Story Sanctuary

Following a traumatic birth during which Zora did not breath on her own for 14 minutes, Martin and his wife found themselves facing an unexpected NICU stay. On today’s episode, Martin shares his family’s journey to viable pregnancy, their birth story and memories from the 79 day inpatient stay with Zora. We also discuss the blessings he received along the way through his created community on Clubhouse and plugging into resources for NICU families.

After being diagnosed with PCOS in 2015, Diane and her husband embarked on an extensive fertility journey. On today’s episode, Diane details their journey, tracing through her diagnosis, IUI and IVF treatments and the two pregnancies that followed. She also shares the birth stories and NICU journeys of her two children—Alayo and Iyanu. After her story, Diane and I discuss comparisons robbing you of joy, dealing with the mental load of “waiting for the other shoe to drop” and finding purpose in the NICU.⁣

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𝘞𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨: 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘥𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘴⁣

It's February and love is in the air! Enjoy this guided meditation inspired by bell hook's book 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘈𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦. Focus: Self-love and actively introduce constructive life-affirming thought patterns into your life. ⁣

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𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤: 𝘙𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘰

After being told “We don’t see any issues. This is a typical pregnancy”, Kati was shocked to find out at birth that her daughter Haylee was born with a genetic difference. It wasn’t until she was about two months old that her family learned their little girl had central core disease. On today’s episode, Kati shares her pregnancy journeys, her 8 month NICU stay with Haylee and what being a complex medical mom has been like. We also discuss taking it one day at a time, being with your child 24/7 and never giving up.

At Ashley’s 20 week anatomy scan, the doctor noticed her daughter Delilah’s heart was significantly smaller on the left side than the right. This life-changing appointment launched her journey as a heart and g-tube mama and on today’s episode, Ashley shares her story following that initial diagnosis.

Ashley and I also discuss the benefits of art therapy, accepting your tube-fed child where they are and the joys of having medical mom friends who understand your path.

After a surprising 24 week scan, Nico welcomed her son Kylo one day short of 25 weeks weighing 1 lb 2.8 oz. On today’s episode, Nico shares her unexpected birth story and 6 month NICU journey. We also discuss the NICU forcing you to grow up, the beauty of starting fresh after the NICU and what inspired the creation of her brand Supreemie Baby.

Happy New Year, friends! Enjoy this guided meditation to start your new year. Focus: Celebrating the progress we’ve made thus far and embracing what we deserve in the year ahead.⁣

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𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰/𝘖𝘶𝘵𝘳𝘰 𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤: 𝘙𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘰

Welcome back to Story Sanctuary: A NICU Healing Space! On today’s episode, Erinn shares the story of her NICU journey after her son’s unexpected Treacher Collins diagnosis the day he was born. Following her story, Erinn and I discuss the journey to leaving the NICU as a trach parent, reconciling the child you thought you’d have vs. the one you actually have and the importance of mental health support for families.

After braving our extended NICU stay and enjoying time home as a family, Birdie’s latent liver issues became our new focus. On Story Sanctuary’s season finale, I trace our liver journey from mystery to miracle. I also discuss differences between our NICU and PICU stays and lessons learned along the way.

At 14 weeks pregnant, my husband and I found out our baby had an midline defect called an omphalocele. Our lives changed significantly that day, as we struggled to process the meaning of this information and what our charge as parents would be.

On today’s episode, I go from host to storyteller and trace our journey from that initial ultrasound through my pregnancy and into Birdie’s NICU stay and homecoming. I also explore mindfulness tools, the value of primary nurses and my lasting memory from this leg of our journey.