpaste, cleaning products, lotions, perfumes – all had the potential to contain ingredients that add to our toxic load, which our bodies were never designed to process in such concentrations.
Over the next few months, I, therefore, went back to basics, eating a whole-food diet and cutting out anything which might be harmful to my body and, once finally pregnant through IVF, felt I had made changes that had given me the best chance of staying pregnant, and healthy long after giving birth.
My daughter Amelia was born in May 2017, and although I had achieved what I had set out to achieve, I learned a life-changing lesson and wanted to continue with my new healthy way of living.
How, then, could I balance these big steps forward that I’d made, but not compromise too much on my lifestyle and beauty regime?
In terms of food, supplements, exercise, household cleaners, personal care products, and even luxury perfume, there is now, thankfully, a wide range of choices out there that fit the need.
Your journey towards natural health may begin like mine did, at pre-conception or pregnancy. Maybe it is due to a health concern or simply as you learn more about the perils of highly toxic “conventional” products. Either way, seeking out nontoxic alternatives and embracing natural health has helped me and my family achieve a healthier lifestyle and inspired me to create a nontoxic perfume. I hope your journey will be as inspiring to you.
