The Unedited Joy and Jumble of Becoming a Mother

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Ever found yourself chuckling over the old wives' tale that heartburn during pregnancy means a baby with luscious locks? Or that craving sweets hints at a girl's arrival? My medical student co-conspirator Bridget and I are here to sip the tea on these pregnancy myths and more. Get ready to nod along as we not only decode the mysteries of motherhood but also share the tale of my own son Jack's birth. Our stories blend the wisdom of science with the hilarity and humility of real-life family experiences, including a revelation for all you soon-to-be moms battling pregnancy acne.

Pregnancy not only brings a baby but a parade of unsolicited advice, and we're candidly opening up about it all. Remember Bridget, that time you danced with baby Jack at a Christmas party? We'll tell you about the uproar it caused, and we'll also dissect the strange sense of ownership others feel about commenting on pregnant bodies. We're taking down those boundary-crossing moments, one laugh at a time. Plus, you'll get an inside look at the delivery room where birth plans often fly out the window and you're left navigating the unpredictable whirlwind of labor.

As we wrap up this Mother's Day special, we send a giant hug to all the mothers, fathers, and caregivers out there. From the complexity of going from one child to two to the unexpected humor of considering childbirth a "break," every story shared is a step toward building our community of listeners. If you've ever wondered how a c-section mom handles a toddler or are curious about the truths behind labor inductions, we've got the stories that'll have you nodding in agreement or doubled over in laughter. Share your own journey with us, and let's keep this conversation as lively as a family gathering—diaper changes, and all!


Disclaimer: This podcast represents the opinions of Dr. Bridget Melton, MD and licensed therapist Marissa Volinsky, MS, LPC, NCC. The contents of our podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. The contents of our podcast and website are for general informational purposes only, and are not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any condition or disease or substitute for medical advice. Always seek the advice of your physician, mental health professional, or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before starting or discontinuing treatment.

If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts or a crisis, please reach out immediately to the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255 or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741. These services are free and confidential.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
Hello, welcome to our Mother's Day edition of this
podcast.
Today we will be sharingpersonal experiences and talking
about common pregnancy myths.
We're also going to explainthings like induction of labor
and fetal monitoring.
So that'll be all, bridget.
We want to take the time torecognize everyone struggling
with infertility Mamas who haveexperienced miscarriage, fetal
loss, moms who have experiencedneonatal and infant loss, those

(00:28):
who are acting as mamas.
All of you are seen and heardand your sacrifices are genuine
and deserve to be acknowledged.
On your own time, if anyonewants to talk about this, we
encourage you to reach out to afriend, family member, a
therapist or your primary carephysician for help.
Remember, you are not alone.
Okay, so let's dive right in.
We're going to go over a lottoday, like pregnancy myths.

(00:48):
I'll share my oldest son,jack's, birth story from my
perspective Also, bridget wasthere, so she'll shed some light
as she was a third year medicalstudent who was there during
labor and watching it all unfoldmore objectively, so that'll be
good from her perspective.
Okay, first let's go into somemyths.

Speaker 2 (01:05):
Yes.
So hello everyone, welcome toepisode seven and happy Mother's
Day for anyone who celebrates.
So we'll talk about somepregnancy myths, because people
love this.
So, first of all, in my line ofwork I hear a lot of kooky
things, and I say kooky I don'tmean to be offensive, but things

(01:25):
are so silly, like quote youknow, girls steal your beauty.
So if you look a bit tired oryou're struggling with acne
which is common in pregnancy ingeneral just because you're
making more oil, honestly,that's why I'm not showing my
face very often these days.
My face looks like straighttrash.
Anyway, the myth is that you'rehaving a girl.

(01:46):
I would like to say that in ourfamily, though, it's the total
opposite, and Marissa and ourmother can vouch like that's why
I think I'm having a boy.
I don't know the gender, butright, marissa, like our skin in
our family is really bad ifyou're having a boy oh for sure.

Speaker 1 (02:01):
So my acne while having Jack was so bad it was
worse than any acne Iexperienced in high school.
I honestly, without a sulfurbar right Bridget, the one I
told you about I really wouldnot go out in public and even
that, like yes, it made itbetter, but I still was really
self-conscious and sometimessome pimples would still make it
through and they were reallyuncomfortable.

Speaker 2 (02:19):
Yes, like straight up cystic acne and our mother.
So we're the oldest and then wehave a younger brother.
Jerry had acne apparently wewere too young to really
remember when she was pregnant,with michael only.
And jerry has amazing skin,literally has never had to wear
face makeup, even on her weddingday.
She was like I don't need facemakeup, but my skin tone's even.
I'm like girl.

(02:40):
It was like she has such goodskin so she even had acne when
she carried Michael.
So I'm like, oh, in my headthat I'm having a boy now.

Speaker 1 (02:48):
Yeah, no, pregnancy acne is no joke.
So all out there suffering.
We see you.
Sorry about that.
Try a sulfur bar.
It does at least help, and helpa little bit.

Speaker 2 (02:55):
It does.
Yeah, amazon sponsor us.
Um, you, honestly, if you go onAmazon and you look up like
sulfur bar for acne, it comes upimmediately and it's all
pregnant women, cause it's likeclean ingredients you can use
safely in pregnancy.
Um, but, yeah, so you.
Naturally it has nothing to dowith if you're carrying a boy or
a girl.
Really, it's just becauseyou're making more estrogen and
progesterone.

(03:16):
Progesterone makes you producemore oil, which is why you get
hormonal acne leading up to yourperiod, cause you get a huge
estrogen burst which causes aprogesterone spike, so your face
is actually physically moreoily, so you get that hormonal
acne right along your jawline.
You just need to wash your facelike way more often.
The sulfur bar is good becauseit actually physically dries you

(03:38):
out, which normally is not good, but you need it right now.
Another myth is about heartburn.
Yeah, yeah, you need it.
I need it, guys, my face.
But another myth is aboutheartburn.
So people say your baby has afull head of hair.
If you suffer with a lot ofheartburn, and you'd assume a
lot of people would just takethis for what it is it's an old

(04:00):
wives tale and ignore it, butsome women are so serious about
it.
I have been in the deliveryroom.
They give birth to their babyand they go.
That's why I had heartburn andI'm like, oh my God, face like
palm face, like are you serious?
Come on, it's obviously justbecause of the progesterone,
because of pregnancy.
So your um, your stomach hasdelayed gastric emptying,

(04:21):
meaning you are physicallydigesting slower, which is also
why you get constipation inpregnancy, and your lower
esophageal sphincter, which isnormally very tightly closed so
the acid does not come back upon you, gets a little lax
because of the progesterone.
So it's just a symptom ofpregnancy.
It has nothing to do withbaby's hair.
Obviously your baby is insideyour uterus in amniotic fluid,

(04:44):
like safely wrapped in a bag ofwater, like your baby does not
even touch your stomach or yourdigestive system.
There's no way hair could causegastric acid to come back up
and cause heartburn.
But it's funny that some peoplereally are convinced by that.

Speaker 1 (05:00):
Obviously, I tell you you're obviously medically
correct.
Um, I tell you you're obviouslymedically correct, but it is
interesting that with Jack, noum heartburn, and you know his
hairline was atrocious andEvelyn had a full head of hair,
never lost it, still to the dayas luxurious locks, and I had
really bad heartburn with her.
Oh, there you go.

Speaker 2 (05:19):
Maybe there is a little bit of truth to it.
No, I'm sure there's that, I'msure, sure, obviously you're
right.
But it's just funny because,yeah, I didn't experience
heartburn with my bald kid.
He was such a little old manwhen he was born, so, cute
though I would like to say thereis no such thing as a pregnancy
glow, and I'm sorry, but fuckyou people who say we're just

(05:44):
like it's such a lie.
It's.
Yeah, I'm very salty right now.
Everyone says it because theywant you to get pregnant.
So I was recently speaking to acolleague she's another doctor
and she has two children of herown and she was like, yeah, it's
a myth we all say, because atany given time you know people

(06:05):
who are trying for a baby.
Like at the time she was likeyo, my sister was like trying to
have a child.
So I just was like, yeah, thepregnancy glow, your hair is
gonna be so shiny, you're gonnafeel great.
And she's like, if you've everhad a baby, you know that none
of this is true.
Like you just feel like a moretired version of yourself all
the time and you just look inthe mirror like when does that

(06:27):
glow kick in?
Like it is such a lie.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
Okay, guys, stop perpetuating this well, I mean,
I felt like that after likehaving the two kids and like
having the newborn stage, no onetells you that.
It's a kind of a shit show.
I'm sorry, you're tired and ifyou're breastfeeding, your nips
are bleeding.
You're crying, crying.
I had two C-sections.
So healing from that on top ofit, it was literally a nightmare
.

Speaker 2 (06:50):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Anyone who knows you know ifyou've had a baby.
You absolutely know postpartumis a really tough time to just
like be alive, like you'retrying to soak up all the
blissful moments of newparenthood while trying to
manage your own health andemotions.
Your estrogen and yourprogesterone were just at their
highest levels they'll ever be,and then they suddenly come

(07:10):
crashing down and they continueto plummet for the next six
weeks until they're finally backto their basal levels.
So you're overcome with emotion.
You're trying to sustain thelife of a new baby and you're
learning on the job.
So you're overtired, you'restressed, you're overjoyed it's
just complete overload.
Not to mention, you arebleeding.
You know low Kia.
So you're bleeding like aperiod every day and you likely

(07:33):
have some stitches somewhere,whether C-section, episiotomy,
tear repair so you're physicallyhealing from an injury and
you're in physical pain.
It's just mayhem.

Speaker 1 (07:43):
Oh yeah, absolutely I forget.
Somewhere on the internet therewas something that said like
giving birth and postpartum isas if you were in a bad car
accident, but you were sent homeanyway and said take care of
this new life.
It's like a train wreck.

Speaker 2 (07:56):
Yeah, you are very lucky if you have supportive
family who live nearby, because,yeah, I think you need a bit of
a coven to like come and helpyou.

Speaker 1 (08:06):
It takes a village for real.

Speaker 2 (08:08):
Yes, exactly, which is why I well, my plan, knock on
wood, is to deliver back in theStates so that I have my mom
and my sister near me who canhelp my husband and I, because
we're just going to be likeblind leading the blind.
It's our first baby.
We don't know what the heckwe're doing.

Speaker 1 (08:24):
A true description of your first child during the
newborn stage blind leading theblind for exactly.

Speaker 2 (08:31):
No, you were so good though you were like prepared.
I remember.

Speaker 1 (08:34):
Good, okay, then I must've been projecting an image
that I wanted to trick you intogiving me nieces and nephews
too.
Congrats, you fell for it.

Speaker 2 (08:41):
No, I remember you were just like so prepared, you
Googled all these things.
Remember, you had like pads inthe freezer and like aloe ready
to soothe.
I just feel like Marissa, youwere really prepared and I was
really impressed, even thoughyou ended up not requiring any
of those things because you hada C-section, but you were really
prepared and I was like, damn,she really knows what she's

(09:03):
doing.
But yeah, just to go back to it, the pregnancy glow, f, all
y'all.
I don't think it's real and Ihave fallen a victim.
Listen, if you're out there andyou're like, no, I was
absolutely glowing and my hairwas shiny and I was like a
gorgeous goddess, please let usknow.
I want to know.
I want to know who you are andwhat you did.

Speaker 1 (09:26):
Could be, genetics could be lucky.

Speaker 2 (09:28):
I want to know what you did to be so beautiful,
Marissa.
Do you have any other myths youwould like to discuss?

Speaker 1 (09:34):
Yes, so I have a few.
So the one I'm sure a lot ofpeople have heard about if
they've been pregnant or tryingto conceive, where if you crave
salty food it's a boy, cravesweets it's a girl.
For my case, this was actuallyaccurate.

Speaker 2 (09:52):
Obviously, I know it's a myth and it's not always
the case, but for me it wasaccurate, really so you you
crave sweets with Evelyn, ohyeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 (09:56):
And remember, with Jack, I was like craving salt so
much I just lived off a pennevodka, did you?

Speaker 2 (10:01):
Wait, remember you wanted hot chocolate.

Speaker 1 (10:02):
I mean chocolate, sorry, chocolate milk with jack
yes, that's the only thing Iever craved, and it was in the
morning.
If I went past a certain timein the day, I no longer wanted
it.
But yeah, no, it was reallylike fries, chips, penne, vodka,
any other italian dish that Icould get my hands on
interesting.

Speaker 2 (10:19):
I've not had any cravings, not one oh well,
you're lucky.
Or maybe I was just using thatas an excuse to just gorge
myself like I've not wanted,like I, you know, because I
always like ice cream, so thathasn't changed.
Um, I'm eating a ton of fruit,that's not changed.
I eat like fruit, likeconstantly, like a fruit bat, uh

(10:39):
, vegetables all the times.
That's not changed.
Yeah, so I've not been like, oh, I really want this one random
thing.

Speaker 1 (10:45):
I've always eaten a lot of pickles, so don't come at
me with that, people well, youknow, maybe because you've
already, your diet literallyconsists of pregnancy cravings,
so there's not much more to addto it yeah, maybe I do love ice
cream so much.

Speaker 2 (11:02):
That has not changed at all I got a.

Speaker 1 (11:05):
I got a few more uh myths I got.
Uh, carrying high or lowdetermines your gender.
They're saying if you carryhigh it's a girl, if you carry
low it's a boy.
Obviously definitely a myth.
A lot of its genetics and alsoa lot of it is where are you in
in your pregnancy?
Right, because obviously thebaby's gonna drop and gonna be
low when you're due, you know.

Speaker 2 (11:25):
Exactly Around 37 weeks, all of a sudden you'll
feel quite a significant drop.
You'll feel it.
You'll be like, oh my God, Ihave a lot of heaviness, really
low all of a sudden.
So that's because at 37 weeksyour term baby's fully cooked,
so they start to drop a bit intothe pelvis, preparing
themselves for delivery.

Speaker 1 (11:43):
Another one is eating spicy food will induce labor.
It might give you heartburn,but but not labor.

Speaker 2 (11:50):
We tell people to do all that stuff though, like,
listen, if you're, if you're aterm, you're like 40 weeks, and
you're like I want this baby out.
We're like go eat the spicyfood, go on walks, definitely
Cause gravity will help you,gravity is your best friend and
have sex's called the seductioninduction.
Do it.
What do you have to lose?

Speaker 1 (12:11):
especially if you're at the point where you're like
get this baby out of me rightnow exactly we tell people do it
all the time.

Speaker 2 (12:16):
The only case you shouldn't do it is if you've
already, if your waters havealready gone.
Please do not have sex onceyour waters go.
It's an infection risk.
But anyone else, if you'refeeling up for it, try the
seduction induction, because ifyou orgasm so female orgasm is
basically your cervix having alittle contraction moment, like

(12:40):
a little dilation moment.
So that's what it is.
It's when it shrinks a bit andtouches your uterus.
So that's why we think it helpsinduce labor.
So go for it, try it.
Eat dates.
People swear by eating a bunchof dates will help ripen your
cervix.
Raspberry leaf tea, which I'vebeen told tastes like garbage.
I'm surprised.
Sounds so good.

Speaker 1 (12:59):
I never tried that.
I was told that, though, but Inever tried it.
Yeah, I'm going to try it, butyeah, everyone's like it tastes
terrible.

Speaker 2 (13:11):
Oh, dang, that's.
That's a letdown, cause itsounds delicious.
I know, I know it sounds sogood.
Raspberry leaf tea.
I'm like this sounds like araspberry iced tea.
I can't wait to have it.
Nope, not good.

Speaker 1 (13:17):
Like something you'd have for, like tea time with a
scone?
Guess not, no apparently not sooh well, I'll share one more,
which this one is I actuallynever heard of this until I
Googled some of these myths, soplease know that this is not
true.
If this has ever scared you,pregnant women shouldn't raise
their arms above their heads,supposedly it can cause the

(13:38):
umbilical cord to wrap aroundthe baby's neck.
This is untrue.

Speaker 2 (13:43):
Yeah, definitely untrue.
You could carry on with yournormal activities.
Just don't lift anything tooheavy and don't start a new
exercise that you like didn't dobefore pregnancy, but your arms
can definitely go above yourhead.

Speaker 1 (13:56):
This sounds like something like centuries ago
that men created so that way youcouldn't like pick it against
any issues.
They're like wait, let's justtell them that they can't raise
their arms.
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (14:08):
Also, I would like to say that while your baby is in
the uterus and they're safelyfloating around, they can have
the umbilical cord around theirneck as long as it's not too
tight.
They don't need their airway tobreathe, yet they're getting
all of their oxygenated bloodfrom mom, so they just need the
cord to function fine.

(14:29):
So as long as it's not so tightthat it's not functioning fine
during labor, it can go aroundtheir neck.
Don't worry, it doesn't reallymatter.

Speaker 1 (14:36):
You heard it from the doctor herself.

Speaker 2 (14:38):
Yeah, so those are the myths.
If anyone has any more mythsthat they have heard or judgy
people have told them when theywere pregnant, please let us
know.
I love hearing funny storieslike that.
I think it's really interestingto like hear where these things
have evolved from.
So please let us know if you'veheard any more silly myths and
things people have said to youwhen you were pregnant.

Speaker 1 (14:59):
Well, you actually just reminded me, bridget.
It's obviously not aboutpregnancy, it's about when a
baby's around like five monthsold.
But do you remember you had myson Jack out on a dance floor
and an old woman came up to youand said that you weren't
allowed to dance like that withmy son?

Speaker 2 (15:14):
Oh, my God, yes.
So I was actually in my fourthyear of med school.
So he was yeah, he was reallyyoung and we went to a Christmas
party.
You weren't in there, we justtook your baby.
I need to sleep.
We were like we'll take him andput him in a Santa outfit Cute.
And I was on the dance floordoing like normal, you know

(15:38):
little shakies, with the baby onmy hip, and everyone was like,
oh, he's so cute, oh he's soadorable.
And this older woman came up tome and was like you know, you
cannot dance with a baby.
And I was like I think we can.
I wasn't, you know, gyrating orthrowing him.
It was so weird.
But I kept dancing, Don't worry, I kept boogieing.

Speaker 1 (15:53):
Obviously.
That's why they say, kind of,keep to your own, don't be
judging people, because if thatwoman had known her audience,
she was speaking to a medicalstudent.

Speaker 2 (16:01):
So that's not going to land very well Bridget's
highly educated I know I wasjust like this is a bit weird,
but people do stuff like thatall the time.
You know, I still do my normalgym routine.
I've not changed anything yetbecause I don't have to yet, but
eventually I will have to makeaccommodations because the belly
will get bigger.
But as of now I haven't reallyhad to change much.
But I have heard stories ofpeople at the gym women at the

(16:25):
gym hosting their own trainingsessions as well, like personal
trainers who happen to bepregnant and people come up to
them and they're like you know,you can't go to the gym when
you're pregnant.
It's like, yes, you can.
You should keep up the samelevel of activity you did before
pregnancy.
You definitely should not startrunning a marathon.
If you never did that beforePregnancy, don't do that.
But if you always, you know,ran a mile or two in the morning

(16:49):
, lifted weights, you should dothat.
You just might have to liftless weights, less heavy weights
, because you will be more tiredand eventually you just won't
be able to maintain it.
But as long as you're doingsafe activities, you should
maintain your level of activityand fitness because ultimately,
trying to give birth is amarathon.

(17:09):
That's what we tell our womenall the time You're burning
calories and becoming dehydratedjust by going through labor.
Like you don't realize thephysical intensity of labor.
You need to be quite fit to doit.
It's hard, it's really hard.

Speaker 1 (17:24):
Yeah, yeah, but I feel like that's.
There's a lot of, obviously,misconceptions out there which
leads to this like fearmongering of information, like
telling someone they shouldn'tbe working out, like what I know
.

Speaker 2 (17:36):
It's like that's the equivalent of saying you
shouldn't go out for a walk,which of course, we totally
encourage women, if you'repregnant, to go out for a walk
so you prevent, you know, deepvein thrombosis, you don't get
blood clots in your legs.
We're like please walk as muchas you can, as long as you're
not dehydrating yourself ormaking yourself sick.

Speaker 1 (17:53):
No, absolutely, I'm sure.
Obviously, if we thought moreon it, we'd have more.

Speaker 2 (17:59):
Yeah, it's so funny, like when you become pregnant,
it just feels like everyone hasa right to let your body, like
they have a right to be like ohyou're like you look so big, or
oh, you look so small.
Or they want to like touch yourbelly, or they want to tell you
what you should be doing whenyou're pregnant or what you
shouldn't be doing.
And it's just like when Iwasn't pregnant, you wouldn't
have said this to my face.
And now that I am pregnant, allof a sudden you think you have

(18:21):
some sort of like stake to claim.
I don't know.
It's very interesting and I'msure a lot of pregnant people
would agree.
Maybe they've experiencedsomething similar.

Speaker 1 (18:29):
Yeah, no for sure, I think so too.
I don't know if it's that.
Uh, it's just, they feel likethey're like the relationship
they have with you.
They feel like a part of thejourney.
Does that make sense?

Speaker 2 (18:41):
That does yeah.

Speaker 1 (18:43):
So also, you have to remember your relationship with
someone is how you see it, butyou never know how the other
person sees it Right.
So if they feel closer to youthan you feel to them, they feel
entitled to more information.

Speaker 2 (18:55):
Yeah, but what about like strangers who come up to
you and are like, oh, like, oh,you're like so big for this many
weeks or something?
You know, I don't know.

Speaker 1 (19:03):
Yes, I guess I agree.
But also I'm really I have likea resting bee face.
You're definitely more like thesister that's like very smiley
and and you were always sociallike a social butterfly, right.
So people flock to you becauselike you're funny, you're social
.
I was quiet, shy and with aresting B face.
You would just assume I'm a Bright.

(19:29):
So I didn't have to worry aboutthat because no one was coming
up to me.

Speaker 2 (19:31):
I did not give off that vibe I mean not that anyone
says anything offensive to me,because it is my first baby and
I'm only 22 weeks, so I'm quitesmall still.
It basically just looks likeI've had a rough winter and I've
stored a couple L couple LVs inthe pouch, um, but it's not
like obvious that I'm pregnant.

Speaker 1 (19:49):
Right, right, yeah, no, no, unfortunately.
Uh, bridget's very lucky.
Uh, it was very obvious that Iwas pregnant.
I swelled up like a hot balloon, like it was.
It was bad.

Speaker 2 (19:58):
Oh my God, you were so swollen.
Oh, and Jack was born on the4th of July, so it was just like
the hottest summer of your life, pregnant.

Speaker 1 (20:07):
Honestly, I was wondering when I was gonna pop
like a little firework on hisbirthday, just like, let all the
the water oh my god.

Speaker 2 (20:15):
You had so much edema in your legs.
I felt so bad.
Remember?
I massaged your legs for likean hour and you're like you
would never touch me normally.
I can't believe how generousyou're being you were.

Speaker 1 (20:26):
You heard it here first.
Guys, bridget actually hasempathy.
Okay, she will rub your legsfor an hour straight with no
breaks, if you have edema.

Speaker 2 (20:35):
I know I.
I just felt so bad for you.
I was like how is this girlwalking?
I?

Speaker 1 (20:40):
really wasn't walking anymore.
I was kind of I don't know ifmy body was just physically
dragging me everywhere.

Speaker 2 (20:45):
I'm not really sure I feel like if I squeezed you,
it'd sound like a sponge, likepossibly, honestly, quite
possibly.

Speaker 1 (20:53):
I think this is the perfect segue to go with jack's
lovely birth story.
If, if you're ready for it,everybody, yeah, tell everybody,
tell us how was he born, okay.
So let me just give you awarning, guys.
Obviously I'm not going to begraphic or anything, but it is a
birth story, right?
So there's things that I cannotleave out if I'm going to be

(21:14):
brutally honest with you guys.
So, if this is not your thing,this is where you tune out,
until Bridget's segment, okay,okay.
So let's set the scene.
Jack is my first child, my son,and his original due date was
actually my husband's birthday,june 29th.
He was obviously a week and ahalf.

(21:35):
I want to say, whatever July4th is from June 29th late,
because he was so late.
They were concerned, right,like Bridget said, I had edema
issues, I was really swollen andbig, and they were measuring
him, um, on the screen, and theywere like this kid looks like
he's already nine pounds.
So if we don't induce you now,you're going to end up giving

(21:55):
birth to a 10 pound baby, whichthey were correct, by the way.
They were spot on, cause I gavebirth and he was nine pounds
one ounce, so they were notwrong, um, and he was nine
pounds one ounce, so they werenot wrong.
And so, yeah, he was a hugegiant potato.
So they bring me in to induceme.
So they give me Pitocin.

Speaker 2 (22:13):
He was a giant watermelon.
He was not a giant potato.

Speaker 1 (22:17):
Yeah, a giant watermelon folks, Like the one
that you went at back in the dayat the state fair, the county
fair or something.
The big ones Okay so, ones,okay so they bring me in.

Speaker 2 (22:27):
It is big, they give me Pitocin.

Speaker 1 (22:29):
It obviously starts labor, it speeds things up.
Funny story my water eventuallybreaks, but obviously I have no
experience in what it feelslike or anything.
So I didn't say anything.
And the nurse came in and goesyour water broke.
You didn't tell anybody and I'mlike, honestly, I thought I had
swamp ass.
I, I had no idea.
So I didn't say anythingbecause I was so mortified that

(22:51):
I was sweating so badly from myass.
So, ladies and gentlemen, ifyou feel that way, your water
probably broke, okay.
So I was like, oh, good to know.
And then she was like all right, so you know it's going to.
You know, kick up.
Now it's going to kick up anotch.
I'm like, great, awesome, let'sget this show on the road.

(23:14):
So she did let me know.
If you are at like a seven andhigher in your pain.
You need to let us know,because if you want the epidural
, we need to get you on theschedule, because there was so
many other people, surprisinglyon a holiday, that were also
giving birth at the same time asme.
So I it's not like I could askfor it and they were going to
come right in Like they.
I actually had to wait becausewhat I even did, ask for it, I

(23:36):
had to wait in line to get it.
So I was like crap.
So I was like, okay, I'lldefinitely let you know.
But I was so afraid that shemade it sound like I was going
to be waiting for so long inpain that my pain was probably
at a four or a five nothingcrazy, definitely not a seven
Like she was asking me to waittill and I like tapped out, I
was like, no, I don't want tofeel anything, give me the

(23:58):
epidural now.
So I waited a little bit.
I want to say I actually waited20 to 25 minutes before I got
my epidural.
So good thing I did ask for itearly.
And it's funny because, ifanyone knows me, I hate needles.
A little off story to this.
I hate needles so badly thatone time I had to get blood
drawn when I was in high schoolI was 16 years old and I bit the

(24:21):
nurse and it wasn't even acrazy needle, it was a butterfly
needle.
I bit the nurse and I was withmy dad I remember this and they
said do not bring her back, likewe're not taking her blood.
Like she bit the lady, get herout of here, so I cut, my mom
brings me back.
This time my mom goes.
I know my daughter bit you.
She was with her dad, thoughLet me see if she'll be better

(24:41):
with me.
And they're talking to me likeas if I'm like a five-year-old,
right, like you say that whenyou have a five-year-old that
fights a nurse, nope, it's fully16 year old girl so.
But of course, everything wassmooth, blah, blah, blah.
Okay, so that's how much I hateneedles, right, but labor was
so intensive especially withPitocin, which obviously speeds
it up and makes it worse, in myopinion it was so intense that

(25:02):
when they were giving me thatpedoral, I didn't feel a thing.
I was like, yes, give me thatbig ass back needle, I want it
all.
And that's what they did.
So if you hate needles, thechances are when you're in labor
you're going to love needles,you'll be fine.
So I don't know if this issomething people want to hear,

(25:22):
but you know it's the truth,right?
We're going to stop hiding thetruth from people who want to
have babies and get the epidural.
I did not know, becauseobviously I did not do research
before giving birth, but theepidural stays in your back the
whole time, just so you know itdoesn't.
It's not like they give it toyou and take it out.
No, it's not like they give itto you and take it out.
No, no, it stays in your backthe whole time, which I was like
what the F?

(25:42):
No, thank you, but I had nochoice.
So a little little scary, right.
So if it's just something thatyou did not previously know,
it's not ideal, if you're not aneedle person, but you know,
pregnancy and giving birth arejust kind of so painful that
it's like, eh, whatever, I'lltake what I can get.

(26:04):
Then things started moving along.
After the epidural I wasfeeling good.
I got some sleep, this wholeprocess, by the way, I was in
labor for 22 hours and changealmost 23 hours, so this was a
very long stretch of time.
So I got some sleep and thenext morning early things were
were picking up.
They were like all right, let's, let's get the show on the road
, cause I believe he was bornwhen everything was said and

(26:24):
done, basically after theC-section.
It was like 10, 26 AM, Ibelieve he was delivered, but
early in the you know, the earlyhours of the morning before the
C-section was the end result.
I was pushing felt like an hourand a half.
Would you agree, bridget?
How long was I pushing?
For?
About an hour and a half.
Yeah, you were pushing an hourand a half.

(26:45):
So I was pushing for an hourand a half.
Um, and they the doctor said wecan see that there is a stool.
So you know, poop stool in yourum sack.

Speaker 2 (26:56):
Yeah, so it comes because your waters have already
gone.
It comes out with your water sowe can see when baby passes
meconium, which is their firstpoo, because it will come right
out of your vagina and it'sreally obvious, like everyone
knows what it looks like.

Speaker 1 (27:08):
Right.
Well, in my case you would knowbetter, but I remember the
doctor saying you can keeppushing, but we just need to
monitor the stool, the loosestool, because if it goes
missing, that means your babyhas swallowed it, and then we
have to do a C-section.

Speaker 2 (27:25):
So that was when you went for your scan the day of
your induction.
We could see that he had passedmeconium because it was
physically floating around theamniotic fluid in the sack and
that's why he said it's okaythat it's floating around, but
if he swallows it it can makehim really sick.
So we need to induce you todayand I remember that day at 1 pm

(27:45):
you went to the hospital andthey induced you yes, well that
that my little sweet angel childcan't make anything easy.

Speaker 1 (27:53):
Because while I was pushing for the hour and a half,
that's what happened he lost it.
He lost sight of it and he saidI am 99.9 sure that your son
swallowed it and that's why Ican't see it floating around
anymore.
And I said, oh God, no.
And he said, listen, we canchance it, but if I'm correct,
you know we need to get them outand on antibiotics, so we
honestly.
He's like I'm recommendingC-section right now and he goes,

(28:16):
but I can't force you, you knowit's your choice.
Goes, but I can't force you,you know it's your choice.
And at that time, after an hourand a half and being told like
oh, you're making progress, oh,no, wait, his head went back up.
Like I was so defeated hearingthat that all my hard work was
like nothing, because my son'shead was very large, by the way,
still very large, but it was solarge that he would push him up

(28:37):
and then it would go all theway back and I'd be like are you
serious?
Like I have to start all overagain.
And at that point I was likeit's an hour and a half and
you're telling me there's achance that he swallowed
something that could hurt him.
I was like I'm tapping outC-section.
So then I got a C-section butobviously, as true birth stories
, nothing can be peachy, youknow perfect, right, there had

(29:00):
to be some issues with theC-section.
So they get me all ready forC-section.
Now, at this point, nobody,including myself, had any idea
that that epidural that I toldyou about earlier in my back had
fallen out, Not out, like,obviously it was still taped to
my back, but it wasn't like inwhere it was supposed to be
situated.
So when I went for theC-section, like normal

(29:21):
C-sections, they want you awake,right, they just want you numb
from a certain part down, butthey want you awake.
No, I did not get to be awakefor my first child because since
the epidural came out of myback, everything was, I could
feel everything, right, and hekept trying to test because he
was concerned.
He was like you can feel this,you can feel this.
He kept like the knife orscalpel, whatever you call it.

(29:41):
He kept touching my belly.
He was like you can feel thisright now.
And when they went to go checkand be like that's so weird,
like we can add more, but youknow it wasn't working, be
barbaric.
So for my first C-section I wascompletely knocked out and then

(30:05):
I woke up groggy in like therecovery room and also they had
taken my son to the NICU forantibiotics Cause he did that.
He was the doctor ended upbeing right, he did swallow the
stool and it was a aninteresting feeling Cause I
would feel bad visiting my sonin the NICU because all those
babies are really tiny andpremature.
And then you got to look at myson that's like over nine pounds

(30:28):
and chunky as could be, justlike yep, I'm big and large.
Here I am, and I felt reallyguilty.
I was like, should he be here?
Shouldn't there be like anothersection for like chunky babies
that swallowed their poop?
Like I feel bad.

Speaker 2 (30:39):
I know everyone kept being like who's that big boy
Jack?
And we'd be like he's ours.

Speaker 1 (30:44):
He's, he's large and in charge.
Here he is.
Yeah, we're like, oh, yeah,that's, that's our kid.
Oh, my goodness, like.
And I would feel bad because Iwould be in there visiting and
some moms couldn't even pick uptheir kid Right, like they were
putting their fingers throughthose little holes in the thing.
And then there's my son justlike I'm able to like move them
from arm to arm, let my husbandand my mom, my mom, my sister,

(31:06):
hold them, like they're probablylike juggling him around.
And then there's, like theother mom's, like, oh, must be
nice.

Speaker 2 (31:12):
I know it was was really awkward.
Actually I agree with thatbecause he was okay, like he
just needed the antibiotics,which was the only reason he was
admitted, and there were a lotof premature tiny babies who
needed a lot of special care andthey were in incubators and on
oxygen, oh my God, and we werejust in there with like the
tubbiest little you know andwe're just like feeding him and,

(31:35):
oh God, it was really awkward.
I was like I feel like weshouldn't be in here.

Speaker 1 (31:40):
Honestly, that's how I felt.
I was like I feel like this isjust wrong, like because you
don't know what the mothers aregoing through, or God forbid
anyone loses a child.
I was like what is my chunkychild doing in here?
That just seems like it's mean.

Speaker 2 (31:52):
I know it was.
It was really awkward, but wewere only in there for like two
days, I think he was right.
I think on two days, and thenday three you went home.

Speaker 1 (31:59):
Yeah, I went home day three, so that was obviously
with me telling you it waspractically almost 23 hours.
There's, I'm sure, a lot ofdetails now that I like to fuzz
out and pretend did not happen,so I would.
What I'd like to tell mothersis I hope I didn't scare you,
right, cause not everything goesso left field like mine, but
expect the unexpected, right,because they always tell you

(32:21):
with your first baby oh, birthplan, birth plan.
Have your birth plan, yes, 100%.
Create a birth plan, conjure upwhatever you dream.
That's great, but you need togo in with an open mind because
things happen and your birthplan might go out the window.

Speaker 2 (32:35):
Absolutely so.
The kiss of death is if youhave a laminated birth plan.
If you come in with a laminatedbirth plan girl, you are going
to be an emergency C-sectionbecause those people are so
rigid and they're like it justnever goes their way.
It's just for some reason.
It's just bad luck.
We see it all the time.
Have a birth plan so that youhave an idea of what you want to

(32:56):
do, but you need to know thatit could not happen that way at
all.

Speaker 1 (33:00):
Absolutely, but also think further.
So what happens if C-section,or go down the different avenues
?
So in your mind you still havea plan because you're like, okay
, I thought about this, you know, like I thought what if this
happens?
And I already know whatdecision I want to do.

Speaker 2 (33:15):
Exactly.
Yeah, don't be afraid to thinkabout the what ifs.
What if I need an instrumentaldelivery?
What if I need a C-section?
You need to think about that sothat when they're like, well,
what do you want to do, you kindof have an answer and you've
educated yourself so you're notso frightened.
You know, because at thatmoment you are the only person
who's advocating for you andbaby.

(33:36):
You know baby's not out yet, soit's actually the role of
obstetricians to look after mom,not baby.
People don't really know thatmy goal is to keep the mother
alive.
A neonatologist keeps the babyalive.
That's not up to me.
So you are baby's only advocatewhile they're still inside you.
You're the only one who cangive us that insight.
So you need to be like.

(33:56):
You know what.
I've actually done someresearch on forceps and I'm
happy if we go ahead and do this.
Thank you, let's go.

Speaker 1 (34:02):
Yeah, absolutely 100% agree with Bridget Super
important.
But yeah, that was my birthstory, Bridget, did you have
anything to add?
Because now, Bridget I forgotto mention Bridget was in the
room.
It was my husband, my mom andmy sister, so so she saw

(34:22):
everything.
Like you know, 4K right, shewas there for it, she
experienced it.

Speaker 2 (34:24):
Yes, okay, I have such a different story from
Marissa's birth story, but Ilove that she's so casual about
it.
Okay.
So she was 41 weeks, which isfine.
So full term is 40 weeks, whichis actually 10 months.
People like to lie and say, youknow, human gestation is nine
months.
Not true, it's 40 weeks, whichis actually 10 months.
People like to lie and say, youknow, human gestation is nine
months.
Not true, it's 40 weeks, whichis four times 10.

(34:45):
So she was 41 weeks, which iscompletely fine, your first
pregnancy.
We expect you to kind of hold onto them usually because your
body's learning what to do.
It's never labored before.
So every second it's learninghow to dilate, how to contract,
so that's fine.
So 41 weeks.
You go for scans more often tomake sure baby's still moving
and growing appropriately andmaking sure everything's okay.

(35:06):
Enough fluid around baby,because once you go post 40
weeks there's a chance thatfluid won't be adequate anymore.
The placenta starts to give up.
Maybe baby's growth will tail.
So everything was fine withJack and, just like Marissa said
, they were like oh, we canphysically see the meconium on
the ultrasound.
That's fine, we expect that.
So babies pass their firststool in the womb if they're

(35:30):
post-states or if they'redistressed.
So in this case baby wasabsolutely not in distress, just
pooed and we was like fine.
So there was no concerns.
We're like we're just going toinduce you because your first
baby is really big and that canbe a risk for a lot of things
which I'll discuss later when Italk about induction of labor.
So Marissa was like yep, I'mfine with that, goes for an

(35:52):
induction.
Honestly, for a first time, mom, which we call a primate, a
primate gravita, she did amazingfor induction, like was so
quick with it.
By the time it was ready for herto push I knew she had a
non-working epidural because shewas saying she was in pain.
That's fine, it happens.
It's actually fairly.
It's not common, but like it'snot uncommon, you know like at

(36:13):
least one woman a shift mighthave like a non-working, it just
depends.
So obviously, like the catheterpart, the cannula part of it,
like the rubber tubing we keepin it just slipped a little bit
from her epidural space.
Fine, it wasn't working.
So after about an hour and ahalf of pushing I was looking at
the CTG.
So CTG is the band they putaround you where you can listen

(36:34):
to baby's heartbeat and we dothis when you're in labor.
For very low risk women youdon't have to do continuous
monitoring.
That's absolutely fine.
But for Marissa she was induced.
So when you are induced you'reon a lot of hormone drips like
Pitocin, so we have to docontinuous fetal monitoring.
So she was on the CTG.
I'm looking at it.

(36:54):
I was only a third year medicalstudent but I had already done
my labor and delivery round.
So I was like that's a bad CTG.
Baby was looking okay but theheart rate was super high.
So then they did MRSA'stemperature and they're like, oh
, you know what?
Mrsa has a bit of a fever.
We think we're a bit worried.
So she's pushing, she's pushing, she's pushing the heart rate.
At this point his heart ratewas about 180 to 200 with

(37:16):
accelerations.
So I'm like that's a sign thatbaby's sick.
I know that it's obvious.
Every medical student can tellyou that.
Now the obstetrician was so calmand experienced that he kind of
didn't let on how serious itcould be.
He was really calm and was justlike you know, I think we need
to go for a C-section, and Icould see it in his eyes.

(37:37):
He's like this is an emergencyC-section, like we need to go
now.
So Marissa had a non-workingepidural.
So they like to do an epiduraltop up.
Couldn't do it in Marissa andit was so urgent a true category
one, like crash cesareansection that they had to put her
to sleep there because normallythey would go, oh, let's try a
spinal.
No, there was no time to try aspinal anesthetic, like they

(37:59):
were like we need to get herasleep and down so we could get
this baby out as soon aspossible.
And that's what they didbecause they were absolutely
right.
The CTG was correct, the heartrate was going so high because
baby was infected, um, andthat's also why Marissa spiked a
fever, so it was all ended upbeing fine.
Obviously, marissa got a coupledoses of antibiotics, baby got

(38:21):
some antibiotics and it allended up being really, really
fortunate for both of them andwe're so happy.
But like when Marissa tells herbirth story, she's like, oh
yeah, I just ended up with aC-section.
Like I have never seen a truercrash cesarean than my sisters.
Like in honesty, like they werelike we need to get this baby
out now.
And marissa does not understand, like the gravity of the

(38:41):
situation.
So I love when she tells thestory because from my point of
view, I was like, yeah, we'rewheeling her to like the or.

Speaker 1 (38:49):
Now, well, I mean, like I said, I was a little
loopy, um, um and on it I was sotired too, because to go
through the whole night, yes,like the epidural made it a
little comfy, but not not much,and they gave me that like
peanut shape thing they stickbetween your legs to open up the
cervix more, because apparently, I was slowly opening.

(39:09):
you know, like they wanted tosee it happen faster.
So I'm sorry, but I could notget any sleep.
Now I I've heard mothers saythat it's the most comfortable
thing.
They.
They slept great with it.
No issues for me it just didn't.
I don't know if it's just likethe crevices of my thighs, I
don't know.
I did not get much sleep, so Iwas like loopy as hell.

Speaker 2 (39:25):
Um no, of course, like especially if you're not a
medical person, you don't know,you can only take what they're
saying at face value.
But, like from someoneobjectively watching, I was like
, oh boy, this this is prettyserious, we're definitely going
for an emergency C-section, butit ended up being fine.
And then your second birthstory was much more chill
because you went for an electivesection and you knew what to

(39:47):
expect and there were nosurprises.

Speaker 1 (39:50):
So that one, though, went sideways the opposite way.
So, because, obviously, Ischeduled that C-section, I was
like I'm never going throughthat again.
I also I make very big babies.
She was a chunky one.
I was like I want this easypeasy in and out, and it was.
It was great, even you know,waking up from surgery, staying
in the hospital, fine, but shesurprised me when it came, when

(40:14):
it came time to coming home,because this is something I did
not experience with Jack.
I had baby blues in the firsttwo weeks.
Baby blues.
Obviously, I had it monitoredso it didn't turn into full
postpartum.
Cause, let me clarify, babyblues is a little different than
postpartum.
It can lead to postpartum,which is why you need to monitor
it, but with all the hormonesand everything after giving
birth, it is normal toexperience a little bit of baby
blues and should go away if itdoesn't turn into postpartum,

(40:36):
right.
So monitor it by a professional.
It is important, obviously, I.
I am a professional in thatfield, so I was monitoring it
myself, along with a woman thatI used to work for, um, because
I just, you know, to hold myselfaccountable and I needed an
outside opinion that was also inthe field and knew what she was
doing.
So thank you for that.
And the first two weeks Icouldn't like stop crying,

(40:59):
honestly, and but it was weirdbecause it was like I don't feel
sad or depressed per se, butsome something was wrong is the
best way I could say it, becauseI would break out in tears over
something that wasn't makingsense.
And I remember my husband, john, turning to me and being like,
are you okay?
Like I don't.
I don't know what's wrong.
Did I do something?
You want me to help you withsomething?
Was I not being helpful enoughwhich, by the way, he's an angel
, he does too much, so never anissue with him.

(41:21):
And I just kept being like I'mcrying, but I don't know why I'm
crying.
And he was like well, are youhungry, are you tired?
Do you want me to let you golay down blues?
Because I'm literally cryingfor no reason at random times,
just like super emotional.

Speaker 2 (41:38):
Yes, yeah, so baby blues up to 80% of women
experience it actually and aslong as it does, it should
resolve by two weeks and if itdoesn't, if it progresses to
more of a chronic depression,then yeah, we're looking at
postpartum depression, which canbe more dangerous because
obviously it can lead to likepostpartum psychosis.
But yeah, people don't talkabout baby blues enough,

(42:00):
especially considering 80% ofwomen experience it.
They just think it's like anormal reaction.
But you shouldn't feel helplessand weepy all the time.
That's not normal and it's goodthat you recognize that it was
not normal.

Speaker 1 (42:14):
Absolutely.
I remember feeling so not intouch with my body.
Does that make sense?
Because I, because I couldn'tfigure out why I was crying,
because I didn't have thefeeling of sadness, which I do
know is different Some women dobut for me I was crying, but
there was no reason, like therewas no feeling attached to it.
So I was like what is going on?

(42:34):
Why, like I would be looking atmy sweet baby, looking at her
in such bliss, like, oh my God,a daughter, my first daughter,
and then break out crying andI'm like like uncontrollably
sobbing, not like little tears,cute tears, no, uncontrollably
sobbing, and I couldn't getmyself to stop until it, like,
stopped on its own.
I was like what is going on?
It did, luckily, did.
What is going on it, um, did,luckily, did not.

Speaker 2 (42:55):
I wasn't there for that one.
Yeah, no, you were were youalready in England?
You were already in England,right, yeah, yeah, I was.
So I wasn't there to.
Um, well, obviously, that's the, the difference, the, the touch
of Bridget.

Speaker 1 (43:09):
Oh, here, here.
So you guys, it takes a village.
You need your touch of Bridget,find your Bridget and keep her.
Yeah, other than that, you know, hers was pretty great, even
her pregnancy.
I for me the girl pregnancy wasway easier on my body.
Um, you know, just hadheartburn but whatever, you know
, I got over it.
But yeah, other than that, thatwas a lot better in my

(43:32):
experience once I got past thebaby blues.

Speaker 2 (43:35):
Yeah Well, shoot Second one's easier, huh.

Speaker 1 (43:41):
Well, I thought, okay , I cannot generalize, every
woman is different, but I don'tknow if it's because I had the
C-section already planned.
It all went according to planfor once, and also because I'm
now what they call a veteran mom.
Right, like once, you're not onyour first baby, you're a
veteran mom, so you know what toexpect, you know what could go
wrong.
You're like hey also when youhave a toddler, cause my kids

(44:03):
are close in age, they're twoyears apart.
So when you have a toddler athome, you think of giving birth
and going to the hospital as avacation.
And I know that's sad, I know,I know this, guys, but for me I
get to go lie down Like I'mgoing to be, you know, numb from
like here down, and then I'mgoing to go lie up in a bed
because I can't get up, mystitches might break and my

(44:23):
husband's going to bring food tomy mouth Like this is amazing,
this is a vacation.
Thank you, insurance.

Speaker 2 (44:30):
You know people say that all the time that they come
in to give, to give birth,because obviously, like, your
children aren't in there.
When you're like, it's just youand your partner, whoever you
want to be there with you, andthey're like, oh no, I have
three kids at home, like I don'twant to go back.

Speaker 1 (44:44):
I feel them so much and if I don't want one but if
you know I ever do have a thirdI would still feel that way.

Speaker 2 (44:52):
I'd be like, yes, a vacation.
Yeah, it's a little bit, it'slike, and it's, I get it Like,
you love your kids andeverything, but it is chaos.
Once you have children, yourlife goes from just like normal
adulthood behavior to completechaos, and you can't predict it.
So you're just like, oh, I justwant to be surrounded by adults
again.

Speaker 1 (45:07):
Yes, and what I wasn't really prepared for was
the fact that with Jack and myC-section, I was able to do
things slowly to make sure I wasnot affecting or irritating my
scar right From the C-sectionWell, it wasn't even a scar, it
was a wound at that point right.
And with Evelyn and you have atoddler who is a boy and he

(45:28):
climbs he was in the climbingtime and running around and
doing things that he was gettinghurt and all that I felt like I
couldn't go slow because I hadto chase a toddler around.
Granted, I had my husband tohelp me and he was a great help,
but I will say it is.
So it's night and day from likebeing able to just like take
your time with a newborn andeven though the newborn stage is

(45:49):
rough, like it's just you'redoing it on your.
You know you don't have tochase a toddler too, like I feel
like the toddler adds a wholenother level.

Speaker 2 (45:56):
Yeah, definitely, absolutely.
You're not actually taking timeto like recover Like when it's
your first baby, and especiallybecause mom and I were there
with, like you know, we wereover your house literally every
day, like you're probablypreferred.
We didn't help as much, but youwere able to just chill on the
couch watch our shows.
You know, it was more just likewe were all helping with Jack,
but with your second one,everyone's like yeah, you got

(46:18):
this Right, and you're like, uh,do I?

Speaker 1 (46:21):
No, we're.
In fact, I feel like mothersneed more help, because now
there's more kids, you help yourfamily, everybody.
Just because they're veteranmoms doesn't mean anything.
If anything.
They need more help.

Speaker 2 (46:30):
Yeah, definitely.
I completely agree with you,cause they're, you know, know
you're looking after a newborn,a new newborn.
Not all newborns are the same.
You're learning new habits withthis one and you're also trying
to like angle a toddler oh gosh, I remember for john his
learning curve.

Speaker 1 (46:49):
so when we had the boy he could like if he was half
asleep right changing jack.
It didn't matter how sloppy hewas when it came to wiping the
poopy diaper, because obviouslyJack is a boy so he has a male
part.
But with a girl you have towipe from front to back or you
could give the baby an infectionin her female part, right?
So John was like this is justso stressful because I'm so

(47:10):
tired, it's so dark and I can'tsee and I have to make sure I
wipe a certain way.
He's like I'd have to worryabout this with Jack.

Speaker 2 (47:16):
Aw poor John.

Speaker 1 (47:18):
He eventually got the hang of it.
He's just been learning andhe's very tired.

Speaker 2 (47:22):
Yeah well, my husband's never even changed a
diaper in his life, which Ican't.
I'm like how is that possible?
So he's like I really need tolearn.
I'm like you better learn.

Speaker 1 (47:32):
Uh, well, you know what?
Well, you know what?
We're still potty trainingEvelyn, but she's still in
diapers sometimes.
So when you guys come in August, you want to change Evelyn.

Speaker 2 (47:39):
Yeah, you should, you know.
What's funny, though, is thathe'll be trying on a very active
mobile toddler, so he'll belike this is really hard.
Yeah, I'm like you know, it'smuch easier on a newborn.

Speaker 1 (47:51):
They just sit there.
We're going to accidentallytrain him to first wrestle and
pin down, and then your newbornis going to be like ow, what are
you doing?

Speaker 2 (47:58):
I know we're like, yeah, it's really that hard
He'll be.
Oh my God, that will absolutelytraumatize him.
But yeah, let's do it.

Speaker 1 (48:05):
But though, if we train him with the harder age,
right then having a newborn he'sgoing to feel like so skilled,
he's going to be so confident.

Speaker 2 (48:12):
I know.
No, I don't think this is agood idea.
I think you're onto something.
That's the second we land.
That's what we're doing.

Speaker 1 (48:19):
Ed, if you hear this, this is your only chance to run
buddy, because as soon as youland, save a poopy one.
Let's go, I shall God.
Hers are like adult poops now.
So God bless his heart.

Speaker 2 (48:35):
Oh God, right, let's talk about induction of labor.
Yes, yes, so induction of laboris performed for a lot of
reasons and I just like toexplain this because, uh, it's
something I explain like all thetime in my job.
Um, people have heard the terminduction of labor but they have
no idea what it actually meansand for some reason it's not

(48:58):
explained really well.
So it's performed for a lot ofreasons, the most common being
if you have hypertensivedisorders of pregnancy, like
pregnancy-induced hypertensionor preeclampsia, if you have
gestational diabetes, if youhave a prolonged pregnancy, so
like if you go beyond 40 weeks,or any concerns for maternal
wellbeing.
So a lot of people.
It's maternal request in a termbaby, so beyond 37 weeks,

(49:23):
because you know mental healththey're just not coping anymore
and maternal age.
So prolonged pregnancy we meanwhen your pregnancy goes beyond
the.
You know 40 weeks, so whenyou're in weeks 41 to 42.
So 40 weeks is full term, butyou are full term technically by
37 weeks as well, so justbeyond nine months.
So from 37 weeks, baby is fullycooked and you can go into

(49:46):
labor whenever you want.
So if you carry beyond 40 weeks, it can be perfectly safe for
you and your baby.
But there is an increased riskof the placenta kind of expiring
and not feeding baby as wellanymore.
So we may need to induce you ifbaby shows signs of slowing
growth.
So baby's growth should neverstop.
You should get bigger andbigger and bigger or reduced

(50:07):
fetal movement.
So if baby's not moving as much, in the case of gestational
diabetes we're more concernedabout baby being huge.
So if your sugars are wellcontrolled and baby's growth is
normal, you can carry until 40weeks and then have an induction
.
However, if your sugars arepoorly controlled and baby is
already showing as large forgestational age, we call it LGA.

(50:28):
We worry about a lot of things.
So one thing is anal sphincterinjuries from tears those third
and fourth degree tears in momyou can tear all the way to your
anal sphincter and that cancause long-term complications.
We're also worried aboutshoulder dystocia.
So when baby's head isdelivered but the shoulders
don't come out, which is that'san emergency Fetal asphyxia

(50:50):
which could be from shoulderdystocia and brachial plexus
injuries.
So your brachial plexus allhumans have it it's a clump of
nerves that are like basicallyright beyond your armpit, like
lower down in your, in your armkind of, where the biceps are a
little bit.
So it's a huge bundle of nervesthat control motion and
sensation from neck all the wayto the fingertips.

(51:11):
So they, those can become quiteinjured in a big baby who gets
stuck and if the injury ispermanent they might lose
function, full function of thatarm that was affected.
So we try to prevent all that.
So how do we induce?
People say that induction ismore painful than natural labor.
It's not necessarily true.
It's just that the medicationswe give are slow acting and

(51:33):
mimic natural labor.
So the difference is the pacereally.
So for some women, rather thanthe glacial pace of contractions
eventually ramping up topainful so they're getting used
to it over time they becomeapparent due to the medications
quite quickly instead.
So there's not that naturalprogression of it.
If we put you on the Pitocin,which is oxytocin, if we put you

(51:55):
on that drip, you might feelthe contractions go from zero to
60 and you don't have time toadapt, that's all.
It's not more painful than theywould have been, it's just that
you haven't had that day tokind of cope with it.
We use tablets and gels calledprostaglandins to ripen your
cervix.
That means to soften it anddilate it.
So we give those one at a timeand then approximately six hours

(52:19):
later you have an internal examto feel if you are softening
and dilating, and we can repeatthis process three or four times
.
We also have longer actingprostaglandins that stay in the
vagina for 12 to 24 hours,depending on the name brand
you're using.
If you've had a C-section inthe past and you're trying for a
VBAC so a VBAC is a vaginalbirth after cesarean, so you're

(52:40):
trying for that we offer acervical ripening balloon, so a
CRB for short.
It looks like a urinarycatheter but it has a larger
balloon attached.
So this helps physically expandthe cervix and we fill the
balloon with water.
We do an exam through thevagina and we feel for your
cervix and we put the catheterall the way up into the cervix

(53:00):
and fill it up with water and itstays there.
So that can stay for 12 to 18hours.
We prefer these in women withprevious cesarean sections
because in C-sections we worryabout the prostaglandins
inducing strong contractionsthat can cause scar tenderness.
So scar tenderness is whenyou're having contractions or
you're in early labor and youfeel pain where your incision is

(53:23):
from your previous C-section.
We worry about wound dehiscence.
That's when the wound starts toseparate or complete scar
rupture, which can lead to fetaldeath.
So if your entire uterus opensup, baby can't survive that way.
They need to be in a closeduterus.
So that is again an emergencythat can lead to fetal death and
we're really concerned aboutthat.

(53:44):
So after you're dilated enough,you may continue on your own
into labor as you wish, or youmight need amniotomy, so that is
when we break your waters,which doesn't hurt, it's just a
gush of fluid, and we can alsogive you that oxytocin drip.
So pitocin is a manufacturedversion that is the exact same,
basically, as the naturallyderived oxytocin in your body

(54:06):
and that is responsible foruterine contractions.
So some people require all ofthese things in order to get
into established labor.
Some people don't.
Some people have had babiesbefore.
You give them one prostaglandinand they're good to go.
Their body knows what to do andit's quite simple.
So that is what we mean byinduction of labor.
We're basically just mimickingnatural early labor, getting you

(54:28):
to that point and thenhopefully, you continue into
established labor on your own.
So that is it, and it can takedays.
It can be a really slow process.
Like Merce explained, she wasin the hospital for 22 hours at
the end of it.
So people don't think, oh, I'mgetting induced today, I'm going
to have my baby today.
It's definitely not true,especially if it's your first
baby.
It's going to be as slow andlong and painful as natural

(54:50):
early labor.
You're just in a hospital, soyou're slightly more aware of it
, whereas if you were awaitingevents to happen on their own,
you might be in early labor athome, so you're not really
thinking about the time passingas much.
That's the main difference.
I would say Huge psychologicalimpact.
But that is induction of labor,and if anybody has any
questions or concerns, pleaselet us know.

(55:10):
I would love to hear from youguys and share your own
experiences about inductions.

Speaker 1 (55:14):
Yes, that was great.
I feel like if anybody neededto learn more about that, they
got all that info.

Speaker 2 (55:22):
Yeah, sorry, it's a bit of a chunky one at the end.
There A lot of knowledgecrammed in.

Speaker 1 (55:27):
That's okay, but otherwise, we hope that you have
a fabulous Mother's Day andobviously we honor mothers who
are in the trenches, but alsowho are bereaved, who are even
hoping for a baby and still, youknow, haven't had one.
All types of mothers, right,everyone is a mother and they're
all going through their ownexperiences and we celebrate all

(55:48):
of you, every single one of you, and we hope that you have a
good Mother's Day and a nicerelaxing weekend and we will see
you again next week.

Speaker 2 (55:58):
Yes, thank you so much for tuning in guys.

Speaker 1 (56:01):
So please like, subscribe, follow um psychotic
PY podcast Um, and, if you'dlike, please subscribe to us on
YouTube at psychotic PY podcast.
Share with.
Share this podcast with friendsand family if you like it.
And if you want to reach outand suggest any topics, we are
all ears.

Speaker 2 (56:19):
Exactly.
We'd love to hear from you guys.
Thank you so much for tuning in.
Take care Bye.