Midwife Pip® Podcast

It is not a surprise to us that our bodies undergo enormous change during pregnancy and childbirth and one of the biggest issue’s women are often faced with is diastasis recti- whereby the abdominal muscles separate, leaving a gap.

For many women this can have a huge impact on their physical and psychological wellness, and it is not a condition that is commonly discussed prenatally leaving women unsure as to why a diastasis has happened to their body and what can be done to help correct it.

So, I am very pleased to be joined by Diastasis Recti expert Grainne Donnelly to reveal all we need to know about this surprisingly common symptom.

Gráinne is an Advanced Physiotherapist in Pelvic Health. Her particular areas of interest include diastasis rectus abdominis and perinatal exercise. She is involved in research on both of these topics and looks forward to exploring and developing how we understand them so that we can better serve the women of today. Gráinne is an honorary member of the Perinatal Physical Activity Research Team and is on the specialist advisory board of the Active Pregnancy Foundation. You can check out more of Grainne’s fantastic information and resources over on her Instagram page @absolute.physio and website https://www.absolute.physio.

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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Let’s be honest babies and nappies basically come hand in hand and much of the first few months of parenthood is spent conducting continual nappy changes and a increased supermarket bill each week from the endless supply needed. And with all of this you can que the black bin bags of disposable nappies piling up which will mostly end up in a landfill site somewhere. In fact, it is estimated that a baby will use around 6000 disposable nappies before he or she is potty trained!

In a world where we are becoming more environmentally aware and looking for more sustainable ways to parent, reusable cloth nappies can offer a fantastic option. But navigating the right style, nappy system and washing routine can feel a bit overwhelming. This is something I have personally done a lot of research around and thankfully the complicated nappy systems and wrapping that was necessary in previous years is no longer. Reusable nappies can actually be as simple as disposables with the big benefit of saving us money and helping the environment in which we live too.

On this weeks episode I have the pleasure of being joined by an expert, Fiona Smyth, founder of TotsBots, whose nappies are gorgeous and I cannot wait to dress our little boy in all the cute bottom designs very soon, to help us fully understand the world of reusable nappies, our options and why it really can be a simple and fantastic solution.

You can check out the full TotsBots range and many of the products discussed today via the website link below:

https://www.totsbots.com

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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As women we seemingly spend half of our lives trying not to get pregnant and the other half trying to or worrying about our abilities to conceive. The journey to motherhood is not always plain sailing and for some parents it’s a full on stormy, dark skies road. Operations, injections, lengthy waits, and baby loss feature in many more parents trying to conceive journeys than most of us are aware. Infertility and fertility struggles still remain a huge taboo subject but it is so important that parents on this journey can recognise that they are not alone.

On this weeks episode I am delighted to be joined by Sophie Martin, a registered midwife who has been working in a central London hospital for the past 9 years. 4 years ago Sophie and her husband James started trying for a baby. Since then, they have undergone 6 rounds of IVF treatment, and sadly also said goodbye to their identical twins sons Cecil & Wilfred who were born prematurely at 21 weeks. Sophie has been sharing her story on her Instagram account @the.infertile.midwife, to spread awareness of infertility and baby loss, and to provide support to others who are also living through this.

https://www.instagram.com/the.infertile.midwife/

And, I am sure I speak for many women when I say the biggest of thank you’s to Sophie for sharing her journey so openly and honestly to support others navigating a similar path.

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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The fourth trimester and motherhood encompass such huge changes in a woman’s life, yet we hardly spend any time planning for some of the challenges. Exercising in the postpartum has a whole heap of physical and psychological benefits but the realities of this with a new baby can be a challenge. Feeding your baby, navigating life as a new parent, sleep deprivation, a recovering body, good old mum guilt and lack of routine all creep in.

But what can we do, how can we negotiate all of this and what should exercise look like post birth?

On this week’s episode I am delighted to be joined by Pre- and Post-natal exercise expert and founder of Bumps and Burpees, Charlie Barker.

Charlie is the founder of Bumps & Burpees, the go-to community for new and expectant mums who want to stay strong, healthy, and happy throughout their pregnancies and into motherhood. As a qualified pre & post-natal exercise specialist Charlie is passionate about educating and empowering women at a time in their lives where things can feel daunting and living and breathing it all herself now has only made her desire to help others deeper.

Check out Charlie’s Instagram page and website below for more pre and postnatal exercise inspiration:

https://www.instagram.com/charlielaunder/

https://bumpsandburpees.com

I must also mention that Charlie is also an author having released her brilliant book which you can also check out below:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bumps-Burpees-Staying-Throughout-Pregnancy/dp/0241491118

But this year Charlie also became a mum to her gorgeous little boy Alfie and I am all ears on this episode as Charlie shares some of the realities of exercising with a new baby, the challenges and her tips to managing this time.

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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The power of our gut.

No seriously, our gut and microbiome are incredible! It is not until I begun planning a pregnancy that I really tuned into, and researched gut health and I was literally mind blown!

In fact, ensuring a healthy gut and microbiome is one of the ways we can set our children and maternal bodies up for strong, healthier futures. Our gut is connected to so much of our wellness and the evidence really is building so I think it is important we shout about it and get the word out there to empower more women to consider boosting their gut health to boost their family’s wellness.

On this week’s episode I am delighted to be joined by Rebecca Traylen. Rebecca started her journey at the University of Nottingham studying Biology where she became fascinated in the relationship between diet, health, and disease. This led her to study a master's in nutrition at the University of Surrey and practises as an Associate Nutritionist.

Since studying at Surrey, Rebecca is now the resident nutritionist at Probio7 and is keen to raise awareness of the importance of gut health and how our resident bacteria can affect our health and well-being, throughout our whole life.

On this week’s episode we discuss the importance of the microbiome in regards to pregnancy and infant health, what it really means and simple, practical ways we can boost the health of our guts.

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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There is arguably no time in our lives that we focus more on our health and wellness then when considering a pregnancy or trying to conceive.

But honestly, boosting your female fertility can feel like a mind field, like most things women’s health related there are a lot of myths and misconceptions to navigate before finding the real evidence-based facts.

Thankfully, on today’s episode we are joined by a real expert, Stefanie Valaks, founder of the Dietologist. Stefanie is dedicated to providing excellence in reproductive, fertility and pregnancy health and is going to help us understand what we can actually do to boost our fertility health, why it is something we should be considering and what myths we should leave behind.

Stefanie Valakas is an expert fertility dietitian & nutritionist and founder of The Dietologist. Stefanie and her virtual practice are dedicated to excellence in nutrition for reproductive health concerns, fertility & pregnancy. Her passion for nutrition in this space has truly grown from her experience helping her clients online from around the world and also through her own personal experiences of navigating a diagnosis of endometriosis.

You can learn about how you can work with Stefanie and The Dietologist team and find out more about all her fantastic programmes and resources by checking out the links below:

Website: thedietologist.com.au

Instagram @the_dietologist and @endo.dietitian

Facebook Pages: The Dietologist and The Endometriosis Dietitian

Facebook Group: Fertility Friendly Food

Podcast: Fertility Friendly Food

Find Out More about programs at: courses.thedietologist.com.au

Midwife Pip x

** The warmest thanks to our Season 3 sponsors who make the podcast creation and the easy access you have to all this expert information possible. But not only that, they have also agreed exclusive discounts for you as listeners of this podcast for a limited time on their fantastic product ranges, all of which are designed with you and your little one at their heart.

Head over to Childs Farm to access 25% off their products at www.childsfarm.com using the code MIDWIFEPIP25

Head over to Baby Tula to access 15% off their entire baby carrier range at www.babytula.com using the code PIPLOVESTULA

… See you on our next episode! **

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We spend so much time planning for pregnancy, researching birth and focusing on growing the healthiest baby, analysing all our decisions to ensure we are doing what is perceived as best for our babies and throughout motherhood we continue to focus our energies on our little ones ensuring they have all they need to thrive.

But who is focusing on the mum? This brand-new person who is born when we birth our first child and a person who needs care in equal measures.

This is where postpartum nutrition is so often neglected, considered as an afterthought, or buried at the bottom of the postpartum priorities pile. But my goodness we need to unbury it and hold it in much higher regard.

Your body has been devoted to growing, nurturing, and birthing a whole new life. It is undergoing a rollercoaster of psychological and physical change; it has a whole journey of recovery to embark on and postpartum nutrition ladies really is our friend on this ride.

On this week’s episode I am delighted to be joined by Dr Harriet Holme, a Registered Nutritionist (AfN), and former experienced paediatrician. After studying at Cambridge University, Harriet worked in the NHS for over a decade before focusing on nutrition. She has a PhD in genetics and is a lecturer in nutrition. Harriet’s focus is science backed nutrition, and she is passionate about sharing credible information to empower people to eat for their long-term health. Her unique skill set of

medical, scientific, and nutritional qualifications enable Harriet to provide personalised expert nutrition advice, so we are in the best hands for today’s chat!

Harriet has also authored two fantastic books:

‘Eating During Pregnancy and Postpartum Nutrition’

https://healthyeatingdr.com/product/eating-during-pregnancy-book/

‘An Expert’s Guide to Eating After a Baby’

https://healthyeatingdr.com/product/postpartum-nutrition-an-experts-guide-to-eating-after-a-baby/

To check out more of Harriet’s brilliant resources her Instagram account and website are linked below:

https://www.instagram.com/healthyeatingdr/

https://healthyeatingdr.com/

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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There are so many myths and misconceptions when it comes to exercising in pregnancy but none more so than pregnancy and our core muscles. Unsurprisingly women are left confused, scared, and disempowered to embrace safe, effective core exercises that are fundamental to our wellness, to a healthier pregnancy and smoother postpartum recovery. That is right ladies- we should not ignore our core in pregnancy!

So, on this week’s episode I am really excited to be joined by Hollie Grant to discuss what our core is- because most of us do not actually understand it, why our core is so important in pregnancy and how we can be safely exercising it to protect and support our changing, growing bodies.

Hollie is a woman with a hell of a lot of passion to empower women to feel strong, powerful, and healthy in pregnancy and her message that you can be Pregnant and Powerful is something that totally resonates with me, and that the world needs to hear. In fact, Hollie attempted a world record attempt for the most pregnant women exercising at one time- that is serious dedication!

Specialising in prenatal Pilates and being an award-winning Pilates instructor, Hollie is an expert in the area of the core, stability and functional movement for pregnancy and so we are in great hands for today’s chat!

You can find Hollie on social media:

@thepilatespt

And check out her prenatal fitness plan:

@thebumpplan

Hollie’s goal is to help every woman learn to love exercise for its effect on performance, rather than aesthetic gains and I could not be more on board with this ethos!

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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All expectant parents have one main goal in mind- to grow a healthy baby.

We have seen such a rise in childhood conditions such as asthma, eczema, allergies and obesity over recent years, all conditions that can be unpleasant, troublesome and affect the quality of a child’s life

But what if there was evidence that we could actively adopt some very simple lifestyle changes in pregnancy to help reduce the risks of such conditions?

Well, I don’t know about you, but I am all ears for this chat with the wonderful Michelle Henning. Michelle is a mother herself and author of ‘Grow Healthy Babies’ a book I highly recommend reading and is linked below:

https://www.growhealthybabies.com

Michelle and her husband suffered from lifelong allergies themselves and wanted their children to not have to endure the dietary restrictions, skin issues and health complications they had, had to and so this incredible book and resource for other parents was born.

On this episode Michelle shares some of the simple, yet highly effective and empowering things we can do in pregnancy and parenthood to help protect our babies from these common childhood conditions and to ultimately ‘grow healthy babies’.

Extra Stuff:

Follow Midwife Pip on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/midwife_pip

Check out Midwife Pip’s website - http://www.midwifepip.com/

Get access to my free courses → https://www.midwifepip.com/free-pregnancy-courses

Get in Touch:

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

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

Email: https://www.midwifepip.com/contact-us

Enjoy Listening... and don't forget to subscribe! 

Midwife Pip x 

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Hello, I am back with a third season! And wow so much has changed since Season 2- mainly in that I have been on my own journey through pregnancy and have joined this crazy, incredible club of motherhood.

For those of you who don’t know me- I am Pip, a practicing NHS midwife and enthusiast of all things women’s wellness. I have a somewhat relentless passion for ensuring women are empowered with real, honest and reliable information and support throughout their pregnancy. Because my goodness, pregnancy is such a powerful time in a woman’s life that is often miraculous and challenging in equal measures.

Over the upcoming, weekly episodes I am joined by many leading experts to bring you the evidence-based information and top tips to navigating your pregnancy and motherhood journey. Needless to say, I had my notebook at hand when recording this season, and I would recommend the same for you too. I hope you are ready for the giggles, knowledge bombs and empowering chats to commence…

When it comes to navigating what to buy through your pregnancy and motherhood journeys it can feel like a total mind field, but there is one product that I think all mums would unanimously agree is a must-have and that is a baby carrier!

That is why I am super excited to be working with BabyTula and I am joined by product experts Niki and Ali on this episode to reveal why they should be a must-have product for you too!

And as promised- you can access 15% off their entire baby carrier range at www.babytula.com using the code PIPLOVESTULA, heads up though it is running for a limited time so be sure to check it out now.

Don’t forget if you would like the very best support for the entirety of your pregnancy journey, I would love you to be part of my exclusive course ‘Your Pregnancy Journey’ as a listener you will have access to a very special offer. https://www.midwifepip.com/your-pregnancy-journey

You can also visit www.midwifepip.com and view all the other services I offer:

Group Antenatal Classes

Digital Antenatal Classes

Hypnobirthing Classes

If you have found this podcast useful, please don't forget to subscribe and leave a review so it can help reach other expectant parents.

Or check me out on my social media pages @midwife_pip

Enjoy Listening

Midwife Pip

x

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