Birth , Recovery

Healing Birth Trauma

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Every woman deserves the opportunity to fully heal and recover from birth trauma. It is never too late to address a past trauma.
Listen to this episode of Fourth Trimester Podcast to hear: 
How to recognize that you’ve experienced trauma or PTSD 
How to begin addressing a potential trauma – the first steps to take for healing 

Childcare , Recovery

Chicken Soup for the Soul – Life Lessons for Busy Moms

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

On Episode 56 of the Fourth Trimester Podcast we speak with Lynn Benson, co-author of “Chicken Soup for the Soul Life Lessons for Busy Moms.”
Listen to hear more about: 
Signs you’re suffering from burnout as a result of caregiving
The physical, emotional stress and financial toll of caregiving
Tools and resources available to help family members with the challenges of caregiving

Nutrition , Recovery

Spring Childers Demystifies All Things Placenta

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Even Kourtney Kardashian ate her own placenta. Some women eat their placenta because they believe the organ contains the nutrients being transferred from mother to child while the baby is in the womb. Some benefits could include increased breast milk production and a decrease in post-natal depression.
Listen to hear everything you never knew you TOTALLY WISH YOU KNEW about placentas, including: 
what is the placenta
what prenatal foods and practices can benefit the placenta
what is placenta encapsulation
what are some of the ideas and benefits around the practice
how have women historically used their placentas
what are some of the placenta traditions in other cultures
where to go to find someone to make capsules for you
what happens with the placenta after birth – how transported to person doing encapsulation – how to store
other beautiful things done with the placenta (e.g. artwork prints)

Recovery

A Detailed Explanation of Vaginal Steaming AKA “Peristeam Hydrotherapy”

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Ever heard of Vaginal Steaming? Neither had we! Turns out, V-Steaming is a well-known and well-loved practice around the world. People love the practice for fertility, cycle cleanses, postpartum recovery & menopause. File it under “feels good and has potentially awesome benefits.”
 
We invited a V-Steam expert, Keli Garza, to join us on Fourth Trimester Podcast and share all the juicy – dare we say, steamy! – details.
Here’s the best part, Keli and the Fourth Trimester Podcast have teamed up to offer listeners of the podcast all of the following perks: 
– free shipping ($40 value) plus another $20 off on the Vaginal Steam Sauna Package (http://www.steamychick.com/sauna)
– $20 off an e-course called Postpartum Peristeam Care: How to Use Vaginal Steaming for Full Recovery After Birth (http://www.steamychick.com/302)
To benefit from these offers, use coupon code fourthtrimester when checking out at www.steamychick.com.
 
Steam facials are amazing … why not luxuriate other parts of our bodies? Enjoy the show! This is a fun one!

Recovery

Bodies Change And That’s A Good Thing – Love Your Body For The Body It Is

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Love your body. Love your body for so many reasons. Your body created new life. Your body gave you a baby you love. Your body works hard every day. Your body isn’t a girl’s body, it is a woman’s body. Bodies change after having a baby, and that’s okay. By loving your body, you are setting an example for your child that worth comes from who you are, not what you look like.
As Jennifer Garner puts it, “From now on ladies, I will have a bump. And it will be my baby bump. And let’s just all settle in and get used to it. It’s not going anywhere.”

Recovery

Post-Birth Libido, Birth Injury & How Past Trauma Affects Birth

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Ever wonder about when you’ll be able to have sex again after having a baby? Or how your body will feel and heal after giving birth? Curious about how having a baby affects intimacy, sensation and your body in general?
Answering these questions for us is Kimberly Johnson. She is a bodyworker, doula, post-partum women’s health specialist, and single mom. Having had a difficult postpartum experience herself, she set out to understand what exactly was going on with her, and to heal herself naturally.

Recovery

Somatic Experiencing Can Build Attachment Between Parent And Child

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Not all births are “easy births”. When there is a traumatic birth experience, where too much happens too fast, a sense of connection between parent and baby can be weakened.
Chanti Smith is an expert at human connection. She has worked with people of all ages to strengthen their parental attachment relationships. In particular, the work she does through Somatic Experiencing has helped parents develop a strong sense of connection and attachment with their babies. Any person feeling a “lacking” sensation related to their own birth or the birth of a child is a good candidate for developing stronger attachment and connection. Listen to Episode 26 to learn how.

Mental Health , Recovery

Postpartum Recovery Plan

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Jane Honikman gave her first baby up for adoption because she felt pressure to “do things in order”. She later finished college, married the father and had additional babies with the same man who is now her husband. Jane described her experience of giving up her first baby as a trauma. Compounding that trauma was the feeling that her second baby, another girl, was severely jaundiced as a kind of karmic punishment for what she’d done with her first baby. The experience triggered tremendous grief and guilt. Jane was not able to recover from her traumas until decades later through therapy. She waited until she was in her fifties to get the help she needed, having felt waves of anxiety and depression throughout her life. Jane encourages women to seek out the help they need as soon as they are able, and not to postpone healing. In our latest episode, we share an outline to help address postpartum anxiety and depression issues. This is relevant for EVERYONE, not just people who are “depressed”.