Today we sit down to discuss some of the data relevant to our last episode of Unbreaking Birth which involved an induction due to a diagnosis of IUGR which was determined at birth to be a misdiagnosis. We are breaking down the differences between IUGR vs small for gestational age, LGA vs Macrosomia, what to know about ultrasounds, and share with you the resources needed to make informed choices if your pregnancy involves any of one of these weight variations or medical diagnosis.

Links:

https://evidencebasedbirth.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Big-Babies-Handout.pdf

https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-bulletin/articles/2021/02/fetal-growth-restriction

https://www.jogc.com/article/S1701-2163(15)30865-3/pdf

http://blog.thebirthlounge.com/2021/09/things-that-fck-up-your-birth-plan.html

https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-bulletin/articles/2020/01/macrosomia

https://www.aafp.org/afp/2001/0115/p302.html

https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/pregnancy-complications/intrauterine-growth-restriction/

Today we welcome Charley to the Unbreaking Birth Podcast to share her story. Charley shares about her experience with an IUGR diagnosis in her pregnancy and how that impacted her birth experience only to find out that her baby was born absolutely perfect and within normal limits for weight. She shares her pregnancy stressors, her labor experience, and her experiences in pregnancy after her first. This episode walks through processing of a birth trauma as well as the negative impacts of blanket care for consumers.

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae

HeHe and Meagan are discussing the Supreme Court case being heard on abortion rights in the US right now. They are discussing abortion after 15 weeks, what diagnoses can lead women to this decision, what it looks like to require an abortion when it is illegal in your state, and what real life effects these bills have. To fix the system….we have to start at the top.

Links:

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/21-463_3ebh.pdf

https://reproductiverights.org/case/scotus-mississippi-abortion-ban/

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/01/21/1074605184/abortion-roe-v-wade-supreme-court

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/21/world/colombia-court-abortion

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/12/01/us/abortion-mississippi-supreme-court

A Guide on How to Get Abortion Pills | Plan C

26 States Are Certain or Likely to Ban Abortion Without Roe: Here’s Which Ones and Why | Guttmacher Institute

Texas Abortion Laws | Planned Parenthood Center for Choice

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6457018/

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae

HeHe and Meagan chat today about hospital policy and the breakdown the reasons why hospital policies are not based in current up-to-date evidence based practices. Barriers that currently suggest that policies can be 15+ years behind current studies and research!

Links:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3241518/

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae

If we had 5m to spend with you, what would we say! HeHe and Meagan have things that they feel every single birthing person needs to know-- here’s the hills we live and die on!

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae

HeHe and Meagan dive further into the Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative defining what it means to be a Breastfeeding Friendly Hospital.

A Breastfeeding Friendly Hospital strives to achieve the WHO-UNICEF “Ten Steps of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative” to promote successful breastfeeding: (This is #10 on the MFCI).

Breastfeeding support is not guaranteed to be readily accessible and finding unbiased care for breastfeeding and nursing can be SO hard!

You’re likely to face pressure to give your baby formula--you don’t have to and that is not considered Breastfeeding friendly, even when guised as such! According to the WHO, Formula companies aren't supposed to be advertised or promoted by medical professionals--so why is this happening so rampantly in the hospitals?

Links:

http://www.motherfriendly.org/mfci

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae

This week we are diving into the exact criteria hospitals need to meet the Mother-Friendly criteria to help you determine if you hospital is Mother-Friendly or not. HeHe and Meagan continue to work through the Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative. It’s easy for hospitals to 'check these boxes', but still be traumatizing folks. HeHe and Meagan are breaking down everything you need to look for in your birthing facility.

Links:

http://www.motherfriendly.org/mfci

https://www.cesareanrates.org

The Healthy People Initiative has goals of the US infant mortality rate being 5 in every 1000 births. Only 11 states met this criteria in 2018 when they checked in and the number of infant deaths were highest in the southern states-- MS, AL, LA, GA, TN

Figure 1 on Page 8: https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/call-to-action-maternal-health.pdf

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae

Today we are going to be talking about the Mother-Baby Friendly Childbirth Initiative. This initiative focuses on improving birth, not only as an experience, but really the outcomes of birth. HeHe and Meagan walk through this initiative to explain what it means to be a Mother-Baby Friendly hospital AND how it’s easy for hospitals to check the boxes to be 'mother-baby friendly', but still be traumatizing folks!

Follow along with us:

Unbreaking Birth Podcast: @unbreakingbirth

HeHe Stewart: @tranquilitybyhehe & @the.birth.lounge

Meagan Bray: @meagan.bae