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Show Notes:

1:13 - Our reviewer of the week shares how the My Essential Birth podcast has provided her with a realistic perspective of birth and has given her a wealth of knowledge as she prepares for her first birth. (Thank you for the amazing review and congratulations on your new baby, all the best for a great birth!)

As a mother of 3 and someone who has experienced postpartum depression and anxiety, I wish I had known about postpartum doulas sooner in my journey.

Postpartum care, especially in the U.S., is absolutely vital. Despite the popular narrative, postpartum care is not just about holding your baby and delivering frozen dinner. While those things are amazing and can be so helpful, postpartum doulas come equipped with extra knowledge, tools, and support measures to care for the whole you because you deserve to be taken care of too. 

I'm so honored to be joined by Sariah Wight, a postpartum doula here in Utah, who is here to share all her postpartum magic in this week's episode.

Show Notes:

1:11 - Our reviewer of the week shares that she loves sharing this podcast with her clients as a birth and postpartum doula

3:32 - Introducing Sariah Wight, a postpartum doula and mother of 3. She shares how she made the decision to become a postpartum doula after experiencing postpartum depression...

Do you know how to tell if your provider is going to be a supportive part of your birth team? I see moms run into this issues a lot. You know how much I talk about the importance of a supportive provider BUT how do you know if you're provider is the right one?! One of the things I hope this episode does for you, is make some of your own assumptions about your provider's supportiveness, or lack thereof, clear and give you ideas about what questions you should ask to figure out if you're on the same page. I'm covering things like how you choose to birth (medicated or unmedicated - yes providers may have unsupportive opinions about this), cesarean birth rates, inductions, vaccines, birth plans, doulas and more. 

Trigger warning! Some of the topics we cover in this episode are sensitive to some mamas. Everything here is meant to inform, give you excellent examples, and be a starting point to having those tough conversations with your provider. If you have questions about your personal ...

This week I'm so excited to welcome Carly and her husband, Robbie who are sharing the story of the birth of their firstborn!Dive in to hear about how they navigated switching providers in the middle of their pregnancy from an OB, preparing for a  hospital birth, to a Midwife at a birth center and how they made it through the most challenging part of their labor, the final hour.

Show Notes:

 1:12 - Reviewer of the week

3:05 - Introducing Carly, a pediatric speech-language pathologist and her husband, Robbie, a 5th grade teacher who are here to share the birth story of their first baby. 

4:32 - Carly shares how she found her provider and why she decided to switch midway through her pregnancy from an OB at a hospital to Midwives at a birth center.

8:06 - Robbie shares how Carly's switch felt to him as a dad with limited knowledge about birth .

11:54 - Carly completed the 3 MEB exercises to help prepare for birth (way to go!) along with other great prep tools.

17:40 - Did Chick Fil...

This week we are joined by Annie Roskelley, a mother to 3 kids, certified babywearing educator, and volunteer at Babywearing Weber/Davis County Utah. She's sharing all her tips for making babywearing easy and enjoyable no matter how old your baby is or how much experience you have with carriers.

Show Notes:

1:12 - Reviewer of the week!

3:23 - Introducing Annie Roskelley, a mother of 3 and certified babywearing educator

5:44 - What are babywearing groups and what do they actually offer?

7:07 - Where can you find a babywearing group?

7:50 - I share my (kinda ridiculous) experience going through carriers trying to find the right fit

11:11 - Annie shares the amazing benefits of babywearing (anyone wanna go to the bathroom with both their hands free? )

13:04 - Can you wear your baby after a cesarean birth?

14:40 - All the tips for keeping baby safe in any carrier!

15:45 - When do you switch your baby from inward to outward facing? 

17:35 - What if baby doesn't like the carrier?

When it comes to giving birth, most people picture it going down in a hospital room. This is absolutely an option and there are more! That’s what we’re setting out to discuss this week on the Pregnancy and Birth Made Easy podcast. Join us as we go over the different locations where you can have your baby, the pros and the cons, and share evidence-based information as well as real-life experiences in order to help you decide what will be the very best place for YOUR birth.

Show Notes:

 1:14 - Reviewer of the week!

 2:30 - The question I hear the most, "What are my options for where I give birth?" this episode dives into all of them...minus the forest... 

3:24 - A little love note to the new moms and dads that have come to my classes, I love watching those lightbulbs come on as you dream up your birth map.

5:07 - I am devoted to keeping my content evidence-based and non biased. You have the ultimate choice in everything you decide for your birth. I think you are an amazing mama and...

**GIVEAWAY Instructions at the bottom of this page!**

Pregnancy includes many unknowns for dads-to-be and having something or someone to look up to could help you in the journey phenomenally. Today's guest is an author-dad who helps fathers worldwide understand pregnancy and the roles of a dad in helping make the experience easy for themselves and their partners.

David Arrell is a dad, consultant and men's coach. He turned author with his book, "Welcome to Fatherhood", in which he consolidates the lessons learned from his experience being a dad for the first time. Through the book, David encourages men to more actively step into their supportive roles during pregnancy, childbirth, and the fourth trimester back home and gives them detailed and practical tips and techniques on how to do so.

In this episode, he breaks down his journey of becoming a dad, the invisible roles of assisting the mother during the journey, the benefits of using professional help, like a doula, and some tips to...

When it comes to giving birth at home, most of us think we have a clear picture of what it will look like. Mom is in a super comfortable setting, with the support of family and friends, surrounded by candles and the calm presence of a midwife. Little do most of us know the beautiful mix of emotions experienced at that time, as well as the uncertainty and challenges that mothers embrace with strength and grace.

Today's episode will introduce to you to Kirsten and her husband, previous students of the My Essential Birth course, who share their experience in pre and postnatal days, dealing with anxiety, HG, and bonding with her newborn post-birth. Not only will you learn the nuances of childbirth at home, but you will also learn how to train your mind to be calm and prepared by having a clear picture of the succession of events during labor.

Show Notes:

0:06 - Reviewer of the week 

1:11 - Introducing Kirsten!

2:25 - Kirsten shares how she found out she was pregnant before her positiv...

It's true that we love telling you all of the ways to have an easier, more comfortable, confident, and empowered birth experience, but we decided to switch things up and get a little sarcastic so you can join us in some laughs while we give you all the top tips on what will cause more pain during labor.  Maybe you already know that being flat on your back and not having great support will leave you less than comfortable but what about pulling up trauma from a previous birth, focusing on all the negatives happening right now, and inviting all the unsupportive and opinionated people into your birth space!? No? Don't worry, we've got you covered mama! As always, we hope that you leave this episode armed with a smile and some crazy good info about how to make your birth the best it can possibly be.

Show Notes

4:07 - Being free to move around during labor is so important and being stuck in one position not only causes more discomfort but also slows, stalls, and makes it harder for baby...

This week, I'm helping you explore the pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum experience. We’re going to take a deep dive into the essentials that every mama and her partner should know. From ways to stay healthy and low-risk through a well-balanced diet and probiotics, to methods that you and your birth partner can support one another. We’ll draw on evidence-based sources and personal experiences to help you prepare yourself to have your best birth. So join us this week as we demystify the journey from preparation to birth, to parenthood. We’ll see you there!

Pregnancy

[5:58] The benefits of preparing for birth earlier in the pregnancy rather than later

[8:20] How getting knowledge earlier in your pregnancy will help you stay healthy and low-risk

[9:20] How having a well-balanced diet puts you in the pregnancy driver’s seat

[14:18] Probiotics that can help you have a healthier birth and understanding how you handle pain to find the best coping measures for your labor

[19:53]...