Send us a text In today's minisode, Trisha reviews the three most common challenges that breastfeeding moms experience: Engorgement, Nipple Pain, and Supply issues. She briefly explains why they occur and offers simple steps to recognize and resolve each issue so that you may comfortably and easily continue your breastfeeding journey. See other episodes on breastfeeding: #33 | Breastfeeding Mini: Out With The Rules, In With Your Instincts #44 | Breastfeeding Mini: The First Week of Breastfeeding...
Mar 15, 2021•17 min•Season 2Ep. 86
Send us a text Approximately 1 in 12 women are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, which can leave them feeling confused ashamed and overwhelmed with questions like, “Have I done something wrong? What can I eat now? Does this mean I have to be induced?” In this episode we speak with Leslee Flannery a dietitian from Ohio and founder of @gestational.diabetes.nutrition who loves supporting, educating and empowering women with gestational diabetes, because diet isn’t the only cause, and it doesn’t ...
Mar 10, 2021•26 min•Season 2Ep. 85
Send us a text For Lynne, giving birth via Cesarean just didn't feel like giving birth. Learning she was pregnant with her third and having had two prior C-sections, she wanted a different experience. After meeting a friend for lunch who was planning a home birth, she got curious and started exploring options and digging into the research on VBAC. While giving birth at home felt outside her comfort zone, she planned to hire a home birth midwife to support her through the early labor hours at hom...
Mar 03, 2021•36 min•Season 2Ep. 84
Send us a text Our February Q&A episode is here! Today, we discuss a wide variety of topics from the influence of medical rhetoric on our decisions in pregnancy and birth to the implications of being plus-size in pregnancy to the best time to pump your breastmilk. We have a lengthy discussion on what to wear in pregnancy and seriously question why hospitals still promote the classic hospital gown for birthing?! We talk about the physiologic mechanisms that protect babies from breathing under...
Feb 24, 2021•34 min•Season 2Ep. 83
Send us a text “I would give birth like that ten more times!” In today’s mini-sode Stefanie tells her story of choosing a homebirth VBAC (HBAC) for her second birth after knowing she would absolutely not return to the hospital to have her next baby. Despite going into to labor just before 37 weeks, Stefanie was fully committed to her HBAC birth and beautifully supported by her midwives, doulas, and partner through the entire experience. * * * * * * * * * * If you enjoyed this episode of the Down...
Feb 22, 2021•16 min•Season 2Ep. 82
Send us a text Andrea was thirty-three years-old and experiencing a low-risk healthy pregnancy when she went in for her prenatal visit at five days past her guess date and - it just so happened - the week of Christmas and New Year's. Her OB informed her that she would need to be induced. In response to her question, "What happens if we wait for labor to begin on its own," he replied, "Your baby is going to die." A few days later, when she went in for a routine check-up, her amniotic fluid level ...
Feb 17, 2021•26 min•Season 2Ep. 81
Send us a text Approximately 1 in 5 known pregnancies result in miscarriage before 12 weeks, and 1 in 4 women have experienced a miscarriage in their lifetime. Despite it being a relatively common experience, it is often left unspoken of, leaving mothers heartbroken and shrouded in feelings of guilt and failure. Today, Amanda, Nicole and Meghan share their heartfelt stories, expressing the deep emotions surrounding their losses. Amanda suffered three miscarriages between the birth of her two boy...
Feb 10, 2021•46 min•Season 2Ep. 80
Send us a text Medical Rhetoric involves language designed to have a persuasive or impressive effect on its audience, but often lacks sincerity or meaningful content. How can you tell when your obstetrician or medical provider is using rhetoric to persuade, discourage or manipulate you into going along with a particular course of action without first offering you any information or data that would be useful in your decision-making? Share your stories of rhetoric with us @downtobirthshow on Insta...
Feb 08, 2021•8 min•Season 2Ep. 79
Send us a text When Christina showed up at the hospital with ruptured membranes and GBS+ status, the hospital informed her that she was not allowed to leave—not even to return home to get her hospital bag. According to Christina, every cell in her body told her to run. She made a few phone calls, started crying while she searched for a way out, and soon found herself driving across state lines to see a home birth midwife for another opinion. This is Christina's remarkable story of following her ...
Feb 03, 2021•27 min•Season 2Ep. 78
Send us a text This month's Q&A is packed with valuable information! Check it out below: Did you Co-Sleep with your babies? I am thinking about leaving my provider. What do you recommend I say or do? Do you have any tips for prodromal labor? Is it common to have vaginal dryness while breastfeeding? Is it true that the 3rd baby can be a "wild card?" And if so, is there anything I can do? Do I need to make any changes to my breastfeeding schedule if I am trying to conceive? What is baby-led we...
Jan 27, 2021•37 min•Season 2Ep. 77
Send us a text After losing her first baby in utero at five months, Tara and her husband became pregnant again and quickly realized they were with a large group of rotating obstetricians who didn't feel quite right for them. After switching to a midwifery practice and preparing with HypnoBirthing, Tara had a beautiful birth amid COVID protocols, but not without some obstacles along the way, including dehydration, meconium and a hospital transfer. With the support of her husband and midwives, and...
Jan 25, 2021•15 min•Season 2Ep. 76
Send us a text To monitor or not monitor: that is the question. More specifically, how to best monitor your baby in labor without causing undue worry and intervention is the question of today's episode. Author, midwife, and researcher Amy Romano MBA, MSN, CNM tells us that a large body of evidence on fetal heart rate monitoring indicates that we are likely looking for and finding problems that don't actually exist when it comes your baby's heartbeat in labor. And there is a significant cost to b...
Jan 20, 2021•48 min•Season 2Ep. 75
Send us a text When Ted Yang learned his wife was pregnant, life felt amazing! He was married to the love of his life, had a fulfilling and lucrative career, and was expecting not one but three babies. But his world was turned upside down when he found himself facing the reality of premature birth, one infant loss, and two premature babies fighting for their lives. His experience as a loss father left him feeling alone in a society which fails to adequately support mothers of loss and premature ...
Jan 13, 2021•43 min•Season 2Ep. 74
Send us a text The six week postpartum visit is generally the time when new moms get the green light to return to having sex, yet so many (more than 80%) are not ready to do so. In today's mini-sode Trisha digs into the meaning of the six week postpartum visit and discusses how we can do better in supporting mothers in the postpartum transition. * * * * * * * * * * If you enjoyed this episode of the Down To Birth Show, please subscribe and share with your pregnant and postpartum friends. Between...
Jan 11, 2021•5 min•Season 2Ep. 73
Send us a text You may remember professional dancer and choreographer Claude Racine-Valinsky from episode #28. Claude came back on the show today to talk about her postpartum experience – the battle she’s having with the body she’s always counted on; the resentment she feels toward the husband she adores; and the knowledge that her son’s physical and emotional wellness has not merely integrated into her life but has taken center stage. Through her forthright language and tears, what emerges in t...
Jan 06, 2021•40 min•Season 2Ep. 72
Send us a text Our last episode of 2020 is here and it's loaded with great questions! Have you wondered why so many women experience significant hair loss postpartum? How much does a mother's experience of stress impact her baby? Why do I feel so resentful toward my husband? My OB wants to induce me for a past history of high blood pressure even though my blood pressure is currently normal. What's up with my sex drive in pregnancy? And, is it possible to experience a pain free birth? Thank you t...
Dec 30, 2020•37 min•Season 1Ep. 71
Send us a text On a little island off the coast of Maine, reside only sixty-five year round residents. The last woman to give birth on the island was Erin's grandmother ninety-three years ago. On September 26th, Azalea Belle Gray was born peacefully at home with her five siblings nearby, after a long and tiring prodromal labor followed by a swift and sudden active stage. Today's home birth story is as heart-warming as it is historical and represents the profound importance of community and famil...
Dec 23, 2020•13 min•Season 1Ep. 70
Send us a text In this birth story mini episode, Courtney shares the story of her second son's birth, which involved managing her pregnancy with a RhoGam shot due to her Rh incompatibility (which occurs when a mother's blood type is negative and her baby's is positive). Courtney's birth took place during the earlier part of the Covid pandemic and despite these unforeseen obstacles, particularly after having had an easy birth with her first son, her second birth went well and very quickly. * * * ...
Dec 21, 2020•13 min•Season 1Ep. 69
Send us a text While we still have a few more episodes going live before the end of the year, Trisha and Cynthia spend this episode looking back at the 67 episodes published thus far in season one, since the launch of Down To Birth last New Year's. Disclaimer: One of the episodes may not be suitable for everyone, as it deals with stillbirth. But check out why we selected these as our top five, and hear snippets of the episodes through our discussion. To listen to any of our "Top Five" click here...
Dec 16, 2020•29 min•Season 1Ep. 68
Send us a text Leah’s first-birth trauma began the moment she arrived at the hospital and continued during an unusually difficult, even dangerous postpartum recovery period. She was the last person to believe her second baby would arrive quickly, vaginally and naturally among a joyful staff of midwives and nurses. In this episode, Leah discusses the details around her first birth: What happened, how she was treated, how she regained control over her provider relationship and healed herself menta...
Dec 09, 2020•38 min•Season 1Ep. 67
Send us a text Dr. Elliot Berlin is a chiropractor and doula who has a knack for getting babies to assume the best position for birth. He's become an integral part of the Los Angeles county natural birth community and is the host of the Informed Pregnancy Podcast. He believes every woman should have the birth they desire and provides the tools and knowledge he feels make all the difference. In this episode with Elliot, we discuss women's choices when it comes to birth, and the variance in care a...
Dec 02, 2020•41 min•Season 1Ep. 66
Send us a text In today's mini-episode, Jen shares the story of her first of two VBACs - that is, vaginal birth after Cesarean. Jen's first birth was a scheduled Cesarean due to placenta previa, and having been cleared of that condition the second time around, Jen switched providers when her doctor didn't seem 100% on board with the idea of a VBAC. The midwives she hired believed in her every step of the way. * * * * * * * * * * If you enjoyed this episode of the Down To Birth Show, please subsc...
Nov 30, 2020•7 min•Season 1Ep. 65
Send us a text We are back with our monthly Q&A! This week we discuss the just right temp for laboring in the water, understanding why it is so hard to ask for help postpartum, how to best breathe in labor, what to do about morning sickness and nausea in early pregnancy; and finally, we bring in physical therapist, Tara Gibson, to help us better understand the impact of pubic symphysis dysfunction during labor. PS: What's the ultimate comfort food: hint, it's drinkable! Tune in to find out. ...
Nov 25, 2020•38 min•Season 1Ep. 64
Send us a text What does it take to have a successful VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean)? In this episode, we hear from several women about their successful VBAC stories followed by a discussion between Cynthia and Trisha on what it takes to get there. If 60-80% of VBAC attempts are successful and only 13% of candidates are having them, what is holding them back or standing in their way? Tune in to hear our thoughts on planning the VBAC you desire. * * * * * * * * * * If you enjoyed this episod...
Nov 18, 2020•28 min•Season 1Ep. 63
Send us a text I've been doing this work a long time. And from where I sit, I have the unique advantage of being able to observe trends and societal patterns. And there's something I've been trying to figure out for a long time: What's up with postpartum women telling us their partners - especially when those partners are men/husbands - are "supportive"? This doesn't quite sit right with me, and in today's mini-episode, I explore why. After you give it a listen, please message us @downtobirthsho...
Nov 16, 2020•8 min•Season 1Ep. 62
Send us a text Breastfeeding aversion is a little known and little discussed phenomenon that more than a few mothers experience. Zainab, author of “When Breastfeeding Sucks” and advocate for women who experience breastfeeding as less than wonderful at best and seriously shitty at worst, is here to explain what it is, what it means, and how to work with it...or not because sometimes breast is not best. If you've ever had the overwhelming urge to stop breastfeeding, this episode is for you. * * * ...
Nov 11, 2020•38 min•Season 1Ep. 61
Send us a text We are never more receptive to love (thank you, oxytocin) than in the early months after having a baby. For every couple, bringing home a baby for the first time brings up massive amounts of emotion; and, how we recognize and process these emotions with our partner determines whether we grow closer or more distant during this unique and highly vulnerable life transition. In today's episode, Maggie O'Connor, LMFT, explains how we can strengthen our relationships during this time an...
Nov 04, 2020•36 min•Season 1Ep. 60
Send us a text In this episode, one of Cynthia's HypnoBirthing clients, Andrea, shares her pregnancy and birth experience. She wanted a happy, natural birth and describes her process in achieving one, but the predominant thing she feels she learned is that she - and all women - should feel they have choice along the way. That all decisions belong to the birthing mother. * * * * * * * * * * If you enjoyed this episode of the Down To Birth Show, please subscribe and share with your pregnant and po...
Nov 02, 2020•13 min•Season 1Ep. 59
Send us a text What does it mean if my baby won't stay head down in late pregnancy? Can I prepare my perineum for birth by taking a sitz bath during pregnancy? Let's talk about VBAC/VBA2C and why Failure To Progress (FTP) is NOT a risk factor for another cesarean birth. Here's the biggest worry for new mothers planning to breastfeed: making enough milk and how to do it. What if I get the urge to push before I am fully dilated? How late in pregnancy can I change providers? Am I pregnant? My sympt...
Oct 28, 2020•34 min•Season 1Ep. 58
Send us a text Joni Stone is a homebirth midwife of twenty years. After studying neuroscience in undergrad, she earned a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology with a focus in Spirituality from Columbia. Her work explored the physical changes our brains go through in becoming mothers, and how these changes are akin to the same brain changes that occur after an intense life experience, which may result in spiritual enlightenment. In this episode, she explains the five factors in enlightenment, ra...
Oct 21, 2020•32 min•Season 1Ep. 57
