Lizzie gave birth to her first child in January 2022, after a rough pregnancy with lots of sickness. She gave birth in a hospital during the omicron wave of COVID-19, and both her and her husband tested positive the week before the birth. Lizzie’s labour was faster than expected, and Brody was born after less than 4 hours of active labor and only 15 minutes of pushing. She did not have that ‘love at first sight’ moment, and her bond with Brody was a slower build and included overcoming some gender disappointment. Lizzie also had some bumps in the road introducing Brody to her dog. She now has a great connection with Brody and is grateful to have been able to spend extended time with him over a 12-month maternity leave.
Lizzie Howells Bio
Lizzie and her husband James are parents to Boston terrier Dave and son Brody, who was born in January 2022. They are both from the UK and have lived in Vancouver, Canada, since 2011. Lizzie works in an operations role for a national environmental and social Justice charity. She is on instagram at @lizziejg.
This episode is sponsored by Ergobaby. Founded in 2003, Ergobaby has pioneered the gold standard for comfortable, ergonomic soft structured carriers. Their commitment to providing parents with the foundation to thrive has launched the company into creating a broad range of award-winning products that fit into families’ daily lives seamlessly, comfortably, and safely – where function and quality are not compromised. In 2020, they launched Everlove by Ergobaby, a first of its kind baby carrier buy back and resale program, a sustainability effort to support families and the planet. Check out Ergobaby’s Embrace in Soft Air Mesh and new Evolve 3-in-1 Bouncer that we discussed on the podcast!
The Wells family wanted to share their birth experiences as an African American family with the intention of contributing BIPOC voices to this birthing community. We are honored they chose us. We would like to invite and welcome families to share their individual stories which collectively, are so important in helping bring about systemic change.
Tracy’s first pregnancy was pretty breezy, no complications. Having suffered an ischemic stroke at age 29 due to birth control, Nuvaring, which led to permanent partial vision loss, she was grossly aware of the cost of not being listened to by doctors. Given this obvious trauma, Tracy went carefully into pregnancy, knowing there could be risks with increased hormones in her body and having to be in the care of doctors and hospitals again. Nonetheless, her first pregnancy was healthy and full term. She went to 41weeks and 1 day and was then induced, due to creeping close to Christmas and wanting to ensure her doctor would be present. Her daughter was born healthy at 8lbs, 8oz, vaginally and without an epidural. The whole experience was much quicker than she’d anticipated, having had false labor the month before- only to be sent home. It was clear she’d labored through contractions the whole month in between. She checked into the hospital at midnight and gave birth at 4:30am. Tracy and Bradford are incredibly grateful to have had the entire first year of their daughter’s life uninterrupted by Covid, traveling often to their family and friends scattered across the country.
When she and her husband were considering having a second, they wanted a bit more time. They sought the opinion of the fertility experts at Kindbody who told Tracy unequivocally, she was not a good candidate for egg freezing due to low egg count, but should try to get pregnant immediately without them. They told her to give it 3 months and come back if she wasn’t pregnant, needless to say- she didn’t return. In May of 2022 the couple had planned to have their first getaway without their oldest and had to reschedule at the last minute due to their planned caretaker getting Covid. They rebooked for June and traveled, cautiously, to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. They had an amazing time, all the while trying for a baby, returned home and promptly fell sick with covid. The plague started with her husband, then Tracy and finally their daughter. Upon confirming her bout with Covid, Tracy also noticed she was late and took a pregnancy test- which was also positive. She was sick for no less than 2 weeks! In addition, this time around she dealt with morning sickness, never-ending heartburn, vomiting and undercarriage pain requiring physical therapy throughout the pregnancy. Despite that, it was a joyful time as it was quite a baby boom in her family, a close cousin delivering a girl the month before her and her sister having given birth to a baby boy just 5 months before.
Despite knowing Black maternal health is overall abysmal in a hospital setting in the U.S. and due to her previous experience being ignored by doctors while having a stroke, Tracy decided on another hospital birth. She had a positive experience the first time and to minimize the amount of change and try to control what she could, in hopes of replicating another healthy pregnancy and birth, she kept everything the same. Same doctor, same hospital, same birth plan. And luckily, the birth worked out fairly close to her plan. She went into spontaneous labor at 39 and 3 days, birthed as long as she could at home, checked into the hospital at 8:45pm and her son was born at 11:55pm. With her mind set and lots of planning, she was able to have another unmedicated birth, in the hands of those she trusted.
Tracy Wells Bio
Tracy and her husband Bradford live in Los Angeles with their 4 year old daughter, Pearl and 6 week old son, Clay. Tracy is in sales and plans events on the side. Cuddling while reading with her kids, live music, being outdoors, baking and traveling keep her happy. You can connect with Tracy by leaving a comment here.
This episode is brought to you by Kindred Bravely. From adorable maternity wear to comfortable nursing bras, this mom-owned company has you covered. See all of their comfy clothing at kindredbravely.com! I especially love their Simply Sublime nursing tank, their high waisted leggings (for pregnancy AND postpartum). Listen to this episode for a special coupon code and to hear about my new favorites in their summer line of clothing and loungewear!
Aaron’s first full-term pregnancy and birth followed two first-trimester miscarriages. Aaron was referred to a hematologist to rule out any blood clotting issues and was encouraged to be on a blood thinner for the subsequent pregnancy. Due to a spinal surgery that prevented spinal pain control, Aaron planned for an unmedicated, out-of-hospital birth at a birth center. After a first trimester of being on blood thinners, her OB and MFM agreed that the blood thinners were unnecessary and that she could plan for the unmedicated, out-of-hospital birth she wanted. After an uneventful final two trimesters, she went into labor spontaneously in the 39th week. After 21 hours of challenging active labor and 2.5 hours of pushing, Oliver entered the world. Aaron was challenged by severe nausea from early labor through delivery, inconsistent but intense contractions, and scar tissue on the cervix, which prevented typical progression and had to be manually extracted. Aaron struggled with feeling well-resourced during the long labor.
Almost three years later, Aaron found herself in a similar situation: pregnant after another two miscarriages. This time Aaron was put on a progesterone regime for the first trimester. For this birth, Aaron planned for a home birth with midwives. The only thing getting in the way of this plan was a stubbornly breech baby. After unsuccessful attempts to turn the baby at home, Aaron and her spouse decided to do an ECV in the 38th week. While nerve-wracking, the procedure was successful and ultimately an empowering experience of using evidence-based resources to make the best decision for their family. Aaron went on to go slightly over her due date and began feeling contractions at 40 + 5. Expecting a prolonged dilation, Aaron didn’t feel ready to call the midwives, but luckily, her husband insisted, and they arrived just in time to help deliver their baby girl in the tub after 4 hours of active labor. During this labor, Aaron worked on moving, eating, drinking, and taking Zofran to maintain her strength.
Aaron Brame Bio
lives in Gainesville, FL, with her spouse, Jason, children Oliver, 3, Lula, seven months old, and pup Penny. Aaron works at an educational non-profit, and her spouse owns a fine woodworking business. Oliver and Lula specialize in making each other laugh and generally being really great kids. Aaron can be reached on Instagram at aaron_brame and also by email at abrame06@gmail.com
This episode was sponsored by Motif Medical. Motif designs insurance-eligible products for busy moms. With a focus on innovation and empowerment, Motif’s line of breast pumps and maternity compression garments are sophisticated, yet discreet, and made to support mothers as they navigate new motherhood. Discover why moms are reporting more milk in less time with the Luna breast pump and learn about the new wearable Aura pump, plus see how you can get it covered through insurance at motifmedical.com/birthhour.
This birth story includes a lot of first. Sarah shares her first homebirth which was also her first unmedicated birth all while in a lockdown. Sarah experienced irregular contractions, following 1.5 days of prodromal labour into only about 2.45 hours of active labor. This homebirth birth was a healing experience for Sarah, especially after experiencing prenatal depression and complications and it being nearly 11 years since her last birth.
Sarah Landry Bio
Sarah is a mom of 4 kids aged 1-16, divorced and remarried and now blended perfectly together. After getting exhausted by social media and body perfecting habits along the way, Sarah decided to change the way she showed up in the world. Healing through her perfectionism, disordered eating, body shame and so much more, she now loves having powerful social media conversations around life and our experiences in it. Sarah is a body confidence advocate, speaker, writer, occasional model, and weekly podcast host and an ongoing student of life. Connect with her via her website,Instagram, or The Papaya Podcast.
Today’s episode is sponsored by Needed. Needed is the leading women’s health supplement brand recommended by nutritionally-trained practitioners. While most perinatal supplements include the bare minimum of the nutrients needed during pregnancy, Needed’s products are based on the latest clinical research and in-practice experience of nearly 4000 practitioners. Needed has all your needs covered, from your prenatal vitamin to pregnancy-specific Pre/ and Probiotics, to egg quality support, sleep, stress, immune and hydration support, as well as your protein needs for blood sugar balance and postpartum healing. Needed’s Complete Plan delivers unparalleled nourishment for every phase — whether you’re trying to conceive, pregnant, or postpartum! Instead of having to pair 6 different products together to meet your needs, I love that Needed has simplified things by bundling together four core products you need, in an easy and flexible monthly plan.
Needed’s 4-part Complete Plan includes their Prenatal Multi, their vegan Omega-3, their pregnancy-specific Pre and Probiotic with targeted strains to support you and your baby’s microbiome, and their ethically and sustainably-sourced Collagen Protein that mixes easily into just about everything. Needed’s Complete Plan truly meets all of your micronutrient, microbiome, and protein needs. Save 20% off your first order of Needed’s Complete Plan or any of their other perinatal nutrition products at thisisneeded.com with code BIRTHHOUR.
In 2022 Amadea and Matthew added a baby girl to their family which includes three children from his previous marriage and a menagerie of farm animals. Amadea originally planned to birth at a center, but transferred to a home birth midwife after experiencing depression and anxiety in the first trimester. Her journey includes navigating family dynamics, reversing a GBS status, turning a consistently transverse baby, symphysis pubis dysfunction causing limited mobility in the third trimester, gestating until 42 weeks 3 days, contracting Covid the day before birth, and ultimately transferring into hospital at the height of labor due to a combination of potential red flags. Despite the many complexities and curveballs, Amadea had a positive, healthy pregnancy and unmedicated birth and cites her privileges for the fortunate outcomes; including a great support system and the time and ability to aggressively self-inform before and during pregnancy. As each decision arose, she and her partner strove to untangle a myriad of factors and using all the data at their disposal, hone in on the best possible option for their family, but found the urgency and messiness of the process a lot to contend with regardless of their cool-headed-ness! In the end, acceptance of the unknown proved the most useful tool in their kit.
Amadea Cesari Bio
Amadea is wife to Matthew, mother to baby Sylvia and stepmom to William (10), Elias (13), and Lily (15). She and her family operate a small farm in the hills of Pennsylvania and live a life full of plants, old cars, animal management, kid extracurriculars and the best kind of chaos.
Resources
My own handwritten birth mantras shown or read to me
The Birth Hour was the best, and every story left me wiser, stronger and more ready for birth.
The Peanut app helped fight feelings of isolation, and introduced me to a couple of dear friends
Tubby Todd Bath Co.
Today’s episode was sponsored by Tubby Todd Bath Co. Created with sensitive skin in mind, Tubby Todd’s line of bodycare basics are gentle, effective and fun for the whole family. You might have heard of their eczema miracle worker All Over Ointment (fondly referred to as AOO), but this family-owned brand offers a full line of sensitive skincare solutions that you’ll love to reach for every single day. Start with The Regulars or Baby Bundle to get your little one set up with their very first skincare routine. Join the TT fam and get 15% off your first purchase with code BIRTHHOUR15 at tubbytodd.com.
Needed
Today’s episode is sponsored by Needed, the leading women’s health supplement brand recommended by nutritionally-trained practitioners. While most perinatal supplements include the bare minimum of the nutrients women and babies need, Needed’s products are based on the latest clinical research and in-practice experience of over 3000 practitioners. Needed has all your needs covered, from your prenatal vitamin, to pregnancy-specific Pre/Probiotics, to egg quality support, sleep, stress, and hydration support, as well as your protein needs for blood sugar balance and postpartum healing. They continue to create innovative products based on what women and families need to thrive. One of the hardest parts of Needed co-founder Julie’s second postpartum was juggling a sick toddler and a newborn, while trying to avoid getting sick herself. And she’s not alone. We’re all sick of sick days — especially if we have little ones in school or on the way. That’s why Needed teamed up with perinatal and pediatric practitioners to formulate ONE simple Immune Support product for the whole family — it’s safe for kids, and pregnant and nursing mothers. Save 20% off your first order at thisisneeded.com with code BIRTHHOUR.
Jenny became pregnant quickly with her first baby in 2018 and had him after a smooth hospital induction with an epidural, but a prolonged pushing phase due to baby’s position. Postpartum was marked by significant issues nursing, which triggered post partum depression and anxiety. Then, at 6 weeks post partum she woke up with abdominal pain that turned out to be appendicitis and led to emergency surgery, further complicating post partum recovery.
Jenny went on to have two smooth homebirths. The postpartum experience after her second birth was much smoother with a baby who nursed super well, but Jenny felt like she rushed through the fourth trimester to “get it over with” and didn’t let herself enjoy it. Her third baby was born only weeks ago but this has been the smoothest transition so far despite baby having tongue and lip ties. Jenny has allowed herself to fully enjoy having a newborn and is the most emotionally healthy she’s ever been.
Jenny Burns Bio:
Jenny lives in Dayton Ohio with her husband, who is a travel nurse, and their three boys. She is a former social worker turned stay at home mom. She and her husband are in the process of renovating an old farmhouse on 6.5 acres and can’t wait to raise their boys there.
This episode is sponsored by Ergobaby. Founded in 2003, Ergobaby has pioneered the gold standard for comfortable, ergonomic soft structured carriers. Their commitment to providing parents with the foundation to thrive has launched the company into creating a broad range of award-winning products that fit into families’ daily lives seamlessly, comfortably, and safely – where function and quality are not compromised. In 2020, they launched Everlove by Ergobaby, a first of its kind baby carrier buy back and resale program, a sustainability effort to support families and the planet. Check out Ergobaby’s Embrace in Soft Air Mesh and new Evolve 3-in-1 Bouncer that we discussed on the podcast!
