In this episode of the Rise Parenting Podcast I chat with one of my best friends and new mama, Gardenia Bartolini-Volk Thongsilp.

This mama is a force, she is already so grounded in her experience of motherhood and shares some of what she’s learned through her birth experience and her weeks postpartum. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

As you’ll here in the intro, I’m rethinking the format of the Rise Parenting Podcast for this new year so stay tuned on how it continues to evolve!

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On this episode of the Rise Parenting Podcast, I chat with Kacey Zuvella, fertility nurse at Marin Fertility Center. She walks me through the various tests and treatments for infertility and shares her observations on current infertility trends, include maternal age, as well as the increase in women freezing their eggs in the Bay Area.

It’s said that 1 in 8 couples struggle with their fertility. It seems to be a topic that isn’t discussed until it’s an issue. So I hope this episode can educate you on the range of fertility treatments available and help to normalize infertility. I know so many women who have struggle to become pregnant or to maintain their pregnancy and too often these experiences are not shared. If you’re struggling with fertility, there are so many supports available, please reach out.

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I feel like I’ve been talking about sleep A LOT! So I was so excited to have Rachael Shepard-Ohta, from Hey Sleepy Baby, on the podcast. As a baby-led sleep specialist we focused on her approach to sleep, which normalizes infant sleep. We covered a lot in this episode, including bed-sharing, night weaning and extending naps. Thanks to those of you who wrote in questions. If you have more questions about sleep after this episode reach out to Rachael, she’s a wealth of knowledge. 

Want to learn more about my guest?

@ heysleepybaby on Instagram

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I was so excited to chat with Mandy Didion, mom of three and surrogate to one! In this episode, Mandy shares her desire to support other families through surrogacy, her experience through the IVF process, pregnancy and birth, and how that experience differed from her pregnancies and labors with her own children. I so appreciated Mandy’s vulnerability in this episode and hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode

In this episode of the Rise Parenting Podcast, I chat with Pelvic Floor PT and new mama, Charisse Balance. This is Charisse’s second time on the podcast, previously she shared her insights in her professional role as a PT and this visit we hear her personal experiences as a new mom! We share birth stories and speak openly about our birth injuries, having both experienced varying degrees of perineal tearing. We connect on all things new mom: postpartum anxiety, managing expectations, breastfeeding and of course tear-care!

Treatments referenced for perineal tear care:

• side lying

• exposure to air and light

• compression garments

• sitz baths

• vaginal steaming

• tamanu oil

Also check out:

Episode 4 with Charisse:

https://www.riseparenting.com/blog/the-pelvic-floor

Episode 16 where my husband and I share our full birth story:

https://www.riseparenting.com/blog/our-birth-story

Want to learn more about my guest:

https://www.balancedphysioga.com

Or find Charisse on Instagram @ balanced.physioga

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode

I’m so excited to have Ozzie Ozkay-Villa on the Rise Parenting Podcast. Ozzie is a professional doula, currently providing services through Cleo; she founded Alternative Mothers Group and Oov Lifestyle. A mother of two, Ozzie is a natural community builder and has brought life to many visions over the years I’ve known her. In this episode, we chat about her unfolding as an entrepreneur, cannabis use as a mother for depression and anxiety, and mothering during COVID.

Learn more about my guest:

@ ozzieozkayvilla on Instagram

Things referenced:

Cleo - https://hicleo.com/

Oov - https://oov.life/

DTI - https://doulatrainingsinternational.com/

Tara Brooke on the Rise Parenting Podcast - https://www.riseparenting.com/blog/doula-support-during-covid

Placenta Encapsulation - https://marinplacentaservices.com/

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode

In this episode of the Rise Parenting Podcast, I chat with Kelly Phipps of Milk and Swaddles, a birth and postpartum doula, as well as a childbirth and breastfeeding educator here in Marin. Kelly also leads local mothers groups, including the Pom Moms where I have found support as a new mom. In this episode, we connect about what support can look like during Shelter in Place, and motherhood during COVID. Kelly also shares her exciting work to establish the Bay Area chapter of ICAN (International Cesarean Awareness Network).

Want to learn more about Kelly?

https://www.milkandswaddles.com

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode

I’m beyond excited to share this episode with you! My guest, Lisa Schrader, is a long-time mentor of mine. She inspired my studies, employed me out of college and officiated my wedding ceremony! I am deeply honored to have her on the podcast.

Lisa is the founder of Awakening Shakti and has inspired the lives of thousands of women for over a decade as a workshop leader, author, speaker and coach. Her work has been featured on Oprah, Oxygen and VH1. She leads workshops and offers a variety of online group coaching and initiation programs to international audiences. She is a mother and recently married her beloved, Michael in the Sierra Foothills where they live.

In this episode, we speak about the phases of womanhood and Lisa articulates the creative energy awakened around motherhood. We touch on nurturing the relationship with your partner after babies as well as the importance of accepting support and practicing self-care.

I hope you love this episode as much as I do.

Want to learn more about my guest?

www.awakeningshakti.com

Lisa also has a special offering she’d like to share with the Rise Parenting community!

Things get much easier when you know how to reliably tap into your authentic feminine power—your Shakti. Sign up here for Lisa’s free mini-course on “Being a Resourced Woman."

https://www.awakeningshakti.com/resourced

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode

My guest on today’s Rise Parenting Podcast episode is Tara Brooke. Tara is the co-founder of Doula Trainings International (DTI), as well as Born into This, which is a space for parents, creatives, birth professionals and leaders to expand the conversation around reproductive health and social justice.

I was grateful to have the opportunity to connect with Tara at such an intense time. We’re two weeks into a “Shelter in Place” mandate in the Bay Area and information surrounding the current Coronavirus pandemic changes daily. Tara brings to our conversation her knowledge of current restrictions around hospital births due to the virus as well as solutions for incorporating labor support.

Also in this episode, we hear how Tara evolved from a birth doula in New York to the co-founder of Doula Trainings International! She shares DTI’s unique model as well as the inspiration behind Born into This and her hopes for this organization in the future.

Tara Brooke

I hope this episode brings comfort and support in these times of uncertainty. If follow up questions arise, please reach out, we are all in this together. Stay safe and stay home.

Want to learn more about my guest:

https://doulatrainingsinternational.com

https://wearebornintothis.com

@ tarabrooke1 on Instagram

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode

I am so inspired by my guest today, Shannon Kozubik had a desire to raise her children in a home that would foster a deeper connection to the land, so she packed up her family and moved to Marin County from Minneapolis. Once here she tried to find the same yoga community she had in Minnesota, and when she couldn’t, she created it!

Shannon is the founder of Pomegranate, a yoga studio which caters to women in life’s transitions: puberty, pregnancy, postpartum and perimenopause. Aside from yoga offerings, Pomegranate offers workshops for pre-teens and childbirth education classes. Shannon has created a very special community that is well known and respected in Marin County. I really appreciated the prenatal classes and now my son and I love going to Mommy and Baby yoga.

Shannon is also the mother of 3 beautiful children, and in this episode, she shares her birth stories, including her two breech homebirths and the loss of her son Alexander in the hours after delivery. As you’ll hear in her eloquent and vulnerable sharing, Shannon is a source of pure light! I really look up to her, not only as a business owner but as a mother.

Want to learn more:

https://pomcenter.com

@ pomyoga on Instagram

Podcast Music: England by Pictures of the Floating World, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/legalcode