On today’s show we will be discussing how birth has changed over the last 25 years. Our guest today is Ananda Lowe, a long-time birth doula in Massachusetts who will share what she has seen and heard.  Ananda has been part of the Boston/New England and even national birth scene for a long time--since 1995.  She is co-author of The Doula Guide to Birth: Secrets Every Pregnant Woman Should Know, she’s a Lamaze-trained childbirth educator, as well as a Certified Lactation Counselor, and former...

On today’s show we will be discussing and busting some infertility myths with Kate Rosenkranz, a dear friend of Melissa’s who had an infertility journey before a successful pregnancy. Kate had to undergo a complicated surgery and one round of in-vitro fertilization and two failed transfers before conceiving her son on transfer number 3.  She later conceived her daughter on the first transfer. Kate shares her story and what she learned from her journey (and what she has learned from many...

Today we speak with Ketura’h Edwards-Robinson, a native Bostonian who is currently working in her home city as a Nurse Practitioner, primarily in the area of Women’s Health. One thing that makes Ketura’h special is that in the past year, Ketura’h trained to become a birth doula and is now serving clients in her community with Accompany Doula Care, a local doula agency that has developed a model of care where their doulas are reimbursed by the client’s health insurance, which is helping...

Although today’s topic is not only utilized by LGBTQIA families, they are one of the biggest groups that do! This episode was recorded at the start of June, which is Pride Month, and with this episode we are celebrating just one of the many different ways to make a family. Our guest today is Certified Nurse Midwife Marianne Pelletier, who was inspired to enter birth work after the birth of her own children. After becoming a nurse, she worked for 12 years in labor & delivery in both a...

In this episode continue our conversation with birth and postpartum doula Arlene Lammy of New Wave Perinatal Services (https://www.newwavedoula.com).  In this episode, Arlene elaborates on how she would like to “change the narrative of the fourth trimester” and how postpartum is actually forever…and how we need to embrace a longer recovery and a new phase of life.  We discuss how comparing our experiences to the experiences of others and comparing our baby’s development to a previous baby or...

In this episode we're talking with birth and postpartum doula Arlene Lammy of New Wave Perinatal Services (https://www.newwavedoula.com).   Warning: this episode is full of beautiful stories and laughter! You'll quickly notice that Arlene is a master storyteller, and you'll be drawn in, as we were, to learn how her West Indian family and culture influenced how she experienced her nephew's birth and how her immigrant parents described the births of Arlene and her sisters.  She also brings in...

Today we’re talking about Placenta Encapsulation! Our guest today is Michaela Shaw, the woman behind Ostara Birthwork & Botanicals. Michaela is a full spectrum doula serving families in Central & Eastern Massachusetts as well as Rhode Island. She is also a graduate of the Holistic Herbalism Program at Blue Ridge School of Herbal Medicine, Asheville, NC and has studied permaculture + sustainable cultivation practices throughout Central America and the US, and is a practicing...

Today we’re talking about grandparenting with Dee Moore of MoreThanGrand.com! If you are are NOT a grandparent, YES, this show is still for you, as you’ll gain some good insights into what grandparents are going through and ideas you can share with them BUT it’s also helpful for grandparents, so we do hope that you’ll share it with ALL the grandparents in your life, whether they are related to you or not! In this episode we discuss boundaries, building a relationship from a distance, what...

During this episode, we discuss the medical model of obstetric care, how to find an OB or other care provider that will support you in your goals for your birth, why doulas are such a key player in his work and why he recommends them so often and what has influenced the culture of obstetrics in the United States. Our guest today is Dr. Bill Chun. Dr. Chun is a board-certified OBGYN in Woburn, Mass with over 30 years experience in medicine. Dr. Chun is a graduate of Ohio State University of...

Recorded Sunday, April 11, 2021.  We are talking with Liz Sheehan Castro about the legislative effort that has been launched to get childcare to be FREE in Massachusetts.Liz works for the SEIU Education and Support Fund (ESF), which is a 501(C)3...

Join us as we take a few minutes to celebrate the one year anniversary of the Babies in Common Show and reminisce about how it was started and we talk about how you can help keep us going!

In this episode, we talk with mother of two, Danielle Blanchard, about navigating pregnancy, Cesarean births, NICU stays and breastfeeding as a Type 1 diabetic.  After discussing the difference between gestational diabetes and Type 1 diabetes and then...

Recorded Wednesday, March 17, 2021 and today we are talking with our friend Emma O’Brien, long-time birth and postpartum doula and clinical herbalist. In this episode, we talk with Emma about how her interest in herbs started and her journey to become a...

On today's Babies in Common Show, we interview our friend Brittany Falcone, a chiropractor in Worcester, Massachusetts, who specializes in pregnancy and pediatric care.  Brittany shares her interesting story that inspired her to become a chiropractor...

Recorded Wednesday, March 3, 2021.  Today we spoke with two special guests about the new Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Law (abbreviated PFML) and how to best prepare for parental leave after the birth of your baby!  Our guests are Amanda...

Recorded Wednesday, February 24, 2021.  Our guest today is Kelly Bowen, DO, an obstetrician/gynecologist who practices in a community hospital in Central Massachusetts (and used to work with Melissa!).Today Dr. Bowen will answer many questions:What is...

Recorded Saturday, February 20, 2021 and our guest today is Becca Parrish Snowdon, a psychologist who specializes in evaluating children to determine if they would benefit from additional services at school.After receiving her bachelors degree from Duke...

Recording of a Facebook Live we did on the Babies in Common Facebook page on Wednesday, February 17, 2021, discussing the Boston Globe article (front page!) highlighting our petition to stop certain hospitals in Massachusetts from separating birthing...

Recorded Saturday, February 13, 2021 and our guest today is Caitlin Calonge (Ca-LAWN-gee).Caitlin grew up in Cambridge and Everett, MA. She found out she was pregnant with her first baby the summer following high school graduation when she was 18 years...

Recorded Wednesday, February 3, 2021. Our guest is Jessica Shephard, who talks with us about her two homebirth experiences and how choosing homebirth was a big surprise to her Ecuadorian family!  Jess was born in Ecuador and moved to the United States...

Recorded Wednesday, January 27, 2021.  Our guest today is a local nurse, homebirth mom and friend, Alicia Randall!Alicia grew up an Army Brat, then served as a combat medic for the US Army, providing medical treatment for wounded soldiers during 2 Iraq...

Recorded Wednesday, January 20,  2021.  Our guest today is Dr. Prakash-Zawisza, an obstetrician-gynecologist who is now  the Medical Director of the MassHealth Payment and Care Delivery Innovation Division and the president-elect of the National...

Today is Wednesday, January 13th, 2021 and our guest today is Kara Coffin.  Kara is a mother of three children plus 2 dogs, 10 chickens and one fish! :)  She specializes in guiding pregnant people to co-create a toolkit of physical, emotional, chemical...

Recorded Wednesday, January 6th, 2021.Our guest today is Yasmin is an IBCLC-lactation consultant in private practice in Mumbai, India.  Yasmin is also a biodynamic craniosacral practitioner, international speaker and filmmaker.   During this episode we...