Ep 218: Surprise Pregnancy Brings Healing to Old Traumas with Amanda Lopez

When you found out you were pregnant, what emotions ran through your brain? Excitement? Thrill? Joy? Or did you experience fear, shame, or a resurgence of old traumas?   This week, we're speaking to Amanda Lopez. A mama to 3 children, two of whom were born to her while Amanda was still a teenager. We'll be discussing Amanda's experiences as a teen mother, and how her most recent homebirth brought incredible healing to her previous perceptions of pregnancy and birth.   I have a free gift for you! The Achieve Your Empowered Homebirth Mini Course. If you're looking pull back the curtain and see what it means to truly prepare for your homebirth experience and motherhood as a whole, THIS is the resource for you. Get your hands on it, and learn more about my approach inside of The Homebirth Collective, by sending me a DM in Instagram @happyhomebirthpodcast with the word homebirth. JUST the word homebirth. All one word. No emojis. No exclamations. It's very sensitive, seriously. But that'll send the course right to you.   OR, click the link in the show notes to have it sent to your email!   Episode Roundup:   What an emotional, incredible episode. I cannot get over Amanda's strength, and I know that will certainly pour into this episode round up.   I am so blown away by how Amanda used her experience of becoming pregnant at 14, having a baby at 15 to propel her forward in her aspirations. At a time when she felt so alone and was struggling so deeply, she still saw the worth of her child and knew that she was worth the struggle and toil. She turned something so difficult into something so triumphant, even graduating from high school with a 4.0 GPA. When Amanda became pregnant for the second time as a teen, she felt so much pain and confusion, and yet... she looked at her other daughter and knew that this baby was going to be a blessing. I am so overwhelmed at the beauty of Amanda's choices to celebrate life. And what seemed so tragic at the time, having two daughters as a teen herself, turned into the beautiful blessings of her daughters. As Amanda and her mother discussed, sometimes the things that seem so difficult at the time are, in retrospect, the things that save us. Praise God for his provision for Amanda in terms of her ability to raise her babies, and in the loving support, yet firm boundaries that her parents set out for her in the process. And finally, when Amanda became pregnant with her third child... DESPITE the fact that she is a fully grown adult woman and certainly capable of taking care of another baby, one of the first things that happened when she sat looking at the pregnancy test was a rush of old traumas... of feeling down on herself because this pregnancy was "unexpected". But what I loved about this story was the fact that Amanda now so clearly sees... this pregnancy, along with her two other pregnancies... they weren't unexpected. They were known, they were seen, and they were expected by the Creator. Amanda was able to triumphantly and confidently give birth to her third baby, safely in her own home. She was able to reclaim motherhood with a new sense of power and confidence, and I am so thrilled that Amanda's children are able to see what a strong, loving, beautiful mother they have-- one who will lay it all down for them.     Related Links: Gain Instant Access to the Mini Course: DM @happyhomebirthpodcast with the word HOMEBIRTH Have the Mini Course Sent to Your Inbox