The Birth Lounge Podcast

Today's episode is all about Vaginal Birth After 3 C-sections! Petra Cruz, from The VBAC Junkie Podcast, joins HeHe to share her story of 3 cesarean births + a VBAC birth at a hospital that has a 'VBAC Ban' in place! Petra is stepping us through her decision making process to have a VBAC and how hard she had to fight in the hospital.   Join The Birth Lounge Membership!   Download The Birth Lounge App!   Connect with Petra on IG! Connect with HeHe on IG!         

  Listener Discretion Advised- this episodes shares the story of inappropriate Pitocin use in labor resulting in severe birth trauma and neonatal complications. Please make sure you are in a space to receive this story.   Today's episode is so informative and educates us about the repercussions of inappropriate use of Pitocin in labor! Pitocin is neither good nor bad, it is simply a tool. However, it must be used with intention and respect. It comes with massive risk if it is not properly administered. Katie Spinks shares her story of obstetrical abuse and the horrors that followed a misuse of Pitocin for her and her precious daughter, Jolene.    Connect with Katie on IG!   Join The Birth Lounge Membership!    Download The Birth Lounge App!    Connect with HeHe on IG!

This episode is everything that so many of us need! Hannah Gill is a wealth of knowledge with a soothing voice and unmatched determination! Listen in as Hannah shares her story of a primary cesarean followed by an unmedicated, low intervention hospital VBAC-- or Vaginal Birth After Cesarean!   Join The Birth Lounge!    Download The Birth Lounge App!   Connect with Hannah: Website: thehannahgill.com Instagram: @thehannahgill Podcast: https://motherhoodflow.buzzsprout.com VBAC Training for Doulas (waitlist): https://www.thehannahgill.com/doulawaitlist VBAC Prep Course for Parents (waitlist): https://www.thehannahgill.com/waitlist     Connect with HeHe on IG!

We all know that inductions are on the rise and many times they are not founded in evidence-based reasons! With so many women hoping to avoid unnecessary interventions, particularly c-sections, HeHe knew that Dr. Rachel Reed was the perfect expert to share how you can avoid an unnecessary induction which will lead to lower risk of unnecessary interventions and decrease your risk of a c-section.   JOIN THE BIRTH LOUNGE! >>> Just $55/m, cancel anytime!   Connect with Dr. Rachel: Her Website Her Blog   Follow HeHe on Instagram    

Unnecessareans (Unnecessary c-sections) are on the rise in America and for many reasons! So many women prepare for labor from a place of wanting to avoid a c-section but fail to understand what actually CAUSES unnecessary cesareans! Without understanding WHAT causes them, it will be very hard to implement HOW to actually avoid one!     There are things you can do, decisions you can make and conversations you can have that will mitigate your risk of unnecessary intervention and allow you to avoid having a cesarean birth when that is not your plan!    This episode will teach you the three most influential things you can do to avoid an unnecessarean!    Join the LIVE CLASS on April 9th on How to Avoid a Cesarean & Reduce Your Risk of Tearing in Labor!     Join The Birth Lounge     Sources for this episode:  Spontaneous Labor: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/215/4538/1396 https://www.ejog.org/article/S0301-2115(98)00058-X/abstract https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0137188 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1948087/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26776817/ https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2013/11/definition-of-term-pregnancy https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/when-pregnancy-goes-past-your-due-date https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/obstetric-care-consensus/articles/2014/03/safe-prevention-of-the-primary-cesarean-delivery https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-bulletin/articles/2020/01/macrosomia   Labor at home: https://evidencebasedbirth.com/american-obstetrics-in-the-1950s/ https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2019/02/approaches-to-limit-intervention-during-labor-and-birth https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/obstetric-care-consensus/articles/2014/03/safe-prevention-of-the-primary-cesarean-delivery https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3660040/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1595201/   Failure to Progress: https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/obstetric-care-consensus/articles/2014/03/safe-prevention-of-the-primary-cesarean-delivery https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD010088.pub3/full https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/obstetric-care-consensus/articles/2014/03/safe-prevention-of-the-primary-cesarean-delivery

HeHe asked yal to submit 'would you rather' questions on her social channels! Tune into to see if your question was featured and how HeHe answers each one!!    Connect with HeHe on IG so you can participate in our community!   Download the Evidence Based Induction Guide   Join The Birth Lounge

From intentionally choosing your birth place to understanding c-section rates in your area, it all plays a role in your birth experience. In this episode of The Birth Lounge Podcast, Dr. Neel Shah dives into what we know about c-sections, why our country has such an astronomical rate of them, and what you can do to decrease your chances of “being sectioned” during labor and delivery.   We dive into access (or lack there of) and how this impacts thousand of birth stories each year. Dr. Neel shares how birthing people in rural parts of our country will have different experiences than folks in the cities with better and more abundant access to healthcare. Dr. Neel says, “We know the right mortality rate is zero. We don’t know know the right amount of c-sections..and it’s not zero.” We go deep into cesarean sections being life saving surgery, but also balancing that with medical manipulation. He shares that asking question is a wonderful way to stay in control of your care. Plus, he shares a tidbit about nuchal cords during birth (ie: the cord being wrapped around your baby’s neck).    This episode is a MUST LISTEN if you are having a baby after literally this moment right now. Drop everything and RUN to download it. It’s going to change the way you think about birth, inductions, and c-sections…   Register for the LIVE April 9th call! >> How to Avoid a C-Section and Reduce Your Risk of Tearing in Labor!!!   You can check out this FREE bundle on C-section Prevention!   Guest: Dr. Neel Shah Brought to you by: The Birth Lounge

HeHe gets the pleasure of sitting down with the founder of Expectful, Nathalie Walton. Expectful is a meditation app for pregnancy. This episodes shares the scientific benefits of meditation, how it can transform your birth prep and how it can act as pain relief in birth!   Download the Expectful app & SAVE on an Annual Subscription to Expectful with code HEHE25OFF    Learn more about Expectful: expectful.com    Connect with HeHe on IG: https://www.instagram.com/tranquilitybyhehe/   Join The Birth Lounge to find meditations specifically curated to step you through each month of pregnancy as your body changes and your mind prepares for birth!   Grab your copy of Scripts for Advocacy in your prenatals and labor experience here!

Today's episode is filled with so many learning moments for HeHe as she interviews Paige Connell, @shesapaigeturner on IG and TikTok, about the mental load of motherhood! Paige so eloquently describes the mental burden that comes with being the primary parent. We dive into how society encourages and upholds the idea of disrespecting & devaluing women's time, how men can be active participants in the home and the difference between delegating to your husband vs empowering them to take charge. This is the episode that we all needed to hear but didn't know we did.    Follow Paige on IG   Follow HeHe on IG   Download the Dad Daze course!

Today's episode is one that is life changing for all dads! HeHe gets to interview, JJ Lowry, the author of Becoming Dad: A Pregnancy Guide for Dads. What started as a deep dive researching information about becoming a father turned into a book laying out exactly what men need to know to help their families flourish in welcoming a baby!    The Book: Becoming Dad   Download Dad Daze Course   Join The Birth Lounge

This episode is everything you need to get your newborn sleeping through the night in the first 16 weeks after birth! All the tips shared in this episode are actionable TODAY to get you better sleep starting tonight!   Connect with HeHe on IG   Download the Newborn Sleep Solutions Guide for infants 0-16 weeks   Join our FREE Masterclass about How to Decrease Your Risk of a C-section!

Dig out your scuba gear, cause we’re taking a deep dive into the world of twin sleep! In this episode HeHe meets with Kim West (The Sleep Lady) and Natalie Diaz (Twiniversity). Sleep training can be a bit of a hot topic and today we’re talking about common ways *cough* cry it out *cough* people have tried to sleep train, and alternatives to cry it out that actually work. Listen in as we discuss the most recent data, age old theories and their new book! Guest Bio: Natalie and Kim are the co-authors of The Newborn Twins Sleep Guide: The Nap and Nighttime Sanity Saver for Your Duo's First Five Months, a research-backed resource for new and expecting parents of twins, offering a gentle approach and an alternative to allowing your babies to cry it out.   Natalie and Kim have appeared on and in Parents, People, Harper’s Bazaar, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bravo TV, CNN, Fox News, TODAY, GMA, Dr. Phil, and more. Links:  Join The Birth Lounge here for judgment-free childbirth education that prepares you for an informed birth and how to confidently navigate hospital policy to have a trauma-free labor experience!   Connect with HeHe on IG    Connect with Kim (The Sleep Lady) on IG or on her website here.    Connect with Natalie (Twiniversity) on IG or on her website here.    Grab Kim and Natalie’s book here   Join The Birth Lounge for judgment-free childbirth education that prepares you for an informed birth and how to confidently navigate hospital policy to have a trauma-free labor experience: https://www.thebirthlounge.com   Sign up for Lactation, bottle feeding or formula feeding support from HeHe: https://calendly.com/tranquilitybyhehe/1-to-1-consult Check out our FREE CLASS: 6 Ways to Avoid a C-Section & Reduce your Risk of Tearing: https://www.thebirthlounge.com/opt-in   Check out the Newborn Sleep Solution Guide: https://stan.store/TranquilityByHeHe/p/newborn-sleep-solutions-maximizing-newborn-sleep/  

Are you familiar with mirror neurons and their role in the way our brain works? If not, you'll want to understand exactly what they are and how they have the potential to positively or negatively impact your labor experience!    Evidence Based Pitocin Guide Connect with HeHe on IG   Work with Dr. Jaz The Active Experience Connect with Dr. Jaz on IG   Dr. Jaz Bio:  Dr. Jaz Robbins is a therapist, nutritionist, author, professor, and mental health consultant. She is the founder of the nonprofit, Healing, Hope & Love as well as the mental health consulting firm, The Active Experience®. She specializes in working with clients who have histories of trauma and/or complicated health concerns. Additionally, Dr. Robbins is a poet and stage performer who enjoys integrating expressive arts into her work with clients when appropriate.

It takes a village to raise a child… but where is that village?! In this episode, HeHe sits down with Maranda Bower of Postpartum University to discuss how postpartum looks very different today than it did when our parents were having children & what that means for the way we need to prepare for postpartum.  Connect with HeHe on IG   Connect with Maranda on IG https://postpartumu.com/   Join The Birth Lounge    Sign up for Lactation, bottle feeding or formula feeding support from HeHe Check out our FREE CLASS >> 6 Ways to Avoid a C-Section & Reduce your Risk of Tearing

Your bladder plays a huge role in labor! If it is full, it is taking up valuable space that baby needs to continue their descent down and out. You should be emptying your bladder frequently during labor—and that’s exactly what this episode is about! HeHe is diving into the why and when behind peeing often in labor.   A 2017 study stated that postpartum hemorrhage occurs in 3% of births, but the CDC Foundation suggests that up to 70% of those may be avoidable. It’s been shared time and time again that having a full bladder can increase the risk of postpartum hemorrhage and this episode is going to spill the beans on what you need to know!   Join The Birth Lounge: https://www.thebirthlounge.com/   Episode Resources: 2017 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28502... CDC Foundation: https://www.cdcfoundation.org/sites/default/files/files/ReportfromNineMMRCs.pdf National Insitute for Children's Health Quality: https://nichq.org/insight/taking-leading-cause-maternal-death-improving-postpartum-hemorrhage-care EBB: https://evidencebasedbirth.com/evidence-on-pitocin-during-the-third-stage-of-labor/ Maternal Mortality Review Information App: https://reviewtoaction.org/implement/getting-started ACOG: https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-bulletin/articles/2017/10/postpartum-hemorrhage ACOG Expansion: https://www.acog.org/news/news-releases/2017/09/acog-expands-recommendations-to-treat-postpartum-hemorrhage

Today's episode is with a guest who is well-versed on mom shaming and bullying in online spaces-- Taylor Kulik, a holistic sleep and parenting educator! Taylor always meets online criticism with kindness and compassion-- a skill that many of us could use some practice with! Join HeHe & Taylor as they chat about how the way you were parented, your inner dialogue and your past traumas impact the way you respond and show up in online spaces! We also dive into how to protect your mental health and set boundaries when in mom groups on social media!   Connect with Taylor on IG     Connect with HeHe on IG   Join HeHe's FREE CLASS that shares How to Avoid a C-Section & Reduce Tearing in Labor here!    Grab your copy of HeHe's Newborn Sleep Solutions Guide -- a guide to better sleep in the first 8-16 weeks after birth!  

I've been recently getting more and more calls from moms who have a freezer full of pumped breastmilk and don't know what to do with it! If that's you, this is a must-listen episode!   Join The Birth Lounge   Connect with HeHe on IG   Data: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33098117/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6572138/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7926441/   CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/recommendations/faq.html#:~:text=Breast%20milk%20can%20be%20stored%20in%20the%20freezer%20(at%200,within%206%20months%20is%20best.   Freeze Dried Breastmilk Companies: https://itsmyleche.com https://milkify.me https://boobyfood.com https://mothership-milk.com/products/freeze-dry-your-breast-milk     Sign up for a 1:1 consult for infant feeding support!

  Today's episode is featuring Lara Proud, RN, who is joining HeHe to discuss the signs + symptoms of Mastitis, what professionals can help & what options you have for remedying it! We also dive into preventative measures and what to consider when it comes to antibiotic use with Mastitis!    Lara’s Bio:  Beyond The Bump was started when Lara Proud went on maternity leave with her son in 2018. As a Registered Nurse, Lara was blown away by the lack of local resources for prenatal classes, postpartum support, and didn’t want anyone else to have to struggle like she did with breastfeeding. Beyond The Bump is located on the East Coast of Canada in Fredericton, New Brunswick serving all across Canada virtually and in-person locally. Her biggest goal is to empower parents in their decisions surrounding all things birth and parenting and help them feel prepared and supported along the way!   Connect with Lara on IG   Connect with HeHe on IG   Join HeHe’s FREE CLASS that shares How to Avoid a C-Section & Reduce Tearing in Labor here!   Resources: ACOG: https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2021/02/breastfeeding-challenges   Breastfeeding Medicine: https://www.bfmed.org/assets/ABM%20Protocol%20%2336.pdf Le Leche League: https://lllusa.org/mastitis-updated-la-leche-league-usa-resource-page/

This episode dives into the what it takes to be an exclusively pumping parent-- the mental load, the time, the commitment, all of it! Jacquie Ciccione, RN & CLC, joins HeHe to dive into how to know if you are using the correct flange size, what are common issues that arise when someone exclusively pumps and so much more!    Jacquie's Bio: My name is Jacquie Ciccone.  I am a wife, mom, registered nurse, and certified lactation counselor. After giving birth to my son and having several struggles, I became fascinated with breastfeeding.  I ended up exclusively pumping for a year, so I’m passionate about breast pumps and pumping. I am determined to help close the gap between lactating mothers and breast pumps. I now offer 1:1 pumping consultations to improve their experience and increase the likelihood of success.  I consider pumping a sport and an entirely new set of breastfeeding skills.  I will be offering group counseling for pumping moms starting in July that I’m very excited about! I stay updated with the latest research and advancements in lactation counseling and breast pumps, ensuring I can provide my clients with the most current and evidence-based support.   Join The Birth Lounge!    Links/Tools  Mentioned in episode: Nipple Ruler  https://sarahwellsbags.com/collections/hands-free-pumping-bra https://thedairyfairy.com/ https://www.loveandfit.com/collections/nursing-bras   Connect with Jacquie on IG Work with Jacquie: https://pumpedupmama.com/ Connect with HeHe on IG Work 1:1 with HeHe & The TBH Team on Breastfeeding, formula feeding or bottle feeding

Anyone else TIRED of the age old debate about baby feeding?! Fed is best?! Breast is best?! In today’s episode, HeHe sits down with Mallory Whitmore, The Formula Mom & Education Lead from Bobbie, a formula company working their tails off to create a product as similar to breastmilk as possible. They’re diving into all the things you need to know to choose the best formula for your baby! Our team is always 100% supportive of our clients' feeding goals and Bobbie is the formula we stand behind. Not only do we dive into the components needed to nourish your baby but we also dive into lactose intolerance…   We also dive into how to use formula in conjunction with breastfeeding.    Mallory's Bio: Mallory is a mom of 2, educator, advocate, and certified infant feeding tech. She's the face behind The Formula Mom, an online platform that helps new parents make informed, confident, and supported infant feeding decisions-- without guilt or shame! She can be found on Instagram @theformulamom or behind the scenes leading education for @Bobbie.   Find Bobbie formula here: https://www.hibobbie.com/   Join The Birth Lounge here! Check out our FREE CLASS >> 6 Ways to Avoid a C-Section & Reduce your Risk of Tearing