Are you navigating infertility or have questions about how to know if you're infertile?

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Have you ever wondered how an instructor is trained?

Whole Mission: https://www.mmnfp.com/

Ever wondered if fatherhood & motherhood matter?

Have you ever wondered if you could get really specific about your hormones?

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How do you love your spouse during times of abstinence?

Do you want to have a healthier marriage? 

Are you wondering how you can incorporate intimacy into your marriage? 

Does sex feel more like a chore, but you want it to be more enjoyable? 

In this episode, Bridget sits down with Dr. Sarah Bartel, a moral theologian and mom of five, she and her husband of twenty years created the Cana Feast virtual marriage ministry to help bring the benefits of marriage retreats to more couples. She is passionate about helping women understand their bodies, specifically body literacy around reproductive health, and helping couples create healthy, holy marriages. Bridget and Sarah discuss what it looks like to cultivate a healthy marriage, why NFP is so helpful to women and couples, and why sex isn't the "dessert" of marriage, but an integral point of connection and intimacy together.

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Interviewee bio: 

Sarah Bartel helps married Catholics grow closer to God and closer to their beloved at CanaFeast.com. A moral theologian and mom of five, she and her husband of twenty years created the Cana Feast virtual marriage ministry to help bring the benefits of marriage retreats to more couples. She co-edited A Catechism of Marriage and Family Life for CUA Press. She hikes, reads Jane Austen, and has adventures with her family in the Seattle area. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook @canafeast and @drsarahbartel.

What's it like to live out Fertility Awareness (FA) in everyday life? 

How can Natural Family Planning (NFP) help your marriage? 

What can we do to broaden the conversation around FA/NFP? 

Bridget sits down with Cami Berthiaume, Digital Content Coordinator for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Fertility Awareness Advocate, to talk about what it's like to live out FA/NFP in everyday life. She shares more broadly about why FA/NFP is so valuable for women and how her own personal journey led her to become an advocate for holistic women's health. Cami also shares the realities of living out NFP in marriage and why couples need more support to thrive (not just survive) in this space.

Interviewee bio: 

Cami works as Digital Content Coordinator for the Archdiocese of St. Paul's Office of Communications, which encompasses her role as Producer for Practicing Catholic - a radio show collaboration between the Archdiocese and Relevant Radio 1330AM. Her love for authentic evangelization also led to the creation of her side business, Cookies by CJ: a custom cookie business catering to celebrations of the Sacraments, and all events in between! Cami married her high school sweetheart, Ryan, in the summer of 2019 and her love for women's health stems from her own deep dive into the world of NFP during their engagement. When she's not baking cookies, you can find her visiting new breweries around the Twin Cities, hosting game nights in her tiny apartment, and volunteering with the youth ministry and Confirmation programs at her parish (not simultaneously). You can follow Cami on Instagram @cj.berthiaume and @cookiesbycj1.

When should women learn about their cycles? 

How can we start these conversations sooner and make it age appropriate? 

Can cycle awareness help overall body positivity and health literacy? 

Bridget chats with Christina Valenzuela, Fertility & Cycle Educator and Founder of Pearl & Thistle, to discuss age appropriate ways to talk to young girls about body positivity, periods, and cycles and the program she's put together for parents & daughters to attend together: Cycle Prep. In this conversation, they explore age appropriate ways to address cycles and sex, barriers to changing the narrative, and ways we can make impact in women's health care by starting education at younger ages. This episode is particularly helpful for parents of young girls, but it's not limited to moms and dads. Women who are interested in learning about how they can make waves in this space will love this episode, too! 

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Interviewee bio: 

Christina is first and foremost a wife, and mother of four children ages 11 to 2. She is also a fertility and cycle educator, trained in the Boston Cross Check method of Natural Family Planning since 2013. Through her business, Pearl and Thistle, she equips Catholic families and parishes with resources to learn, appreciate, and support one another in reading the language of the body. Christina holds an undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Theology from the University of Notre Dame, and a master's degree in theology from Harvard Divinity School. She is also a life-professed member of the Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic. 

Are you wondering if it's possible to be at peace with your period?

Do you struggle with body positivity? 

Is it possible that a mindset shift could positively change your relationship with your body? 

Bridget sits down with Sarah Rooney, wife, mom, and entrepreneur with a passion for helping women and families, specifically around fertility and reproductive health. Sarah is a FertilityCare Practitioner with a particular passion for women's health, focusing specifically on mindset and self image. She believes that working on our mindset can greatly impact how we see our bodies, love our bodies, and, ultimately, see our periods as our greatest superpower. Sarah also has a Peaceful Period Challenge taking place in June 2021 that you don't want to miss! Link to sign-up below.

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Interviewee bio: 

Sarah Rooney is a wife, mother, and entrepreneur with a passion for helping women and families. With all of her own infertility and cycle issues, and her heart for authentic women's health, she has been helping hundreds of women and couples as a FertilityCare Practitioner and women’s health educator for over 10 years. Seeing how much our mindset and self image are key to our health and wholeness, Sarah has been also guiding women as a Woman School Strategist in their transformation to becoming who they are called to be, with the tools to live the best versions of themselves. You can find Sarah on Instagram @familywellnessinspired and on Clubhouse @sarahrooney.

Should you ramp up intimacy before marriage? 

Is lube okay to use? 

How do you combat purity culture when you've been raised with "sex is bad before marriage"... and now you're married and terrified? 

Emily Frase is BACK! Bridget and Emily sit down to have an honest conversation about sex, commonly asked questions about the wedding night, and confusion about intimacy (thanks, purity culture). This episode is geared specifically towards engaged couples and addresses questions specific to those who are engaged and nervous about having sex, what it looks like to actually practice NFP in marriage, and how the heck to learn about sex when Dr. Google can be a freaky place to search. 

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Interviewee bio: 

Emily Frase is a south Louisiana native living in northern Virginia with her husband and two toddlers. After receiving her bachelor's degree in architecture, she went on to work in the nonprofit world in DC for five years. She founded the blog totalwhine.com in 2018, where she shares her deep passion for living all aspects of the Catholic faith in a joyful and honest way, especially marriage, motherhood, NFP and fertility awareness. She is the co-founder and president of the nonprofit organization FAbM Base, a new fertility awareness database coming soon. She has been featured in FemCatholic, Theology of Home, Vigil Magazine, Letters to Women podcast, and The St. Philip Institute.