I wasn’t exactly the poster child for Catholic devotion. Raised in a devout household, I could recite the Hail Mary before I could spell my name. But by my twenties, I had walked away from the faith entirely. The rituals felt hollow, the answers too rigid. I wasn’t angry—just unconvinced.
That all changed the day I died giving birth.
Turning My Back on Catholicism
Growing up Catholic meant going to Mass every Sunday, making sacraments, and fearing mortal sin like a cosmic trapdoor. But as I got older, the strict structure of Catholicism began to feel more like a cage than a comfort. The questions I had—about suffering, about grace, about why God seemed silent—never got satisfying answers.
So I stepped away. Quietly. No dramatic exit. I just stopped going. I didn’t hate God—I just didn’t know if He was there at all.
The Day Everything Shifted
It was my second pregnancy, and everything had gone smoothly—until it didn’t. I began hemorrhaging during labor. In what felt like seconds, I lost consciousness. The medical team rushed to revive me, but for a moment, I was gone.
And in that moment, something happened.
It wasn’t like a tunnel of light or angels singing. What I felt was presence. Not a vague energy or comforting thought—but Someone. And He spoke. Not with words, but with a clarity I can’t explain: “You are not alone. I’ve never left you.”
I didn’t see His face. But I knew it was God. The God I’d ignored for years. The God I thought had nothing left to offer me.
Life After That Moment
They revived me. The baby made it. Physically, I recovered. But spiritually? I was cracked wide open. That moment reset everything I thought I knew about God, grace, and Catholicism.
I didn’t run back to the Church out of guilt. I came back because I was invited. Personally. Directly. I started small—Mass once a week, prayer when I could focus. The doctrines I once dismissed? They started to make sense again, in a deeper way.
Why I’m Sharing This
I’m not here to convince anyone to convert or return to religion. I’m sharing my story because it happened. And because I know I’m not the only one who walked away, only to come face-to-face with something we couldn’t explain.
I rejected my Catholic upbringing—until God spoke to me after I died giving birth. And that changed everything.
