Yes, this is important knowledge to have and you need to understand the stages of labor on a deeper level than just centimeters dilated. Knowing the stages of labor is even more important for hospital birth moms and can help you take control of your labor in severals ways. In this episode I discuss: The idea of surrender versus taking control and how that balance can change based on where you are giving birth. Understanding the stages of labor can help you to avoid cervical checks. ...

The term fear mongering comes up often in the discussion of our medical system, and our maternity care is no different. Knowing what it is and isn't is helpful in being able to identify the red flags and stand up to fear mongering if it happens to you. In this episode I discuss: The definition of fear mongering and what it can look like in your maternity care. The red flags of fear mongering and what the opposite of fear mongering, which is the informed consent process. Fear isn't...

Have you ever said, "the hospital won't let me..."? Then you need to learn more about the role of your OB, midwife, MFM or really any medical provider because they hold no power over you. Tune in to learn more about informed consent and evidence based care and how you are the actual boss of your medical care. In this episode, I discuss: Informed consent is a discussion that includes getting fully informed so you can make the final decision. Why I think the term shared decision making...

What is WILD pregnancy? We have one of our good friends from the Moms off the Record podcast, Kat Sigblad, sharing about her current pregnancy with baby number two. With her first birth, Kat thought she prepared the right way, from firing her provider and switching to home birth to being educated on all things natural birth, but what she learned is even home birth midwives can be captured by the system. Not wanting her next birth to be sabotaged as well, Kat did everything differently,...

The ONE thing I wish someone had told me when I was pregnant with my first. Here I am telling it to you if you haven't heard me say it already. In this episode I discuss: The 7Bs of attachment parenting and the intuitive way to parent your baby. In 2013, I read food blogs when I should have been finding the home birth corner on the web. The gaps in our prenatal care, specifically the lack of options and informed consent that come with the typical hospital prenatal. Subscribe to...

This is an incredible birth story that you won't want to miss. Katie shares her amazing journey from finding the online birth community in pre-conception to her long, tough back labor in the hospital, completely unmedicated. Katie's favorite part of her story, was reaching down to catch her own baby. She calls it the best gift she's ever received. In this episode, Katie shares: What she did to prepare for her natural hospital birth, and all the mindset work behind believe she could do...

Why do I have a consult appointment with my oral surgeon but not my OB? Home birth midwives generally do free consults as well. Want a more home birth like hospital birth? Run your own consultation and ask the right questions to see if your provider is the right fit for what you want in your birth. And if you are currently seeing an OB or a practice with OBs do not skip this ONE question. More questions to ask in the episode on Finding Your Unicorn OB Grab a spot inside Home Birth in...

If you can't have a home birth, for whatever reason, I get it. That was me too. That is why my area of expertise is helping moms have hospital births that feels more liek home births. Why? Because moms who birth are home are more likely to feel supported, have lower risk outcomes, have fewer interventions, and they always hit their goal of an unmedicated birth. The hospital is nothing like a home birth but there are some home birth practices that we can bring in to our hospital births. In...

Travel back in time with me as I go line by line through the birth plan I wrote as a first time mom in 2013. Back before there was a birth side of instagram and no one was listening to podcasts (or at least, I wasn't). In the episode I discuss each request from my birth plan, the biggest mistake I made, and if I actually got what I wanted. More episodes you'll love: 49: Using my super simple birth plan template 71: Hypnobirthing didn't work for me 105 | Home births don’t need birth...

April is cesarean awareness month. Approximately 1.3 million women in the United States undergo a cesarean section every year. It is the most common surgery done in the United States. And our cesarean rates have actually gone up in recent years, meaning it's more important now than ever to understand the risks, especially of repeat cesareans, and how to avoid an unnecessary c-section. In this episode I discuss: C-section being a neutral tool with risks and benefits, that is being...

The Washington Post said women are spreading “misinformation” about birth control in a recent article and many women in our community were PISSED. Myself included. SO I asked my good friend Carly Hartwig on today to talk about it- the REAL reason women are not okay with hormonal birth control and why we are choosing just as effective alternatives to the IUD, nuvaring, and the pill. Carly is a holistic reproductive health practitioner and certified fertility awareness educator. In this episode...

You’ve got a medicine cabinet full of herbs and natural remedies but are you applying the same approach to your birth? You have left the mainstream version of healing your colds but are you still taking the mainstream route to birth? Let’s talk about it! Get your medal for your unmedicated birth In this episode I discuss: - Why I don’t take prescription drugs or typical over the counter remedies for both my headaches and my anxiety, even though I am the perfect candidate for zoloft. - The...

Just like a batch of cookies has directions to bake for 10-13 minutes, your baby has a range to bake for 37-42 weeks. Yet, hospital practices have lowered the average length of gestation because they are inducing almost everyone. What are so many moms being induced? And are you really overdue after 40 weeks? In this episode I discuss: -The accuracy of due dates and why it should be called a guess date instead.  -The controversy around inducing just because a mom is 40 weeks-Why women risk...

People pleasing shows up in birth a LOT. But this one sneaky way of people pleasing also tends to show up even in the most experienced, assertive and unapologetic birth spaces. In this episode I discuss: -People pleasing practices in the birth space are what hospitals are used to and staff may be shocked when you are assertive. -Evidence can be a useful tool in decision making but we don't need to use it to please others. -Evidence is based in the medical model and not physiology, it's not...

When an OB takes to the internet to say “women’s bodies are historically bad at birth” you better believe the birth community is showing up. Today we are talking about the viral #dontpagedrfran movement on Instagram, exactly what the OB said that has the birth community enraged, and the lessons you can apply to your birth. In this episode I discuss: -The reel from @pagnigdrfran where she said “women are historically bad at birth” and that “our bodies are trying to off us every time we are...

Episode 2 for World Doula Week. In this episode I am answering all your doula questions from finding and hiring a doula to what it’s like being a doula! I answer the following questions: Where do I find a doula local to me? Questions to ask before hiring a doula. How much do doulas cost? How to become a doula What does getting started with a new client look like? Why don’t they protect physiologic birth anymore? Do you think doulas should have babies before becoming doulas (i low key...

Welcome to World Doula Week! Did you know that doulas love to bring awareness to the benefits of doulas during WDW? If you've wondered what a doula does during your birth, or maybe what a doula doesn't do, or If you have questioned wether you need a doula or not, you are in the right place. In this episode I discuss: -The role of the doula and how it is different than the midwife. -What I do with my client as their doula -Why you still need childbirth education, even with a doula....

If you are having your baby in the hospital, you need to be informed about the epidural, whether your plan is to utilize it or not. In fact after this episode you may decided to definitely not use the epidural and it may be easier for you to avoid the epidural after you learn all about it. Let’s get informed on the epidural! In this episode I discuss: -Risks and benefits of the epidural, the most popular form of pain management in the hospital birth. -How the epidural is placed and the two...

There is no quick fix, one and done, just do this and get the birth you want. But there IS one thing that is going to help you encompass all those 'tips and tricks' and that is taking radical responsibility. In this episode I discuss: -Taking responsibility IS radical, because the average mom walking into the hospital is asking to be told what to do. -Why taking radical responsibility is needed, and all because of phrases like "we need to.." and "you're not allowed to" -Four tips on...

Academy mom Kerissa Ransbury shares her two birth stories. Her fist where she was underprepared and ended up pushing for 6 hours versus the birth she loves to share because it was so positive. She prepared the right way and everything went exactly how she imagined, she labored at home, had zero pain, and her husband caught her baby. All in the hospital! In this episode, Kerissa discusses: -Her first birth started with cytotec after her waters broke. She ended up getting an epidural, which...

DESCRIPTION What if I start an induction and it doesn’t work? What if I change my mind? You have the right to stop an induction and leave the hospital. And if you want to keep that option open NEVER let them break your waters. In this episode I cover: -Avoiding an induction in the first place is the best way to support physiology and an unmedicated birth plan -The difficulties of going from a medicated birth routine to an unmedicated birth. -The options you have if you decide to stop...

No, birth is not like pooping out a watermelon. But birth is a lot like pooping in other ways. Take the squatty potty for an example, we have completely normalized and accepted an upright pooping position but not upright birth. Are you ready to learn about REAL birth? Unmedicated Academy will teach you how birth works and how the hospital works so you can support the birth you want even in the medicalized setting. Want to skip cervical checks, inductions, pitocin, unnecessary drugs,...

In honor of pregnancy after loss month, we have PAL (pregnancy after loss) doula Sarah Lingle. “It was probably the most emotional time of my life” Pregnancy after loss is hard, it can be full of anxiety, and it’s also a time of so much hope and joy. For many loss moms, there are more interventions in both their pregnancy and birth, wether by choice or by coercion. Sarah gives her best preparation tips for moms experiencing pregnancy after loss for them to feel informed and confident.  In...

Everyone wants a pain free birth, but in reality, only 1% of moms are experiencing one. Is a pain free birth possible? It is! Is it common, no. There are a few reasons you may not experience a pain free birth, some within your control, some not. And there are three things you can do to help increase your chances of experiencing a truly pain free birth.  Get on the NORA waitlist Listen to episode #25: An Exposè On Vaccines and Pediatrics with THE Dr. Paul Thomas on Moms off the Record  In...

Part 2 with Sydney Taylor. The conversation with Sydney continues as she shares how her birth experience led her to birthwork and becoming a homebirth midwife. We talk about being doulas who only take on clients who want unmedicated births and the benefits, to both client and doula, of showing your biases as a doula. In this episode we discuss: -How being a mother prepares you to be a doula more than any doula training program -The affirmations we love to hear from dads in the birth...