Category: Childbirth

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Uncategorized

The New Product That’s Changing the Landscape of Breastfeeding

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Breastfeeding can really suck- but it doesn’t have to (well, at least not in the emotional sense.) Much of the anxiety that comes with breastfeeding is birthed from the mother’s uncertainty regarding how much milk her baby is consuming. Sure, we can keep a tally of soiled diapers, but if a baby still seems like she’s hollering for more, many new mamas panic and switch to formula- even if their body is pumping out plenty of milk.

What to do?

Enter Momsense, a new product designed to record and report how much baby is actually consuming by using a tiny sensor placed behind baby’s ear that captures the sounds of baby’s swallowing to determine how much milk is being gulped down- the information is then sent to a program in mom’s smartphone (on Airplane mode) that allows her to keep track of how much baby receives during each meal. Cool!

Read more on Huff Post!

Childbirth, Parenting, Pregnancy, Reviews and Giveaways, Uncategorized

Interview With the Creator of My New Favorite Baby Shower Gift- Stockpile

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#MomConfession I dreaded the mountain of ribboned tissue paper and bags at my baby shower. I was grateful, but. So. Much. Stuff. I was already having trouble fitting the essentials into my tiny living space and didn’t know how the stuffed animals galore would be integrated.

I get it- stuff is what you get and give during a baby shower. But, what if there was another option? A great gift that would create lasting value for the baby, and wouldn’t give the mother an additional thing to find a home for? Enter Stockpile, a gift card you can purchase and load with stock from a company of your choice.

I was able to interview the mind behind Stockpile, Avi Lele, and he didn’t disappoint.

Bailey: What was your background before becoming the CEO of Stockpile?

Avi: I started out as an engineering major at MIT, got a law degree at Harvard, and practiced law for 16 years before founding Stockpile. My specialty was patent litigation, and our cases involved complicated, cutting-edge technology. But technology can be intimidating to many people, so every time we went to court, we had to find a way to make the technology accessible – easy to understand and even entertaining – so lay judges and juries had the information they needed to decide the case.

Read more on Huff Post!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Uncategorized

Review of ‘Utilizing Ancient Birthing Wisdom’ Course

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One of my Daily Om courses was reviewed! Yee haw! Here it is 🙂

Childbirth and an entry into motherhood, especially for the first time for an expecting woman, can be a nerve wracking experience both from a mental and physical standpoint. While bringing a new child into the world is truly a unique and exciting experience for both parents that brings a great amount of joy, and happiness into their lives, the experience can be draining. Having the access to the knowledge that has been proven to work with childbirths throughout hundreds of years can be invaluable to a mother and couple going through a pregnancy. Instead of searching for answers to every potential issue that may arise during the pregnancy, and being forced to be more reactive than proactive during the process, there is a great solution to mothers, of all types, that will help provide them with the opportunity to experience only the joys of childbirth and few of the downsides.

Official Website: http://dailyom.com

bailey-gaddisDailyOM’s Utilizing Ancient Birthing Wisdom course, designed by Bailey Gaddis, is truly a must have and its price is something that hardly anyone else can match in terms of the value you get for the money you pay. Bailey Gaddis, the course’s founder is a mother, educator on the subject of HypnoBirthing, she is certified as a birth Doula as well as a certified Hypnotherapist. Gaddis is also the founder of the Ojai Valley Birth collective. As a mother who experienced various challenges on her way to motherhood, Gaddis devoted her life and career to helping empower other women in the hope she can help inspire them to rise above the fear of childbirth and live feeling empowered, courageous and blissful.

Read more here!       Or purchase it here! (Pay $10, $25, or $45- your choice!)

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

The Pros and Cons of Freezing Your Eggs

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Confession: I’m afraid my eggs will poop out on me before I’m done having kids. But the thing is, I’m not ready to have more children just yet — I want to buy a house, write a few books, travel with only one small human, sleep … so what’s a girl to do?

Freeze my eggs?

Egg freezing is the hot (or cold?) fertility trend of procuring eggs from a woman’s uterus, freezing them, and re-implanting them when she’s ready to introduce the egg to a sperm. This practice became a viable option in 2012 when breakthroughs in freezing and thawing techniques helped prevent eggs from being ruined by ice crystals forming in the eggs.

I’ve been privileged to gain an insider’s view to this wild baby-making world by my mother, who was an IVF nurse for over 15 years and now owns an egg donor agency that is partnering with an egg freezing bank. My mama’s been my fertility Yoda as I navigate this world, helping me dig beneath the surface pros and cons I find on the Internet, giving me the scoop on what the experts find to be the real benefits and risks of sticking lady eggs in a freezer.

Read more on Babble!

Childbirth, Guilt & Forgiveness, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

Why You Should Create a Cesarean Birth Plan- Even If You’re Planning For a Vaginal Birth

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Loss of control is a primary fear many women feel when considering the possibility of a cesarean birth. “I’ll have to give up my power to the surgeon. I’ll have no say over how the birth unfolds. I’ll feel like a piece of meat on an operating table.” But it doesn’t have to be that way.

You can reclaim your right to empowerment throughout your baby’s birth by creating a cesarean birth plan — even if you’re planning for a vaginal birth.

Creating this plan doesn’t set the intention that you’ll have a cesarean birth, it sets the intention that you’ll be prepared, regardless of any unforeseen circumstances that may pop up in your birth journey.

Below are preferences you can use to create a simple one-page cesarean birth plan (that you’ll create in addition to your vaginal birth plan), which you will present to your care provider around the beginning of your third trimester. I recommend discussing each preference with your care provider to determine if they, or the facility you would be having the surgery in, would put up resistance to any of the preferences. If so, discuss why there would be resistance, and what can be done about it.

Read more on Babble!

Childbirth, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

5 Of The Craziest Birth Stories You’ll Ever Read

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Childbirth is about as predictable as a cranky toddler with a full glass of juice — it can get messy. When the new-human-delivery process is allowed to naturally unfold, it rarely fits into a sterilized box. Nope, it often spills out, splashes onto your favorite shoes, and demands you step into your ability to roll with it — even if “it” laughs in the face of your birth plan.

I recently attended a gathering for maternal health care workers and many of their clients, where I heard hundreds of birth stories — some of them, completely insane. I received permission to share a handful of the most intense stories (some women wishing to remain anonymous), in the hopes that you can take comfort in knowing that even if your birth goes sideways, rolls down a hill, and falls into a murky pond — you can handle it, and will come out of it a stronger (totally badass!) mom.

Here’s a glimpse of the stories from five women I find far superior to any superhero …

Read more on Babble!

Career, Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

Trusting Your Whole-Being During Childbirth (And BIG News!)

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Hi friends!

I haven’t been blogging much because… I’ve been busy writing the Feng Shui Mommy book- eek! (Insert embarrassingly spastic happy dance here.) Being published by New World Library Spring 2017.

Besides that little announcement, I’m keeping today’s written message short and leaning on the spoken word (many of them.)

This relaxation recording was created for pregnant women, but can be utilized by any individual wishing to have more trust in their whole (mind-body-spirit) being.

Send me your thoughts and questions 🙂

xo
Bailey

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

9 Ways Dads Can Emotionally Prep For Childbirth

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Hey dudes — your modus operandi during baby’s birth can consist of more than shelling out ice chips, taking the occasional photo, and having the life squeezed out of your hand. The vibes you put off directly affect your baby’s and lady’s journey through birth. Exuding a calm, confident, and prepared demeanor (even if you’re faking it!) will help your birthing honey assume more of a goddess essence than a “What have we done?!” shrill.

Here’s how to clear then bolster your emotional state before The Big Day, and infuse traditional childbirth preparation methods with deeper meaning.

1. Fear release exercise

Sometimes, releasing negative emotions via talking and journaling isn’t enough — that junk may need to be worked out via physical exertion. Make a list of any and all fears you have surrounding the birth of your child, and all areas of your life the birth will affect (which is everything). Every day, or every other day, choose one fear from the list and exercise it out. As you run (or bike, or engage in any other exercise of choice) envision the fear being released via your sweat.

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Pregnancy, Self Love, Uncategorized

Coming To Terms With the Negative Birth Experience You Weren’t Expecting

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As a doula, I recently attended a 30-hour birth that turned the mom’s birth preferences on their head (or maybe into the breech position). The mama was elated to end up with a healthy baby but is moving through deep regrets over certain aspects of her experience (about 90 percent of her preferences had to be scrapped for medical reasons.)

It can be really deflating when you put in months of preparation to have a particular type of birth, and then fall into having the opposite type of birth. It totally sucks. But “it’s not allowed to suck” — or so everyone says — if you and baby end up healthy.

“Well at least you have a healthy baby.”

Ugh.

Yes, you had your healthy baby, and obviously you’re thrilled with that ideal outcome, but what about all the yuck in between? The dashed expectations? The missed opportunities to move through certain experiences you had prepared for? The residual trauma of moving through experiences you hadn’t prepared for? 

Read more on Babble!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

I’m a Doula and Let Me Tell You: Orgasms During Childbirth Are a Real Thing

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IMG_7891The terms “orgasm” and “childbirth” sound like antonyms to most people. But, women have an orgasm when they conceive a baby (hopefully!), so maybe it’s not outside the realm of reason that they could have an orgasm while birthing the baby.

According to The Independent, a survey by the Positive Birth Movement and Channel Mum has reported that 6 percent of women say they have had an orgasm during childbirth. My initial reaction when I first heard about women who reported orgasms during birth was that they were lying braggarts — mainly because I was jealous I had never experienced this phenomenon.

But since I’ve become a birth doula, my “lying braggart” theory has been crushed; I’ve witnessed many women experience multiple orgasms during birth. I’ve heard them describe these births as “ecstatic overflows,” “spiritual awakenings,” “waves of bliss,” and “the longest, strongest, orgasm ever!” 

I wonder if these will be the ladies that end up having six children?

Read more on Babble!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Mom Humor, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

Playing Music For My Son In the Womb Made Us Closer

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IMG_2634Music allowed me to hear the voice of my unborn baby.

During my pregnancy, I set the intention that my baby would offer me insights and answers via movement when we listened to music. I believed it was his opportunity to show me a glimpse into his soul.

Music also supported me in understanding and expressing (via my own movement) all the emotions I couldn’t actually verbalize to my baby (or to myself, sometimes). Each note sparked a new idea, question, or simple moment of appreciation for the being developing in my womb.

I would play reggae music as he moved back and forth across my mid-section. Some days I would try out 90’s hip-hop (I swear he would tap his foot to the rhythm). Classical music (the ultimate baby music cliché) just put him to sleep, no complaints.

His favorite music ended up being anything that made me dance. If I was shaking my bloated pregnancy booty it was (and still is) a good day for him; he’s down to shake along with me.

Oh, and we also listened to audio books. I had to drive a painful amount of time for work (four hours, three times a week). He slept through those audio books: Miranda’s dilemma about whether her Latin lover was actually murdering middle-aged art dealers in downtown Los Angeles really didn’t interest him.

Read more on Redbook!

Childbirth, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

I Was The First To Get Pregnant

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IMG_1187Be wary of a friend who uses your pregnancy as a soapbox for self-righteousness.

When I became pregnant in my mid-20s, it became the source of invasive gossip amongst my group of childless friends.

Many of my friends didn’t get it.

“A pregnancy? That you don’t want to end? But what about alcohol? You can’t drink alcohol when you’re pregnant, did you know that? And isn’t there a baby at the end of a pregnancy? Who will change the diapers?”

My pregnancy was unplanned, but still welcome. I was on birth control and my partner was just beginning graduate school. But the stars (or sperm and egg) still aligned. I immediately knew the pregnancy felt right, even though most people were telling me it was wrong.

My partner needed time to reconcile with the fact that he was going to be a dad and when many of our acquaintances heard this, they latched on.

Read more on Your Tango! 

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Uncategorized

Pregnancy and Newborn Magazine!

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Holy moly! I’m an expert in the recent addition of Pregnancy and Newborn magazine (answering a question I could have asked- and now trying to follow my own advice.)

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

Pregnancy Bagua Map

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Toying around with a “pregnancy version” of a feng shui bagua map for the Feng Shui Mommy book 🙂 A work in progress, but having fun mixing the harmony of this ancient Chinese art into the magic of pregnancy and childbirth.

Oh, are you wondering what the heck a bagua map is? The bagua map (BAH-gwa) is a tool used in feng shui to learn which parts of a space correlate with particular areas of life.

My version helps you learn what areas of your life to nurture during different stages of your journey into motherhood. 

You begin your journey in the watery North (1st trimester), explore the woods of the East (2nd trimester), absorb the warmth of the South (3rd trimester), then slide into the cool landscape of the West (4th trimester.)

At the center of it all is the grounding presence of the Earth, which holds the power to harmonize the light and dark moments of your journey (yin and yang.)

Childbirth, Pregnancy, Self Love, Uncategorized

9 Ways to Bond With Your Unborn Baby

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IMG_0978Are you nervous at the prospect of birthing a stranger? Sure, you love the little nugget floating in your uterus, but do you feel like you know them?

When I was pregnant, I had serious doubts about my ability to “do parenting well.” I felt wholly unprepared and feared the big P-D: postpartum depression.

Because I have control freak tendencies, I became consumed with putting in bonding work before my son was born — I had a deep need to get to know him before he was put in my arms.

Many of the following prenatal bonding activities are practiced in the HypnoBirthing (Mongan Method) childbirth preparation classes I teach, and some are pulled from my personal tinkering.

Read more on Babble!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Uncategorized

8 Truths About Having a HypnoBirth

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IMG_1238It’s basically like creating your own personal fantasyland.

The idea of pushing a human out of the vagina is incomprehensible, even if you’ve already done it. The foreign woods between pregnancy and the postpartum experience, childbirth, are a fantasy land where the body, mind, and spirit are pushed past their limits to a space where they’re floating in timeless (sometimes painless) amnesia.

If you’re having a natural birth, without the aid of a childbirth preparation method, you must move through the bowels of pain before you reach the fantasy land.

If you’re having an assisted birth, sans childbirth preparation tools, you must wait for the needle to be injected before you flow into the fantasy land.

If you’re having a hypnobirth, you create your own fantasyland and get yourself there as soon as possible.

A hypnobirth consists of mixing the ins and outs (emphasis on “out”) of traditional childbirth preparation, like conscious breathing, uterus and perineum education, and how to not pulverize the birthing partner emotionally or physically, with the real gems like affirmations, visualization, and the crown jewel: self-hypnosis.

Read more at YourTango!