Every woman’s experience of pregnancy is different. And while the news that you are expecting is often a cause for celebration, it can also be fraught with difficult challenges. These issues can be especially painful when you have a medical team that is dismissive of your concerns and doesn’t take your input seriously. That was the experience of today’s guest, Kendra Alexander, whose first pregnancy resulted in a painful miscarriage. Her experiences and the lack of support she felt from her medical team during that dark period led her to found Bravely She Blooms Wellness, and today she helps women who have experienced miscarriage and are hoping to try again. In our conversation Kendra opens up about her first pregnancy, the lack of support she felt from her medical team, and the healing work she needed to undertake after her loss. She also shares what it meant for her to find a doctor she could trust and explains how discovering that she had PCOS provided her with the answers she needed to move forward. To learn more about Kendra’s journey and her deep desire to help other women going through these experiences, be sure to tune in today.
Key Points from This Episode:
• How Kendra learned she had a hormone imbalance and was at risk of infertility.
• The steps Kendra took to address her hormone imbalance and heal holistically from within.
• Kendra recounts the story of her pregnancy in June of 2020 and her painful miscarriage.
• TW: For those who wish to avoid Kendra’s account of her miscarriage, please skip audio between [12:24] and [18:19].
• Her deeply negative experiences within the medical system and how her concerns were repeatedly dismissed.
• The feeling of disconnect that Kendra experienced with her body after her miscarriage loss.
• Societal expectations of how women should behave and recover after miscarriage.
• The emotional healing work Kendra needed to go through after her loss.
• How Kendra found a new doctor she could trust.
• Kendra’s discovery that she had PCOS and why she was so relieved to have an answer.
• How PCOS greatly increases your chance of miscarriage.
• The affirming experiences that Kendra had with her doctor during her second pregnancy.
• Kendra’s desire to help other women and how she started Bravely She Blooms Wellness.
• Learn about Kendra’s journey to becoming a certified Integrative Nutritional Health Coach, Doula, and Christian Mental Health Coach.
• Suggested reading and resources on topics like PCOS, healing from loss, and preparing for pregnancy.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Bravely She Blooms on Instagram
Support after Miscarriage, Peace while TTC & Hormone Balance clarity Private Facebook Group
Awakening Fertility: The Essential Art of Preparing for Pregnancy by the Authors of the First Forty Days
Stick It to Me, Baby!: Inserting Spirit Into the Science of Infertility
The PCOS Diet Plan, Second Edit