Long active in the health and health policy fields and passionate about those disciplines, Dr. Nicole Saphier, a Fox News medical contributor, is also "equally passionate about being a mother," she told Fox News Digital in a phone interview just as her new book, "Love, Mom," hits stores this week on April 16.
The book celebrates her unexpected and dramatic journey to motherhood. It also contains an array of other moms' stories for a multi-dimensional picture of the role.
"I've always been an open book about motherhood," believing in "really putting" her "true authentic self forward," she said.
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And "I have talked many times about how my motherhood journey was not the most traditional," she said.
"I found out I was pregnant when I was still in high school, at the age of 17 — and certainly it was not the most planned event of my life," said Saphier.
However, she said, "it absolutely created the person I am today. And each time that I have told my story, I've had many people reach out to me."
As she writes in her book about her unplanned pregnancy at age 17, "After the initial shock, and worry about my future, I made the decision that despite the unknowns, I would have the child and there was no one who could change my mind."
She continued, "Believe me, many people tried. No matter how much it would change my life, I knew in my heart that a little being was growing inside me and it was my job to protect him."
She went on, "My son was born in April, and five weeks later, I walked across the stage at graduation to accept my high school diploma. My mom and dad held my newborn in the stands like Rafiki from ‘The Lion King’ holding up baby Simba for the entire pride to see."
People have felt inspired by her journey, she said — and also less alone in terms of their own journeys.
"Maybe not everybody has been in the same situation as me," she said. "But I think it's really important to share with people that when you're in an unplanned situation — whatever it may be — that if you lean on faith, family and friends, you can still get to whatever it is you're wanting to do."
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She added, "You just may be taking a different path, but there is still a path for you."
An Arizona native who today lives with her husband and three children in the New York City area, Saphier said that for many people who encounter obstacles, "the natural inclination may be to say, 'OK, well I guess I'm done walking. How am I supposed to get over this boulder?'"
Instead, she suggested, "what you can do is carve out a path that goes around that boulder. And that was me."
She knew she wanted to be a doctor "from early on" in her life, she said. And when she found she was pregnant at age 17, she said people told her, "'You know, you are not going to be able to get to those professional goals if you go through with this pregnancy.'"
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She spent "a lot of time talking with my mom and really reflecting and leaning on my teen Bible at the time," she said — which she read frequently, she said.
And she realized, "You know what? I can get there. Maybe it's not going to be the most traditional way — maybe it's not going to be as straightforward. It's certainly going to be more challenging — but I can get there."
Said Saphier, "And I've pretty much spent the last 24 years trying to prove wrong everyone who said I couldn't do what I've done."
Saphier described her chance to tell her story in book form as "an amazing opportunity."
She also stressed the book isn't just about her.
"We didn't want to stop right there." Readers can draw inspiration from a number of other women's stories as well — which she believes took the book "to another level," she told Fox News Digital.
Among the moms who shared stories, lessons and journeys are Fox News' Martha MacCallum, Ainsley Earhardt, Sandra Smith, Janice Dean, Rachel Campos Duffy, Kayleigh McEnany and more.
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She added, "And then other moms that I've had personal connections to" are included as well. "One was a patient of mine. One is a Gold Star mom whom I've known for decades."
Fox News viewers, she said, also had a chance to submit stories for consideration — and among the over 100 contributions that came in, she and her team "found two incredible ones" that are also in the book.
"When you read this collection of stories, everyone can relate to at least one of the stories here. We talk about miscarriage, illness, cancer, depression, suicide, what it's like being a professional mom, when it's the right time to become a mother — if there is one — plus the whole work-life balance issue."
Blended families are also discussed, she said.
"I was a single mom for about 10 years," she said, "and then I got married and had two more boys. We have several other blended family stories in the book."
Key for Saphier, she said, was making sure that motherhood wasn't presented as "all butterflies and roses."
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Sure, people "put their best foot forward" on TV, social media and elsewhere, she said — but she really wanted "the moms to peel back the layers. You have to be raw with the reader."
Even amid the celebration of motherhood, relationships "and overcoming obstacles, we all still deal with the same trials and tribulations," she said. "We all have moments of insecurity and weakness and suffering."
For readers who aren't parents yet but may want to be one day, several chapters discuss the contemplation of motherhood, with questions such as, "When is a good time to be a mom? Is it going to disrupt my professional life when I become a mom?"
The reality is, said Saphier, "there's no perfect time to become a mom. There's no one size fits all."
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And whether a woman has a child at a young age — as she did — or does so in her older years, "at the end of the day, being a mom truly shapes who you are."
Other plusses in the book, she said, include the advice collected from other moms — "pearls of wisdom" based on their experiences, she said, whether it's about kids and homework assignments or about fertility issues.
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Saphier shared another bonus of the book.
"All of the moms submitted quotes and words of scripture that they've drawn strength from their entire lives. So it's a wonderful reference for readers," she said.
Saphier has been a Fox News contributor since 2018. She is an associate professor at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City and director of breast imaging at Memorial Sloan Kettering in Monmouth, New Jersey.
On Monday, April 15, she hosts "Love, Mom: The Live Show" streaming on Fox Nation with four book contributors joining her to talk about their own moms, work-life balance, faith and more.
"Love, Mom," can be found wherever books are sold.
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