Why I'm Branching Away From Fertility and How I Can Still Help You

Nov 1, 2022

Today, Katy makes some reflections on the podcast and her current practice, and discusses how widening out her focus to Women's Health can better serve YOU. During the episode she reveals her brand new comprehensive fertility service, which is designed to be a one-stop shop for fertility support, supporting you to reach your goal sooner than ever.

00:00

Hello, I am Katie Bradbury, a registered nurse, and nutritional therapist. Today's podcast episode is called, why I'm branching away from fertility, and how I can still help you.

 

00:27

So hello, hello. Welcome to today's episode, I'm really happy to be back for the second week on the trot after having a bit of an extensive period where I was getting quite sporadic with my podcast episodes, and what I wanted to do today, as I alluded to last week is just to come and chat to you, I guess a bit of a behind the scenes chat to just fill you in. Because I know that I've got a number of listeners who are really regular listeners to the show and who really enjoy it. I've had quite a few people get in touch to kind of ask about the absence of episodes when things had slowed down a bit. And I think what I realised is that part of the reason that I hadn't been coming to record the podcast every week is because I was just I don't know, I was finding that there was a resistance there. And usually, when we find some resistance in our lives, it's really worth actually sitting down with that and exploring it a little bit and hadn't had the chance to do that I was just it was just coming under the kind of the excuse, I guess of like, Oh, I've just been really busy. As you know, the summer has been really busy. But then, of course, the summer came and went and I was still putting off doing the podcast whereas actually, it used to be something that really lit me up. It used to be something that I used to really look forward to coming and doing. And I do, I enjoy coming into the studio at the bottom of the garden and making myself a cup of tea and coming and chat chatting to all of you, I really do. And so I was a bit puzzled as to why I was putting things off. And so this is what I'm here to talk to you about today. And I'm going to spend the episode just having a little chat through where I'm at at the moment. So it's a bit of a self-indulgent episode but hopefully, I'll just help you to make sense of things for where I'm at just now. And what it's made me realise is that I need to switch up the way of doing things a little bit. So what I've come to tell you today is just a little bit more info on where I'm going to be going next in terms of the services that I'm offering to you. So don't feel disheartened. Please, please listen on, I'm not saying that I'm packing in my fertility work at all. Very, very different to that. In fact, I'm figuring out a way to make it more comprehensive than it's ever been. But do stick around and listen to the episode I hope that you can join me today in whatever you're doing whether you're out for a walk or cooking or you know walking the dog or doing some chores or in the car or on your commute. Just settle in and have a little listen because I realised actually that I'm coming up to my two-year anniversary of when I set up my limited company Katie Bradbury Health. And although I was practising before that the birth of Katie Bradbury Health was really when I started to put my energy into supporting people in my private practice as opposed to anything else. So um, so that's kind of what my main focus has been for the last two years now.

 

04:26

My when back then in November 2020. My own fertility journey was still so raw, then actually and I'd, I'd not long had had my second child who I'm, you know, extremely blessed to have had. So she was born in June 2020. And then in November so when I set up as Katy Bradbury Health as I say my own fertility was just really still quite raw in. And for anyone who doesn't know about my own fertility journey that there is a previous episode, I can't remember what number it is off the top of my head, but I'll link to it in the show notes. So if anyone just want to go back and listen to my story, who doesn't already know it do, do go back and listen to that, because I go into the backstory a bit there. So if you're interested, you can do that.

 

05:33

But I so really still quite raw from my own fertility journey. And what I was determined to do then was help as many people as I could. And so I was at the end of embarking in a year-long programme that specialised or that taught me exclusively about fertility nutrition. So it was really so I was already you know, a nurse, I was already a nutritional therapist, I already specialised in women's health, I'd already got, you know, eight years of clinical experience by then, but this additional year's training was solely on fertility, male and female side, you know, fertility is a is an all-encompassing topic and looking at the underlying causes. And I was really determined, to specialise in fertility and to help as many people as I could, what I didn't realise two years on, is that I would end up holding the space for quite as many people, as I do, and that's an amazing thing, right? You know, I'm, I'm doing what I set out to do, which is helping as many people as I could. But what's happened recently is I've been feeling a little bit depleted. And I think that part of it seasonal, you know, of course, I think as we move away from the summer, that it's natural at this time of year, isn't it for your energy to shift. But part of it is because and this is, this might sound a little bit dramatic, but, hopefully, you can understand and, I will explain a bit further. But part of it is because for every person that I speak to who is struggling with their fertility, and whether that's, you know, an intensive one-to-one client, whether it's people who are in my membership, and that I support as a group, whether it's people in my Facebook group, whether it's people that reach out to me on the DM'S and Instagram, whether it's people who I speak to in this podcast, whether it's people who I indirectly work with, through a company in the states who I do some clinical mentorship for, it's, you know, there's a lot of people out there, and for each of those, and this is I don't mean for this to sound dramatic, but this is just the impact in me. But for a little, for each of those people, a little piece of me goes with them. And it's because it's a topic that I care so much about. It's very, very difficult to be really boundaries and to just leave that behind at the door, right? And so, what happened recently a couple of weeks ago, is I was at a bit of a crescendo, I guess, with quite a few people, you know, these journeys, of course, they ebb and flow, right? And so, sometimes you're up sometimes you're down. And the thing is, it's such a long journey, in a lot of cases, because lots of the people who come to me have actually got some really complex stuff going on. And it's not instantaneous, you know, it takes, can take time. And so the journey can last quite a long time. And then even when, you know, if a pregnancy does occur, it's not always all sunshine and roses, it's then Oh, hang on, we need to wait at least three months now before we can actually relax and then even then it can feel worrisome. So as I say, it's difficult to kind of be boundaries and leave that behind. And whilst I have got a lot better with my boundaries, in terms of I don't know, you know, being very clear in the way that I respond to people. It doesn't, you can't just leave, leave the emotional aspect of that out and so what happened a few weeks ago, is a few, I had a few people in my world who had you know, were coming to a bit of a kind of a crescendo whether that's, you know, they had IVF going on, or they've been pregnant, you know, they got pregnant, but that had a history of miscarriage and you know, there were quite a few people that I was talking to and it was quite intense and I was quite anxious for all of these people and I started in one of my journaling practices, I started writing out a prayer. And I started writing out a prayer for and it started just fit for each of these, I think there were about five people who one of them is a close friend.

 

10:16

And, you know, it's, it's I, as I said, one of them was like, in and out of hospital whos a client. And so I started writing about this prayer. And in this prayer, I, you know, I was asking for each of these people to get what they say, wanted, I was asking that, you know, that these, these IVF cycles would be successful, or that they, these pregnancies would work out. And I wrote, I wrote quite detailed messages in this in this letter, in this prayer. And then it all started spilling out. And I ended up then starting to think about other people who weren't kind of in this it sense of immediacy, you know, who didn't actively have this stuff going on, but who were still in my world and that I was supporting. And so I just carried on writing. And I carried on writing and writing and writing and pages later. And lots of names and lots of hopes and wishes and prayers later, I and I hadn't even stopped you know, I was full flow and I just realised my goodness, no wonder I'm feeling a bit on edge recently, because I'm holding this, right? And this isn't me being dramatic, by the way, because I have every, I completely know that it's far, far more intense for you than it ever could be for me. But a lot of it is, there's an element of kind of, and again, this sounds very dramatic, but it's just me being completely open, there's an element of, of re-traumatising there, because it's so close to my own heart in that I went through this myself, even though I'm so blessed and thankful to be on the other side of that. These are all feelings that I hold inside me because I've seen them and I felt them. And so I wrote out this prayer, I just realised like, gosh, okay, I'm holding this for a lot of people. And I realised in writing out this prayer that I can't actually keep going in the same way that I am, I can't, I can't keep going like this, because I really want the people who I am committed to, to get the absolute best of me. And that's not just my clients, and, the people that I speak to about their fertility journeys. But my family, my friends, and of course me, you know, I want me to get the best of me too. And then also very recently, sadly, my neighbour died. And it was really sad. He was, you know, any death is sad, of course. But he, you know, he left behind a wife and two twin boys, not young boys, not young at all, you know, they're at university now, but it's still really a really, really tragic loss. And it just, losses that are so close to home, really, really do make you reflect on how short and how precious life is. And so, you know, I want as I say, I want everyone in my world to get the best of me and I want me to get the best of me I want to be the best, the best I can be for everyone. And so I realised this is very self-indulgent podcast. But as I say, I think it's really important that I speak about this because this is the reality.

 

14:13

So what I found naturally recently over the last few months is that I've started attracting people coming to me for supporting me with other aspects of women's health, not just fertility. So I've had people coming to me to support them with the hormonal roller coaster, that's perimenopause. And even you know, lots of my, some of my current and former clients are also navigating peri-menopause. So it's kind of been an area that I've been quite interested in. And, also I've had some people coming to me for help with their Hormonal Health, or their women's health issues who aren't actually trying to conceive it's, it's just they just want to, they want to help regulate their cycles and to just feel as good as they possibly can. And as I say, for people who are coming to me for things around their Hormonal Health, it is about helping them to feel as good as they possibly can and to help them enjoy their lives and to do what they want to do with flow and with joy. And helping people like that as like a bit of a balance, it really helps to restore my battery as a practitioner and as a person, because the focus isn't entirely dependent on this thing happening, that they're so desperate for, and that I can remember so clearly and vividly how desperate it feels. So it's helped me to feel that bit more balanced. And when I've reflected on this, what I realised is that actually, what I do is the same regardless, because, in terms of my approach, there's no, there's no fertility, you know, there's no magic approach that's specialist to fertility. And then another approach that specialists for people who are struggling with their hormones that don't want to conceive. There's no you know, there's no different approach for people who want help with their perimenopause, for example, or their post-menopause. You it's all the same? Well, it's not all the same, because it's, the point is, it's different for everybody. But what is the same is investigating the underlying drivers. And that's different for everybody. So what is the same is that you know, someone comes to me with X, Y, Z. And typically, the thing with our hormones and our reproductive system is that it is essentially it's like an extra vital sign, right? Because our reproductive health is often a reflection of what is going on with the rest of our health. And of course, some things are unavoidable, you know, there is no stopping the menopause. Of course, it looks different for everybody, and it happens at a different time for everybody. But in essence, there are fundamental things that are the same regardless. And so reproductive health in general, is, is really what I'm passionate about. And that that's, you know, that's not, that's not bound by just being fertility or just being perimenopause or anything like that. So it's, it's made me realise that I just need to have that little bit of balance. And this, what I'm about to say is why you don't need to worry. Because if you're listening to this thinking, Oh, my goodness, you know, it, especially if you're a current client or someone who's in my world, at the moment, it doesn't mean that I'm gonna dump you don't worry. It just means that I'm going to be changing the way that I work a little bit. And so if you are already a client, that absolutely we will carry on working together in the same way that we have that will not change. But in terms of the way that I do things now. I'm going to be changing slightly and particularly for fertility clients. What I've been reflecting on as well is how, not reflecting on but thinking hard about is how I can really, really accelerate people's results and maximise their chances of success. Because I'm, I'm at the end of the day, I'm a lone practitioner, right? And without tooting my own horn, I'm a good practitioner, I'm comprehensive, I'm very well informed, I'm well educated, I've got good clinical experience, etc, etc. So, as far as practitioners go, I, you know, I know that I'm a good practitioner, but I'm only one person. And what I know and what I teach, of course, if you've been in my world a little while, you'll know this, is it can't just be one thing, right? So if we're just focusing on nutrition alone and nothing else, it's not going to be anywhere near as effective as if we do things in a really comprehensive way.

 

19:41

So if we were combining the nutrition piece, with the investigations into underlying causes, which again, it's another big part of the way I work in my one-to-one practice, but you know not everyone I work with does get that kind of really digging into the underlying causes. And that's, that's either because, you know, they don't want to, or they don't have the funds to look at that. But certainly, the people that I support on a group level, don't get that, because it's so it's general support is not personalised. But then, so there's the nutrition piece, there's the investigations piece, there's, but then there are these whole two other pieces, which are really significant, which is movement, which is huge, you know, really really important. And then there's the stress side, okay. Now, I do talk about movement, a lot, I advise on movement. But at the end of the day, I'm not a qualified personal trainer, I'm not qualified in any kind of physical therapy at all right, or movement. So I can advise, you know, and my advice is, usually make sure you are moving, and you know, do something you love, you know, doing anything that you love is better than doing nothing in the movement front. I often advocate strength training as well. But I can't go away and give you a strength workout to do, because I'm not qualified to do that. And the other side is stress. And again, I do everything I can to help buffer people's stress levels, I try my best to create a really nurturing and supportive environment. So my sessions are, my one-to-one sessions are, I'd like to think quite therapeutic. And I have my membership for that group-level peer support. And I have my Facebook group. And I have people within my online programmes, I have a number of tools, videos, workshops, etc, that can help with the stress side. But again, I'm not qualified in any additional modalities that help with the stress piece. So what I am really blessed with over the last few years is that I've really built up an incredible network. And I've been fortunate to meet some amazing practitioners on my journey. And so what I want to do now, in terms of the fertility package that I offer, for one-to-one work is to bring it all together into a really comprehensive package. And what that will look like is essentially I'm going to be getting a team of people together, to help me to actually carry out this really important work in the most effective, and the best possible way where you're getting everything all together in like a really nourishing and nurturing package. So I've spoken to a number of practitioners, and I got some incredible people on board. And so what I want to be offering now, moving forward for my one-to-one work, yes, for my, for my one-to-one work is you will be seeing one of my team, one of my fertility nutritionists who have got the exact same fertility, nutrition training as I have and who have been seeing clients in the same way that I do, because there is a group of us. And we're all amazing, even if I do say so myself. So you will be seeing one of my team of amazing fertility nutritionists. For your nutrition support, you will be getting included, so rather than having all of the testing done separately, the tests that you need will be included in the package. So everyone that comes on board will have these tests done, that will start to look into the underlying causes, because the way I describe the fertility of the reproductive health piece, is that you need it.

 

24:31

In order to make a healthy baby. It's like a chain of events has to happen, okay? And this chain of events is quite comprehensive. And there's a lot that has to go right in order for a successful pregnancy and a healthy baby to come out the other side of that. So what we're doing is within this chain of events through doing this testing and through investigating the underlying drivers for you as an individual is we are looking for any gaps across that chain? Okay? Because it is a game of odds at the end of the day. And so if we can find where your gaps are in the chain that is your life and your health and all of the systems in your body that are connected, then we can, we can then plug those gaps, we can find what your unique gaps are, we plug each of those gaps, and then we can move forward. And so each gap that you're plugging is increasing your chances of things going, right? Okay? So, um, so it's going to include the testing, it's going to include the nutrition side, and the personalised supplements that will help, be helping to plug those gaps. But then you will also be working with a fertility specialist personal trainer, who will be so so she works on an app. And so she will get you onto her app, and then you get regular fertility-focused exercise routines, just for you to do you get interactions with her, there's a little community on there as well. So you get the movement side incorporated into your programme as well. You also get so, also onboard is a wonderful hypnotherapist that I've been doing some work with, um, I'm not giving any names out at the moment because we're still in the final, the final stages of planning here. But I'm just letting you know what will be involved. So you will also then get a package of hypnotherapy with this fertility-focused hypnotherapist and that can be focused around natural conception and also that it can have some focus on IVF if you're on that journey. And so that then is an incredibly powerful combination, because we're doing the investigations. So we're doing the digging to look at you and the messages that your body is giving us so that we can then plug those gaps. You've got a specialist nutritionist that's giving you your tailored protocols and your tailored advice and supporting you through actually making the changes to your nutrition and lifestyle that will help to plug those gaps that we find. You've got the movement, so you've got this support from a personal trainer who is very well notified in fertility. So you've got support from her as well to get the movement side in. And then you've got this hypnotherapy support as well, which is really then focusing in not just on the stress piece, but on that subconscious piece as well. And working through some of that. So it's going to be really, really comprehensive programme. And far, far more than the sum of its parts, okay? So this is what I'm going to be delivering now. And it's you know, that is what is going to be available for people coming to me, as you know, the top level of support that we can offer. So you know, there can be varieties of this as well. But this is what I want to offer people so that we are really doing everything we can to maximise the chances of this healthy pregnancy happening, which is ultimately what you're wanting if you're listening to this. So as for this podcast, I did talk at the beginning about the podcast and kind of how all of this was started by me reflecting on why I'd been a bit resistant to recording some of the podcast episodes.

 

28:58

What I'm likely to do is continue recording for the rest of this year, for the rest of 2022 and finish the micronutrient series that I've been involved in quite a few of you have been enjoying that so far. So I'm really glad about that, that you've been finding that helpful. But for 2023, I'm going to butterfly out a bit. So I'm going to start talking about I'm going probably actually change the fertility in the first 1000 days podcast, I'm probably going to actually start a new podcast with a different title. And this will still be here, don't worry, all of these episodes will still be here and I can still direct people back to particular episodes that will be helpful for them. So this will always be here as a resource for you. But I'm going to probably talk, start a new podcast that's talking about women's health more broadly. Because as I say there is so much the same when it comes to women's health in terms of addressing the underlying causes. So what I don't want to do because my passion really is women's health and family health across the board. I don't want to alienate anyone or leave anyone out by just focusing on fertility. And especially because lots of the people who have been my clients who have, have needed help with their fertility and then, like me have come out of the other side of that journey. Lots of people actually then want ongoing support. They want the support with navigating their pregnancies. They then want support with like the crazy ride, that is parenthood, they want the support with perimenopause. And so I'm really here for all of that. And so, as I say, I'm probably going to be branching out to talk a little bit more about women's health in general, and the other thing, of course, is that if you are on a fertility journey, yes, of course, that is like your massive focus, and it can be really difficult to find anything else. But such a significant part of that journey for me, and what made it so traumatic, is because I was focused on that, above anything else. And I was not putting myself first, I was not thinking about all of the things that I could be enjoying, and feeling, gratitude and love towards in my own life, all I could do was everything on this thing that wasn't happening. And so lots of what I talk about in my group is around that is around, finding you, again, actually, and who you are, as a person, as a woman. And the things, you know, focusing in on the things that do light you up. And so I really do want to explore that side of things a little bit more within, within the things that I talked about in the in the show, as well. So that is my plan. If you have listened all the way to the end, thank you so much for sticking with me. I know I've wittered on. But I'm very, very excited about my slightly new way of working, I'm really excited about this new package that I'm going to be offering for one-to-one clients, that is going to be just so comprehensive. And really just trying to you know, move through this process as quickly as you can and actually get your baby you know, as quick as we can. And of course, as I say it's for some people, it is a slow process. And there's nothing we can do about that. But I'm really confident that this new package is going to be helping people in the most comprehensive way. So that's it for me today. Thank you for listening. I'd love to know if you've got any thoughts. Excuse me, please do share. drop me an email. I love hearing from people listeners of the show, drop me an email on [e-mail]. If you are listening, and you're thinking actually, yes, that programme does absolutely sound like a bit of what I need right now. Please do get in touch. I'm not taking bookings for it at the moment. But hopefully, we'll be up and running with this new programme imminently. So if you want to be one of the first people to actually benefit from that, then do drop me an email at [e-mail] as for my other offerings. I still do have my Facebook group fertility in the first 1000 days. So if you want to come along and join that, please do and I also have what else do I have? I also have my membership in which we meet every Wednesday at 5 pm UK time. And so if you want to come and really get involved in that peer support, then you know, please, please do drop me an email and I can tell you a bit more about that as well.

 

33:58

All right, have a lovely, lovely week everyone. I will be back next time to carry on with the micronutrient mini-series and continue to talk to you about the minerals that are really important for reproductive health. Take care bye bye.

 

WAYS THAT YOU CAN GET KATY'S HELP:

Fertility and the First 1,000 Days Membership:
Fertility and the First 1,000 Days Membership

Fundamentals for Fertility online course:
12-Week Fundamentals for Fertility Course with Katy Bradbury (evergreen)

Book a discovery call to talk through your needs for working together 1:1:
Practice Better

More info can be found about Katy on her website:
https://katybradbury.com/

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/katybradburyhealth

Email:
[e-mail]

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