Real Food Mamas Podcast

Dr. Elana interviews birth educator, Care Messer. Care was Dr. Elana’s personal hypnobirthing instructor and she couldn’t help but share her on the podcast as she is full of knowledge, and passion, with a great sense of humor for all things birth related.  On today’s episode, they discuss how to prepare for a natural birth. You may be surprised with how many tips and details there are that can make a true difference in how you approach labor. Whether you are prepping for labor in the hospital, birth center, or home birth, this episode is for you! Topics Discussed:  The most important things parents should do when preparing for a natural birth When parents should start preparing Top 3 things parents need to do in preparing for birth Why a birth plan/birth preferences is important to consider before the baby comes Why postpartum prep is essential as part of preparing for birth Most important postpartum tips for a smooth transition into parenthood Show Notes:  Birth and Postpartum courses, workbooks, and more

We are excited to kick off season seven of the “Doctor Mom” podcast! Steph and Dr. Elana share all of their upcoming guests they interview during the season and things you can look forward to learning from them!  They also spend time sharing what’s been going on in their worlds. There has been a LOT happening between the two of them with the anticipation of Dr. Elana’s third baby and Steph’s navigating back-to-school plans for her older boys.  Since we consider you part of our family, we love keeping you in the loop. So for this episode, consider yourself sitting with us, your two good friends, filling you in on life updates! We’d love to hear what’s going on with you too! We’d also like to take time to thank our podcast sponsors Needed @needed, Active Skin Repair @bldgactive, and Paleovalley @paleovalley. This podcast wouldn’t be possible without their support as well as the support of our team including Ashley, Amanda, and Steph’s dad, Bob! We use these products with our families and only align with brands

Steph and Dr. Elana answer a broad range of questions, submitted by listeners just like you!  Steph covers tips for postpartum blues, addresses how to balance hormones after pregnancy, how to manage stress and more! Dr. Elana answers questions related to her upcoming home-birth, pros and cons to choosing an epidural, postpartum meal prepping, childcare plans and some quick pediatric concerns like low iron, pink eye, and avoiding tylenol in fevers.   Steph and Dr. Elana provide encouragement and advice to mamas and love sharing. This is a fun episode packed with answers to common questions you may be wondering on your journey to and through motherhood. Topics Discussed:  Help and prevention for postpartum depression and anxiety How to navigate depressing events and mental stress in this world Help with extreme moodiness and “blues” when your period returns and after nursing How to balance hormones after pregnancy Homebirth plans and preparing for a natural birth Pros and cons of epidurals Postpartum meal prep

Dr. Elana interviews board-certified dermatologist, Dr. Gigler - who happens to be the identical twin sister of Dr. Gillin who is a pediatrician she interviewed a couple of seasons back. Both of these sister doctors LOVE our podcast partner Active Skin Repair so we invited them on our show to share with us Doctor Moms how they use their products with their patients and what type of success they see day to day! During their interview, Dr. Gigler talks about more than just Active… they focus on how she treats common pediatric skin conditions like Molluscum Contagiousm, Fungal infections like Ringworm and Tinea, Acne, Warts, Keratosis Pilaris, and more!  As Doctor Moms it is so important we know when it is time to visit the doctor and when we can safely help our kiddo from home! So this interview is a great overview of skin conditions where a doctor visit is helpful and knowing what to expect will help you feel confident and prepared! You will also learn that there are many skin conditions that ARE safe for us D

Steph interviews Tamar Samuels, RDN about the spectrum of disordered eating and steps you can take to overcome it. Tamar is the co-founder of Culina Health and has helped countless people transform their relationship with food and their health to overcome disordered eating, hormone imbalances, and chronic stress. In this episode, they share considerations for when your healthy diet has gone too far, how to relax self-imposed dietary restrictions, how to know if your diet is really working, and how to make nutrition personalized and sustainable in a way that supports your mental health. If you’re wondering if your diet is still the best fit for you or if you want to reassess your current habits, this interview is a great place to start!  Topics Discussed: The spectrum of disordered eating Signs you’re restricting more than what’s necessary Key steps in changing your relationship with food Top tips for managing disordered eating Navigating necessary vs self-imposed restrictions Ways to approach goals in a heal

Dr. Elana interviews Rick Allen, owner of Pure Elements, who is an expert on water filtration. This topic can often feel overwhelming and confusing yet it is so important that we knew an episode dedicated to answering common questions was necessary!  When Dr. Elana and Steph bought their homes, installing water filters was one of their FIRST priorities! They each had many questions, took hours upon hours to research the best quality, and now want to share this important info with you! Expert Rick Allen helps guide us mamas so we aren’t misled with false claims from salesmen so you can cut to the chase and know exactly what you are purchasing. The goal is safe and clean water and that is what you deserve! This episode helps you learn the dos and don’ts of purchasing your next water filter.  We love making these complex topics easy to digest and workable for us everyday moms. *If you are new to this topic, please start by listening to Episode 230: How to Choose Clean Water for Your Family with Dr. Viviane Chen

Steph interviews Dr. Phabillia Afflack about holistic postpartum care. Phabillia Afflack, MD is a board-certified OB-GYN and has a passion for holistic medicine and integrated care. She treats her patients as whole beings and understands that one's emotional suffering can manifest itself in physical pain. In this episode, Dr. Afflack helps us understand how to navigate our postpartum experience in a way that honors our mind, body, and spirit. She explains the difference between holistic obstetrics and a standard OB-GYN patient experience and what we can do to advocate for the best care. She also gives us lifestyle tools and strategies, within our control, that can help us stay low-risk throughout our pregnancy to help with a smoother labor and delivery and transition to postpartum.  Dr. Afflack is also a medical advisor to Needed, a perinatal nutrition company that we know and love here on the Doctor Mom Podcast. If you’d like to experience the wide range of support Needed offers, from their prenatal multivit

Dr. Elana interviews guest Erin Rocchio, a Partner at Evolution and the Founder of Wholeness at Work. Erin works with CEO’s and leads teams of billion-dollar companies to help workers improve their interpersonal relationships so they can ultimately perform better. She uses many tools with her clients and teams one of which is the Enneagram. This tool helps her understand the personality types of her clients and ways to help them avoid BURNOUT.   Now as a mother herself to two littles, she brings her decades of work experience to now also help moms understand their susceptibility to burnout by identifying their Enneagram.     During this episode, you’ll learn how your Enneagram type plays a role in how you parent and how you uniquely are susceptible to burnout - plus unique ways to “watch out” for burnout to prevent it in the first place! Topics Discussed: What is the Enneagram?  How does it help you understand how you can parent better? How does your Enneagram type correlate with motherhood and your suscepti

Steph interviews Erin Claire Jones about human design, a blueprint that helps you live in a way that’s aligned with your energetic makeup and live at your happiest, healthiest, and highest potential. They discuss what human design is and how to use the tools to better understand what lights you up. They also share how human design helps you better understand and support the unique design of others. Through her coaching, Erin offers practical tools, digestible tips, and deeper self-knowledge so people can live with greater ease and authenticity. In this episode, she does a deep dive into Steph’s design (manifestor) as an example of what this looks like and helps break down the fascinating ancient wisdom and modern science that is human design. Topics Discussed: What human design is and how to determine your type How it compares to Enneagram and other frameworks  How skeptics can approach this tool How your type impacts your work, relationships, parenting How knowing this information can help your kids thrive

Steph interviews Shanna Mota about ways we can help our little ones embrace healthy eating and honor their body from a nourishing place. Shanna Mota is a Certified Yoga and Meditation Teacher, Holistic Nutritionist and conscious mama. She believes wholeheartedly in the power we have as humans to create the life of our dreams, and that it all starts from within. What we say, do, and value are things our children pick up on and we need to take responsibility for that.  Helping little ones love their body starts with us loving ours. In this episode, Shanna explores ways that parents can model healthy behaviors and help cultivate habits in children so they can live fully self-expressed.  Topics Discussed: How to feel at home in your body How to navigate tricky conversations with kids about food and their body How to cultivate healthy habits without shame or judgment How to listen to the signals your body is sending How to break generational patterns of poor body image and restriction Show Notes: www.paleovalle

Dr. Elana interviews guest Kim West also known as the Sleep Lady! We know how big of a pain point sleep can be for parents - whether you have an infant waking every 2 hours to eat or a 5-year-old that won’t stay in her room all night and finds her way into your bed - WE GET IT! We’ve been there, done that, and still doing it!!!  Sleep training is not the most fun part of parenting but when you feel it is time for a change it can really help transform the entire family's life!  Now… we heard from MANY of you that the crying it out method doesn’t resonate with you. Well, I am right there with you Mama - who wants to hear their little ones crying for hours on end? It is torture! Well… did you know there is another approach?! It is called a Gentle Sleep Coaching Method! We wanted to share this approach with you so we chose Kim West to be our expert guest today. Author of 3 books on sleep, appearances on Dr. Phil, the Today Show, NCB Nightly News, Good Morning America - just to name a few - Kim has successfully he

Steph interviews Arianna Taboada, MSW, MSPH, about what parents need to know when planning for maternity leave and returning back to work. Arianna is the founder of The Expecting Entrepreneur®, a consulting firm that helps entrepreneurs design parental leave plans that meet their business model and personal needs. They talked about maternity leave strategies and policies that take into consideration your mental health, physical health, and financial wellness. This is something you can start planning even before you conceive! Whether you are a brand new entrepreneur, own a small business, or work full-time, you’ll find this episode packed with things to consider to make the transition easier on everyone. You’ll also hear her top strategies for returning to the workplace after your leave, which includes building your support system and thinking through the process in a more holistic way. Her organizational strategy and empathy for parents shines through in this conversation and her resources. Topics Discussed:

In this week’s episode, we did something a little unique …. Dr. Elana did this fantastic interview with naturopathic doctor, Dr. Caitlin O’Connor as part of her Doctor Mom Membership and it was SO GOOD we couldn’t resist sharing it on our podcast!   Dr. Caitlin and Dr. Elana chatted about constipation in kids and HOW common this condition is. They review what's normal and not normal whether your child is breastfed, formula-fed, mixed-fed, or eating solids.   They also share clinical pearls on natural medicines that help in every stage…. For example, there are different remedies if your child is on formula versus breastfed and they even share tips for toddlers and older kiddos as well! This interview is jam-packed with pearls for any Doctor Mom to feel confident and empowered when faced with a kiddo with constipation! This is exactly how Dr. Elana envisioned her Doctor Mom Membership to be! A mama's go-to resource center so when her child is sick she has her at-home protocols, expert interviews, safety resourc

We are excited to kick off season six of the “Doctor Mom” podcast! Normally, Dr. Elana and I focus on sharing guests we have on during the season and things you can look forward to learning from them, but to be honest… we haven’t interviewed them all yet! However…we KNOW they’ll be fire and today we will share WHO we’re having on and what topics you can look forward to learning about this season. Since we took a short break between seasons, we also wanted to spend time sharing what’s been going on in our worlds. There has been a LOT happening between the two of us and since we consider you part of our family, we love keeping you in the loop. So for this episode, consider yourself sitting with us, your two good friends, filling you in on life updates! We’d love to hear what’s going on with you too! We’d also like to take time to thank our podcast sponsors Needed @needed, Active Skin Repair @bldgactive, and Paleovalley @paleovalley. This podcast wouldn’t be possible without their support as well as the support

Steph and Elana answer a broad range of questions, submitted by listeners just like you! They cover nutrition questions related to emotional eating, plant-based milk, collagen supplementation, and offer easy breakfast ideas for the whole family. They also answer questions related to labor and delivery, such as Elana’s plans for birth, if she’s considering placenta encapsulation, what she’ll do if she’s GBS+, and her thoughts on the vitamin K shot. Steph and Elana provide encouragement and advice to those struggling to keep their energy up to take care of their little one(s) and navigate sleep deprivation. This is a fun episode packed with answers to common questions you may be wondering on your journey to and through motherhood. Topics Discussed: How to navigate stress eating and sleep deprivation Easy, nourishing family breakfast ideas  Wellness products we can’t live without Our thoughts on placenta encapsulation Navigating labor pain, GBS+, Vitamin K shots Pros/cons of homeschooling And more! Show Notes:

*Trigger alert, for some this may be a triggering topic and I invite you to be patient with yourself and take a break from listening if it is. But please consider returning back as this episode is full of insights to help empower YOU and your kids to prevent or overcome uncomfortable situations.   In this episode, Dr. Elana welcomes Korah Hoffman, a licensed master social worker who is a mental health therapist in Jackson Michigan. Korah has a private practice and loves helping others reach their fullest potential. Korah specializes in working with trauma, children, youth, and families. As a victim of child sexual abuse, she is particularly passionate about helping families talk to their children about difficult topics in order to keep them well informed and safe. In today’s episode, they discussed how to talk to our kids about preventing sexual abuse, when a good time to start these conversations, how to stay safe, and the importance of how to have these conversations in a way to not leave our kids afraid bu

Steph interviews Jenna Helwig to help parents feel more comfortable navigating baby-led feeding. Baby-led feeding (sometimes called weaning) can be an incredibly rewarding experience for parents, but it often comes with some fear, uncertainty, and many questions. Learn how to navigate this style of infant feeding with the expert guidance of Jenna Helwig.  Jenna is the author of five cookbooks including the best-selling Baby-Led Feeding and the brand-new Bare Minimum Dinners. She is also the food director at Real Simple magazine and the former food director at Parents magazine. Topics Discussed: Is there one right way to start solid foods?  Benefits of baby-led feeding Where to start with baby-led feeding How to make finger foods safe for baby Food ideas and inspiration for different ages Strategies for making dinner less stressful Show Notes:   jennahelwig.com  Instagram: @realbabyfood and @jennahelwig Click here to learn more about Dr. Elana Roumell’s Doctor Mom Membership, a membership designed for moms

In this week’s episode, Dr. Elana interviews Shawna Holman, creator of the popular brand, A Little Less Toxic. Shawna is a wife, mom, and credentialed teacher. She uses her teaching skills to homeschool her two little ones along with teaching them and anyone interested in how to live a little less toxic. Her motto is “one day, one product, one meal at a time.” One of the low toxic brands Shawna loves to teach about happens to be one of our podcast partners, Active Skin Repair. In today’s episode, she will share with you how she uses Active with her family and why she loves to share this great company with her large following of avid moms who want to live a little less toxic!  We are grateful for Active Skin Repair to help make these episodes possible. Shawna, Steph, and I all use Active in our own homes with our family members and love it. We stand behind the products we recommend and this one is so easy for us to share because it has become a staple in our medicine cabinets and we want you to know about it!

Steph interviews Ciara Burton to help moms learn how to mother themselves during seasons when it’s easy to put your needs last. Ciara is known as the “The Life Coach for Moms” @thelifecoachformoms. She has created a unique brand that’s freeing mothers of anxiety and uncertainty. Ciara shares her unconventional approach that has helped hundreds of women heal from toxic patterns and routines that have ultimately become blockages to happiness and success. Listen to learn practical ways moms can return “home” to themselves and why this matters for the entire family.  Topics Discussed: Why traditional therapy/coaching may not work Ways we can recognize our true needs Why “more self-care” isn’t the solution How mom’s energy impacts the entire family Why couples often struggle after baby  How to break generational patterns and feel free   Show Notes:  Free Masterclass:  5 Shifts Empowered Mothers use to Solve Anxiety + Reclaim their Power (without adding to the To-Do List and feeling totally wiped out in the proc

Dr. Elana interviews Cassy Joy Garcia, a New York Times bestselling author, of Cook Once Dinner Fix, Cook Once Eat All Week, and Fed and Fit as well as the creative force behind the popular food blog Fed + Fit.  Cassy is a holistic nutrition consultant and on a mission to help moms overcome the challenges of getting dinner on the table! After realizing that her own struggles to get a healthy homemade dinner ready overlapped with the same struggles experienced by her readers, she decided that there must be a better way! So she created the Cook Once method that has revolutionized how people cook.  In today’s episode, they discuss Cassy’s most recent book, Cook Once Dinner Fix, and what you can learn from her method to make dinner easier on the entire family.  Topics Discussed: How having 2 kids changed the way she cooked What makes Cook Once Dinner Fix unique How to save time and money using the Dinner Fix method How she creates gluten-free, dairy-free, and other dietary restrictions is easy to follow in her c