Birth Kweens

In this episode, we're speaking with Rachel Rabinor, LCSW about navigating infertility. Rachel is a psychotherapist and licensed clinical social worker who specializes in reproductive and maternal mental health and runs her own private practice in San Diego, CA. Here's an overview of what's included in this episode:

• Rachel's background and how she came to specialize in this aspect of mental health
• The technical definition of infertility (i.e. how long someone must be TTC to be diagnosed with infertility)
• Some stats about infertility, including an estimation of how many people struggle with it today
• The mental/emotional challenges that people struggling with infertility often face
• How/why counseling can be helpful for someone struggling with infertility. Other treatment options that might be helpful.
• Infertility can mean an inability to become pregnant OR trouble staying pregnant (i.e. miscarriages/stillbirth). We discuss how these experiences might be different from a mental/emotional perspective.
• Some of the most common things that folks struggle with during pregnancy after struggling with infertility (i.e. anxiety, fear of loss, trouble bonding, etc.).
• Some things people can do to navigate pregnancy after loss
• Some tips for how someone can support a friend/family member who's struggling with infertility

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!

In this episode we're talking with Lisa Hendrickson-Jack about postpartum fertility. Lisa is a certified Fertility Awareness Educator and Holistic Reproductive Health Practitioner who teaches women to chart their menstrual cycles for natural birth control, conception, and monitoring overall health. In her new book The Fifth Vital Sign, Lisa debunks the myth that regular ovulation is only important when you want children by recognizing the menstrual cycle as a vital sign. Drawing heavily from the current scientific literature, Lisa presents an evidence-based approach to fertility awareness and menstrual cycle optimization. She hosts the Fertility Friday Podcast, a weekly radio show devoted to helping women connect to their fifth vital sign by uncovering the connection between menstrual cycle health, fertility, and overall health. Here's what you'll hear about in this episode:

• Lisa's background and how she got into this field
• A brief overview of the fertility awareness method
• The benefits of using FAM for birth control
• How fertility changes after pregnancy and breastfeeding
• When fertility returns after giving birth
• The effectiveness percentage of the fertility awareness method
• Some misconceptions about FAM
• Challenges of using FAM as birth control in the postpartum period

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!

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In this episode we're talking with Emily E. Little, Ph.D. all about babywearing/carrying.

Emily completed her Ph.D. at University of California, San Diego in developmental psychology with a specialization in anthropogeny, which is the study of human origins. Her research program examines maternal-infant health behavior from a cultural and psychological perspective, focusing on the intersection of physical contact, breastfeeding, and communication. She has used her skills as a Certified Lactation Educator Counselor (CLEC) and a Volunteer Babywearing Educator (VBE) to conduct health outreach programs internationally, including lactation education programs for community health centers in Bolivia and Kangaroo Mother Care training programs for maternal health centers in Guatemala.

Emily is the founder and director of the nonprofit organization Nurturely. She was inspired to start Nurturely to promote increased collaboration between researchers, physicians, community health workers, and caregivers in conducting impactful, interdisciplinary research and implementing evidence-based outreach programs to support the health and development of infants and their caregivers.

Here's an overview of what's covered in this episode:

• Emily's background and how she became interested in babywearing and infant attachment
• When/why research began on the topic
• How babywearing can positively impact preterm babies
• How babywearing is different in the US versus other cultural contexts
• The relationship between babywearing and infant feeding
• Emily's current research projects
• Babywearing and infant development
• Babywearing and hip dysplasia
• How early you can start wearing your baby and how long you can continue
• A little info about different types of carriers
• Notes on babywearing safety
• Info about the work that Emily's non-profit, Nurturely, is doing and how it ties into babywearing
• Some links to the resources that were mentioned in this episode:
  • Just one example of the cultural uniqueness of the US with regard to our relatively little amount of physical contact with infants: mothers in the US are in physical contact with 3- to 4-month-old infants for 18% of a 24-hour period in comparison with communities in Africa where mothers are in physical contact with infants 79%-99% of the time
  • Benefits of direct skin-to-skin contact for preterm/term infants in the hours immediately after birth (just a few of my favorites, definitely not an exhaustive list!): lower infant cortisol reactivity, decreased postpartum depression symptoms, increased infant alertness, improved infant motor and cognitive development, increased breastfeeding duration, decreased time to deliver the placenta, analgesic effects, improved sleep cycles, increased neural development, improved social engagement/reciprocity in childhood
  • Benefits of babywearing/carrying (without direct skin-to-skin) in the months postpartum: increased likelihood of secure attachment to caregivers, decreased crying, associated with increased responsiveness to infant hunger cues, breastfeeding duration, connection to decreased incidence of hip dysplasia
  • Connection between responsive feeding and childhood obesity and development of infant hunger cues (potentially also related to the responsiveness that is facilitated by direct breastfeeding versus bottle feeding, another cool study on this here)
  • Nurturely and link to donate if anyone wants to support more babywearing/breastfeeding research!

In this episode, we're speaking with Dr. Najmeh Hannanvash, DDS, MSD about treatment options for tongue and lip ties. Dr. Hannanvash is a board certified pediatric dentist who owns and operates Little Star Pediatric Dentistry in San Diego, CA. Here's what we cover:

• Hannanvash's background and how she got into this field
• The anatomy of ties (what they are, where they're located, the different types, etc.)
• Info about posterior tongue ties and how they're different from a "regular" tongue tie
• Who's qualified to diagnose a tie and what the diagnostic criteria are
• Long-term implications of tongue/lip ties besides just feeding issues
• How a tongue/lip tie revision is performed. What a family can expect during and after the procedure.
• The pros and cons of each revision method
• What the after care is like for a revision (healing, stretches, follow up appts, etc.)
• How often the revisions are successful and what defines success
• Whether a tie always requires a revision. The factors a family should take into consideration when making the decision.
• Hannanvash's opinion on the reasons behind the sharp increase in tongue tie diagnoses in recent years
• Suggested resources from Dr. Hannanvash:
  • Kotlow's website: www.kiddsteeth.com
  • Ghaheri's website: www.drghaheri.com
  • Click here to view the study on the incidence of lingual ties that Dr. Hannanvash refers to in the episode
  • Facebook group (international): Tongue Tie Babies Support Group
  • Facebook group (California): California Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Support Group
  • H's site (info on procedure and pre/post protocol): www.littlestardentistry.com
  • Families in the San Diego area can call or email Dr. H for more info: 619-630-4000 or [email protected]

Robin Kaplan, M.Ed., IBCLC is a lactation consultant in San Diego, CA. She launched the San Diego Breastfeeding Center in 2009 and has recently published her first book, Latch: A Handbook for Breastfeeding with Confidence at Every Stage. Robin was kind enough to sit down with the Birth Kweens to discuss the feeding implications of tongue and lip ties. Here's an overview of what's covered in this episode:

• What tongue and lip ties are (different types, where they're found anatomically, etc.)
• How tongue/lip ties are diagnosed and whether lactation consultants are qualified to make a diagnosis
• How ties can impact breastfeeding and whether they always present a problem
• When ties usually start to impact feeding (whether it's immediate or if issues can present later on)
• Whether a tie can impact a bottle fed baby
• Some of the things that parents can look for at home that might signify their baby has a tie
• What parents should do if they suspect their baby has a tie (including what type of care provider they should see to get it diagnoses/treated)
• What kind of lactation/feeding support a family usually needs after getting their baby's tongue and/or lip ties revised
• Robin's input on why it seems like there's such a high incidence of lip and tongue ties these days
• Resources suggested by Robin
  • Catherine Watson Genna's website and
  • Ghaheri's website
  • SDBFC's blog on tongue/lip ties
  • YouTube video about infant factor breastfeeding issues
  • Frenectomy Home Care Info video
  • https://tonguetie.net/?option=com_content&task=view&id=3&Itemid=3
• Click here to listen to Robin's first interview with us about how to set yourself up for success with breastfeeding
• Click here to buy Robin's book!

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!

Stephanie Miller is a wife and mom of two boys from San Diego, CA and she's sharing both of her birth stories with us in this episode! Stephanie planned to have her first son, James, in a hospital-based birth center but that plan changed when she was diagnosed with preeclampsia at 38 weeks pregnant. She was admitted for an induction right away and James, via an unmedicated vaginal delivery. James spent some time in the NICU after birth and the whole hospital experience proved to be a bit challenging for their family. When Stephanie got pregnant with their second son, Henry, she and her husband Alex opted for a home birth (with kweens Karly and Ali!). Henry was born peacefully at home after a healthy pregnancy that did not include any issues with blood pressure! Tune in to hear Stephanie share how each of her labor and birth experiences were unique and how the comprehensive prenatal care she received during her second pregnancy was aimed at preventing issues such as preeclampsia.

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR!

Sign up for a Fab Fit Fun box today! Enter code KWEENS for $10 off your first box!

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In this episode, we're joined by one of our favorite past guests, Monica Toombs (see ep14 and ep15 to listen to her birth stories)! She's a research beast and took the time to look up tons of info about weird and wonderful birth rituals from antiquity and beyond! Tune in to this episode to hear some strange facts and cool stories about how humans have been growing and birthing babies since they started walking upright on this planet. We promise you're in for a wild (and somewhat disgusting) ride!

For those who are interested, here's the list of sources Monica used to put together this episode:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_medicine_in_antiquity#Labor_and_Delivery
• https://listverse.com/2013/12/25/10-strange-customs-surrounding-birth-and-babies/
• https://mom.me/kids/5150-bizarre-birth-rituals/item/29477-10_bizarre-birth-rituals/
• https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/14/birth-practices-from-the-past_n_439913.html
• http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0137%3Abook%3D28%3Achapter%3D77
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placentophagy
• https://www.parents.com/pregnancy/giving-birth/home/9-birthing-rituals-of-the-past/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twilight_sleep
• https://gizmodo.com/a-brief-history-of-vaginal-cutting-during-childbirth-1710537581
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caesarean_section
• https://sarahbuckley.com/lotus-birth-a-ritual-for-our-times-2/

In this episode of Birth Kweens, we're talking with Dr. Stanton Hom, DC about chiropractic care in pregnancy. Here's what we cover:

• Stan's background and how he became a chiropractor
• A basic explanation of what chiropractic care is and what's in the scope of practice for a chiropractor
• The goal of chiropractic and how it's different from the typical medical model of care
• Why chiropractic care is so helpful during pregnancy
• When to start getting adjustments prenatally
• The specific pregnancy-related conditions that chiropractic adjustments can treat
• How to figure out whether a chiropractor is experienced in treating pregnant people (what questions to ask, special trainings to look for, etc.)
• Click here to get Dr. Stan's free audio report "The Top Prenatal Chiropractic Care Mistakes Expectant Patients Make and How to Avoid Them"

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!

Nicole Morales, LM, CPM is a home birth midwife, Approved Spinning Babies Trainer, and Certified Birthing From Within Mentor from San Diego, CA. She has an extensive amount of knowledge and experience regarding breech birth which is why we asked her to come on the show and talk with us about this often misunderstood topic. Here's an overview of what's covered in this episode:

• Nicole's background, including how she became a birth worker and her own experience giving birth to a breech baby
• The point of pregnancy at which it's normal/common for a baby to be breech vs. the time when someone might want to begin activities to encourage a baby to turn
• Why breech birth is so controversial and the potential problems it presents
• Studies on the safety of vaginal breech birth, including the highly problematic Term Breech Trial that led to a drastic reduction in vaginal breech delivery
• The different types of breech presentation and how common it is for babies to present breech
• Tips for how to prevent a baby from being breech
• Things you can do to encourage a breech baby to turn head down, including body work and an external cephalic version (ECV)
• Some possible causes of a breech presentation
• The opportunities for reflection and introspection that come with a breech presentation (and all pregnancies, really)
• Resources:
  • Breech Without Borders
  • Breech Birth San Diego
  • Spinning Babies – Breech Presentation

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!

In this episode of Birth Kweens, we're talking with Jennifer Summerfeldt, MACP about birth trauma. Jennifer is a counselor who has nearly two decades of experience working in maternal health and psychology. In addition to being a counsellor, she's also been a childbirth advocate, maternal educator, doula, midwifery apprentice, and published writer. She is the founder and creator of the Healing After Birth program, where she uses her expertise and voice to help advance the dialogue on motherhood, mental health, and healing. She is the author of the book Healing After Birth. Here's what we cover with Jennifer:

• Jennifer's background and how her own pregnancy and birth experiences led her to the field of maternal mental health
• How to define trauma, specifically as it relates to birth
• Signs and symptoms of birth trauma
• Some theories on why many new parents find it so difficult to identify that they've experienced birth trauma and/or reach out for help
• Some misconceptions about trauma
• How to define dysregulation of the nervous system and why it's an important concept to understand when it comes to healing from trauma
• The relationship between trauma and shame
• How to get started working through a traumatic birth experience when it seems completely overwhelming/impossible
• The important role that meditation plays in healing from trauma
• Find binaural beats on Sacred Acoustics
• Click here to buy Jennifer's amazing book, Healing After Birth

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If you liked this episode of the Birth Kweens Podcast, tell your friends! And go to iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, and Spotify to rate/review/subscribe to the show. For more from us, visit www.BirthKweens.com to sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram @BirthKweens, join our Facebook group the Birth Kweens Podcast Community, and email us at [email protected] with your questions, suggestions and feedback. Also, be sure to click here so that you can support the show while doing your regular Amazon shopping!