Mom & Mind Podcast | Postpartum | Birth | Pregnancy | Maternal Mental Health |

When you can really start to understand how stress and trauma affects you on a physiological level and emotional level, you can hold more compassion and understanding for yourself. Nkem Ndefo is on with us today, teaching, informing, shedding light on how to think realistically, holistically about stress. This is totally necessary to understand for pregnancy and postpartum...but also for pretty much everything. Nkem is teaching us about how our bodies and minds respond to stress and ways to build resilience. There are too many gems in this episode to quote, you'll just have to soak this up when you listen. Here are some of the things Nkem discusses with us. * Understanding how a "disorder" may actually be an "adaptive response" to stress. * "What can we build up, what's good, what's working"... "How do we build on that and help build out the strengths?" * "We do grow, we do get stronger, but it has to be within our window of tolerance, if it's outside of our window of tolerance its too much, it doesn't cause

Do you identify as a perfectionist? Do you feel like things need to be a certain way and if they aren't, you feel unsettled? How did that affect you when you were trying to conceive, during pregnancy, birthing or postpartum? This is one of those things that really impacts the early stages of motherhood and parenthood (and all stages really). In this episode, I talk about the dynamics that I see with the mamas that I help...and one that I struggled with in my postpartum...and still work on managing. I touch on how it even impacted the recording of this episode. Some of the things we address on this episode... *The struggle with feeling the need to be perfect *It seems that perfectionism often comes with a high sense of morality and conscientiousness - I believe that this makes intrusive thoughts even more unbearable. *Perfectionism often develops as a way to cope and manage life. But that way of coping goes head to head with the challenges of new parenthood. *The stress of perfectionism, can make getting help

"It is ridiculous that when you are the person in the middle of a crisis, that you are the person who is faced to do the heavy lifting" - Joy Twesigye Lack of social support is a part of what is impacting perinatal and postpartum wellness. Could we start to count on our social supports more if we are giving them some fundamental info? Joy Twesigye has a great perspective on how we can all support perinatal mothers more fully. She is talking about a fundamental need for change in the way WE, not medical or mental health professionals, but us, the people close to mamas, support mothers. Some gems from Joy: - Empathy for the mothers - We can support the support people though education - Changing our mindset to better support mothers and babies - Not making the person who is having the crisis, do the work!!!! YES!!!! Joy Twesigye Joy is an impact driven health care administrator with 16 years progressive experience in health systems and policy. 2017 marks 26 years of starting and managing socially responsible org

Pregnancy & Postpartum: Soapbox Edition II Yeah, no. I have some thoughts about how mothers are treated.... I'm hoping back on the soapbox! And this time, I'm shouting out some of the things that the Mom & Mind listeners are upset about too! Thanks for sharing! Let's see..most of the things I discuss are about how other peoples OPINIONS and JUDGMENTS affect mama's and partners. Can we just stop spouting out whatever comes to our mind when we see a pregnant person, or someone with a new baby? How 'bout that?!?!?! I also touch on some potentially controversial topics related to birth, birthing justice and maybe upsetting to some medical providers. Let's just say there are mostly amazing providers and a few that are less than amazing.... As always, please come join us, listen in, share, subscribe, rate and review this podcast! Find links to places to listen at www.momandmind.com CONNECT WITH US! FB @momandmindpodcast Twitter @drkaeni Instagram @momandmind Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.co

Bipolar disorder in pregnancy and postpartum is not often discussed. Dyane Harwood is advocating for that to change. In this episode, Dyane shares her personal journey through postpartum bipolar, what she wishes people would understand and how we can all be more supportive to mothers experiencing this difficult and often misunderstood condition. In this rich discussion, we touch on: -Some signs, symptoms and what it may look like to others -Insight into what it might feel like for a mother to be going through Bipolar in postpartum. -Supportive tips on what might help in early detection, prevention and healing. Connect with Dyane:  Twitter: @DyaneHarwood Website: www.dyaneharwood.com Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/BirthofaNewBrain Instagram: birthofanewbrain Birth of a New Brain is available for pre-order on Amazon and Kindle. Released on October 10 2017. https://www.amazon.com/Birth-New-Brain-Postpartum-Disorder/dp/1618688014/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1506311992&sr=8-1&keywords=birth+of+a+new+brain Sup

We talk about feeling bad about our bad feelings in postpartum & pregnancy. How many of us have had feelings in pregnancy or postpartum that we didn't understand, but then also felt guilt or failure for having them at all? Melissa Divaris Thompson, LMFT shares with us some of her personal experience and a great discussion on the roller coaster of feelings that we may have related to anger, rage, failure and guilt. This is SUCH a common mix of feelings. Most of us don't know about this, because we don't talk about it much as a society. SO, we get in to it here! Breaking the silence on anger and rage, normalizing the pattern and reducing the stigma of having negative feelings in motherhood and feelings with our babies, relationships and ourselves. Listen in, deepen your understanding and feel understood. We got you mamas and parents!!!! Connect with Melissa here: www.embracingjoy.com www.honestmamas.com Twitter: Embracing_Joy Twitter: HonestMamas Melissa Divaris Thompson, LMFT Is a licensed Marriage and Family

To those of you who are living through the natural disasters all over the world right now, the Mom & Mind Podcast is with you. Especially the pregnant and postpartum mothers and new families. In this episode, i'm adding my support and a couple of thoughts and ideas of how we can support you. This episode is proudly supported by Maternal Mental Health Now and their online, self-paced, Perinatal Mental Health Training.  We all really need to be trained in this, it’s essential. I can’t even count anymore the number of mothers who have said that they can’t find the appropriate help that they need, then suffer needlessly. The format that MMH Now offers, easy to integrate in to your life and work, because you can access it at your convenience. And they offer education units to boot! Go to www.maternalmentalhealthnow.org to check out their training. In this episode, we touch on: *It is essential to help reduce the level of stress for pregnant and postpartum mothers, especially now, as it helps them to have healthie

Stefani Reinold, MD shares some about her personal experience through pregnancy and postpartum and how she is helping other moms cope and manage with eating disorders in the perinatal time. This episode's super supporter: Maternal Mental Health NOW- Online maternal mental health training! In this episode, we touch on: -Pressures that mothers feel to keep weight down in pregnancy and lose weight postpartum. -Dr. Reinold shares her story and getting a diagnosis of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), potentially due to stress and not eating enough. - What a mother may be experiencing with an eating disorder while pregnant or postpartum - The pressures of weight gain/loss and the scale, binge eating disorder, restriction of food -Who's at risk? History of eating disorder, anorexia, binge eating, other body image challenges? - How marketing, social media, health care providers and other societal factors impact how we think and feel about ourselves. Dr. Stefani Reinold A Reproductive Psychiatrist, mother of tw

Bebo Mia's Bianca and Natasha talk about what mothers deal with who are labeled as overweight. Have you ever been labeled as being overweight, plus size or obese during pregnancy? Has that lead to providers telling you what you are or are not able to do in pregnancy and birth? Has that lead you to feel badly about yourself or "less than"? How does that impact your mental wellness? Here's what we touch on: -Myths of what "overweight" mothers are capable of in birthing and assumptions about their health in pregnancy. -How the BMI labels women and their bodies. -Stressors of weight gain in pregnancy and weight loss in the postpartum period. -How some moms are losing there decision making power because of how they are being treated. -Self advocacy and how to talk to your providers. -Focusing on body positivity and informing mothers of their options. Connect with Bebo Mia Facebook & Instagram handles: @bebomiainc  Website: www.bebomia.com Only for Mom & Mind Listeners! Bebo Mia is offering 20% to you listeners off

Postpartum Psychosis, while rare, is very serious. 1-2 in 1,000 new mothers experience this and most have no idea what is going on. Kristina Dulaney shares her story and her journey through recovery. The recovery process can be long. Kristina tells us about the length of her recovery and what she did to get back to herself. This is another important highlight of why we HAVE to educate mothers, families, healthcare providers and whoever will listen. Prevention and early intervention are NECESSARY! Some of her story highlights why we HAVE to have more specialized units for postpartum mothers and very specifically for postpartum psychosis. We have to understand this experience, treat these mothers well, with respect and with dignity. Then we have to educate everyone, get more resources that will actually help, rather than just contain them. She describes how the support of her husband, family and faith really helped her to get to feeling better. Kristina is working to reduce stigma and increase awareness, gather

Julie Andrews, LCSW is sharing a glimpse of the Native or Indigenous mothers pregnancy, birth and postpartum experience. This is such a valuable discussion and even though we just scratch the surface of cultural and societal understanding, it is a deeply needed start on our podcast to understanding Native mothers experience. Julie discusses some of the mental health impacts affecting Native mothers related to pregnancy and postpartum. She is sharing what she's seen and understands mostly of the stressors and strengths of Native mothers in her local community. She touches on the challenges of identity, historical trauma, current issues that mothers face in the local clinic and ways in which the community is working to support pregnant and postpartum mothers. Connect with Julie Riverside-San Bernardino County Indian Health, Inc. http://www.rsbcihi.org/ Facebook  Native RC  Julie Andrews, LCSW Julie Andrews is an enrolled member of the Sicangu (sick an-gu) Band of the Lakota Nation/Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Ms. Andre

Encore! Dr. Diana Lynn Barnes We are re-airing some episodes while I take a break and regroup for a moment! This is one of the popular episodes of the podcast. This one is #7, The Good Mother, and I think it's a great reminder for us to understand some of the myths of motherhood that we are all quietly fighting against.  Dr. Barnes shares some of her own experience, as well as her thoughts about the pressure of new motherhood. It's a tough job and we are generally too hard on ourselves! Listen in to this episode, even if you already have, its such valuable perspective. Connect with Dr. Barnes FB - Dr. Diana Lynn Barnes twitter - @ppddoc There is help and you will get better with the right help. If any of you listening need resources, go to www.postpartum.net, search "get help" and find someone in your state or country who may be able to support you. CONNECT WITH Dr. Kat!!! Go to www.momandmind to check out more episodes and grab a FREE download of 27 Top Tips for New Parents Mental health. Podcast FB Page, Mo

My Postpartum Story - Redux We are taking a short break from new episodes, 'cause well, this mama's taking a vacation! We won't leave you with no episodes though! We've picked a couple of the most popular episodes to Re-air over the break. Here is an Encore of Episode #1, where I share my story of Postpartum Depression, Postpartum Anxiety, Postpartum ODC and well, Postpartum Rage. So many things were going on...intrusive thoughts, sadness and crying, a deep and almost painful love for my daughter and utter overwhelm. Most people wouldn't have guessed it by looking. I didn't even know what was going on. On a lighter note, listen if you haven't before, just to hear how stiff I was and how bad the audio quality was! We've come a long way from Episode 1 to Episode 62! Yay for growth! Anyhow, mamas who are suffering, please know that you are not alone. I went through it and so do many other people. There is help and you will get better with the right help. If any of you listening need resources, go to www.postpart

Tanya Newbould - Producer of When The Bough Breaks and Personal Story of Postpartum Depression  *sensitive content at 7:00 & 20:50* Tanya shares her personal journey with Postpartum Depression and how her experience sparked the beginning of the When The Bough Breaks - A Documentary about Postpartum Depression. Narrated and Executive Produced by Brook Shields, this documentary takes a close look at Perinatal Mental Health, with stories from mothers, partners, advocates and experts.  The film features personal stories of postpartum depression from producers Lindsay Gerszt and Ms. Newbould, Carnie Wilson, Peggy Tanous, Aarti Sequeira and many other courageous women and partners. Tanya tells us: -About her personal experience of pregnancy, birth and postpartum -How she came to know that she had postpartum depression and antenatal depression. -How she coped and what helped her to recover -What it was like to do the documentary after her own experience This documentary is in over 70 countries in 5 different languag

Coretta Rae Daniel – Postpartum Depression & Anxiety, Personal Story and helping women of color *Sensitive Content, 17:45-20:45* Coretta shares her personal story of postpartum depression, how it impacted her first months of motherhood. As she was coming out of the heaviness of PPD, she realized that the women of color in her community in Ohio did not have enough resources. So, she went to work. You will hear how passionate and driven she is to help mothers and women of color. She talks about: - Her experience through Postpartum Depression, worry, intrusive thoughts, colic and exhaustion  -How her experience impacted new motherhood -The issues that she has seen in cultures and communities that make it difficult for women of color to get help. -How to support mothers  -Her organization 2BNurtured that aims to help under- served and under-represented women and families.  Please connect with Coretta here:  Facebook: Coretta Rae Daniel Instagram: @coretta.r.daniel Twitter: CorettaRDaniel Birthing Beautiful Commun

Ingrid Esparza - Personal story of Postpartum Anxiety   Ingrid tells us about her experience after birth and in the early months of life with her new son. Again, we get to hear the powerful ways in which a mother copes and fights to get through medical complications, breastfeeding challenges and the anxiety that came with it all. She tells us about:   - How a postpartum hemorrhage affected her and her first days of motherhood.  - The challenging experience with breastfeeding and how that fueled her anxiety  -Some factors to her experience, related to her Mexican culture that impacted your experience?  -How she dealt with and coped through the experience? - How she is advocating for mothers now. Thank you, Ingrid. By sharing your story, you are putting out a hand to help other moms find their way through. Ingrid Esparza Ingrid Esparza is originally from Mexico, but have lived in the US since she was 9 years old. She moved to Lincoln, Nebraska in October 2015 from Savannah, Georgia. She is married and has a son

Lindsay Marie Gibson We discuss some topics that may be sensitive for some listeners. Many mothers experience a trauma in life prior to having children. More specifically a sexual trauma. These experiences can sometimes come up and affect us in a way that we did not expect when we have kids. Lindsay discusses her journey to find Joy after trauma. We talk about her inspirational path to healing and helping mothers, after going through harrowing life experiences.  -She shares about her children and the experiences of the birth of her first child, the loss of her second child, her rainbow baby, Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG) and Postpartum depression. -She shares how the loss of her son made it necessary to deal with her past trauma of rape and attempted murder at the age of 16. -The devastation of postpartum depression after having her rainbow baby. - She is healing through yoga, writing, spiritual coaching and other supportive approaches, and is helping mothers find their own joy and healing. -She is writing a me

Dr. Rebecca Moore - Understanding Birth Trauma  We are discussing traumatic birth experience and it's impacts. Did you know that someone could feel traumatized by their experience and you can't tell by looking at them? Yep, sometimes a traumatic experience can happen that only the birthing mother is aware of. Sometimes it's very clear that there is a trauma. Dr. Moore talks about -the Medical system in the UK and how they are helping mothers -What is birth trauma? -How it can affect the birthing mother and partner -working across cultures -Her birth trauma conference and upcoming book on birth trauma. Connect with Dr. Moore on twitter: @dr_bjm Dr. Rebecca Moore Dr. Moore is a UK London based psychiatrist who has worked in the perinatal field for 20 years. She has a special expertise in Birth Trauma and runs an annual conference in London each year. She works in a very deprived area of London where 50% of the population are Bangladeshi. She is a 70/30 Ambassador a UK scheme to reduce child maltreatment by 70%

Perinatal Mental Health Alliance for Women of Color – PMHAWOC Here are three powerhouse women who have come together to co-found a beautiful and needed organization focusing on perinatal mental health for women of color. This is what closing the gaps and supporting women of color, in a BIG way, looks like. Divya Kumar, Desiree Israel and Jabina Coleman are doing outstanding work. Please listen in, connect with PMHAWOC, learn about the work that's being done and what still needs to be done. Also, connect with each of the co-founders individually via their contact info listed below. In this episode, we all get to learn about these women and the amazing work that the organization is doing. Connect here: http://www.pmhawoc.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pmhawoc www.postpartum.net Divya B. Kumar ScM, CPD, CLC Divya is a South Asian American woman who holds a Masters in Public Health and is a certified lactation counselor. Her work connects postpartum support with public health by addressing unmet needs in

Dr. Kat - Soapbox edition, sounding off! Hey everyone! It’s just me in this episode, to bring you a special soapbox edition of Mom & Mind. Basically, there are some things that get me really heated about new parenthood, pressures on new moms and dads and the way that we look at the transition to becoming a parent. I have a few choice thoughts…I’m sure you can relate…and I’m sure I won’t cover ALL of them. This episode marks THE one year anniversary of Launching the Mom & Mind podcast! Thank you so much for listening and being a part of this journey into podcasting!!!! It’s sort of hard to believe that it’s been a year, it’s gone by so quickly, I still feel like the podcast just started. I do know that I’m more comfortable doing this than I was a year ago, that’s for sure. I’m getting soapboxy about is harsh reality stuff that LOTS and LOTs of women face... I’m speaking for all of us who ever thought or felt “why didn’t anyone tell me about this”, “I feel crazy”, “this sucks”, “I’m not getting enough help”, “i