Send us a Text Message.Hello everyone! Cynthia and Trisha are back with the May Q&A episode. Today, we kick it off with an enlightening discussion on the worst parenting advice you have ever received--here's to all the things we never need to hear as mothers! Next, we hear one woman's beautiful take on her cesarean scar. Then, we dive into your awesome questions beginning with:What is the likelihood that if I had pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes in my first pregnancy that I will hav...

Send us a Text Message.Today's episode is a four-way conversation between us and a mother and daughter who are living in France. Nicola Thompson is a former L&D nurse of 30 years who worked in the U.S., and is now working in France as a traditional birth attendant, full-spectrum doula and IBCLC. Sasha Sharif, her daughter, is a mother of two with a third on the way. Sasha explains the impact her mother's life's work has had on her, and how that wisdom ultimately guided her away from birth...

Send us a Text Message.Tiffany and Kelly of Beautiful One Midwifery are a midwife team in California who both began their birth work as doulas. As a result, they designed their practice from a hands-off, hands-out approach--meaning, the woman is the focal point of all decision-making making, and interventions are only utilized with her absolute permission and desire. Not only does this model require a woman to take radical responsibility for her birth, but it also gives her body and min...

Send us a Text Message.Welcome to our first breastfeeding-only Q&A with Trisha & Cynthia. Trisha is a Certified Nurse-Midwife and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant with thousands of hours of clinical experience. Today's episode follows the format of our regular monthly Q&A episodes, where women call in with questions and we wrap up with Quickies at the end, but this time it's your breastfeeding questions only. Today Trisha answers questions such as: Can I int...

Send us a Text Message.Amanda Holden was planning a home birth with her first baby, having hired a midwife she loved. When she reached 42 weeks, her midwife terminated her care abruptly, due to Colorado state law prohibiting midwives from attending late-term home births. With a heavy heart but optimistic mindset, Amanda and her husband made the decision to birth in a hospital rather than have an unattended home birth. Using the education she had under her belt by that point, Amanda rallied he...

Welcome to the April Q&A episode with Cynthia & Trisha. Today, we invite you to guess the two things that Cynthia and Trisha will never talk about on the podcast. Hint: They are not scandalous or controversial. Shoot us a DM with your guesses! Next, hear the most annoying habits from our podcast community regarding their partners. As for our questions this month, here we go: I had a pain-free breech vaginal birth. Why do some women experience pain at birth and others don't?My second...

Emma Armstrong,  author of The Fearless Birth Book, and Instagram birth influencer at @thenakeddoulaofficial, joins us today to delve into the meaning of pleasurable birth. We ask the questions, "Why should a woman want a pleasurable birth, what does it even mean, and what holds women back from experiencing pleasure instead of pain?" In this enlightening and off-the-record-style conversation, we uncover the emotions holding us back from ecstatic, pleasurable, even orgasmic birth. Emma opens...

You won't find an obstetrician anywhere in the United States who will birth triplets vaginally in the hospital, but today you'll hear the story of traditional midwife Kristine Lauria who welcomed them at home with the respect and reverence for birth every woman deserves.  Kristine witnesses some of the most "high risk" births around the world in her midwifery work for Doctors Without Borders. She has attended over 500 breech, twin, and triplets births!  In this episode, you will hear the...

When Carolyn was pregnant with her first baby, she went past her "due date." After declining an induction at 41+6, her doctor questioned her integrity as a mother, stating, "I am surprised your motherly instinct (to protect your baby) hasn't kicked in yet."  Knowing that she and her baby were ok, she continued to wait despite heavy pressure from her OB. When she passed the 42-week mark, feeling out of options and having been told she was going to have a ten-pound baby, Carolyn accepted an...

We are back with the March Q&A episode with Cynthia & Trisha.  We kick off today's episode with an unbelievable, once-in-a-lifetime story of an OB who holds off a mother's pushing to tie a bow in the baby's hair before being born! Next, we get into our questions beginning with a mother who wants to offer important birth advice to her friend's daughter but doesn't know if it is her place or how to not overstep boundaries. Also, what questions to ask at a late third-trimester ultrasound...

In today's episode, three current and former L&D nurses join us in a roundtable-style conversation to share their behind-the-scenes experiences on the L&D floor. These three women get raw, real, and honest about what pulled them to this line of work and for one, what forced her to leave. They share their experiences and that of the women they serve on how birthing mothers are manipulated, coerced, and betrayed by their providers and the system. You'll hear astonishing quotes such as...

Like many mothers, Taylor Chamberlain Dilk had no idea where to begin in preparing for childbirth. Lucky for her she has a large social media presence and requested recommendations from her audience, and lucky for us, Down to Birth Show came highly recommended. Once she started digging in, she felt her inner maternal voice rising to the surface.  She knew she wanted an unmedicated birth, but had no idea what she was up against giving birth with an OB in the hospital. When she was offered a...

In this episode, we welcome back Dr. Stu Fischbein for his third appearance on  Down to Birth Show. We start the conversation by catching up on some of the latest problems occurring on the birth scene including VBACs, aspirin in pregnancy, the monetization of birth, late pregnancy ultrasounds, big babies, and due dates, before we get into the meat of the episode on Intrauterine Growth Restriction (IUGR). Dr. Stu shares a letter from one of his followers regarding her IUGR diagnosis resulting...

Welcome to the February Q&A with Cynthia & Trisha. To kick things off, we share some of your New Year's Resolutions--don't miss this as Trisha makes Cynthia momentarily speechless! Next, we dive into your questions beginning with: Is cord traction really necessary to birth the placenta? Another woman explains that she always throws up in labor right when her water breaks and asks if this is normal. Also, a new mother is curious if giving her baby a pacifier will be harmful or...

In today's episode, Cynthia and Trisha break down some of the current guidelines published by ACOG (the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists). You'll see many of these guidelines favor physiological birth and stand for minimal medical intervention in exactly the ways we recommend, which makes it  all the more perplexing why so many of today's obstetricians don't follow along. By understanding ACOG's position on common concerns in pregnancy and birth, you can feel more...

IUGR or Intrauterine Growth Restriction is the latest trend on the obstetric scene--a diagnosis that has afflicted many mothers unnecessarily. Eric, a father of two daughters,  joins us on the show today to discuss his experience with his wife's IUGR experience.  When an early ultrasound told them their baby was measuring smaller than expected, they were sent to maternal-fetal medicine and their baby was labeled as growth-restricted. As their dreams of a birth center birth quickly vanished,...

Have you ever wondered why we actually need to get a pap smear or why the testing guidelines frequently change? The presence of HPV or the Human Papilloma Virus is associated with an increased risk of cervical cancer and is the reason behind the pap smear.  A pap smear looks at the health of the cells in our cervix and the presence of HPV. When abnormal cells are found, it is usually recommended that we have those cells removed at the risk of the functionality of our cervix. In this...

Hello and is it too late to still say Happy New Year?! Cynthia & Trisha are back with the first Q&A of 2024 in season five of the Down to Birth Show! We kick it off today by sharing some of your highs and lows from the holiday season. Next, we get into our questions beginning with a mother who had low milk supply with her first baby and wonders what she can do in pregnancy and birth to prevent it from happening again; one curious listener wants to know if she can check her own cervix...

Pitocin has been named the most over-used and abused drug in maternity care. It is increasingly used for elective induction despite the lack of FDA approval for this purpose. Rupture of the uterus is a known adverse reaction to this drug, and its use is contraindicated when there is fetal distress or overstimulation of the uterus. Few, if any, women are given full informed consent to the administration of this drug in labor. Katie Spinks is one of these women. Katie had a routine, elective...

Cait Scudder, also known as the Millionaire Mother, is a successful entrepreneur and mother of two.  Currently in her third pregnancy, she joins us today to share her story of transformation from resistance to surrender in birth and in life. She describes her traumatic first birth resulting in a third-degree tear and bladder prolapse and the way she was robbed of her power through hospital policy, despite still achieving an unmedicated, vaginal birth. After going deep into somatic and...

Lizzie Bolliger, aka Fierce Lizzie on Instagram, wasn't always fierce. She went into her first birth experience knowing very little other than that she wanted an unmedicated vaginal birth.  After experiencing premature rupture of membranes, her first birth resulted in Pitocin augmentation and then meconium aspiration, resulting in her baby being taken away from her for the first fifteen hours of life. The second time around, she figured she knew enough to avoid an epidural and Pitocin but...

Susan Bratton is an intimacy expert and champion advocate for all who desire their most fulfilling and passionate intimate relationships. She joins us today to discuss how mothers can have a thriving sex life after having a baby and far beyond menopause. If you are someone who doesn't orgasm easily, or who feels guilty for not wanting more sex, or if you just want to learn more about what your body is capable of, this episode is for you! She details the anatomy of the yoni (the tantric word...

Welcome to the December Q&A episode with Cynthia and Trisha! Today, we begin with revealing your holiday traditions and difficult family challenges of the season. Additionally, we share our long-standing holiday traditions. Next, we dive into your questions beginning with: What are the signs of postpartum hemorrhage?Is failure to progress dangerous and what can you do to prevent it?Is it safe to use breastmilk to treat pink eye in a baby?Considering the danger of RSV, should I ask...

As we gear up for our season finale next week, we've got a special treat for you today – a "holiday special" episode that's a departure from our usual format. In this extra-long, off-the-record conversation, which we recorded Friday night at Trisha's house, we're delving into the personal questions you've been curious about throughout 2023. That's right, we're steering clear of the usual birth-related questions, and don't worry, you'll get your full dose of those in next week's December...

Join us for our long-awaited episode with Ashley Mayer, affectionately known as Dr. Green Mom, a highly respected family and pediatric doctor specializing in individualized and holistic medicine. In this insightful conversation, Dr. Mayer not only answers your burning pediatric healthcare questions but also provides a unique blend of personal insights and professional opinions on some of the most commonly debated topics in pediatrics. Dr. Ashley Mayer addresses crucial concerns such as...