Britt previously shared her first birth story and experience with Postpartum Depression on episode 470. She returns to share her second story and how her plans for the birth and postpartum changed the second time around. Britt discusses how fear played a part of her labor progressing, and the power of letting go and trusting your body. She describes a euphoric birth & postpartum experience in a hospital birth center. She went home to enjoy a 4th trimester that felt calm, peaceful and empowering – a stark and welcome contrast after previously experiencing PPD.
Britt also shares the ups and downs of adjusting to life with a toddler and a newborn, as well as dealing with breastfeeding and infant weight gain issues, and a misdiagnosed tongue tie.
Britt Watkins Bio
Britt and her husband Matt reside in Upstate New York with their daughters Maya & Callie, and their sweet old dog, Doc. Britt and Matt love living in NY, taking full advantage of all four seasons in the Adirondack Mountains. Britt’s a total birth nerd, a certified lactation consultant, and loves sharing and hearing about birth & postpartum experiences.
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!
Megan had Alexander at a hospital, when her husband was finishing up his studies. Megan had an epidural during her first birth because she didn’t know what to expect and was afraid as a young first time mom. Megan had postpartum anxiety but was not aware of what it was until she had her daughter and found a name for what she was feeling.
Megan’s second birth was different but also as empowering as her first. They had a natural home birth in their living room, with their midwives and her mother in law present. Megan’s postpartum journey after their second baby was the same as her first, but this time she realized that she had postpartum anxiety and took the time and initiative to find the help she needed to take care of her mental health.
Megan Christenson Bio
Megan is a mom to two amazing kids, Alexander is almost three and McKinley will be 8 months in October. Her family lives in British Columbia, Canada, where they explore their community, the outdoors and their every day life together. Megan works at an employment agency when she is done with her maternity leave, and enjoys being with her family, doing anything artsy and crafty, baking, and working with people. If you’d like to connect with Megan, please leave a comment here on the show notes page.
Glow Baby App for tracking and the community of women who were going through pregnancy and postpartum with me
The Wonder Weeks App, this is helpful because it helps me see a light at the end of the tunnel during difficult days/weeks and reminds me that they’re learning new skills
Big Little Feelings on Instagram and Facebook, especially if you already have kids because they have helpful techniques to avoid power struggles with toddlers and how to introduce a new baby, etc.
Oath Care
This episode is sponsored by Oath Care – a welcoming community to connect with fellow moms, find judgement-free support, and get personalized expert advice from pediatricians, marriage and family therapists, lactation and sleep consultants, pelvic floor therapists and more. Download the free to use Oath Care app from oathcare.com or in the App Store or Google Play.
Amy and her husband Scott had their first son in 2018. To Amy, at least in retrospect, the pregnancy felt easy with minimal morning sickness or health concerns, just some rib pain. Her husband likes to remind her that she still complained a lot! Labor was induced at 39 weeks due to the estimated large size of their baby. The induction resulted in an emergency C-Section after 3 hours of labor because of her baby’s heart rate decelerations. Postpartum healing consisted of intense gas pains, lip and tongue tie problems interfering with breastfeeding, and later postpartum depression as Amy weened.
The family became pregnant again in 2021. The pregnancy was much more difficult as Amy prepared for a VBAC. During the nine months, Amy tested positive for COVID, had bouts of hyperemesis gravidarum (excessive vomiting) in the second trimester, and the flu during her third trimester. She was also diagnosed with severe polyhydramnios (excessive fluid) which caused her belly to grow extremely large and painful. Because of the strains of the pregnancy complications, pandemic, and work, Amy dealt with heightened perinatal depression and anxiety. She went into labor naturally at 37 weeks; despite reaching 10 cm dilation and full effacement, she again needed an emergency C-Section due to her baby’s heart rate decelerating. Her baby required immediate assistance with oxygen and sugars, and was placed in the NICU. While in that care, her son endured multiple health challenges including hypoglycemia, polycythemia (increased red blood cell mass), jaundice, omphalitis (infection of the umbilicus), and viral meningitis stemming from parechovirus. He was in the NICU for 17 days. Amy has experienced considerable postpartum anxiety in the wake of this trauma, and with that, hopes to help others recognize the symptoms, get support, and make waves to improve health systems dealing with perinatal care.
Amy Serafin Bio
Amy (she/her)(38) and her husband Scott (he/him)(44) have been married 5 years. They live outside of Austin, TX with their two sons who are 4 years old and 4 months old, and a small menagerie of pets. Amy is a writer and mental health therapist who loves working with adults, especially mothers. You can connect with her socially on Instagram @flourishaustin.
Resources
Local to Austin/Texas:
Pregnancy and Postpartum Health Alliance of Texas: PPHATX.org
Your Village Consulting (doulas, childbirth education, sleep training, potty training, lactation specialist, etc) https://yourvillageconsulting.com/
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!
After a diagnosis of appendicitis and abdominal surgery at 7 weeks, Isabel sought out the support of a doula and the general birthing community to hopefully prepare for a lower intervention labor and delivery process. She balanced the desire to have a less conventional hospital birth experience with the realities of being a pregnant black woman in the United States.
Ultimately, a diagnosis of gestational hypertension and then preeclampsia led to a 44 hour induction where the epidural stopped working three times and she developed chorioamnionitis. In the end, she was able to have a gentle vaginal delivery and deliver a healthy baby girl. Postpartum was marked by significant postpartum anxiety and panic attacks. With the investment of significant resources, the constant support of her husband, the help of her incredible doula, an angel of a night nanny and her entire family and community, Isabel began to slowly recover.
Isabel Malone Bio
Isabel is originally from the Dominican Republic but lives in Chicago with her wonderful spouse and daughter as well as three struggle houseplants she tries to keep alive. She is an emergency medicine doctor and also works in medical education. Connect with her on instagram: @imbella_ or via email: isabelmalone111@gmail.com.
Resources
The Birth Hour!
“Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong–and What You Really Need to Know” – Emily Oster
A community of pregnant and birthing people
Pelvic floor physical therapy
Prenatal workout classes (I took all the classes offered on the Mirror with Rachel Nicks – @rachelenicks)
Therapy
Night nurses
Oath Care
This episode is sponsored by Oath Care – a welcoming community to connect with fellow moms, find judgement-free support, and get personalized expert advice from pediatricians, marriage and family therapists, lactation and sleep consultants, pelvic floor therapists and more. Download the free to use Oath Care app from oathcare.com or in the App Store or Google Play.
Kelsey’s first pregnancy, although physically uneventful, was riddled with severe anxiety and worry she would not bond with her baby. Kelsey planned for an unmedicated hospital birth but at 41 weeks was induced due to climbing blood pressure. Although proud of herself for avoiding an epidural, Kelsey left the hospital feeling completely traumatized and ill prepared to feed her baby. Breastfeeding challenges were numerous and became the sole focus of that first year of postpartum. Like so many women, this sparked a fire in Kelsey to learn as much as she could about birth and breastfeeding, in part to process her own trauma but also in the hopes she may support other women in their experience from maiden to mother. Kelsey, courageously, left her abusive marriage when her first born was around 2 years old. And while still in the process of a very tumultuous divorce, Kelsey became unexpectedly pregnant in October of 2020. After wading through many different emotions and logistics, Kelsey and her new partner started the process of blending their families and planning for a homebirth. Kelsey had a blissful pregnancy, full of love and support. Followed by a well-supported hospital transfer and redemptive breastfeeding experience.
Kelsey Contreras Bio
is a mother of two sweet boys and one awesome bonus boy. Kelsey is married to her best friend, Luccas, and together with their blended family, live in a little town about thirty minutes south of Madison, Wisconsin. Kelsey is a psychotherapist with a specialty in Perinatal Mental Health and is also active in her local birth community. Kelsey enjoys spending time outdoors with her brood of boys, doing yoga, and cooking for her family and friends. Connect with her on Instagram @kelsanns87
Today’s episode is sponsored by Aeroflow Breastpumps. Aeroflow has helped millions of new and expecting parents discover the breastfeeding and postpartum essentials covered by their insurance including breast pumps, maternity compression, and lactation education & support.
They take care of everything – including all paperwork, working with your insurance company, and explaining your options to get these free essentials shipped straight to your door. Aeroflow offers all major breast pump brands including Medela, Spectra, Motif, Lansinoh, Ameda, Elvie, Willow and more.
All you have to do is go to the Aeroflow Breastpumps website and fill out their free and easy Qualify Through Insurance form. Be sure to go to aeroflowbreastpumps.com/birthhour so they will know we sent you! Bonus — use the promo code “TBH15” in their online shop for 15% off all supplies and accessories.
Whitney and Zach Voss welcomed their daughter, Noah Jane Voss, into the world on July 7th, 2021. Whitney experienced a difficult pregnancy and unexpectedly gave birth at 36 weeks due to being very sick with COVID. Whitney experienced a traumatic birth and struggled with PTSD symptoms for months after birth. She experienced healing with the help of her husband, community, and a trauma therapy tool called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Whitney candidly shares about her birth and postpartum experience to provide hope and connection with others who have experienced a traumatic birth.
Whitney Voss Bio
Whitney is a wife, mother, and mental health therapist who owns her own private practice, Shreveport Counseling and Restoration Center. Whitney lives in Shreveport, Louisiana with her family. Whitney specializes in treating trauma, betrayal trauma, and sex addiction. She is also a Clinical Consultant for a non-profit, The Hub: Urban Ministries, that provides resources and recovery programs for victims of human trafficking and individuals experiencing homelessness. In her free time, Whitney loves to cook for her family, spend time with friends, and read. You can find Whitney on Instagram @whitney_voss or at www.shreveportcounselingandrestorationcenter.com
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!
