27. Manifesting Fertility and Fulfillment through Vision Boards
Lisa is a mom of two girls, she started out on her business journey in 2013 whilst she was on maternity leave with her eldest daughter Alysa, what originally started as a hobby became a passion and supported her through many difficult life lessons.
Lisa is a vision board coach, qualified NLP practitioner, Reiki practitioner, and crystal healer, her mission is to help others live the life they desire!
Overview of this episode:
How Lisa manifested her second baby after multiple losses
How traumatic birth experiences can affect your future
Having a baby during the COVID lockdown
Connect with me, Lisa ⤵️
Instagram:@lisa_williams_visionboardqueen
Facebook: Vision Board Lounge
Website: https://www.lisawilliams-lmg.co.uk/
Email: info@lisawilliams-lmg.co.uk
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Transcript:
Today I am joined by Lisa Williams. She is the mom of two girls that first started out on her business journey in 2013, while she was on maternity leave with her eldest daughter.
What originally started as a hobby became a passion and supported her through many difficult life lessons. Now, I'm not going to dive any deeper than that, because I would love for you to share your incredible journey with us. So I had my first child, Alyssa, uh, which was like you said, that's when I started, um.
My first business and it was in between Alyssa and Talia that I experienced several miscarriages. So you have, I had a healthy child with no complications and then. What you expect to be a healthy pregnancy again, which slowly turned to obviously a completely different story and not only once, but on three occasions.
So I do have a gap between my girls. There's a seven year gap between them. Uh, obviously during that time was when we had lots of, um, hurdles in the road, um, to get to where we are. Yeah. So I would love for you to kind of just, I kind of jumped forward, but bring us into your story. How did this all begin?
Like your pregnancy journeys, um, and then, you know, how it relates to your business. So when I, um, obviously had my, my first child, perfectly fine, no complications. And when we tried to conceive, uh, my second child, um, obviously we, we had some, we had a miscarriage and I didn't understand it. I didn't understand why it was happening to me.
I didn't understand why I, why my body couldn't. I couldn't carry another child. It made me feel like worthless as a woman. It made me feel really bad about myself. It obviously, I was already at a place where I wasn't very confident in my, in myself, but that made me feel. In such a dark place that I'd never been before.
And I wasn't really sure how to come out of that. Uh, we then went on to have a, another miscarriage six months later. And that's when I, um, was introduced to what I know as personal development, um, self help books. And, you know, And that's when I started working on myself, build me up stronger so that I could, my, myself could handle and carry a child because I was already Okay.
low. Um, I was already in a very difficult place and it was, I needed to learn to love myself again in order to love my body again. And if I love my body again, I was hoping my body would carry a child. Um, and that's kind of what got me on to the path that I'm on now. And for those that don't know what your path is, could you kind of touch on that?
Yes, of course. So I am a vision board coach. So I work with women, um, online and in person to help them create their vision boards for their dreams and that they can live, live the freedom that they, they choose, whether that be time feed, freedom, financial freedom. And I do that through my membership. I also have a podcast.
I do that through workshops, through retreat days, through one to one coaching. Um, and I mainly work with business women. That's not saying it's inclusive of just business women, but that is the clients that generally attract to myself, um, in the online space. Yeah, that's amazing. So you took something that was really hard and difficult to get through and you created this amazing business.
So when you were creating like your own vision board, how did that feel? What did it look like? Uh, so my first vision board I created not long after my second miscarriage, uh, that's when I started obviously the personal development world and I created my first vision board. And there was always the vision of another child.
And at first I wasn't quite sure how I was going to portray that on a vision board because that's what I want. But if I put it on a vision board, am I? Kind of, um, what's the word I'm looking for? Like prejudging that's gonna, something's gonna happen, something's gonna go wrong. Am I jinxing it as such? Am I jinxing or testing fate?
So, I didn't really put it out there as well as what I could have. So I tested the water with a picture of a bunting with boy or girl on, and I left it at that. And although deep in my heart, that was the biggest thing I wanted on that vision board. But I didn't make it my biggest part of the vision board, um, because I didn't fully.
understand the concept of it all then I was dabbling with it and I wanted to learn more But then when I came to reflect on my vision board some months later, that's when I realized I'm not really actually pulling this out that I had to be more specific with wanting a baby. I had to be more specific in putting that energy into having a baby.
So I put things on that like, um, womb healing, uh, pregnancy. Pre, pre fertility massage, I put things on that like baby feets. I had the bunting on there. So I kind of made it very much more into the journey of being pregnant. So I put that in the vision and that was then obviously the next step that I took with the vision board side of.
Conceive in. Okay. So after you made this vision board, which I love the journey that you're taking yourself on, it's not just like pictures of babies. It's like everything that could be surrounding that journey. Oh my gosh, it's so beautiful. So then after you created that vision board, did you then get pregnant or how did that work?
Uh, we did have another, uh, miscarriage in between creating the first vision board. And then before I updated it, so we did lose in between once I'd got, once we had the third miscarriage, I then went into the more detail of, right, this is really now my focus. This is what I want. This is what I'm going to put out there.
And that's when I went into the more detailed side of it. Okay, so what was the more detailed side of it? That's where I went into the pregnancy massage, the facility massage. Oh, gotcha. The healing. So the original first vision board, then I had a miscarriage and then I went into being more specific. Okay, gosh, that is so amazing.
Did that feel like it helped you heal from having those miscarriages? I wouldn't say having my vision board helped me heal. It definitely helped me stay focused on my journey. It helped me stay focused on not giving up hope, you know, having that, um, That passion inside me stay alive, that definitely helped having the vision board.
The, the healing side of it was my personal growth work that I had to do. I did go for some Reiki healing. I did a lot of journaling healing. Um, I did go and see a therapist around the miscarriages to help me heal that way. So the healing side wasn't really. The vision board, if that makes sense, that's what kept me motivated towards that vision.
Oh yeah, that makes total sense. So then, once you did get pregnant, after those three miscarriages, how was that pregnancy? That was a rollercoaster of a pregnancy. Um, obviously, if anyone is listening to this and has had, um, a miscarriage or, um, a child loss, the pregnancy after that is, is difficult. You expect every time you go to the toilet that you might be bleeding.
You expect, you know, every time you feel a movement, is everything okay? You are pretty much standing on eggshells from the moment you find out. Um, I did have, um, some help from medical help because I'd had three miscarriages in the UK. You do get referred to for what they call, uh, reoccurrent miscarriage testing.
And that is. Something that they did pick up on something. So they were able to support me in the pregnancy, uh, via an, uh, an injection, um, in my stomach to help with my blood. And I did also keep going for Reiki, which was something that kept me, um, focused during the early days of the pregnancy. And it was difficult.
It was hard. It wasn't an easy ride. Um, I then found, I then got gestational diabetes as well. So that obviously made life a little bit more harder. And on top of that, we went into lockdown, which, uh, which wasn't the ideal situation. Um, I was around six months pregnant, I think, when we went into lockdown.
Uh, I then had to go to scan appointments on my own, so I didn't have the support of my partner. Um, I then had to go to all my, um, Uh, midwife sessions on my own with the extra monitoring of the, um, gestational diabetes, I had to go on my own. So there was lots of emotional roller coasters attached to that.
I obviously wasn't allowed anywhere because in the UK, all pregnant women had to self isolate. It was very. It was difficult. It was a difficult last three months of the pregnancy. Oh my goodness. Wow. So you did say that the doctors did find something. I'm curious, do you know what exactly it was they found?
Yeah, they found that, um, I had something that was causing my womb to clot. So The blood in my womb was clotting. Therefore the baby wasn't getting the oxygen. Um, so that's what they picked up. So the, the injections that I was having was to thin in the blood so that it stopped that happening. Um, also whilst when I was having Reiki, uh, the very early stages of having that, they also picked up that I had, um, like a blockage, which, um.
They, that I got some healing to release that blockage, so that could have been linked to the clotting as well, which was very, um, apparent that they were similar outcomes for both. Right. So then after you got these injections, um, were they afraid that during childbirth you could hemorrhage? I did hemorrhage during childbirth.
Okay, okay. So did you go into spontaneous labor or did you have a C section? Uh, no, I hemorrhaged after she was born. So, um, they, yeah, so they were really quick and they were really good, um, in, in dealing with it straight away. Oh, well, that's good. So if you're willing to, I'd love to hear your birth story.
Um, it wasn't the nicest of birth stories. I'm afraid it wasn't the ideal situation. It wasn't a bed of roses, um, but yeah, so Talia was born, um, in from being, uh, active labor. She was born in 45 minutes from active labor. And. They, obviously when she came out, I did, um, hemorrhage, like I've just mentioned, and they had to, I think it was like a pump.
They pumped my stomach. I don't know what the medical term for that is, but she explained it was to pump the, the excess, like to keep the blood. Flowing or something. I didn't really quite understand it to, um, the point that it was just madness and they, um, yeah, they dealt with it really, really quickly. I did lose a lot of blood during the labor.
I can't remember exactly how much she said, but I do remember it was, we were like, that's a lot. Um, and then. Talia was absolutely fine. She was, you know, um, all that hard work, all that stress was worth every second of it. Definitely. And, you know, I, I love those beautiful birth stories. But, you know, the, the reality is, they're not all beautiful and full of roses and rainbows, you know, like you said, they can be hard.
They can have, you know, difficulties, hemorrhages happen. So even if we have the best laid plans, I mean, it can go awry. We just never know. Birth is unpredictable. I think, um, My eldest child, when I had, um, her, obviously I was much younger, a little bit more naive. I didn't really know what to expect. Um, and it was very much, she has to come out and that, that's, that's the only option I have.
Uh, she was born with a forceps delivery. Because I was adamant that I didn't want a C section, I was really, I'm, I'm not very good with hospitals as it is. I'm not very good with injections. So having somebody cut me was like my, my fear, if that makes sense. That was a real big phobia of mine. So, um, yes, they had to use forceps to, um, help Alyssa out.
I wouldn't have another child after Talia's delivery because that scared me, that did scare me, that scared me, um, during her birth I passed out and then obviously the blood there was, um, and that the amount of, like, medical team that ran into the room, I was, it did scare me and When they explained it after, although I don't know all the medical terms for terminology, I'm not very good at remembering things like that.
Um, it was pretty much. I could have died and that was scary to hear that and it's, it's difficult to, um, I know my body and I know my body wouldn't be able to go through that again. Yeah. Well, that's important to be honest with yourself in that way because so many people, they would just brush those feelings off and they're so valid and you know, there's some people that they plan to have six kids and they have one and they say never again.
So, you know, just being honest and having those open conversations. My husband, um, he's very supportive, yeah, so he's, you know, more than happy to, to, to live by my decisions. Well, that's great. And I'm so curious. So how, I don't know if you guys talked about it or not, but how do you think, or if he did talk to you about it, how was his experience, experiencing as the dad?
Um, his face said it, said it all, his face and I think even after delivery and everything had calmed down, the, the doctor did speak to my husband because I think they, he obviously looked petrified. So they did explain to him, um. What had actually happened so that he'd understand, right? Yeah. Cause that's scary.
I mean, it's scary enough when we're the ones going through it, but our husbands are partners as a bystander and they're just like, well, what is happening right now? Um, so after you did have your last child, was your husband able to support you or did he, was he able to help you? kind of either process or physically help you through that recovery.
Yeah, he was, you know, he, he always, he is brilliant in terms of hands on and stuff. So obviously healing my body, you know, losing that much blood. I was very Drained and tired, um, and we were still in lockdown situations. We were, so there was lots of things that he still had to go out to do. So it was very much that he was going out, doing the shopping and all those things that needed to be done.
Um, whilst I stayed at home and protected the baby, cause obviously with her being very small, we were still in the rifts of the lockdowns. June 2020. So it was very much still quite rife around, um, in the UK. I'm not sure where, what other countries were like, but we didn't start lifting until around October.
And then we went back in for Christmas and then we kept like, yeah, literally the first two years of her life, I think. She was in and out of lockdown. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I have that experience too. I mean, my daughter was born October 2019, so she was just, you know, a few months old when we started locking down.
So, you know, we have that experience with her too. And honestly, this is on a side note, but I feel like it's created so much anxiety in her now because she's so attached to me because we were home so much that whenever I leave, she's like, mom, where are you? You know, I'm like, Oh my gosh, but I feel like that's a huge.
Yeah, it's definitely going to be a different generation of, um, life skills that they're going to have to learn. Yeah, definitely. So I'm curious, do you kind of put your vision boarding towards just anything in life like your postpartum journey, um, or your children? Yeah. So my vision board is for all aspects of my life.
Um, I use it obviously for business, for family. Uh, we've just recently come back from a family vacation in Florida. Um, there is, um, a book that I'm currently in the middle of writing that is on my vision board. Um, any. Um, financial goals I have any house goals I have, um, there's lots of things that I use my vision board for.
It's not just business orientated or life orientated it's. My vision board is my life as such, isn't it? It covers all aspects. Yeah, I love that. So, without giving everything away, how does the process look for creating a vision board? Uh, the easiest thing to do is to literally sit down and write everything down on a piece of paper to get it all out of your head first.
So, rather than looking, scrolling for pictures straight away, get it all down as like a brain dump session, uh, all out of your head onto paper. Once we've, once you've done that process, I would recommend looking at different affirmations to Attached to those, those dreams, those desires that you've wrote down.
So for example, if you have, um, let's take my book, for example. So if you have, uh, a vision or dream of writing your own book, then your affirmation would be, I will be a best selling author. That, so that's kind of to link them together because the affirmation will help reprogram your brain. When your brain says, I can't do that, I'm not good enough for that.
So the affirmation is really, really important to help that side of the, the vision board side. Once you've done that part, I would then start looking for the images. Um, there's so many online resources. Now you've got a Pinterest, Google images, Canva images, collate them all together, get them printed out.
Decide what type of board you want, whether you want a digital or a physical board. Um, and then you can start adding the images on and there isn't a specific way to stick the images down. You just go with you got a feeling once you've done that, the next step is to basically make sure you're staying connected with that vision board.
So making sure that you are working with it, looking at it each day, using your visualization tools to start visualizing how that dream is going to feel, how, how it will feel if you achieve it. Where are you? Who are you with? You know, really start building that visualization image of that because if we can see it in our minds, then we can actually have it in our hands.
So there's lots of things that you can do to help stay connected. And that would be my, my biggest thing is to work on that side. Wow. Yeah, I think that's great. And I love how you attach like the emotions and just those feelings to whatever outcome it is that you're reaching for. Because that's what I did when I was preparing for my, because I had three C sections and then I ended up having a vaginal birth after that.
So that's what I did. I would literally visualize how it would look, smell, and feel. And literally my baby was born. In that exact manner. So I totally agree with that attaching those feelings and every every sense I feel like is important to attach to it. So, gosh, that's beautiful. Well, is there anything else you would like to add or talk about?
No, I think we've pretty much covered everything that I can think of. Um, obviously if anyone is listening to this and who may be going through a miscarriage at the moment or has gone through one and is struggling, don't be afraid to reach out because there is support out there. There is people out there who have gone through that journey.
And I know I felt alone and you are not alone. Okay, so don't feel and don't. Suffer alone because it is hard and it is something that speaking about will help you. Yeah, that's super important because and that's the reason one of the reasons why I created this podcast because I felt so alone in my journey in my struggles.
And I knew that I couldn't be the only one, and not to say I want people to be struggling, but to know that there's other people out there that can relate. And you know, it's nice to just be able to talk to somebody about it, not necessarily even get a solution, but to just get it out and talk it out with somebody who might understand the situation.
If somebody is going through a miscarriage, how do you think the best way that their partner, if they have a partner or support system, can support them in the best way? I think just being there for them is obviously the biggest, what making sure that you are, you tell them that you're there for them, not just assume that they know, um, and asking, talking, speaking.
Allowing them space to express their feelings, their emotions, is really important. Yeah, definitely. And so, and I asked this question, I'm going to prelude the question. I'm not asking it to make you feel bad about any decisions that you have made, because obviously you made them, and we can't go rewind.
But if you had a redo in any of the circumstances that you went through, Would you do anything differently? No, no. Okay. And the only reason I asked that is because, you know, since we've been through it, now we realize how we could, you know, be better supported or what could have been better for us at the time now that we've gone through it.
So the reason why I say no is because Everything that I've been through has been a step towards where I am now. And I've learned those lessons that I now have those tools that I can use for the rest of my life that is priceless, really. There that, although obviously I've been through a lot of heartbreak, a lot of pain, a lot of suffering, trauma, I wouldn't be where I am if I hadn't have gone through them.
So there is. Every lesson in everything that I've been through. Yeah, definitely. I mean, I know I wouldn't be here today if I hadn't gone through, you know, those hurricanes or whatever you want to call 'em, those really, really hard times where you feel like you're not gonna survive. So thank you. I really appreciate that.
And I would love if someone were to want to connect with you or work with you, what would be the best way to do that? Uh, the best way would probably be via Facebook. I have a community called the Vision Board Lounge, uh, but you can find, uh, me pretty much on social media under the Vision Board Queen or my website, um, as well.
I love that. Thank you so much. And I really appreciate you taking the time out of your day to come chat with me and share your vulnerable perspective on this subject. Thank you. Well, thank you for having me, Petra. Of course. All right. Until next time.
