Down to Birth

Maternal mortality for black women is three times higher in the United States, at almost 70 deaths per 100,000.  As a woman of color, Nichollette Jones was motivated to protect herself and her daughter from the risks and protocols associated with hospitals, especially during Covid, which showed a sky-rocketing of maternal mortality statistics across the board in the U.S. Unable to cover the cost o...

Katie Ferraro of @babyledweanteam is a mother of seven, registered dietician and baby led weaning proponent. Baby-led weaning is a method of introducing solid foods to babies where purees and spoon-feeding are skipped in favor of finger foods,  allowing the baby to self-feed. When Katie found out she was pregnant with quadruplets, she knew she needed the easiest, most effective way to feed her bab...

Welcome to the July Q&A episode with Cynthia & Trisha.  Today, we kick off the conversation with a story of an OB commenting on the "tightness" of a woman's perineum. Next, we jump into our questions on when sutures are or are not needed after a tear; placenta previa and a prolapsed cord; the risk of infection after rupture of membranes when GBS negative; how to get oxytocin...

Dr. Lynelle Schneeberg, PsyD, is a sleep psychologist, an assistant professor at the Yale School of Medicine, and Director of the Behavioral Sleep Program at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. She’s also a Fellow of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. She works with adults who have insomnia and has a particular passion for helping parents whose children have sleep difficulties. She is the...

Rachel Marynowsk of @Kale.blossom is a licensed naturopathic physician focusing on preconception, fertility and postpartum. In today's episode, Rachel introduces us to the fascinating phenomenon of fetal-maternal microchimerism and how it may influence women's health, particularly postpartum.  Fetal-maternal microchimerism refers to the presence of fetal cells in a mother's body and...

Catrina's first pregnancy was labeled high risk when a routine ultrasound revealed a two-vessel cord, leading to repeat ultrasounds and a diagnosis of IUGR (intrauterine growth restriction) and low fluid at 35 weeks. Her doctor immediately sent her in for an induction, and because her baby was still breech at that point, she ended up with a C-section. Catrina felt completely "checked-out...

We are back answering your questions in the June Q&A episode.  We kick it off with a woman's story of multiple non-consented vaginal exams in labor, her complaint to the hospital, and the hospital leadership's response. Next, we jump into our questions including: I really want a home birth, but I am afraid that hospital birth is safer and that home birth is dangerous. How do I determ...

Eyla Cuenca , a birth doula and birth trauma alchemist, delves into the emotional and psychological aspects of pregnancy and birth. She highlights the varying experiences pregnant women may encounter when it comes to their healthcare providers and how it can impact their journeys. Eyla introduces the concept of birth trauma alchemy, which focuses on transforming birth traumas and wounds into oppor...

At least one-third of women report to experiencing birth trauma. Traumatic experiences can be trapped in the physical body and manifest as post-traumatic stress disorder, easily triggered by everyday events and preventing us from fully embracing our experience as a mothers. Talk therapy can be helpful but often is not sufficient to fully resolve trauma, because trauma causes our brains to become w...

With the right knowledge and education about the intricacies of our own health, we have the potential to influence how our body gives birth. Did you know that by twenty-eight weeks of pregnancy your body is already making physiological and functional shifts to prepare for labor? Or that your baby's adrenal glands are the biggest factor in the initiation of labor? Have you ever heard that sub-...

Hello! We are back with the May Q&A.  This month we kick things off with a short conversation on obstetrical rhetoric around the risks of cesarean birth and induction, followed by your excellent  questions on: Short cords and small placentas Setting boundaries with well-meaning parenting advice-givers The necessity or not of Non-stress tests (NST) in late pregnancy True medical indications for...

Lisa Marie and Richard Oxenham are a water-birthing midwifery duo extraordinaire in addition to being husband and wife and protégés of Barbara Harper of Waterbirth International. Lisa has attended over six hundred water births and has never, not once, induced a woman's labor.  Through their years of experience, they have come to believe that giving birth in water improves birth outcomes over...

When your hospital birth plan repeatedly includes the word  "No", considering home birth becomes extremely enticing. In this episode, Colleen of @uncomplicatedfamily shares with us how she left her OB and chose home birth not only the first time but six more thereafter! Many mothers fear the idea of home birth because they only imagine what might go wrong. And while there are certain ris...

Chanie of @yoledetacademy is an experienced labor and delivery nurse and expert witness in cases which the appropriate use of Pitocin is in question.  Today, she joins us to give us an insider's perspective on the use of Pitocin in hospital birth. Pitocin, now known as the narcotic of modern obstetrics, is increasingly overused and the harms of its use are significantly under represented.  Jo...

RhoGAM or Anti-D is a blood product offered to pregnant women with an Rh-negative blood type who have conceived with an Rh-positive father. The use of RhoGAM is said to significantly reduce the chances of the mother becoming sensitized to a future baby if the current baby she is carrying has an Rh-positive blood type. The RhoGAM injection is routinely offered to all Rh-negative  women, despite tha...

Hello everyone! We are back with our April Q&A episode, and it is loaded with your excellent questions! Don't forget you can subscribe on Apple podcasts Patreon to hear the extended, ad-free versions.   Here's what we are talking about today: Is it safe to plan a birth center birth if someone has a history of pre-eclampsia, HELLP syndrome and a postpartum hemorrhage? Is it appropriat...

Chelsea was determined to have an unmedicated hospital birth. When she was unexpectedly diagnosed with cholestasis at 38 weeks, she found herself getting induced with Misoprostil, Pitocin, and ruptured membranes at 3 cm dilated. She quickly progressed to full dilation, had a short pushing phase and birthed her baby vaginally.  Everything seemed great until she went home and starting passing large...

If you are pregnant for the first time or even the second or third, we all want to know the secret ingredient to experiencing a "pain-free" birth experience.  Today, we brought on a leading voice in the pain-free birth world, Karen Welton, to go deep on what it takes.  Do you know the most important step in accessing a "pain free" birth? Hint: It's not about what you do in...

Erika gave birth to her first child in the hospital and was labeled a "weirdo"  and stamped as "difficult" for her birth plan intentions.  When the hospital staff tried to take her baby away in order to administer the Vitamin K shot and Erythromycin eye ointment, she refused, holding her baby close as the staff tried to pull the baby from Erika's arms. Next came the call t...

We are back with the March Q&A, and it is packed with your awesome questions!  How do I go about choosing a midwife? Are there red flags? I had pre-eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. Can I still have a home birth? Is it safe to take Valtrex in pregnancy for cold sores or is there an alternative? Is it necessary to rub and dry the baby after birth or can baby just be handed to me? Can we talk about...

Dr. Nathan Riley is an OBGYN who understands the holistic picture of women's health. You may remember him from Episode #165 where he discussed autonomous, empowered birth. Today, he joins us to explain why infertility rates are on the rise, especially for men, and gives us the six principles of holistic fertility that are important for healthy, conscious conception, along with the five fertil...

Claude Racine Valinsky is a former professional dancer and choreographer in Los Angeles who is now a mother who has recovered from postpartum depression and become a thriving mom-preneur. She returns to the show for the third time to share her "gangster mindset" for turning our most difficult moments in life into our greatest opportunity for growth, expansion, fulfillment and success. Cl...

Pre-eclampsia impacts more than 5% of pregnancies, is a leading cause of pre-term birth and is increasingly on the rise. When it comes to this difficult diagnosis, we often  are told there is nothing we can do other than give birth, usually by induction, sometimes by cesarean.  While the etiology of pre-eclampsia is not fully understood and much more research needs to be done, we do know that diet...

When Lauren gave birth to her first baby, everything was seemingly perfect. Breastfeeding was going well, and she was totally in love with her baby girl.  What she didn't see coming was a series of lifestyle changes including moving that set her up for her previously-managed OCD transforming into bouts of postpartum rage. At 9 months postpartum, when her pediatrician told her that her baby wa...

It's time for our monthly Q&A episode with your Down to Birth Show hosts Cynthia & Trisha. After a quick chat about the brutally cold weather (how unoriginal), we jump right into our listener-submitted questions beginning with:  How important or helpful is body-work for tongue-tied babies? Is there ever a legit reason for a cervical check in late pregnancy? When exclusively breastfeed...