Caitlin Bekker, a mother of three, opens up about her transformative journey as a "heart mom" after her son was diagnosed with congenital heart disease. She reflects on the challenges of navigating multiple surgeries and the immense emotional toll it takes on families. Caitlin shares her insights on finding community support, living in gratitude, and the importance of faith in overcoming adversity. She encourages embracing life's hardships as catalysts for personal growth and deeper connections with others.
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Diagnosis
Caitlin Bekker learned at her 20-week ultrasound that her son had hypoplastic left heart syndrome.
This meant his left ventricle couldn't pump blood effectively, requiring multiple open-heart surgeries.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Processing a Diagnosis
Share the news with loved ones for support and to process the information.
Avoid excessive Googling, as it often presents worst-case scenarios.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Finding Community
Find support through online communities and organizations dedicated to specific conditions.
Connect with medical professionals invested in your child's well-being.
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Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I've Loved
Kate Bowler
In this memoir, Kate Bowler, a historian of the American prosperity gospel, recounts her life-altering diagnosis with Stage IV colon cancer at the age of 35. Despite her previous beliefs in the prosperity gospel, which suggests that blessings are a mark of God's favor and misfortune is a sign of disfavor, Bowler's diagnosis forces her to confront the harsh realities of life and death. The book is a frank, funny, and wise account of her experiences, populated with colorful characters from her life, including friends, mega-church preachers, relatives, and doctors. Bowler rejects the idea that everything happens for a reason and instead finds beauty and meaning in the unpredictability of life.
Prior to her son’s birth in 2020, Caitlin Bekker didn’t have experience with congenital heart disease. Five years later, being a “heart mom” has become a core part of her identity. On this week’s episode, Caitlin shares how watching her little boy go through multiple open heart surgeries has refined her and have taught her to trust in the Lord, live in gratitude in the present, and she hopes they will ultimately help her become the person and disciple of Jesus Christ she would like to be.
1:45- Receiving and Processing a Diagnosis 7:27- Health Literacy 10:26- Finding a Community 12:09- Living in the Present 14:27- Why? 19:14- Mom Guilt 22:40- Bringing Matthew Home 25:05- Comforting Those Who Stand In Need of Comfort 34:08- Hard Is Hard 38:08- Perspective 40:49- Update 43:00- Living in the Present Pt. 2 45:27- What Does It Mean To Be All In the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
“Life’s going to pass by no matter what so you might as well let the hard situations help you to become more of what you want to be.”
Episodes References:
President Jeffrey R. Holland said, “With apologies to Elder Neal A. Maxwell for daring to modify and enlarge something he once said, I too suggest that “one’s life … cannot be both faith-filled and stress-free.” It simply will not work “to glide naively through life,” saying as we sip another glass of lemonade, “Lord, give me all thy choicest virtues, but be certain not to give me grief, nor sorrow, nor pain, nor opposition. Please do not let anyone dislike me or betray me, and above all, do not ever let me feel forsaken by Thee or those I love. In fact, Lord, be careful to keep me from all the experiences that made Thee divine. And then, when the rough sledding by everyone else is over, please let me come and dwell with Thee, where I can boast about how similar our strengths and our characters are as I float along on my cloud of comfortable Christianity.” https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2020/10/57holland?lang=eng
All In 