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The words bonding and attachment are common words, but what is the deeper meaning behind those words for new parents and their newborns or yet-to-be born babies?  How can parents connect with their newborn in utero?  How will the attachment before and after the baby is born affect the epigenomes, brain development, and future health of their little one?  Laurel will take us on a fascinating dive into this topic to help us translate this information to our patients, students, and clients so that more new parents will understand the benefits of attachment to their new babies.  Laurel Wilson, IBCLC, RLC, BSc, CLE, CCCE, CLD is a TEDx and international speaker, pregnancy and lactation specialist, consultant, educator, and author. Laurel is the co-author of two books, The Attachment Pregnancy and The Greatest Pregnancy Ever; original editor of The CAPPA Lactation Educator Manual; as well as a contributing author to Round the Circle: Doulas Talk About Themselves. Her passion is blending today’s recent scientific fi

This episode was recorded on 5/23/22  The students and patients that you interact with have far different expectations for learning than a K-12 student.  They are with you for a very specific reason and expect you to give them relevant information they can use right away that they can incorporate with what they already know.  Adult learners require educators to use some unique approaches that tap into both the art and science of teaching.  This episode will give you some specific tips on how to incorporate Adult Learning Principles in your classroom or virtual classes.    Our expert is Kristen Gosse, MEd, the Learning Strategist and Content Development Manager for InJoy Health Education. She has a background in professional writing and almost 14 years of experience designing content for pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and parenting health education materials. Kristen explores ways to apply adult learning theory and the psychology of motivation to health education. If adults do not understand or feel emp

Creating an atmosphere conducive to learning includes ensuring that your students feel understood and accepted in the classroom.  Listen in as we get practical advice from Maura Jo, who has been practicing the principles of gender inclusivity in her life and classroom for over 15 years. You’ll pick up things you can use right away in your classroom, such as how you can use more inclusive language and ways you can make students feel comfortable while learning.   Maura Jo (pronouns: they/she) is a Queer/GenderQueer, passionate, compassionate, and accomplished birth worker and wellness professional with over 25 years of experience in complementary and alternative wellness and over 15 years in perinatal education and support. They hold a master’s degree in Women’s (and Gender) Studies and certifications in many aspects of wellness and perinatal health and support services. They have worked in the nonprofit sector, in the fitness and wellness industry, in multiple hospital systems, in the Connecticut state unive

Reaching more parents with solid prenatal education is the goal for most educators and hospitals.  Learning a new way to do that was challenging in 2020 but through creativity and problem solving, many educators –just like our guest– found ways to be sure the parents they serve continued to learn.  Join us to learn how one hospital has not only overcome the COVID teaching challenge but also created a mix of classes that will remain in place moving forward to reach more parents with the information they need for their pregnancy, birth, and beyond.    Evelyn M. Turner, MSN, RNC-MNN, ICCE, IBCLC, CPST, has been an active perinatal professional since 2000, working as a nurse in Labor & Delivery, Mother & Baby, Prenatal Care Coordination, Nursing Leadership, and as a Prenatal Nurse Educator in Northwest, Indiana and Chicago, Illinois. Currently, she works as a Prenatal Nurse Instructor at The University of Chicago Medicine, bringing her years of experience to the classroom educating soon-to-be parents.   

Note: This episode was recorded in early 2021. Some of the details in this episode may have changed In 1956, Marian Tompson and Mary White, along with five other women, gathered to breastfeed their babies under a tree at a church picnic in Illinois when they were approached by mothers with questions, showing interest and looking for advice on successful breastfeeding.  This event inspired a group of seven women to form La Leche League International to provide breastfeeding help and support to women in their community.   Since that time, La Leche League’s peer to peer support, whose primary purpose is to promote breastfeeding, can be found locally, nationally, and even internationally now in over 80 countries.      Christina Faulkenburg is an Area Coordinator of Leaders with La Leche League Mountain Plains as a volunteer.  The Area has over 40 Leaders in Kansas, Wyoming, and Colorado.  Christina is a wife, mom, and business owner.  Her daughter just turned 5!  When Christina was pregnant in 2015, she sta

The concept and role of a doula is better understood these days by parents and health professionals, but the reality of a doula’s life may still be a mystery to some.  Today we will explore how Julie, who has practiced as a doula for 29 years, impacts the lives of the families she’s assisted as she shares her insights of life as a doula.   Julie Brill is the author of the doula anthology Round the Circle: Doulas Share Their Experiences. She has been teaching childbirth classes and attending births since 1992 and mentoring new birth professionals throughout New England as a member of the CAPPA Faculty since 2003. Additionally, she is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and a Certified Holistic Lactation Consultant. Julie is in private practice in Bedford, MA, where she teaches prenatal breastfeeding classes and provides in-home breastfeeding consultations. She is also the mother of two adult daughters who she home schooled until they entered college.  Listen and Learn: How a

Listen in as Laura Nance, a Senior Program Advisor for CAPPA (Childbirth and Postpartum Professional Association), tells us all about the organization.  CAPPA was birthed in 1998 and has a mission of “Education. Support. Success.”  Laura takes us through how they have grown over time and what they had done to support members and families during COVID.  She also gives us a glimpse of where the future is taking this international organization.    Laura Nance is the Senior Advisor of Postpartum Doula and New Parent Educator Programs for CAPPA and the co-developer of the New Parent Educator program. Laura has been involved in the perinatal world since 2000 and is CAPPA-certified and active in her community as a New Parent Educator, Childbirth Educator, Lactation Educator, Pregnancy Fitness Educator, Postpartum Doula, and Labor Doula. She is the owner of For Love of Baby, a doula and educator cooperative offering professional perinatal services to families. She has been a trainer with CAPPA since 2005 and trai

Even in early nursing school Ginger felt she would write a book someday.  Finding a need while working with her new daughter-in-law gave her the much-needed topic.  Surviving in postpartum should not be as hard as it was for Ginger’s loved one or many other new mothers.  To create a template for thriving and celebrating life with a new baby, Ginger called upon 15 other experienced postpartum professionals and parents, and they created a book that can be used by parents and professionals Listen in as we discuss the book, changes needed in our healthcare system for postpartum families in the first six weeks, and more!  Dr. Breedlove is a past president of the American College of Nurse-Midwives. In 2017, she formed a consulting company, Grow Midwives LLC, to educate physicians and hospitals while supporting midwives in the design and scaling of best practices in collaborative care models. Prior to consulting, she was on faculty a combined 17 years as Professor of Nursing and Midwifery at Shenandoah Universit

DONA International was one of the first doula organizations in the United States.  Starting out as Doulas of North America in 1992, they quickly saw the need for doulas around the world.  In the early 2000s, they became DONA International.  Listen in to see where and why they started.  Melissa will explain her passion, and the passion of the organization, to make sure that doula clients and birthing families get the support needed in pregnancy, birth, and postpartum!  We will also get a glimpse of where this dynamic organization is going in the future.   Immediate past president of DONA International, Melissa began serving birthing families in January 2002 through her practice at Capital City Doula Services.  Certified with DONA International in 2003, and Lamaze International in 2005, Melissa has worked with more than 1,500 families as a labor doula and/or childbirth educator.  As a DONA-approved trainer, Melissa offers training and mentorship opportunities for new doulas and has trained over 600 new doula

  When Jen was pregnant in 2010, she realized that she was being treated differently because she exists in a larger body.  Determined to make her plan for an unmedicated birth a reality, Jen researched and found a midwife who supported and encouraged her to pursue the birth plan she wanted.  After the birth of her baby, she decided to start a blog to share her story, but soon it was clear that this was not just about her own story.  She became a childbirth educator and created an evidence-based website and podcast that includes positive resources, so she could change others’ stories as well.  She now also sits on a National Institutes of Health panel to give input on creating the Pregnancy for Every Body program.   Jen McLellan is a published author, founder of Plus Size Birth, and host of the Plus Mommy Podcast. She helps people navigate the world of plus size pregnancy, shares tips for embracing your body, and laughs her way through the adventures of parenthood. Her work has been featured in major public

USLCA (United States Lactation Consultant Association), founded in 2006, is an organization that supports the advancement of lactation professionals of all types in the United States.  Their aim is to make sure all families have support to meet their breastfeeding goals by advocating for the value of lactation care providers who contribute to the family healthcare team and are active in other community health settings.  Listen to our guests speak about the history, current activities, and their vision for the future of USLCA.   Michelle Stulberger, President of USLCA, holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology, Master of Healthcare Administration, and IBCLC (2014.) She is the Senior Director of Clinical Support Services for MedStar Visiting Nurse Association in Calverton, Maryland.  During the podcast, she will tell her story of becoming an IBCLC.  Danielle has served as USLCAs Executive Director since 2014 after leading a continuity of care breastfeeding project at a non-profit in her hometown of Lincoln,

Curiosity about why one woman labored in a straightforward manner and a woman in a similar situation struggled much more led Gail Tully to ask why.  She dug in to understand not only the role of the pelvic bones in labor but also the soft tissues that can either create a good pathway or block baby’s progress through them.  Listen to her story and how she developed new techniques and reimagined some older ones to help birthing people create an easier path for their babies to emerge.   Gail Tully, CPM, is the Spinning Babies Lady and an expert in Fetal Positioning. A new paradigm emerged in 2001 with Spinning Babies® putting physiology first in labor progress to replace the high dependence on cesarean surgery. Previously a DONA International approved doula trainer, doula and homebirth midwife, Gail was a founding mother of the Childbirth Collective, one of the largest doula non-profits in the USA. She created the Hennepin County Medical Center’s Doula Project and led trainings for the Somali Doula Program an

Listen as Christen Sadler, Immediate Past President of Lamaze, tells us more about Lamaze’s beginnings, how they have grown, and where the future may be taking them.  Christen shares ways the organization advances their mission: “Advancing Safe & Healthy Birth for Everyone, Everywhere.”  Learn more about Lamaze’s current projects, including research and advocacy to help not only the educators but also parents in this country and others.    A Registered Nurse for over 25 years, Christen Sadler’s experience spans multiple specialty areas including gerontology, med/surg, women’s health, and community health, as well as nursing education. She has worked in various capacities in Africa, South America, and the Southern United States. Currently she is a student in the PhD program at Texas Women’s University. In fall of 2020, she will join the faculty at the University of Texas Medical Branch School of Nursing as an Assistant Professor. Additionally, she teaches as an adjunct professor at the University of St

Rixa Freeze has a PhD from the University of Iowa and is a researcher, professor, and mother of four children. Her current research specialization is vaginal breech birth. She is the president of Breech Without Borders, a 501(c)3 nonprofit and teaches at a private liberal arts college. She blogs at Stand and Deliver. Listen and Learn: A lack of research may impede the view of breech birth as a normal life event Training for delivering singleton breech babies is not very common in US medical schools Research on breech birth outcomes is more available in other countries and some is now happening in the US also Many of the studies present conflicting information Not everyone with a breech baby is a good candidate for a breech vaginal birth Those that are good candidates may be able to avoid a cesarean with the right healthcare provider More breech vaginal births would likely be done if more healthcare providers were knowledgeable in the techniques, risks, and safety considerations. Breech Without Boarders is do

In Life After Loss Part 1, Katherine tells her story of loss and how it impacted her personal growth and her family.  Be sure to give it a listen.  (Click here for part 1) Listen to Part 2 as we continue to follow Katherine’s journey to becoming a Perinatal Bereavement Psychotherapist and having her Rainbow Baby Alice.  She always desired to have a big family but after a loss there was a lot to think about.  Getting pregnant again unexpectedly created uncertainty that Katherine and her husband worked through.  But looking back, Katherine realized that she was just going through the motions of this new pregnancy.  Find out how this new baby transformed their lives and how attachment is different with a Rainbow Baby.   Katherine Hyde Hensley is a perinatal bereavement psychotherapist and group facilitator skilled in bereavement. She has a broad range of experience and knowledge in the areas of birth, postpartum, child development, infant death, and grief. Katherine earned her BS in Public Health and Child

Loss is always difficult.  Losing someone you’re supposed to be meeting for the first time and spending the rest of your life with is even tougher.  Katherine and her family planned for a joyful event, the birth of their daughter Helen, but that turned to sorrow when Helen was stillborn.     Listen in as we follow Katherine’s journey of becoming a postpartum and loss doula and ultimately, a Perinatal Bereavement Psychotherapist.  She will walk us through resources and research shaping the world of loss and provide ideas for healing that we can use with our families, friends, students, or clients experiencing similar types of loss.     Katherine Hyde Hensley is a perinatal bereavement psychotherapist and group facilitator skilled in bereavement. She has a broad range of experience and knowledge in the areas of birth, postpartum, child development, infant death, and grief. Katherine earned her BS in Public Health and Child Development and her MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Walden University a

Listen as Bonita (Boni) Katz BA, RN, ICCE, ICBD, IAT, CLC talks about the impact that ICEA has had on the field of maternal-child health and her own journey.  Promoting family-centered care and freedom to make decisions based on knowledge of options and alternatives are the key tenants of ICEA. Boni’s own birth helped spark her interest in becoming a certified childbirth educator and doula with ICEA.  Joining ICEA in 1991, she went on to become a nurse and has continued her work as a childbirth educator and doula.  Boni joined the ICEA board 2013 and is currently serving a two-year term as the president through the end of this year.    Listen and Learn:  A short history of childbirth education in the US  ICEA’s journey from teaching parents to training teachers (and later doulas)  The importance of certification  The flexibility that is needed during times like COVID   The challenges of working internationally  Improving infant and maternal mortality    Resources & Mentions:  Visit the

When the “Back to Sleep” campaign to reduce infant deaths started in 1994, the rate of SIDS went from 10,000 to 3,500 per year very quickly.  Judy Bannon, founder of Cribs for Kids, realized that was a great thing but also found that some neighborhoods in her area had not reduced the number of SIDS deaths.  She wanted to help.  Listen in today with our guest Devon George to find out how Cribs for Kids took on the challenge to make sure that families had a safe place for their babies to sleep, along with the education to go with it.  She will also discuss their programs like the National Hospital Certification Program to help lower the numbers of SIDS deaths even more.   Devon George, MSN, RN is Director of Education at Cribs for Kids, where her primary focus is the National Hospital Certification Program. Devon joined Cribs for Kids after working in academic nursing where she oversaw clinical curriculum for ADN and BSN programs.  She also sits on the board of directors of Global Links, serving as the Vice

Thinking of starting or revamping your Fatherhood class?  Ginny Robinson joins us to share tips and tricks to creating a successful fatherhood class. She offers ideas on formatting, marketing, teaching dads during social distancing & insights into what dads want to know.  Ginny Robinson has been a nurse for over 50 years and spent the last 32 years at her current hospital in Plano TX. She has worked in many different areas of maternal child nursing including lactation and bereavement. One of her main roles right now is community education including childbirth education programs and community outreach for all ages.      Listen and Learn:  The main things on dads’ minds  Team teaching creates more interest  Dads teach the baby about the world  Building confidence and empowering through class  Ways to market classes to keep them full      Resources:  Understanding Fatherhood   Understanding Your Newborn  Brief Prenatal Role-Play Predicts New Fathers’ Parenting Skills     

Listen as Nikia Sankofa, Executive Director, and Amelia Psmythe Seger, Deputy Director, unfold the richness of USBC. They will tell us about when, why, and how USBC was created, and what the organization's goals are for today and for the future to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding in the United States. The strategy and structure of the USBC makes it one of the most dedicated and productive organizations that support those who are supporting families.   Listen and Learn: A short history of how USBC started USBC is a “coalition of coalitions” About the Awake to Woke to Work document to impact equity The organizational change that allowed USBC to grow from 50 to 100 members in less than 1 year COVID-19 Infant and Young Children Feeding Constellation is an emergency response, leveraging capacity through racial equity with 43 member organizations involved About using spaces and graces at the community level to continue to grow in knowledge about equity Ways that you and your organization can get involve