InCast

In this episode, we will discuss the mental-health needs of families birthing babies during a time of crisis.  We will explore what unique issues pregnant and new families have now and how a therapist can provide needed support. We speak with Sharon Storton, a Canadian Registered Psychologist, a Couple and Family Therapist, and a Certified Hypnotherapist, specializing in perinatal mental health and women's wellness. Sharon has worked with families in the childbearing period for more than three decades: as a mental health professional and, previously, as an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant, childbirth educator, and doula. Sharon has applied her passion for women and family wellness to a private psychotherapy practice, to leadership roles both within non-profit organizations and on boards of directors, and as a writer and a speaker. 

Listen and Learn: 

• How can professionals provide mental health services in this time of social distancing? 
• What types of things are troubling families during this pandemic? 
• How does this time of uncertainty affect the mother/baby bond? 
• Is postpartum mood and anxiety disorder going to be more prevalent now? 
• How can we help families seek mental health help? 

Resources & Mentions: 

• Postpartum Support International 
• InJoy Resources for COVID-19 
• Connect with Sharon 
• jane.app

Related Products from InJoy 

• Understanding Mother & Baby Care Curriculum 

• Recognizing & Treating Postpartum Depression 

First love is often thought of as special, sweet and innocent.  But sometimes that relationship can turn toxic.  As health professionals, we can make a difference in a young person’s life. In this episode we will discuss how pregnant and parenting teens are affected by abuse from a dating partner.  We will also learn how to build a trusting relationship with teens, even if you only have a short amount of time.  Our guest is Dr. Mary Jo Podgurski who is a sexuality educator and counselor along with being the past president of Lamaze International and a certified childbirth educator.  Her master’s and doctorate are in education.  She has worked with 250,000 teens, including serving over 15,000 teen parents.

Listen and Learn:

• Rate of teens involved in intimate partner violence
• Signs of intimate partner abuse
• How to connect so that young people feel open to share this information Why someone would stay in a bad relationship
• How to help young people respect and love themselves enough to create good boundaries

Resources & Mentions:

• Contact Mary Jo at [email protected]
• HealthyTeens.com
• How to tell if you’re in an abusive relationship – written by Mary Jo Podgurski
• loveisrespect.org

Related Products from InJoy:

• Healthy Steps for Teen Parents 
• Life Skills for Teen Parents 
• Parenting Basics: Self-Care for Moms Series 
• Sex Smart for Teens

Having a baby is a special time in parents’ lives. Grandparents remember the good and not so good times of bringing up their own babies.  They remember what worked for them and want to pass that information on to their children. However, best practices change frequently with maternal-child health.  What the grandparents were taught as gospel has very likely been replaced with new evidence-based information.  Learning that new information from a professional is sometimes easier than hearing it from their own children. So brings the birth of grandparenting classes!

Our guest, Andi Quinn has her bachelor’s in nursing and is the Maternal Child Nursing Coordinator in the Birth Care Center at UnityPoint Health St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where they offer 20 different classes for the childbearing year.  Based on her own good experience when she took a Lamaze class with her first baby, she ended up helping to teach the class and grew into replacing the teacher when that teacher moved on.  She has loved teaching for the past 40 some years. She is certified in several Maternal Child programs and heads a staff of talented educators. Her goal in all classes is to educate and empower women and families. She loves watching student bloom and grow their confidence right before her eyes.

Listen and Learn:

• Why grandparenting classes are more popular now than ever before
• Why adult children think that grandparenting classes are valuable
• The various roles modern grandparents are asked to play
• Curriculum and marketing ideas

Resources & Mentions:

• Contact Andi at [email protected]
• Grandparenting Class Evaluation

Related Products from InJoy:

• Understanding Grandparenting

We spoke with Dr. Kimberly Dever of South Shore Hospital and Amber Weiseth of Ariadne Labs about the Team Birth Project. This collaborative effort changes the standard approach to clinical care and has earned national attention. Their strategies foster communication and empower women and families with the goal of improving the safety and dignity of childbirth.

Kimberly Dever, MD, FACOG, is Vice President of Medical Affairs for South Shore Health and Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at South Shore Hospital. After attending Boston University School of Medicine, Dr. Dever began her career in the US Army where she served and cared for women in the military and their family members while training at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. As a senior leader at South Shore Hospital, she strives to offer the best care to patients through open communication and strong relationships. 

Amber Weiseth DNP, RNC-OB is the Associate Director for the Delivery Decisions Initiative (DDI) at Ariadne Labs, where she oversees the design, measurement, and implementation of the Team Birth Project. Amber has been an obstetric nurse for 15 years, specializing in quality improvement and project implementation. Prior to joining Ariadne Labs, Amber served as Assistant Director for Maternal-Infant Health Initiatives at the Washington State Hospital Association where she led safety and quality work in the state’s birthing hospitals.

Listen and Learn:

• What the Team Birth Project is working to achieve
• What is being done to solve for the grey
• How the Team Birth Project initiative has affected the cesarean rate
• Patient and clinician experiences with the Team Birth Project
• What’s next for the project

Resources & Mentions:

Ariadne Labs

Today we will explore the transition dads and partners face during pregnancy and postpartum that sometimes leads to paternal perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Dr. Kevin Gruenberg, PsyD, is a psychologist in private practice in Los Angeles who co-developed a home visitation program for fathers and their young children meant to promote paternal engagement and family wellbeing.  Gabrielle Kaufman (MA, LPCC, BC-DMT, NCC, PMH-C) is a licensed professional clinical counselor with over 25 years’ experience providing services to new parents, particularly those suffering from symptoms of postpartum depression.

Listen and Learn:

• Rate of mood disorders in fathers compared to mothers
• Changes in hormone levels of the father or partner
• When Dad’s mood disorders most commonly occur
• Dads matter! What dads/partners uniquely offer that enhances baby’s development

Resources & Mentions:

• Contact Kevin Gruenberg
• Contact Gabrielle Kaufman

Resources to share with families

• https://www.postpartum.net/get-help/resources-for-fathers/
• https://www.padrecadre.com/

Check out our previous InCast episode with Gabrielle about Maternal PMAD

Related Products from InJoy:

• Dad Difference
• Recognizing & Treating Postpartum Depression

Parents of multiples face unique challenges. Today we will be speaking with Nancy Bowers about the importance of multiples-focused classes, what’s new in research, and trends surrounding multiple births. Nancy Bowers, BSN, RN, MPH, is a perinatal nurse educator with 40 years in maternal-infant and infertility care. A mother of twins herself, she is a passionate advocate for the unique needs of twins and other multiples. Through her company, Marvelous Multiples, Inc., she has brought specialized prenatal education to thousands of multiple birth families across the US and Canada since 1992. Nancy is the author of The Multiple Pregnancy SourceBook, and the chapter on multiple gestation for AWHONN's Perinatal Textbook. She recently retired from her 9-year-role as the Manager of Continuing Education for the American Society for Reproductive Medicine where she was responsible for the continuing education for 8,000 multidisciplinary members worldwide. She is now working as a health education consultant and medical editor.

Listen and Learn:

• Trends and research concerning twins and higher order multiples
• The most important factors that predict length of pregnancy and health of newborns for multiples
• How classes specific to multiples increase skills and confidence in families with multiples
• Things to think about when creating structure and timing of multiples classes
• Ways to educate moms who cannot attend in-person classes

Resources & Mentions:

• Contact Nancy for more information at [email protected]

Related Products from InJoy:

•  Understanding Your Multiples Curriculum

Health systems continue to expand their reach, so it is important to consolidate resources and programs.  Offering cohesive educational resources to patients can be part of the consolidation.  Jessica Sember received her MSN with a specialization of Leadership and Organizational Development.  Jessica's nursing career has been within women's health.  She has had various roles in labor and delivery, childbirth education, and as a lactation consultant.  She is currently the perinatal education coordinator for her health system.  Listen and learn as we discuss coordinated education and some tips for success in standardizing materials, improving marketing for classes and the importance of communication among staff.

Listen and Learn:

• How health systems benefit from offering coordinated education across the organization
• What challenges need to be faced when setting up a coordinated education program
• Ways that increase cohesiveness among the education staff
• How consistent curriculum and material make a difference to patients, staff and providers

Jessica can be reached for more information at [email protected].

Related Products from InJoy:

• Understanding Curriculums

Bringing a baby home can be one of the best days of a family’s life, but what happens when they also bring home birth trauma at the same time? While only 9% of women who give birth in the US experience birth PTSD, trauma can affect up to 25% of postpartum women. Today we are joined by Dr. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, a health psychologist, IBCLC, owner of Praeclarus Press, and editor-in-chief of two peer-reviewed journals. She takes time out to talk to us about Psychological Trauma in Birth and how we can help to prevent or mitigate its effects on the mother and family.

Listen and Learn:

• What can cause psychological birth trauma and what it looks like
• What would change if we always considered the impact of how we treat mothers and whether it fosters oxytocin
• Where parents can turn for help if trauma has occurred
• How trauma can be treated and minimized with quick response

Resources & Mentions:

The National Center for PTSD

Birth Interventions Related to Lower Rates of Exclusive Breastfeeding and Increased Risk of Postpartum Depression in a Large Sample by Kathleen Kendall-Tackett

This week we are speaking with Laurel Wilson about new findings in the interaction of epigenetics and the human microbiome as it relates to pregnancy and newborns and how it is a significant predictor of health outcomes. Laurel is an international speaker, pregnancy and breastfeeding specialist, consultant, and author, including co-author of two books on pregnancy. She loves to blend recent scientific findings with mind/body/spirit wisdom.

 Listen & Learn:

• What is epigenetics? How does it affect our DNA?
• What microbiome is and how it relates to epigenetics
• What healthcare providers and families need to think about when making decisions that can affect epigenetics and the microbiome for moms and babies
• When the most sensitive period of epigenetic change to the DNA is for the child

Resources & Mentions:

 The Human Genome Project

 Related Products from InJoy:

Understanding Pregnancy Curriculum

Understanding Breastfeeding Curriculum

Practices to Increase Exclusive Breastfeeding: Core Concepts eCourse

Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH, CLC, AdvCD(DONA), LCCE, FACCE, is a busy mother of nine who got her start in reproductive health education and is the author of many pregnancy and parenting books & articles.  Robin is also the winner of Lamaze International’s prestigious Elisabeth Bing Award for “outstanding contribution to childbirth on a national level” and their President’s Award for her work with The Birth Survey. She also received the Coalition for Improving Maternity Services’ (CIMS) Forum Award. She is a member of the Birth Care Network Board of Directors that was honored with the Normal Birth Advocate Award by Lamaze. Listen to this episode to learn more about sexuality in the prenatal and postpartum periods.

Listen and Learn:

• Talking more openly about sex in the postpartum period
• The cultural misconceptions surrounding sex during pregnancy
• The benefits of continuing to be sexually active during pregnancy
• Signs and symptoms to put a brief pause on sex during pregnancy
• How intimacy does not always include intercourse

Resources and Mentions:

Listening to Mothers Survey

New Postpartum Care Recommendations Released by ACOG

ACOG Committee Opinion: Refining the Postpartum Visit

Robineliseweiss.com

[email protected] 

Related Products from InJoy:

Understanding Pregnancy Curriculum

Understanding Mother and Baby Care Curriculum

Postpartum: From Pregnant to Parent