The C-Section Strong®️ Podcast

Join us as Hannah Pritchard discusses her cesarean birth and how it affected her postpartum experience. 

Learn more about C-Section Strong:

Connect with C-Section Strong®️ on Instagram

Join the private C-Section Strong®️ Mamas Facebook Group

Submit Your Own C-Section Birth Story

Amanda Fisher, PT, DPT is a Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist, 3-time c-section mama, and the owner of Empower Your Pelvis - Physical Therapy, Health, & Wellness.

Amanda discusses her path to becoming a pelvic floor physical therapist, her three different cesarean birth experiences, and answers common questions/concerns about c-section scar care and healing. 

Connect with Amanda on Instagram

https://www.empoweryourpelvis.com/

Learn more about Amanda's C-Section Recovery Program

Learn more about C-Section Strong:

Connect with C-Section Strong®️ on Instagram

Join the private C-Section Strong®️ Mamas Facebook Group

Submit Your Own C-Section Birth Story

Connect with Dr. Pickering:

Connect with Dr. Pickering on Instagram

http://momdocpsychology.com/

Connect with Dr. Pickering on Facebook

Learn more about C-Section Strong:

Connect with C-Section Strong®️ on Instagram

Join the private C-Section Strong®️ Facebook Community

Submit Your Own C-Section Birth Story

Ella Goldberg is a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator with a Master's Degree in Public Health. In this interview, she shared tips for pregnant women about making birth decisions during the Coronavirus pandemic. She stressed the need to make sure they have evidence-based, credible information about their questions and concerns, especially during the pandemic. She went into detail about the changes in prenatal care and birth protocols and how to adapt to them. She narrowed in on how to advocate for yourself, how to make critical decisions, and what to know and ask in stressful and emergent situations. She also addressed the possibility of not having your support person with you during birth and how to get through birth if you're alone. Finally, she discussed several ways to take care of yourself, both physically and mentally, during this time of uncertainty.

BRAIN Acronym: B = benefits

R = risks

A = alternatives

I = intuition

N = not right now or never

Credible Resources:

* Please note, it is important to know where you're getting information, when the guidelines were published, and the last update provided. 

* Please check with your doctor or midwife and your local hospital for the most updated policies on prenatal care and birth.

WHO - World Health Organization

Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecologists

CDC- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (COVID-19 page)

Evidence Based Birth®️: COVID-19 Updates

- Under "Parent and Birthworker Advocacy", click on the Sample Informed Consent Form for Refusal to Separate Birthing Parent and Infant to download the form

Info on Doulas and Stress Relief:

DONA®️ International

Calm App

Workout Resource Mentioned:

Expecting and Empowered Fitness Guides (for pregnancy and postpartum)

* Use code CSECTIONSTRONG for $10.00 off your order (I am an affiliate partner)

How to Connect with Ella Goldberg:

Ella's "Online Empowered Birth Course"

Motherhood Empowered Private Facebook Group

Connect with Ella on Instagram

Ella's Facebook Page

Ella's Website

Dr. Marta Perez is an OB-GYN in St. Louis. She discussed the current implications of the coronavirus pandemic on pregnancy, labor, and delivery. Please note that policies and guidelines are changing rapidly, so it's important to check your local hospital for their specific policies on labor and delivery and support people. As always, please reach out to your own doctor or midwife for specific questions or concerns regarding your pregnancy. 

Connect with Dr. Perez on Instagram

Leslie Froelich is a mother and a postpartum mental health advocate. Join this powerfully vulnerable conversation as she opens up about her journey through a high-risk twin pregnancy, infant loss, pregnancy after loss, a healing birth experience, and her advocacy and mission for postpartum mental health. 

Resources:

About POEM (Perinatal Outreach & Encouragement for Moms)

POEM - Cleveland Chapter Facebook Group

Grief Support in Ohio: https://cornerstoneofhope.org/

Free 24 hour POEM Helpline (Northeast Ohio area): (216)282-4569

Postpartum Support International 

Email Leslie: [email protected]

Connect with Leslie on Facebook

Join the private C-Section Strong™ Mamas Facebook Group here

Connect with C-Section Strong™ on Instagram

Share your own cesarean birth story here.

Danielle Eby is a DONA-trained doula.

As a woman who experienced the benefits of doula support during her labor and the birth of her twins, Danielle was inspired to also become a doula. 

Listen as we discuss what a doula is, the benefits of doula support during labor and delivery and also postpartum, dispelling common myths about doulas, how a doula is valuable during a scheduled and/or emergency cesarean birth, how to find a doula, and more. 

How to have a say in your cesarean birth:

(please note, these choices/preferences will vary based on provider, hospital, and location)

1) Ask about having your own music playing in the operating room.

2) Ask about photography during your cesarean - is it allowed? Who can take photos?

3) Ask if it's possible to have one or both of your arms unrestrained during the cesarean.

4) Ask about the option of a clear drape.

5) Ask if it's possible for the cesarean to be performed slowly if it's not an emergency situation.

6) Ask the doctor to explain what is happening if it makes you more comfortable

7) Delayed cord clamping.

8) Ask about what anti-nausea medications are being used and if there is an option that won't make you as drowsy.

9) Ask if your baby can stay with you in recovery as long as possible as long as the baby is stable.

Resources Mentioned:

https://www.dnebirth.com/

Connect with Danielle on Instagram

Doula Match

DONA International

Learn more about C-Section Strong:

Connect with C-Section Strong™ on Instagram

Join the private C-Section Strong™ Facebook Community Here

Share Your Own C-Section Birth Story Here

Andrea Thompson is a Family Nurse Practitioner and will very soon be a Certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. We discussed her two vastly different cesarean births, including birth trauma, and how they impacted her mental health, her career as a nurse practitioner and how she's transitioning into specializing in maternal mental health, de-stigmatizing perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMAD), how mamas can begin to process their own birth experiences, and more.

Connect with Andrea on Instagram

Books mentioned in this episode:

Birth of a New Brain by Dyane Harwood

Cut, Stapled, and Mended by Roanna Rosewood

Good Moms Have Scary Thoughts by Molly McIntyre

Postpartum Support International

Learn more about C-Section Strong:

Connect with C-Section Strong™ on Instagram

Join the private C-Section Strong™ Facebook Community Here

Submit Your Own C-Section Birth Story Here

Sisters Amy Kiefer, RN, BSN, and Krystle Howald, PT, DPT, are the founders and owners of Expecting and Empowered. They provide pregnancy and postpartum fitness guides and enormous value on their Instagram account. Join us as we talk about their different birth experiences, how important the initial healing process is after a cesarean birth, tips for recovery further out after having a c-section, c-section scar management, and how to properly ease back into fitness after your cesarean birth.

Expecting and Empowered

C-section birth prep and recovery tips

Expecting and Empowered Fitness Guides: Use code CSECTIONSTRONG for $10.00 off your order (affiliate code)

Connect with Expecting and Empowered on Instagram

Book mentioned: Wild Feminine: Finding Power, Spirit & Joy in the Female Body by Tami Lynn Kent

Join the private C-Section Strong Facebook Community here: C-Section Strong™ Mamas Group

Connect with C-Section Strong™ on Instagram

Submit your own c-section birth story here.

https://resilientmamas.org/

Resilient Mamas Membership

https://www.wollemicounseling.com/

Connect with Rachel on Instagram

Postpartum Support International

Open Path Collective

Psychology Today Search for Therapists

https://postpartumprogress.com/

Join the private C-Section Strong Facebook Community Here: C-Section Strong™ Mamas Group 

Connect with C-Section Strong™ on Instagram

Submit your own c-section birth story here.