Proud childless cat lady here, not by choice but by divine circumstances. Affirming this now is more apropos than ever, with October being Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month and, even more importantly, reproductive rights being a divisive, key issue of the upcoming 2024 U.S. presidential election.

For 16 years, I navigated the rollercoaster of infertility. I have been punctured with needles so many times that I have become immune to their prick.  I endured rounds of ultrasounds, scans, and X-rays; enlisted the services of gynecological specialists, homeopath doctors, spiritual healers, a nutritionist, a herbalist, and a wombologist; drawn on prayer and meditation as well as alternative resources such as acupuncture, Reiki, Kinesiology, crystals, and stones.  

After enduring four miscarriages, three myomectomies, two failed IVF procedures, one failed IVF procedure, a dance with death, scars, and the constant return of multiple fibroids, and ultimately a hysterectomy, I finally decided to call ‘uncle.’ My poor womb had done her best, and I have had enough.

The quest to have a baby nearly cost me my life.
– Robyn Greene Arrington

I invested massive amounts of energy, time, and money into battling for my reproductive health.  The quest to have a baby nearly cost me my life.  The physical, spiritual, mental, and monetary costs of my infertility exercises were high but not futile. Once I embraced my infertility, I recognized that God had spared my life during the Dilation & Curettage (D&C) procedure of one of my deceased babies for a purpose.  I had a rebirth, emerging more resilient and robust with a deeper understanding of my purpose in life.   

Choosing myself over my womb, a biological baby, and the traditionally patriarchal, Judo-Christian definition of womanhood, I discovered the paramount importance of continuous mind, body, and soul self-care.  So, I took the time to nurture and heal myself.  Subsequently, healthcare has become the central theme of my life and work. 

Naturally, as an innate storyteller, a trained journalist, and a creative professional, I birthed an inspiring tale about a family’s reproductive experiences.  My short film, #exercises/in/fertility, streaming on Mansa.com, chronicles that story. I am on a mission to raise funds to produce the feature-length version #an/exercise/in/fertility, which is a deeper examination of the impact of abortion, infertility, treatments for it, and other options to be a parent.  The feature film will undoubtedly contribute to the continuation of the fight to maintain reproductive rights while fostering insightful conversations about the intersection of politics, race, gender, and religion with reproduction.

I’m nurturing, by nature, in all areas of my life for many…. young and old, including family, friends, and colleagues.  Thus, with no regret, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I left a senior management promotion on the table to care for my mom.  Like so many in my generation, I am mothering my mother.  Growing up, I witnessed my mother gracefully take on the role of a familial caregiver, and being my own health advocate prepared me to be hers. 

So please tell me, Senator J.D. Vance: How am I anti-family?  Why should my vote not be equal to that of my fellow citizens who happened to be blessed to be parents?  

United States Vice President / Democratic Party Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris sums it up best, “Family comes in many forms, and I think that increasingly, all of us understand that this is not the 1950s anymore.”

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” – Maya Angelou

I am a childless mother, rising above my life-changing losses to “keep on keeping on,” as my mom says.  As a descendant of the original mother, I instinctively implement my maternal nurturing to whoever needs it.  And no person or political party has jurisdiction over the definition of family.  Everyone-including every WOMAN– should have domain over their being.