203 What do you mean there is no amniotic fluid? Birth Story with Kristen Stegall

Today Heidi interviewed Kristen Stegall, CEO of Novice Studios, a podcast production company based in Charlotte, NC. Here is a little more about Kristen Stegall and this episode.

In Heidi's words: "In this episode, I interview my client Kristen Stegall about her pregnancy journeys, from navigating a missed miscarriage in 2020, to delivering her rainbow baby in 2022. We discuss her long prodromal labor, determining that a c-section was the safest way to deliver her baby, and processing a traumatic birth experience."

While I don't usually work at this hospital, it should be noted that Kristen says, " And it was fun to do the different positions and try the birth sling and to, you know, all the nurses, the staff there. I feel like very lucky that everybody there was so kind. And they were like, you guys do your thing. And they were like, we trust the doula and we trust you to tell us when you need something."

It feels good to be trusted by a hospital system as a doula. This was the last time I was at this hospital until October of 2024. 

3 Key takeaways from the podcast that listeners will learn today:

• A D&C is an abortion, and abortion is a healthcare tool that saves lives. Unfortunately the word “abortion” has been villainized, but ultimately it prevented an adverse outcome for Kristen’s missed miscarriage.

• An urgent c-section is different from an emergency c-section. In an emergency, you are completely put under general anesthesia and are asleep for the procedure. In Kristen’s urgent c-section, she was fully awake and numbed via epidural.

• If you had a c-section, you gave birth!! Don’t discount your experience or your role in bringing your baby into the world just because you didn’t give birth vaginally.

 

3 Keywords that people would want to search when looking for content that you would provide in this episode:

• Missed miscarriage

• Abortion as healthcare

• Urgent C-section

 

Favorite baby product or new motherhood product: 

• Keekaroo Peanut Changer

• Hatch Sound Machine

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