Ever heard of a fibroid? I knew very little about them before I found out I had one when pregnant with Ryder.

Fibroids are non cancerous growths found on, in or attached by a stalk to the uterus. However, just because they are non cancerous doesn’t mean they aren’t without risk.

While pregnant with Ryder my fibroid grew to the size of a softball. That’s really huge! Mine was pedunculated, which means it’s attached by a stalk. I could actually move mine around sometimes which was really creepy. One time while at yoga I was laying on my back. My fibroid was in the middle of my belly under my belly button. I was able to move it over to the left side just by pushing it. 🤢

Not only did the fibroid take up space in my belly that Ryder needed, it was pulling in a lot of blood. I had to check in with a specialized doctor once a month, aside from my regular prenatal visits. They would measure the fibroids growth each time. There was actually talk about surgically removing it while I was pregnant. It caused me a lot of pain and discomfort. However I was willing to suffer the pain to avoid surgery. Going under while pregnant was not something I was willing to do unless it was life threatening. There’s too many things that can go wrong or put my child in danger so it wasn’t worth it to me. Pain for a few months was a better option.

I got on a strict diet in hopes of reducing the fibroid size. I ate only non hormone, grass fed beef and antibiotic-free chicken. I also got organic milk, eggs, veggies and fruit. I avoided anything packaged or overly processed. I reduced my sugar intake and increased my water intake. I was even very careful what restaurants I ate at. I saw a reduction in the size of my fibroid by a couple centimeters. That doesn’t sound like much but when you’re limited on space, any little bit helps!

My fibroid shrank to the size of a golf ball a few months after I delivered Ryder. I was told it would likely never really go away, but that it shouldn’t cause me any major problems.

My fibroid has grown a little this second pregnancy but no where near the size it was with Ryder. I’m still cautious what I eat. And I still feed my family only organic, grass fed beef, antibiotic free chicken, some organic fruits and veggies (certain foods you don’t have to buy organic, ex: avocado, bananas, etc). Fibroid or no fibroid I give my family the healthiest food I can always! It’s best for all of us. 💙