Expecting Grace: A Mother's Day Story

Mother’s Day is just about upon us, and I would be remiss to let it go by without mentioning it. Blog land is full of the stories of amazing mothers these days, along with tons of gift ideas for Sunday. What are you hoping to get or gift?

Today I’d like to introduce to you a mother whose story shows powerfully the love a mother has for her children and family - to the point of nearly giving her life.

It is probably not the mother you’d expect me to talk about today, since she is not any relation to me whatsoever. But after reading her powerful story, I think you’ll agree that this mother is worth mentioning this mother’s day.

This mother’s name is Leah, and during both of her pregnancies she had a rare condition called Hyperemesis Gravidarum, or HG for short. In Leah's own words HG is “a life-threatening pregnancy disease characterized by unrelenting nausea, vomiting, and extreme dehydration that often lasts the entire length of the pregnancy. The only known cure is giving birth.” Statistically 1 in every 300 women suffer from this disease, {However, I personally have heard of 2 women who are currently in the midst of an HG pregnancy!}

What did it mean for Leah to find out she had HG?

-It meant constant sickness and nausea. Constant.
-It meant bed sores.
-It meant countless trips to the doctor and many admissions into the hospital.
-It meant dealing with doctors and nurses who didn’t understand.
-It meant being treated as mentaly insane or depressed.
-It meant being pushed to get an abortion.
-It meant being lied to about the medications she was given.
-It meant spending her first Christmas as a wife and mother in the hospital.
-It meant giving up dreams and ideals to give birth to a miracle, a baby who was not expected to live, a son who is a proof of God’s grace.

To me there is no question that this Godly mother deserves to be mentioned this Mother’s Day!!

Her story is one of miracles and God’s grace - a story worth reading. Funny thing about that - now you can. This past week, Leah's eBook was released, a book meant to educate women about this diabilitating disease.

Expecting Grace tells Leah’s story throughout her nine long months of pregnancy. It tells in more detail about each of the instances I mentioned above. It tells of God’s grace through it all, bringing comfort, grace, and miraculous events to the lives of Leah, her husband, and their unborn baby.

Whether you know someone who has HG or not, this book is worth reading. I literally read it in one sitting...I could not put it down. You will be appaled at the apathy of the doctors, the less-than-desireable conditions of the hospital in our Canadian health care system {seriously, you Americans do not want it!} and the insensitivity of the people who could not understand what this disease was like.

It is a book that will help you understand when someone you know experiences HG...or maybe it is you. Perhaps you are looking for answers or support during your own HG pregnancy. This book will show you that you are not alone.

I’d encourage you to pick up your own copy of Expecting Grace right away. You can also read more about what God is doing in Leah’s life on her blog, Embracing Grace. I know you will be blessed and challenged by what you find there!

 Do you know someone with HG? Let them know about this book!