Can we truly find peace when life doesn't go as planned? Dive into a journey where shattered timelines meet unwavering faith.

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Hello and welcome to What's the Story.

I'm Anna Kettle.

I'm part of the Crowd Church team and I'm your host for this episode

of What's the Story podcast.

Now today I'm joined by guest Claire Thomas.

Claire is a registered nutritional therapist and an NLP coach.

She has a mission to empower people to look after themselves and

enjoy life by making personalised nutrition and lifestyle changes.

Now Clare first developed chronic fatigue, slash ME, in 2012 whilst

working as a children's nurse.

And at the time she was told that she would never recover, but as a

Christian she knew God can heal, even though she felt lost in the middle

of this life limiting diagnosis.

Until eventually a friend gave her a book that looked at the importance

of nutrition, mindset and faith and aided her gradual recovery.

In 2019, she went back to uni to retrain as a nutritional therapist.

And in 2022, she graduated in personalised nutrition and launched her new

business called Nourished Soar, where she now works supporting clients to

achieve results like improved energy.

Energy, Hormone Balance, Weight Loss, Better Health and so much more.

I'm sure she'll tell us all about it in a moment.

But Claire, thank you so much for joining us today.

It's really great to have you here.

Thank you for having me.

It's a pleasure to be here.

Yeah.

I'm excited to unpack a little bit more of your story because

I know there's lots to cover.

You know, you've got background with chronic fatigue, as we just touched on.

You've also experienced some infertility challenges and

some mental health challenges.

And I want to unpack all of that in the next 45 minutes, hour, if we can.

Um, I know it's a lot of ground to cover, but I think all of

them are really important issues.

Um, but let's.

So let's start from the top.

Let's start at the beginning.

Um, so would you start by telling us Claire, a little bit about your early

life, how you became a Christian, how your faith journey started really?

Sure, sure.

So I didn't become a Christian until I was 21.

I grew up in a household.

We did go to church and I remember doing, like going to Sunday school,

but I don't ever remember thinking like I had a relationship with Jesus.

It was just something we did.

And then my parents separated when I was 12.

And so Sundays became Daddy Day.

And I didn't really think any more about kind of Christianity or

any of church or anything really.

And then when I went to uni to study children's nursing, I suddenly was

surrounded by a lot of Christians and they would invite me along to things that,

you know, Christmas, Easter, and I'd go.

And then towards sort of the end of my degree, I was

having a rough time, I think.

Um, yeah, things had happened and, and life was just hard.

And I remember my friend just going, do you want to go to church?

And I was like, all right, then I don't know what made me say yes.

And she doesn't know what made her ask.

Well, she knows, obviously she was like, it's probably the Holy Spirit,

but you know, at that point she just felt that she needed to ask, and

it was the most bizarre service.

I've ever been to in my life.

Like at the time, I had no idea what was going on.

People were fainting and crying and like just overcome, you

know, as the preacher spoke.

And now I know it's like they were filled with the Holy Spirit, but at the time, but

I don't ever remember being freaked out.

I just remember feeling peace.

I, I think I felt like I'd come home.

Like there was this sense of This is where I need to be like there was a bit of a

hole in my heart and just in that moment like there was just an overwhelming sense

of peace and that summer I went on a kind of secondment to Toronto as part of uni

like you kind of go and see other places and that was the first time I'd really

been traveling on my own and I remember walking through a park in Toronto and

just looking at my life and And I think, you know, at that point, I could see,

like, there'd been a lot of darkness, a lot of, like, you know, struggles

with depression up to that point.

and I just, just knew that if I didn't choose God, I wasn't sure what my life

would look like, and if I actually would be around for much longer.

So I just thought, I'll give God a try and see what happens.

And that was almost 20 years ago.

Uh, and here I am, and yeah, it's, it's been an interesting journey being a

Christian, and there are days where, you know, you feel like you're clinging on by

your fingertips, but I think what keeps me going is knowing what it was like before

I met God, and knowing that actually, even in the really challenging times right

now, it's better than it was without Him.

So yeah.

Yeah, that's, that's amazing.

Um, and yeah, just amazing that God obviously had his hand on me

because, you know, Even though you were kind of introduced in quite a

crazy service, you weren't put off, so you're obviously really searching at

the time and, um, that's really cool.

Um, but I wonder how life looked for you after that, because it hasn't

all been perfect since then, has it?

It's that thing of becoming Christian doesn't equal a

perfect life, even though...

You know, you did say God really brought a clear sense of hope and, you know, in

that sense life was much better after you found God, but there was still,

what, further kind of mental health challenges around depression and,

yeah, just tell us a little bit more about sort of how the two coincided.

Yeah.

It's...

So, I think, you know, parts of depression that I was experiencing did

lift, but the problem, like now I look back, or it's not a problem, but as I

look back, it's hard to know with the depression that I was experiencing, how

much was learnt behaviour, I grew up in a household with a mum who had severe

depression, so how much was it that I kind of picked up what was going on.

I've recognised I'm a highly sensitive person.

I have, um, Possibly got dyslexia.

It's not been formally, you know, so there's a lot of things like

processing wise, that was an issue.

And also I now have learned so much about the gut to.

brain link, and I had glandular fever at 18.

So I'd already been living with some form of fatigue, and then

I had a huge amount of digestive issues for quite a number of years.

So whilst I found God, and that definitely did help, there was that

hope, there was that somebody's with me.

I think There was a lot to unpick and, you know, I'm still unpicking it 20

odd years later, around how I think and why I think the way I do and sort of

how to put things in place to help me renew my mind, you think about being

transformed by the new ing of your mind.

And that's definitely been a battle, you know, that kind of balance between, I know

God's with me and thinking on the word.

and standing on the word.

But, uh, so interestingly, like looking back, I think there was quite what now

seems like a reasonably calm period.

I think as I became a Christian, I definitely became more confident.

I went traveling around the world on my own.

You know, I had all these experiences.

Um, I definitely, I wouldn't say like, bleh.

You know, the depression was still there at elements.

Like I remember like longing to be in a relationship and being single was, was

really hard, but it, it was, it was okay.

And then I developed chronic fatigue, um, in 2009, 10, I got formally

diagnosed towards the end of 2011.

Um, and I think that then started a whole new kind of journey within my

faith, because when your health goes.

You have to really lean into God and I am fiercely independent.

I think it's still a, it's still an issue now.

Like I'm fiercely independent and it takes a lot for me to let go and trust.

And that's still something that I have to work on.

Um, yeah, yeah, definitely, definitely.

So yeah, I think with the, the chronic fatigue.

That was really tough because everything got taken away.

So I, you know, I was very clear on where I was headed.

I was going to become an advanced nurse practitioner.

And then all of a sudden overnight, I was told I wouldn't recover.

And it was that, like, you know, you said in your intro, this middle

ground of, I know God can heal, but sometimes he doesn't heal.

And at that

us

I think my faith, like now, I think there is an element of cynicism

has come in, especially with the infertility, because at that point.

I was like, well, God can heal and there'd been nothing

else to kind of compare it to.

Yeah,

And, but it became a long season of waiting, but in the waiting, like

I learned more about nutrition.

I learned more about mindset.

I learned more about how to look after myself.

And that did, you know, as, as I became weller, as I recovered,

I, I was, that spark, that desire to support others became ignited.

And I think I could see, like, there was definitely some challenging moments.

But you could almost start to see, like, this will work out, this will be okay.

yeah, yeah, that's amazing.

And I, I think so often you, you know, we're very good as Christians about

talking about healing, like in a miracle moment, but actually more times than

not, my experience of having been a Christian for a long time too, is that

God's healing process is slow and he works with us through medicine, through,

you know, kind of self care, through lots of different, you know, types, through

renewing of mind stuff, like you said.

And that it's more of a slow process more commonly than God just.

Yeah.

Um, yeah, it's interesting, isn't it?

And I don't think one is less valid than the other, but we can

often feel that way, can't we?

Um, so yeah, it's, it's really important to kind of look at these things, I

think, and that's why what you're doing now with Nourish to Soar is so cool.

Obviously, you did recover eventually, even though you were

told that you probably never were to find medical people at the time.

And you're now running your own business that supports other

women in similar positions.

So can you tell us a bit more about that?

Like, how did that all come about?

Yeah.

So, I think, like I've said, you know, with the chronic fatigue, it was, I

think, You know, I am a nurse, so I'm very medically minded, and that, that has

changed, I think, with training over the time to be an institutional therapist,

but, you know, I was like, I remember being in the GP surgery, and she was like,

you cannot, never go back to paediatric intensive care, this is it, it's over,

your career is over, but, you know, like I said, but God heals, so, it was really

hard To sit in that, because I'm very determined, and I'm very proactive, and

I just couldn't accept that this was it.

And I remember like joining Facebook groups with other individuals who

had chronic fatigue, and it was, I personally found it not comforting,

because there was a lot of, this will never change, this is it, and

I was like, I can't cope with this.

And I think I almost kind of went insular and went, there is,

there's got to be a way forward.

And like, and my friend gave me this book that combined

nutrition, mindset and, and faith.

And some of the principles were, were quite extreme, but I was

like, I'm going to do this.

And I committed and I committed to, to what it was suggesting.

And I saw improvement and yes, that didn't fully heal me.

That came years later,

Hmm.

but I think what it did show me is that.

What I was eating prior to becoming unwell was not nourishing me

was not supporting my health.

And actually, the more I invested in eating well, you know, looking at

my mindset, because there is a link, whilst chronic fatigue is not a mental

health condition, there is a link between physic, physical and mental.

And, you know, so if I was exceptionally fatigued, mentally, I would feel weaker.

And if I was feeling mentally weaker, I would also feel physically weaker.

And there was this kind of cycle.

And I learned that actually, my body and I'm, I'm a hyper vigilant

individual, so that means I'm always in a state of high levels of stress.

And so it's been this constant journey to sort of bring it all together to

like, how do you heal yourself and stay trusting God when things don't

work out the way you want them?

What can you do in the moment?

And I think that's what it taught me, it's like, what can I do?

And then let God do what He can do.

And It just really sparked this desire to want other people to not

have to be in the position where they're getting a GP, for example,

telling them you will never recover.

I wanted them to know that there was hope and there was possibility, and it

might not look, their healing might not look like my healing, but let's help

them in practical ways to, how do they nourish their body with the right food?

How do they, you know, look after their mindset?

All whilst, you know, sticking, making sure we're following biblical principles.

So that it all comes together.

And it's quite extreme really when you think about it, isn't it?

There's not many illnesses you would get where a GP would say,

you're never going to recover.

I don't think they'd say that to cancer patients, or, I know there are illnesses

like that, but it's like, at very least you would think it would be more the

focus would be on managing a long term condition well, and staying as fit, like,

like diabetes, or asthma, you're not probably going to recover from them, but

you can manage that condition, and learn to live by like, full life in spite of it.

And yeah, it's, it's funny, isn't it?

Um, it's obviously a less understood condition, perhaps still, but, um,

yeah, it's, it's so interesting.

And so in 2019, then you kind of quit working in the NHS and kind of, um,

shifted your focus in terms of your employment into looking at this more full

time and this idea of supporting others.

So tell us a bit more about that transition and kind of how that

Well, it was, it was an interesting one and just as a side note, I think

now chronic fatigue is definitely much more understood and there

is definitely a lot more done.

Thankfully, I mean, because 11 years ago, but yeah, I'm thankful

to say things have improved.

Um, I think there's still room for improvement, but

yeah, things have improved.

Um, but in terms of, yeah, 2019, I was, I got healed in 2018.

And so 2019, there'd been a situation at work where my job, so

I'd kind of built myself back up.

At that point, uh, children's nurse educator.

So I was teaching in the healthcare setting and my job changed and we,

we moved companies and they were basically like, yeah, what you've

been doing, you can't do that anymore.

And I just remember being like, I can't do this again.

I cannot, you know, after I.

Went through what I went through to like leave pediatric intensive care It took a

lot to pick myself up and I don't think I ever fully recovered the passion for

nursing I think I lost it at that point, but I was like, no, I'm a good nurse I can

do this and I just picked myself up and I and I carried on for a number of years

and That happened and I went I don't think I can do this anymore and at that exact

moment I found out what a nutritional therapist was because I'd been looking

at different ways to study nutrition and nothing had ever felt like it fitted.

And I found out what a nutritional therapist was.

And I went, that's exactly what I want to do.

It's body and mind and I can bring the spirit into this.

That's good.

And then this, like I say, work changed and there was an opportunity to

leave and I felt God was like, you've got to go and you've got to go now.

And I was like, but why, you know, I've got plenty of time, like, you know,

I, this course is, you know, I could start in a few months and God was like,

no, no, I really need you to go now.

And I was like, all right then.

So I did.

I took a leap of faith and I make it sound like it was easy and it wasn't easy.

It needed a lot of prayer.

And a lot of, am I really sure I want to leave the pension, because

it's always about the pension.

But also, you know, at that point we were trying for a baby, I got married, um, in

2017, so by that point we were trying for a baby, so we were like maternity pay.

There was a lot of things to consider.

yeah, because it's stability, isn't it?

And

It's stability.

Yeah,

from a stable NHS job to working for yourself.

That's always a huge jump.

it is.

But I was like, no, I think I'm just going to do it.

All right, I'll do this.

And, um, so I took the leap of faith, started another business that's

first aid training, which I still do a little bit, but not very much.

And, uh, and then COVID hit six months later.

And I remember thinking, like, it was a blessing, but not at the same time,

because there was an awful lot of guilt about leaving my colleagues in the NHS.

also a sense of relief, because for me, whilst with chronic fatigue it's

not a straightforward condition, I look back and I can look in my past

and go, this is what contributed to it.

But the main trigger was probably swine flu, which is related to COVID.

And so I always think by being out of the NHS, I was protected.

And as far as I'm aware, I've never had COVID since.

Um, and there was always that, there was a slight fear of if I

get this, will I get sick again?

Um.

And so I was protected and also if I'd have been in the NHS, I'd probably still

be there, like I wouldn't have left, you know, I'd be like, no, got to keep going.

Um, so I think God did protect me and, and it was a really hard season.

I mean, I think I'm still there really in this challenging season.

But I think what I have learned is God was in it in every step, like there

are times that I look at my accounts and I go, I have no idea how I paid for

that course because it was self funded because there was no way of, Um, getting

a loan with this particular course, so it was self funded and literally I had

no work for months because of COVID.

I was doing face to face training, but there was like, just things would pop

up and think, you know, and I would just go, okay, right, let's just do that then.

Or at one point I was making face masks, um, because I was doing sewing

and so I was just making face masks.

To sell, to make money and bit by bit like I just kept going and got through

the course and I even had a miscarriage in the middle of this course, but I literally

was like, I know where I'm headed, I know that I really want to support these women,

I've just got to keep going, um, and sort of went through the course, but yeah.

yeah.

It's just, you know, it's amazing because you did graduate and started

your company afterwards and, you know, I just think it's so inspiring that

you've been able to use your own recovery journey and that story and that learning.

Yeah.

And then turned it into a story of hope for other people, that now

you're able to bring some of that hope and that experience to others.

I just, I think that's amazing.

Um, yeah, so just, you know, really want to encourage you in that,

like, it's, it's just wonderful.

And I'm also really, I'm interested to hear a little bit about your

fertility journey too, because you just touched on it briefly there.

You mentioned that you had a miscarriage a couple of years into

marriage and, you know, I know, I know that it's something that you're

still in the middle of now, actually.

And it's also, as you know, it's a subject that's close to my heart too.

Because I've been through a similar past, so, can you tell

us a little bit about that?

How has that unfolded and has that affected your faith as well?

sure, yeah, um, in all honesty I think this has probably been the biggest

challenge to my faith, and there have been moments, um, you know, I don't know if

you've ever watched SAS Who Dares Wins,

I

there's like, yeah, it's my husband, you know, I'm just gonna give that

one to him, but there's a thing where there's armbands, and when you're

like, Just cannot take it anymore.

You take, take your armband off and give it to the instructor and you leave.

And there've been many times I've literally been like,

God, I can't do this anymore.

And I'm clinging on by my, by my fingertips.

So I guess I should give some context to kind of where the, what's

happened with the fertility journey.

So I was single for a very long time.

Like, you know, you know how you've got life, life goals, you know, sometimes

I think, yeah, uh, give God a, what's it, give God a plan and then he laughs

or something like that, isn't it?

But in my head.

obviously plans and

Yeah,

it?

Yeah.

in my head I was going to be married at 25, children by 30, thank you very much.

Uh, I got married at almost 35, so in my head I think I'm about 10 years behind.

I guess some of that delay was because of the chronic fatigue as well, right?

Because your life was so limited for a long time and you couldn't

socialise and work in a normal way.

Yeah.

it had a massive impact because dating was like a, I wouldn't call it a

luxury, but it was very much a, I can only do this if I have so much energy.

And interestingly, God told me, and I didn't listen, God told

me that, um, I wouldn't meet anyone internet dating, and...

I carried on internet dating because I was like, but that you're supposed,

if you want something, you've got to be seen to be doing something.

And, and then randomly I moved, I was in Scotland and I moved back to Devon.

And, uh, one day I just walked into a church, shook a guy's hand

and went, I'm going to marry him.

And that was my husband.

And so we got married.

literally just knew straight away.

And literally, literally shook his hand and was like,

that's it, this is my husband.

Um, um, yeah, that, that was that really.

And so, um, yeah, so we got married, I was almost 35, and then

obviously we had a bit of time together and then we started trying.

Now God had actually given me a promise, um, that I would have a son.

And this was before I met my husband, so that was always like

at the back of my head, that, you know, this promise of a son.

And so we started trying and nothing happened.

And so after six months, because I was over 35, we went and did the tests and

they were like, we can't find anything wrong with either of you that medically,

um, and so we were like, do we do IVF?

And interestingly, I'd never had any peace about IVF, not way before I was married.

I just had this sense that IVF was not something that I

was going to be able to do.

And I don't know if that was linked to the chronic fatigue or because

my body was, like I said before, I.

is hypervigilant, so the stress, and stress as we know isn't very

good for fertility, but I just never

an invasive process, isn't it?

And quite,

a very

quite a full on process.

Yeah.

yeah, yeah.

But my husband, you know, he, he I was really keen to have a look into

it, so I was like, I'm gonna do this, because I don't want to regret it,

because obviously once, in Devon, once you're 40, you, that's it, you

can't get free treatment, like, you're allowed a round of free treatment.

Um, so we looked into it, and in the meantime I got, we got pregnant,

which was incredible, so about, I think, two years of trying.

Um, and that, that was amazing, but sadly we had a missed miscarriage, so

we had an early scan, because I'd had so many friends go for 12 week scans.

and find that the, the baby had died.

I was like, I, I wanted to do an early scan.

So we sadly went and found there was no heartbeat.

And, and that was, that was hard, but I had hope because I, so I

chose to have a, um, a local DNC, which I would not recommend doing,

um, in all honesty, because I

No, that sounds tough.

it was tough.

And now I look back and I go, I think there was a lot of

trauma associated with that.

But I think in my head, I had people saying, you know, I had a DNC, I got

pregnant really quickly, a lot of people going, I had a miscarriage, then

I got pregnant really quickly, so in my head, I was like, oh great, I'll do

this, it's really suck, it really sucks that, you know, our baby is with Jesus,

but it's okay because we got pregnant and that's great and that's amazing,

Yeah.

but then I didn't get, or we didn't get pregnant, and we've not got pregnant

again, and that, I think, I think The month after month after month and then

we went we ended up going back to the IVF clinic because we had an appointment

like With them and they basically like even though you got pregnant there is

no other option for you But IVF and I was just like no and I have no peace.

I can't do this No peace and they were like, are you really sure because your

time is running out Um, again, I guess it comes back, I've just had a thought

of like, it feels like being sat in the, with the GP going, you will never recover.

And again, it's like, they're

It's actually, yeah.

they're not saying.

It will never happen.

But they were like, your time's running out, you know, you're getting older.

And I was just like, no, I can't do this.

And, and I must say my mental health, like I was grieving, but I think

because when we had the miscarriage, I was also in the midst of the degree.

I didn't realize how much I was grieving, how much, and we were also in the middle

of COVID until I finished my degree.

And then I finished my degree and was like, Oh my word.

I'm broken, like I felt broken at that

Yeah.

I ended up getting counselling, but it was like a year later, because I literally

was like, head down, getting sad, like, I think dark, things were just getting

harder and harder and harder, because, you know, I was grieving, but it was so

hard to kind of know what it was, that,

And it's, it's, it's a lot to process, um, grief after loss, I think.

And it's...

Mm,

You know, that's even, you know, obviously the COVID thing separately, and you'd

had other issues before that, and I think there is a lot of processing, and

sometimes processing comes quite a bit later, doesn't it, and it sort of catches

up with you later, but it's, I think, you know, I talk to a lot of women in this

space, and they talk a lot about that sort of hope and loss cycle, or that hope

and disappointment cycle that you're on, as a couple that are trying to conceive.

And Facing Infertility, every month it's like hope and then

disappointment, hope and disappointment.

And it's kind of this endless cycle and so that is like disappointment layered

on top of like disappointment and on top of grief and it's, it can be quite

intensive when you're like living that reality for a long time and so I'm

not surprised you're saying that is the thing more than anything else that

really break your heart, break your faith or came closest to breaking your

okay.

Yeah, I'm still, I'm still clinging.

Like, even now, I'm still clinging, going, I have no idea what comes next.

Because we have looked at fostering and adoption, but again, I, at this present

moment, we don't have peace about it.

And it's not saying that it's wrong.

It's just saying, I think we're both exhausted, you know, five years of trying.

And, you know, the, everything that's happened with, you

know, I've run two businesses.

COVID, everything that's happened, I think we're just exhausted.

So

yeah, it's a lot.

just being like, we want a child, but we're so, we're just tired.

We're just tired now.

So we're clinging to God because I also remember what it was like pre God, and I

don't want to go back to life without God.

But it's trying to find, I think this is the hardest part at the moment for us, is,

is finding joy in life without children.

And going, you know, things like we love to sea swim, and we'll often

get a really early train at like 6.

30 in the morning down to a local beach.

And we'll be like, this is really cool we don't have children, because

we've been able to get a train at 6.

30 in the morning.

Like, we've had to go really small.

yeah,

Just to be like, it's okay right now that we don't have children.

It hurts, but we have to...

And actually, Rob and I, like, we're so strong, like, if nothing else, I am

incredibly thankful because we joke that neither of us were what each other wanted.

If we'd have seen each other on a dating site, because we're seven years

apart in age, he's seven years younger than me, we'd have just gone, nah,

he's not for me, or she's not for me.

Um, but I've always known he was the right man for me.

And like now, like our relationship is so strong and I'm so thankful for

that, that through it all, like, yeah, I waited for a Christian man, I waited

for, you know, someone who knew God.

And that is one thing, like whilst in the singleness it was hard, I'm

so thankful now, like, that I have a man who loves God because I think

I would have lost my faith by now if I didn't have him walking beside me.

Yeah, it's like that ability to walk the path of pain and suffering together, isn't

it, and not doing it on your own, and, um, not that we're ever doing it on there

is that thing about companionship, isn't

course, yeah,

there?

And, you know, I know you're very much still in the middle of the journey, and

you don't know the final outcome yet, but, um, obviously, at the same time,

I love that kind of truth that you kind of touched on there, that is like,

It's almost like, but what's the other alternative than clinging on to God?

It's to go back to the hopelessness of real life before you knew

God, and that is an option.

And sometimes, you know, I've known that as well, at points where it's

like, where else can I go, God?

What other hope in this life do I have except you?

And sometimes it is.

As simple as that, isn't it?

Even, you know, life's tough, but like, really, what else

offers us that kind of hope?

Um, yeah, so, like, that really resonates what you're saying there.

And, um, yeah, I wonder, in all of this, kind of, what's, what's kind of one big

takeaway, or perhaps one big lesson that you've learned up to now, if, about life

or faith, if you could kind of distill it down to just one thing, I know.

That's probably hard, but like, what would it be, what would your takeaway

be up to this point in your journey?

I know it's not done yet.

No, it's not done yet, but I think the biggest thing that God has been

teaching me is to almost let go of control, which I find very hard to do,

We all do.

Yeah.

out, yeah, yeah, it's let go of the outcome almost.

It's almost just sitting in, being, it's being okay to be me.

Right now, I think I've been learning so much recently about trauma, um,

from childhood and, and how that's impacted how I think about God.

And so it's almost been kind of God right now is just going, look, I just want you

to be okay to be you, you know, be okay to be you without children, without the

business that you expected, without, you know, everything that you expected.

And it's just letting it go and going, okay, I am enough as I am.

With God, full stop.

And, you know, whatever comes next, I don't know, but it's like, it's, it's

almost kind of going, I'm hoping, I'm still going to stay hopeful for children

and hopeful for like, you know, the business to be how I want it to be.

But ultimately the most important thing is, is God.

Yeah.

Um,

yeah, sorry.

yeah, I love that.

I, you know, it's that idea of like, so many of us are planners, aren't we?

And it's okay to plan, it's okay to have a plan, like you said, like

your life plan to have, you know, get married at 25 and have children at 30.

I, I think my plan was similar and mine didn't plan out that way either.

And, um, but yeah, it is okay to have these plans, but it's that idea of letting

go of the outcome and just trusting God.

That actually, he has the outcome and he's holding us, and he's

holding it all in his hands.

And, kind of, it's really freeing if you can just sit in that truth, isn't it, in

the middle of it, rather than constantly wrestling and stressing about it all.

I know there's moments of stressing and wrestling, but those moments when we just

sit and find a peace and relax into God and into trusting Him, so much easier.

Um, I know I found that to be really true as well.

So yeah, I think that's really wise, really good advice.

Yeah, and I think at the moment I have literally got to a place of just going,

okay, God, you know, at the moment there's like two big things in my life, you know,

there's the business and fertility, it seems like there's those two things.

So each day I'm like, God, how are we partnering together today?

And what can I do to work towards these goals?

So it, I've not given it a timeframe because I find when there's a timeframe.

It makes things worse and I remember reading, uh, Corrie Ten Boom when she was

talking about the concentration camps and it was very much the sense of those that

had a timeline of we'll be out by Easter or Christmas, they were the ones that lost

hope the quickest and that's definitely what I've seen is that thought of I'll

be pregnant by or this will happen by and it's not happened and I've gotten, like,

Discouraged, disappointment, you know, struggled with depression because it's

not happening how you want it to happen.

So it is that sort of ability to just go, you've promised this.

I know the Bible says that you are not someone who lies.

You are someone who keeps, keeps his promises.

And these promises have been given to me from other people as well.

It's not just kind of what I believe will happen.

And so each day it's like, I can't think about when this will happen.

But it's, it will happen, and then it's like, what can I do, because

I do believe that we're not just to sit back and do nothing, but it's not

striving, it's just, what can I do to partner with you today, and, and

what steps can I take to work so we're working together, if that makes sense.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

I love that.

That's, that's really good advice.

Well, it's been really fab talking to you today and hearing a bit about your story,

and I know we could probably talk and talk and talk about this to be honest, um,

because we have a lot of overlap in that part of our stories, um, but obviously

we are going to have to bring this to an end, um, but it would be really great

if you could Tell people where they can find you if they perhaps want to connect

or find out a bit more about what you're doing with Nourish to Soar or just want to

talk to you and chat informally, maybe a bit of your story resonates with theirs.

Like, how can people find you?

Tell us all the ways.

So I'm on Facebook and Instagram under Nourish to Soar.

You can also find me on my website at nourishtosoar.

co.

uk.

I also offer a free 30 minute kind of chat just to kind of talk through, you

know, sometimes I can give you some quick wins if you're looking at sort of diet

and lifestyle changes, or if you just fancy a cuppa and a chat, really, then

you can, you can come and say hi, really.

Love that.

Love the offer of like a free taster as well.

It sounds good to me.

Um, Claire, thank you so much for joining us and giving us a

bit of your time and sharing your story so generously with us today.

Um, it's been great.

My pleasure.

Thank you for having me.

No problem.

Everyone, thank you for joining us today and we'll see you on

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