If you’re a mom about to give birth, you may be wondering what exactly the difference is between a drug-free and an epidural birth. I mean, the end goal you’re aiming for is the same right? A happy, healthy baby. So, does it really matter if it’s drug-free or an epidural birth, right? Absolutely not….
Pregnancy
Here’s Proof You Should Relax and Take Care of You, Pregnant Mamas
I was one of those pregnant women who felt determined to prove that pregnancy wouldn’t slow me down. Take the hike? You betcha! Paint the house? I’m all over it! Keep weightlifting? Of course! While I definitely had my moments of complete pregnancy exhaustion, for some reason, during all of my pregnancies, I was hell-bent…
Labor and Delivery: Is A VBAC Right For You?
If you’ve had a C-section with one or more of your past pregnancies, you may be wondering if a VBAC (vaginal birth after C-section) might be an option for you in the future. But what exactly is a VBAC and how do you know if it’s right for you? A VBAC is just as the…
There’s No Such Thing As a Perfect Pregnancy
You know what? I’m just going to tell you the truth: there is such a thing as a perfect pregnancy. The perfect pregnancy exists, all right. It just so happens to live online and online only. In the carefully-curated, beautifully-edited world of Facebook and Instagram, pregnancy is definitely perfect. But in real life? Pregnancy looks…
Smoking During Pregnancy Is Now Linked to Hearing Loss
A new study has found that tobacco smoke exposure during pregnancy and during infancy is linked to hearing loss in children. While most of us know that smoking during pregnancy carries serious risks with it, including a low birth weight, premature delivery, and respiratory problems with the baby, it is clear that even with all…
I Never Fully Experienced Adulthood Before Motherhood
While chatting with a friend who is due to give birth to her first baby, she confessed that she is a little nervous about welcoming her little one after having so much time to herself. Unlike me, who had four kids by the time I was 28, this friend did things a bit more responsibly…
What Happens If You Get Sick While You’re Pregnant?
Is there anything worse than being sick while you’re pregnant? I will never forget the time when I was pregnant with my third child and I had spent days literally running puking kids back and forth in my house in (mostly vain) attempts to catch some of their vomit in the toilet. I had cleaned…
Two
It has been exactly two weeks since my husband and I found out that the sweet little one, the baby I hoped I would proudly announce as my rainbow baby, did not make it. In those two weeks, I feel like time has both crawled by and disappeared faster than I can describe. This pregnancy…
The Bottle of Prenatal Vitamins That Nearly Broke Me
I spent over $30 on prenatal vitamins the first time. This time, I’m going to do things right, I told myself. I’ll exercise the whole time and do yoga and cherish every moment. I won’t complain at all, even when I look like an actual beached whale. I made a special trip to the health…
How The “Empty Photo Project” Is Highlighting Stories of Child Loss
When Susana Butterworth, 23, a student at Washington State University Tri-Cities and her husband, Dallin discovered that the son she was carrying had trisomy 18, they decided to do everything they could to celebrate him. Genetic testing and a highly detailed ultrasound identified physical markers of trisomy 18, which included clenched fists, rocker bottom feet, a…