Ugly, Beautiful Infertility

May 24, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 2 Comments

This post was originally published on April 23, 2018 and republished on May 24, 2021.

Do you remember those public service announcements with the message “This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs”?

As I was planning out these past two posts for CWC for National Infertility Awareness Week I kept thinking, “This is your marriage. This is your marriage on infertility.”

Because infertility gives marriage a brand new meaning. One that most couples don’t anticipate ever having to deal with. It’s not part of the vision or dream of starting a family.

It’s never in the plans. Read more

Marriage & Infertility

May 17, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 2 Comments

This post was originally published on April 16, 2018 and republished on May 17, 2021.

Wildland Man and I’ve been struggling with infertility for a few years now. I suppose this journey we’re on authorizes me to speak to the toll infertility can take on a marriage.

Because infertility is definitely a couples’ thing. When you are trying for a family, it doesn’t matter if the infertility can be pinpointed to one individual or not, the process of being able to conceive and carry your own child is something you deal with together.

And let’s be real, this marriage thing, it’s tough.

It’s quite possibly one of the hardest things you’ll ever do in life. It’s a constant ebb and flow of putting another’s needs in front of your own, setting aside your own selfish desires over and over again. It’s serving one another, building each other up, and encouraging instead of discouraging. It’s choosing forgiveness in anger. It’s loving through the hard times.

And infertility, well, it can make all of that…just so much harder.

My Endo Action Plan {Part 4}

May 3, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 2 Comments

This post was originally published on April 9, 2018 and republished on May 3, 2021.

We’ve been talking endometriosis…a lot. Let’s recap, shall we?

In “Just a Girl with Killer Cramps,” I disclosed my recent diagnosis of stage IV endometriosis with you. I shared the symptoms I’ve experienced over the years and I discussed what endometriosis is and why it is so critical to spread awareness in order for more young women to get diagnosed sooner.

“Trying for Baby…with Endometriosis” uncovered some of the deeper emotional scars endometriosis has created for me, especially as Wildland Man and I are so desperately praying for, hoping for, and trying for a baby.

And, finally, the last few weeks have focused on My Endo Action Plan. We talked nutrition. Specifically, real, whole, and anti-inflammatory foods that show promise in being able to heal endometriosis naturally. And we’ve talked fitness, faith, and marriage. We’ve covered the full spectrum of what it means to shift into a healing lifestyle.

In this final post of the Endo Awareness Series on Country Wife Chronicles I’m sharing with you the last of my ideas when it comes to My Endo Action Plan.

Let’s wrap things up, ok? Read more

My Endo Action Plan {Part 3}

April 26, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 2 Comments

This post was originally published on April 2, 2018 and republished on April 26, 2021.

Endometriosis Awareness Month may be over, but I’m just getting started with My Endo Action Plan!

Over the last two weeks here at CWC we’ve been talking nutrition and it’s impact on healing endometriosis naturally.

Today, we’re tackling some other aspects of My Endo Action Plan…because there is a whole lot more to healing than just nutrition.

My Endo Action Plan {Part 2}

April 19, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

This post was originally published on March 26, 2018 and republished on April 19, 2021.

This week we are continuing with My Endo Action Plan. Last week I shared with you some of the resources that have helped me in developing my own personal action plan to fight endometriosis and find healing.

This week we are going to take a closer look at how those nutritional changes look in real life.

My Endo Action Plan {Part 1}

April 12, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 4 Comments

This post was originally published on March 19, 2018 and republished on April 12, 2021.

Last week was pretty raw, I know.

My hope is that someone out there can relate to my honesty and no longer feel alone. Or that someone else now has a better understanding of what a loved one may endure if they are struggling with endometriosis and/or infertility.

“Trying for Baby…with Endometriosis” was a candid look at where I am in real life at the moment. And sometimes I just need to experience the lows with the highs. I work through the downer moments the best I can, and yeah, sometimes I may wallow a bit longer than I should.

But, in the end, I remind myself of where my hope lies. I say a prayer for the good Lord to pull me through. And I pick myself up off the floor and figure out my next move.

You know by now that I’m a planner, a lister, a doer. I like to have a game plan in front of me with a goal to work toward. So, after working through the emotional side of coming to terms with my endometriosis diagnosis and the struggles I’m now facing with natural conception as a result of endometriosis, I am ready to get an action plan in place.

From Endo to (In)Fertility

April 5, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

Country Wife Chronicles is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

I am a blogger, a mama, and a wife, and my goal is to help other women feel empowered and supported in their fertility journeys. Because I have walked my own road with infertility…for six long years.

I have felt hopeless, isolated, and defeated.

But then I decided to take action. To take charge of my own fertility story. I did everything I could to support myself physically and emotionally. I researched all the information regarding fertility. I spent months educating myself and then implementing huge lifestyle shifts in the name of Intentional Fertility.

Trying for Baby…with Endometriosis

March 29, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 6 Comments

This post was originally published on March 12, 2018 and updated on March 29, 2021.

I found out I had endometriosis when my husband and I began trying for a baby.

I wish I could have been diagnosed sooner.

The attempted baby making has come to a screeching halt in light of this diagnosis. Partly because with stage IV endometriosis I’m at a much higher risk for an ectopic pregnancy, partly because as this post gets published I’m in recovery mode from surgery #2, and finally because we’ve decided to prioritize improving my health and healing from endometriosis over adding a baby to the mix for the moment.

Just a Girl with Killer Cramps

March 22, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife 8 Comments

This post was originally published on March 5, 2018 and updated on March 22, 2021.

Ok, friends, we are going to get real personal real fast today.

Growing up, well, I was a bit of a late bloomer. And when that day came, that day that my friends had already experienced, that day that claims your childhood and makes you a young woman, that day when you experience your first menstrual cycle…well, it was like mother nature was making up for lost time.

Because my periods, they came with a vengeance. I remember thinking, “Why me? Why are my periods so awful and my friends don’t even seem to mind theirs?”

My periods were HEAVY. And they were PAINFUL.

A couple days before my flow would start I would experience intense lower back pain, sometimes with pain shooting down my legs.

And the cramps. Well…they were KILLER.

Endometriosis Awareness Month: Painful Periods & Infertility

March 15, 2021September 14, 2021 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

If you’ve been following along with Country Wife Chronicles for any time now, then you know that endometriosis is a part of my story, a part of my infertility valley. March is Endometriosis Awareness Month, and so in honor of spreading awareness, I wanted to take a minute to round up previous endometriosis-related posts here on the blog. Today’s post will be a full round-up of all the posts I have written pertaining to endometriosis. And you will see some of these same posts over the next few weeks as well.