Holding Space for Joy: A Prayer Companion for Women Struggling with Infertility

Infertility is a crisis, often silently brewing, within the fabric of our families, communities, and Church. According to the CDC, one in six couples now face a diagnosis of infertility. Infertility deeply affects the hearts and minds of couples everywhere, and we need better support and resources.

Many of us don't have pastoral guidance on how to navigate this difficult and unexpected situation that touches the core of our womanhood — until we learn how to enter into our suffering constructively, forge honesty with ourselves and God, receive his authentic love, discover our innate motherhood, and unpack the goodness within us that cannot be taken away.

Holding Space for Joy helps women struggling with infertility make this much-needed prayer journey and offers solidarity along the way. This prayer companion presents nine concepts that helped author Mary Bruno find true peace even before she became permanently infertile. With original prayers, song suggestions, and journal prompts, this book can assist in the healing process.

“As a clinician, I find Mary’s ability to advise and encourage invaluable. Her personal experience serves as an irreplaceable authority perfect to offer hope and shed light on pathways toward integrating the painful experience of infertility into something of purpose, something not to be wasted. Mary’s book is the guide I wish I had during my infertility journey. I will be recommending this to those I work with in the counseling room.” — Regina Boyd, licensed therapist, author of Leaving Loneliness Behind
“Holding Space for Joy weaves together helpful guidance, thoughtful reflection, and sincere accompaniment in the much-needed area of infertility ministry. Through this heart-touching and eminently practical little volume, Bruno offers women a unique invitation to pray and work through their relationship with God, their spouse, and their bodies. As an NFP instructor, I am glad to have this book to share as a resource with any Catholic woman carrying her own unique cross of infertility.”—Christina Valenzuela, founder of Pearl & Thistle and author of The Language of Your Body
“This book is EXACTLY what I have been waiting for for my Christian, female patients struggling with infertility. Mary struggled for years with a very difficult case of infertility and leaned on her faith and wisdom and inner strength to get through; she stumbled but picked herself up by the end of her journey to realize that motherhood can be realized beyond any limitations of biological challenges. She uses her ability to speak candidly and relatably, like an old, dear friend, while gently adding her faith-based wisdom and resources on the interactive pages of this guide. I cannot wait to share this with my patients and audience!” — Naomi Whittaker, MD, OBGYN, NaProTechnology & MIGS Surgeon, CFCMC, FCI
“Mary’s personal journey into the darkest depths of infertility has birthed a relatable, theological, and practical companion for other women laboring to embrace this often unseen cross. If I could sum up Mary’s book in one sentence, it would be this quote from Saint Augustine: ‘In my deepest wound I saw your glory and it dazzled me.’ I’ve had the distinct honor of holding space for Mary as a friend and colleague, and I can attest to just how deeply this book is the fruit of her courageous willingness to allow God to transform her pain into something truly dazzling. Holding Space for Joy is a must-have for any woman yearning to live fully with infertility, and an ideal gift to let friends carrying this cross know they are seen and loved.” — Emily Frase, cofounder and president, FAbM Base