Today we’d like to introduce you to Shawna Beucler.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Shawna. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I have a crazy story of infertility and loss. I have been pregnant eleven times, have two miracle boys with me here, and a football team in Heaven. For those that have been through infertility, it is a lonely and heartbreaking road. And, for those who have experienced a miscarriage, well, it is a devastating experience that I don’t wish upon anyone. Throughout my insane journey, I always looked for books or websites that offered hope, humor, and a faith-filled environment where I could share my story, be around like-minded individuals, and know that I was not suffering alone. I never found that book or that website, and it became my mission to either find that outlet or create one myself.
After I welcomed my two miracle boys (now 12 and 8), we struggled a bit more with growing our family and had to make the decision that our family was complete. I really put my story on the back burner of my life and moved on like we all do. Until early 2017, when I became pregnant on my own. You see, that isn’t supposed to happen. My body doesn’t work that way. Until 2017. We became pregnant with a girl – Sophie Caroline. According to all of the high-risk tests, she was 100% healthy. The boys were THRILLED to have a sister, my husband was thrilled to have a little girl wrap him around her tiny finger, and I was excited about having a daughter. And, then we lost her. At five months pregnant, it was heartbreaking, devastating, life-altering, and painful. All the things. For all four of us.
Grief came in waves. Crashing hard. I wrote a ton during that time just in an effort to heal, not knowing where my words were meant to land. A couple of months after losing Sophie, we learned I was pregnant on my own again. Only to lose a healthy baby boy right at three months. Two miracles and two huge losses within five months of one another. It was a rough year.
As I kept writing through the pain, I decided that I had to find my “WHY” in all of this. Why was this happening to me? Why was this heartbreak touching me and my family? Why?
After much prayer and contemplation, I finally decided to turn my writing into a blog. To let my story be told, to have meaning. To let my story be the inspiration for someone else as they are grieving. To heal myself as I was opening up my heart and allowing other women to tell their story and to not feel alone.
In March 2018, four months after losing my last baby, I launched Lunchbox Babies. It was originally created to be an outlet for women that have walked, or are currently walking, the road of infertility and loss. Now, twenty months later, it has grown into so much more. Monthly book reviews, product reviews, discussions of hormonal issues related to aging and infertility are on the monthly schedule. However, the biggest component of Lunchbox Babies is the connection to those women that are dealing with infertility and loss. I am so proud of the community that Lunchbox Babies is creating. We are not alone.
Has it been a smooth road?
Oh goodness, no. I am about the most self-conscious person you will ever meet. Telling my entire story for the world to see was like jumping off a cliff. The moment I clicked “publish” on my first post was incredibly emotional. Many tears were shed over finally letting my story be out there in hopes of helping others. Lunchbox Babies has been live now for almost 20 months now, so the emotions aren’t as strong as they used to be. However, there are still posts that I write or podcasts that I record where the emotions can still get the best of me. You don’t walk a road of infertility and loss, and not let it leave a mark on your heart.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Lunchbox Babies story. Tell us more about it.
My blog is a lifestyle blog that is geared towards those women that are walking the road of infertility and loss. Throughout my personal journey, I desperately wanted a safe place where I could share my story with others. A place that was filled with hope, humor, and faith. I never found that place, so I created it. While my blog helped to heal me, it has truly become my “WHY”. Why I suffered through infertility and miscarriage was so that I could share my story in hopes that other women will not feel alone in their battles. I am extremely proud that I can use my story and show others that this is but a chapter in our stories. This is not a forever moment. Life will go on. We will all heal. It is just better to heal together. And, that is what Lunchbox Babies is hoping to be. I am okay. I am on the other side with my humor and faith intact. We are not alone.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I love the fact that there are more and more people talking about infertility and loss. When I started down my own road WAY back in 2006, no one really spoke about it. We were all living on a deserted island, feeling alone, and slapping smiles on our faces when really we just wanted to fold up into a ball and cry our eyes out. While that still happens, the topic of infertility and loss are really coming to the forefront of discussion these days. More research is being done on recurrent miscarriage issues and new infertility procedure techniques are being researched on a regular basis. I would hate for anyone to suffer like I did, and I pray that advances in medical technology continue to help women like me become the mother they know they are meant to be.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lunchboxbabies.com
- Email: lunchboxbabies@gmail.com
- Instagram: instragram.com/lunchboxbabies
- Facebook: facebook.com/lunchboxbabies
- Twitter: Lunchbox Babies
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