Baby Then What

Jessie and Amanda, hosts of the Baby Then What podcast, formerly Pregnant Bitchez, get real about motherhood, why they can't film together right now, and why that doesn't mean this is goodbye. They talk about launching Substack, the flood of emails and DMs they've gotten since, and why writing in the in between hours might end up being even more raw than the podcast ever was. Then they go all the way back to the beginning, how this started as Pregnant Bitchez, how it became Baby Then What, and everything that happened this summer. Amanda also gives a first look at a possible solo season with guest moms.

If you're pregnant or new to motherhood, this is the perfect place to start. Then go back and listen from episode one for the full story.

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow ⁠⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

⁠⁠⁠⁠Amazon Faves⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Find us on Substack: https://substack.com/@babythenwhat

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Baby Then What⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Resources & Free Guides: ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.babythenwhat.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

More Shopping Fun: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat⁠⁠

Season 5 is a wrap,  and we're ending it the way we started: with your questions. No filter, no BS.

We kick things off by looking back on everything this season was. Amanda had a baby. We recorded in the Bahamas and took a pregnancy test on camera. First-time moms kept reminding us that every journey is different but the feelings are universal. And you guys kept us honest every single week,  the good feedback, the bad feedback, and everything in between. We love you for it.

Then we get into the Q&A,  the questions you texted, Googled at 2am, and slid into our DMs.

This week we're answering:

• The 1–2 year old stage:  what it's really like and how to survive it

• What life with three kids is actually like right now

• Is 2 under 2 as terrible as everyone says? (Spoiler: not really)

• Toddler tantrums:  how to get through them without losing your mind

• Daycare doing things you don't love when it's your only option

• Pregnant with a one-year-old:  how to manage

• Gestational diabetes : our experience and what helped

• SSRIs during pregnancy:  what you guys told us

• Earliest pregnancy symptoms (implantation cramps, Dorito cravings, we've heard it all)

• Positive ovulation tests before a missed period:  and what that might mean

• What to actually do to prepare for baby #2 (hint: build your team)

• Breastfeeding in public: our honest take (it changed a lot between kid one and three)

• Postpartum hair loss: when it starts, when it ends, does it ever end?

• Sex after baby:  realistic timelines and what actually affects it

• How do you know when you're done having kids?

• What to do when you desperately want another baby but your partner is done

• Would we ever do a live tour or meet-and-greet? (We're thinking Montreal and Miami 👀)

Plus,  we have news. We're taking a summer break and will be back in September with new guests, our husbands returning, topics we've never covered, and a few surprises. Our Substacks are launching this summer with bonus Q&As, product reviews, personal stories, and things that don't always fit into a podcast format. And merch, BTW merch or Pregnant Bitches merch? We need your vote.

Thank you for Season 5. Genuinely. See you in September. ❤️

Please follow and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and Instagram,  it makes a bigger difference than you know and helps us keep making this show for you!

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow ⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

⁠⁠⁠Amazon Faves⁠⁠⁠ 

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠ 

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠Baby Then What⁠⁠⁠ 

Resources & Free Guides: ⁠⁠⁠www.babythenwhat.com⁠⁠⁠ 

More Shopping Fun: ⁠⁠⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat⁠⁠

We pulled the questions you're actually Googling at 2am, the ones you're too scared to ask out loud,  and we're answering all of them, no fluff.

In this episode of Baby Then What, Amanda and Jessie tackle your most-submitted postpartum questions: Is it normal not to feel instant love with your baby? Why does mom guilt never go away? Why do you secretly resent your partner postpartum? And what's the real difference between a night nurse and a mother's helper?

This is the unfiltered Q&A you've been asking for,  the stuff nobody prepares you for, answered honestly.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Is it normal not to feel instant love with your baby?

• Why you might miss your old life (even when you love being a mom)

• The truth about resenting your partner postpartum

• Mom guilt: why it never actually ends

• Feeding guilt, breast, formula, combo, and why it hits so hard

• What to actually ask your village for help with

• Night nurse vs. mother's helper: what's the difference and which one you need

• How to ask for help without feeling like a failure

• The identity shift no one warns you about after baby #2

• When you actually start feeling like yourself again (and if you ever fully do)

• Pregnancy and birth in your 30s vs your 20s

• The first time going out postpartum,  what it's really like

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble - when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow @baby.then.what for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff.

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent - every call includes free resources.

Follow @baby.then.what for daily mom chaos. Amazon Faves Instagram: @baby.then.what YouTube: Baby Then What Resources & Free Guides: www.babythenwhat.com | stan.store/babythenwhat More Shopping Fun: shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat

postpartum questions, mom guilt, things nobody tells you about motherhood, postpartum reality, googling at 2am mom, resenting your partner postpartum, night nurse vs mother's helper, identity shift after baby, feeding guilt breastfeeding formula, postpartum Q&A, motherhood honest, real motherhood podcast

The two most common DMs we get? "I want to murder my husband" and "mother in law."

So we made the episode. This week Amanda and Jessie get into everything that actually happens to your relationship when you have kids, and nobody warns you about. The tier one tier two love shift the moment you hold your baby. The mental load and why just saying "how can I help" doesn't cut it. Why you're both exhausted and both think the other has it easier.

The new category of fighting that only exists when you have kids, because now everything is a decision. The touched out conversation and why mat leave and work life are two completely different worlds that are suddenly supposed to merge at 6pm. What real connection actually looks like when you have zero time. And what to actually say to the couple who is really struggling right now, not the therapist answer, the honest one. Plus: we are bringing the husbands back on in September. Comment if you want it.

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow ⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

⁠⁠⁠Amazon Faves⁠⁠⁠ 

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠ 

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠Baby Then What⁠⁠⁠ 

Resources & Free Guides: ⁠⁠⁠www.babythenwhat.com⁠⁠⁠ 

More Shopping Fun: ⁠⁠⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat⁠

Amanda is seven weeks postpartum and officially off her blood pressure medication, and today we're getting into everything breastfeeding, pumping and formula.

From the first time they shove the baby on your boob in the hospital, to latching, supply issues, engorgement, mastitis, the boob vibrator that saved Amanda's life, and the combo trifecta that nobody warns you is completely exhausting.

We also get into what actually tanks your supply, why you're not losing the baby weight while breastfeeding, the pumping hack most people don't know about, and the one question every mom asks, when is it okay to stop? No judgment here. Just the real stuff.

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow ⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

⁠⁠Amazon Faves⁠⁠ 

Instagram: ⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠ 

YouTube: ⁠⁠Baby Then What⁠⁠ 

Resources & Free Guides: ⁠⁠www.babythenwhat.com⁠⁠ 

More Shopping Fun: ⁠⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat⁠

breastfeeding tips, pumping breast milk, formula feeding, newborn feeding, postpartum, mastitis, low milk supply, combo feeding, breastfeeding problems, when to stop breastfeeding, pumping schedule, newborn, fourth trimester, mom podcast, postpartum weight loss

Amanda is officially five weeks postpartum and we are getting into all of it.

This week: what happens when postpartum doesn't go to plan, four days in, Amanda's blood pressure spiked, she ended up in the ER sobbing, and the next two weeks were a revolving door of hospitals downtown Toronto.

We break down the medication spiral (shoutout to everyone on labetalol, we see you), what OB Med is and why you might need it, and the postpartum stuff nobody puts in the baby books.

We cover breast engorgement and milk coming in (the good and the painful), the real reason for your six week checkup (hint: it is not about sex), bleeding, uterine contracting, hemorrhoids, sitz baths, peri bottles, tucks pads, all of it.

Plus: postpartum anxiety and depression, the mom guilt that hits hard with older kids at home, and why postpartum is not four weeks, it's two years.

If you're pregnant, postpartum, or you've ever grown a human this ones for you!

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow ⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

⁠⁠Amazon Faves⁠⁠ 

Instagram: ⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠ 

YouTube: ⁠⁠Baby Then What⁠⁠ 

Resources & Free Guides: ⁠⁠www.babythenwhat.com⁠⁠ 

More Shopping Fun: ⁠⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat⁠

Amanda's back, and she's no longer pregnant. This week we're getting into everything labour and delivery: Amanda's third birth at 36 weeks and 6 days, two weeks of daily triage, the moment she refused to leave the hospital, a NICU detour, skin-to-skin, and why advocating for yourself in that room is everything. Plus Jessie revisits her natural birth story, including the part where she pooped on her midwife. We break down our best tips for labour no matter how you're planning to do it: music, gut instincts, when to trust your doctors and when to push back. If you're pregnant, postpartum, or just love a raw birth story, this one's for you.

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow ⁠@baby.then.what⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

⁠Amazon Faves⁠ 

Instagram: ⁠@baby.then.what⁠ 

YouTube: ⁠Baby Then What⁠ 

Resources & Free Guides: ⁠www.babythenwhat.com⁠ 

More Shopping Fun: ⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat

Part 2 is here and this is where it gets real.

After a year of heavy periods, depleted iron, and being told everything was normal, Jessie finally has answers. She walks through the exact protocol her functional medicine doctor put her on, what it actually did, and what happened after one month. Spoiler: her first normal period in years.

She also breaks down the new protocol based on her Gut Zoomer results - parasites, mold in her gut, leaky gut, low butyrate and why functional medicine keeps changing the plan (and why that's actually the point).

Plus the non-toxic swaps she's made at home: laundry, cookware, water, skincare, sun protection, coffee makers; not sponsored, not affiliated, just what she actually uses and what her own testing confirmed is working.

This one's for the mom who's been told she's fine and knows she's not.

This episode covers:

• Functional medicine protocol for postpartum hormones
• Gut Zoomer testing & what it actually found
• Parasites, mold & leaky gut, what bloodwork missed
• The supplements that finally moved the needle
• Her first normal period in years (and what it took to get there)
• Non-toxic swaps for laundry, cookware, water & skincare
• Why "normal range" doesn't mean optimal for you
• The Mira device & tracking your own hormone data
• Endocrine disruptors, plastics & hormone health
• What functional medicine actually looks like in practice

Products Mentioned

Testing & Devices

• Mira Device — at-home hormone tracking
• Gut Zoomer — comprehensive stool/urine testing
  

Supplements — April Protocol

• Citrus Pectin Binder - Brand: Pectasol 
• Biotoxin Binder - Brand: Cellcore
• Hemevite (ferrous fumarate iron) - recommended but did not take 
• Beef Liver/Spleen — food-based iron alternative - Brand: Codeage 
• FemGuard + Balance - Brand: Designs for Health 
• LV-GB (liver & gallbladder support) - Brand: Designs for Health 
• Castor oil pack
• Magnesium Glycinate - Brand: CanPrev

Supplements — May/June Protocol

• HMET Binder - Brand: Cellcore
• Para 1 - Brand: Cellcore
• Para 3 - Brand: Cellcore 
• Tributyrin-X - post biotic for gut healing 
• Advanced Probiotic (strain-specific per Gut Zoomer results)

Non-Toxic Swaps

• Laundry detergent & cleaning products: Truly Free 
• Beef Tallow: F-Balm 
• Castor oil: anything glass bottle, hexane free 
• Mouth Tape: TapeHer
• Reverse osmosis water filter: Sorso (what I use in Toronto) 
• Minerals: Quinton Isotonic 
• Kids' cups, plates, bottles: Elk and Friends 
• Stovetop coffee maker: Bialetti 

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble, when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder. 

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow @baby.then.what for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff. 

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

Amazon Faves 

Instagram: @baby.then.what 

YouTube: Baby Then What 

Resources & Free Guides: www.babythenwhat.com 

More Shopping Fun: https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat

#postpartum #hormones #postpartumrecovery #functionalmedicine #guthealth #parasitecleanse #nontoxicliving #heavyperiods #womenshealth #postpartumbody #babythenwhat

After having kids, Jessie started experiencing extreme postpartum hormone issues that nobody could explain. Heavy periods lasting weeks, exhaustion, brain fog, anemia, hormone imbalances, parasites, detoxing, functional medicine, and feeling completely dismissed by doctors.

In this solo episode of Baby Then What, Jessie opens up about the postpartum health journey she’s been quietly dealing with behind the scenes, including the terrifying symptoms she ignored for too long, the parasite cleanse that changed everything, and why she stopped accepting “this is normal postpartum” as an answer.

This episode covers:

• Postpartum hormone imbalance symptoms

• Heavy postpartum periods & anemia

• Parasite cleanse experience (yes… actual parasites)

• Functional medicine vs traditional doctors

• Brain fog, exhaustion & low iron

• Endocrine disruptors & toxins

• Plastic, BPA & hormone health

• Gut health & postpartum recovery

• Why moms feel dismissed medically

• The truth about postpartum health after kids

If you’ve been feeling exhausted, off, hormonal, anxious, depleted, or like your body hasn’t felt the same since having kids, this episode will make you feel a lot less alone.

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble  when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode!

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff.

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

Follow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for daily mom chaos.

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More Shopping Fun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://shopmy.us/shop/babythenwhat⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

#postpartum #hormones #postpartumrecovery #momlife #parasitecleanse #functionalmedicine #heavyperiods #womenshealth #postpartumbody #babythenwhat

We're back. And this one is chaotic.

If Part 1 was the emotional one, Part 2 is the real-life, no-filter, how-are-we-surviving-this one. Amanda and Jessie are back answering more of your questions, the messy, funny, and brutally honest ones that every toddler mom and new mom is thinking but nobody answers honestly.

This mom podcast episode covers:

• Toddler tips for weaning off the bottle at bedtime
• Getting your dog to actually like your baby
• Surviving the first trimester with a toddler at home
• Pregnancy tips for your second time around
• Sex in the third trimester (you said no limits )
• How to get your toddler to listen & stop the tantrums
• Leaving the house with kids without losing your mind
• Screen time for toddlers — how much is too much?
• How to stop breastfeeding mom guilt
• Is a night nurse worth it?
• Best postpartum life hacks, jeans & advice for partners
• When to ditch the sleep sack

No doctors. No perfect answers. Just two moms in it with you.

If this episode made you feel seen, send it to a mom who needs it. 🤍

Follow Baby Then What so you don't miss Part 3 and keep sending your questions. Nothing is off limits here.

👶 New here? Baby Then What is the podcast for moms in the stage after the newborn bubble  when everyone stops checking on you but things somehow get harder.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode!

🎧 New episodes every Thursday. Follow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for real motherhood, pregnancy, and postpartum conversations without the fluff.

💛 Book a 1:1 call with us for registry help, postpartum support, or a safe place to vent, every call includes free resources.

Follow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@baby.then.what⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for daily mom chaos.

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