Becoming Parents Podcast

• Raised my nephew for much of my teens (my sister, 10 years older, lived at home).  I was a surrogate parent before I was even an adult myself.

• That early taste of "parenthood" left me terrified to have my own kids until I met my husband and knew it would be different.

• I came off birth control to start trying, and irregular periods confirmed what I'd long suspected: PCOS.

• I worked with my OB and a fertility team for both pregnancies in awe of how precisely they manage the endocrine system.

• That struggle inspired additional learning: became Obesity Medicine certified to understand the hormone-weight connection.

• Realized women hit the same wall at menopause so pursued Menopause Society certification too.

• Founded Achieve Health NV in Reno so patients get real time and a real ear because they are hard and impact people profoundly.

• Both my boys were very content where they were. My first arrived at 41 weeks after two failed induction attempts and a c-section, my second was a planned c-section because my cervix was more secure than Fort Knox.

• Now they're two wonderfully glam little guys who love nothing more than belting out a song.

I am the co-Founder of Achieve Health NV which is a membership based clinic in Reno, NV offering primary care and weight management services.

FIND HER HERE:

www.achievehealthnv.com; www.facebook.com/achievehealthnv.; www.instagram.com/achievehealthnv

LOCAL EDITION EPISODE! 

-Having babies in my early 20's, leaving my career to be a SAHM

-Being a mom and wanting a career (overcoming mom guilt)

-Autoimmune conditions and motherhood (diagnosed following the birth of my 1st daughter)

-The importance of advocacy in the L&D room

-Baby led weaning and my kids nutrition

-Struggles with nursing and the pushing through

-Two different kids, with different parental needs and navigating that

-Raising kids that are contrary to societal norms (Nutrition, Sports, Sleep and Screens)

I am the owner and health education practitioner at Connected Health. Also- a Nutrition Therapist in training. I work with clients to help manage their health, navigate/manage/understand their chronic illness, and educate parents on the importance of childhood nutrition. Focused on foundational health to improve quality of life.

FIND HER HERE:www.connectedhealthnv.com

https://www.instagram.com/connectedhealthnv/

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584133765088

After 17 years of misdiagnosed infertility and repeated early miscarriages, I became a mom against the odds. That deep desire to have a family is what pulled me into this work.

My first birth nearly killed me. My daughter was stuck, I told them the position I needed and was ignored, and three hours later it became an emergency. Forceps, a fourth-degree tear, a hemorrhage. I almost died on that table. Then I had to fight to breastfeed my own baby, after being told my infertility was the reason they couldn't help. It wasn't.

I've since parented my children through real medical conditions, including sickle cell, and learned firsthand how often families are sent home without answers.

Today I'm mom to two loud, joyful kids tearing up my house. My son just wants to play Uno. My daughter is a princess who spins on the floor constantly. Everything I survived became the reason I refuse to let anyone who walks through my door go through what I did.

I'm the founder of Birthwise, a Charlotte-based maternal and women's health practice, and the creator of The Lifespan Birth Method™, an integrated approach that treats birth as a lifespan event, not a 48-hour clinical one. I support families through fertility, pregnancy, birth, and postpartum, train new practitioners, and work with insurers and policymakers on better maternal care. My two-year partnership with AmeriHealth Caritas saved an average of $2,000 per birth and is now expanding statewide across North Carolina. We make the physiological logical.

FIND HER HERE:

Website: https://www.birthwisedoulas.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/birthwisedoulas_

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BirthWiseDoulas

LinkedIn (Toni): https://www.linkedin.com/in/toni-curtis

LinkedIn (company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/birthwisedoulas

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@birthwisedoulas

X/Twitter: https://x.com/BirthWiseDoulas

[email protected]

LOCAL EDITION EPISODE! 

Leah and I have four children. I was in graduate school when we met, and then I worked on the road as a PSYCH NP in Prisons, when we had our first three kids. After every pregnancy, Leah had postpartum depression, but after our third child, it was severe and coupled with the onset of COVID. It was a long journey out of that time, and after the most recent child, Leah has used the PBM P4 protocol to stave off PPD. 

I own Peak Body & Mind in Reno, Nevada

Leah has a degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology, but has chosen to stay home since we had our first child 10 years ago. She even gave up her master's program to raise the kids.  

FIND HIM HERE: 

www.peakbodymind.com

https://www.instagram.com/peakbodyandmind_

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61588819450080

You don’t truly grasp a challenge until you face it yourself. As a physician, I understood the gaps in postpartum care—but as a new mom, I lived them courtesy of my four sons.  Collectively, I have endured postpartum depression, perinatal anxiety, uterine infection, 3-4 degree tears, c-section, natural delivery, pre-eclampsia, VBACs, breastfeeding struggles--and the American healthcare system failed me.  

I am physician, more specifically a pediatrician, neonatologist, and lactation specialist.  With all my privilege on paper, my own healthcare system failed me...so what about other mothers.  Seven years ago, I started on the journey to change our medical postpartum care system. I realized that better care doesn’t just help individual mothers; it can lower our nation’s alarming maternal mortality rate and prevent postpartum depression. In the U.S., two-thirds of maternal deaths happen after birth, yet moms wait weeks for a checkup while newborns get immediate care. 

I launched and run NayaCare and Naya AI

FIND HER HERE:

www.naya-app.ai

https://www.instagram.com/nayacare/

https://www.facebook.com/nayacarecolorado

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonal-patel-md-12982a141/

https://www.youtube.com/@nayacare6918

Tiktok: @sonalpatel4tridoc

https://www.tiktok.com/@4thtrimd?_r=1&_t=ZT-95RAdboDIzd

TEDX: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8ZjKebeaKY

NonProfit: https://c4tc.co/

BOOK: https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Her-Black-Bag-Old-Fashioned-ebook/dp/B09LLFSHTD/ref=sr_1_2?crid=BJWRPJSGRQ93&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9._WwXfsJNuJn0BU7YIg1A1For_O33Ens_4zY5kt8zzK9-SQ9zmU2lK0QbO-dTJ4tDvnB_z4joB8LIE9DV38L7Xq_LXnlUU-tGUWGSqZFXQzo.UinbVGF6U2Akq4mjmMTT1w4oK9Cw3YDG2Vn711Ifprc&dib_tag=se&keywords=sonal+patel&qid=1785955544&s=books&sprefix=sonal+patel%2Cstripbooks%2C203&sr=1-2

We built what we are calling the Digital Village SDK which helps corporate web and app designers, parents and educators stay compliant with GRC laws, and create a safer on and offline experience for kids.

FIND HER HERE:X and LinkedIn : LisaManns6

AuthentiKid everywhere else

https:://www.authentikid.com

OUR FIRST EPISODE 6/14/2024:https://youtu.be/aUufP8urOgk

Dr Clay and his wife experienced their own infertility journey, an experience that tested them deeply but ultimately brought them closer together.

That outcome sparked a defining question: Why do some couples grow closer after infertility or pregnancy loss, while others grow apart?

Pursuing this question, Dr. Clay studied more than 1,000 couples navigating infertility and reproductive loss. His findings identified four consistent factors—the Four Pillars of Connection—that predict resilience in relationships facing reproductive trauma.

His research has informed clinical practice, been published in leading journals, and is now used by therapists and couples worldwide. To serve local clients, he founded Shiloh Counseling in Ballwin, Missouri, specializing in reproductive grief and relationship counseling.

Dr. Clay Brigance, PhD, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor, researcher, and nationally recognized specialist in couple therapy for infertility and reproductive grief. He is the founder and clinical director of Shiloh Counseling, a group practice specializing in relationship therapy for couples navigating infertility, miscarriage, and perinatal loss. He is also the host of the podcast “Love and Infertility”.

For over a decade, Dr. Brigance has worked almost exclusively with couples facing reproductive trauma. His clinical and research work has included more than 1,000 individuals and couples experiencing infertility and miscarriage, informing his integrative approach to treatment. He has published in some of the top journals for couples work, including Marriage and Family Therapy, Couple and Relationship Therapy, and The Family Journal, among others. His model draws from interpersonal mindfulness and evidence-based couple therapy approaches, including the Gottman Method and emotion-focused principles, to help couples reduce conflict, process grief, and rebuild emotional connection.

Dr. Brigance is also a researcher examining the role of interpersonal mindfulness, stress biomarkers, and relational resilience in couples navigating infertility. His work seeks to better understand how couples can maintain closeness under chronic stress and how therapeutic interventions can foster long-term relational growth following reproductive loss.

In addition to his clinical practice, Dr. Brigance trains therapists nationally and speaks on the relational impact of infertility and reproductive grief. His work is deeply informed not only by research and clinical experience, but also by his own journey through infertility. As someone who has personally navigated the uncertainty, loss, and strain that reproductive grief can bring to a marriage, he brings a grounded empathy to his work that resonates with both clinicians and couples.

Dr. Brigance lives in the St. Louis area with his family. His work is devoted to helping couples move from silent suffering toward connection, clarity, and resilient love in the face of disrupted dreams of parenthood.

FIND HIM HERE:

WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA: 

Website: https://www.drclaybrigance.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr_claybrigance/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Shiloh-Counseling-LLC/100090955350701/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clayton-brigance-phd-lpc-99a4381a4/ 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dr.ClayBrigance/featured 

Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/326IpwHCa0diGyJIz4QgZj?si=51d3e3c2e386477a&nd=1&dlsi=1651f7262f41401b 

• Former corporate executive turned fertility coach after my own path into motherhood awakened something deeper in me

• Mother of three children, navigating parenting as a single mom after a high conflict divorce

• Experienced the emotional and identity shift of becoming a parent while building a business and redefining my life

• Parenting has been one of my greatest teachers in surrender, patience, and self awareness

• Balancing ambition, motherhood, and healing from relationship trauma

• Supporting my children through transitions, co parenting dynamics, and emotional resilience

• Deeply passionate about breaking the silence around fertility struggles and motherhood challenges

• Have now helped welcome 700 plus babies through my work, supporting women before pregnancy and into motherhood

• Believe there is no perfect way to become or be a parent, only a more supported and empowered way

I am the founder of The Fertility Solution, a global fertility coaching program.

I am a fertility coach with over 15 years of experience and have helped welcome over 700 babies. I specialize in helping women optimize their fertility naturally, whether they are trying to conceive, preparing for IVF, or navigating unexplained infertility.

My work focuses on a holistic, research backed approach that integrates physical health, nervous system regulation, emotional wellbeing, and personalized strategy so women can get pregnant and have healthy pregnancies.

FIND HER HERE:

Website: https://soniaribas.com

Free masterclass: https://www.thefertilitysolution.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soniaribascoach

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@soniaribascoach

We went through 3 IUI's and 2 IVF's, over a 3 year journey trying to get pregnant, then finally - we had our baby girl. 

During this time of trying to conceive we dealt with various health scares, I was let go from my job and had a family death... all within a few weeks. It was a low point in our relationship but we stuck together and pulled through. 

I own a content agency and an apparel brand for Dads.

We started it because being a dad is heavy.

Human Dad wasn’t born in a group chat looking for laughs.It was born in the quiet moments — when responsibility hits harder than you expected, and there’s no manual, no applause, and no reset button...

FIND HIM HERE: 

humandad.com

https://www.instagram.com/humandadbrand

Houlie Duque is the founder and CEO of HomeschoolToGo, a pioneering bilingual (English/Spanish), personalized K-12 education program serving families across the Americas. HomeschoolToGo is the leading organization for personalized education Across the Americas.

After a 10 year career as an educator for prestigious institutions, Houlie realized the answer to developing a child for a promising future was not memorization and compliance, but rather unleashing the innate genius in each individual. 

Houlie's mission, since starting HomeschoolToGo, has been to make high quality education accessible to parents that want to write a better story for their children. As we enter pivotal times of economic decentralization, and technological artificial intelligence advancements it is crucial that the next generation is being trained and developed to build a better world.

Can you imagine a world where children grow to their full potential? With HomeschoolToGo, Houlie intends to revolutionize education by facilitating personalized curriculums and raising a generation of geniuses who had been stripped of their gifts for decades via the public school system.

Houlie is the CEO and Founder of HomeschoolToGo the leading organization for Personalized Education across the Americas

FIND HER HERE:https://www.homeschooltogo.org/

@houlieduque

@homeschool.togo