Sleep

Spring Time Change and Helping Your Little One Adjust

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

You can help your child by starting adjustments ahead of the time change. Beginning Tuesday night (March 6), begin to put your child down 10 minutes earlier for bed. You can do this by comforting, singing, reading, and starting the bedtime routine 10 minutes earlier. Continue this for the rest of the week. When the time change happens, your baby or toddler will have slowly adjusted to the new time.

Multiple Children

The Twins & Multiples Episode – What You Need To Know If You’re Expecting More Than One

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

No one parenting experience is the same as another, but one thing we can continually agree upon for all new parents is that support for the new family during their first few months with a newborn is paramount. Moms and Dads are better equipped to take care of their babies when they themselves are getting their needs met. And when it comes to twins, there is perhaps double the reason (or triple if you’re having three babies!) to make sure you’ll be well-supported during the first six weeks at home. 
We are excited to call this episode of the Fourth Trimester Podcast the TWINS episode. Here’s what we cover: 
Having twin babies prematurely and a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) experience
Why it isn’t just a simple formula of twice the work 
Identifying and getting help for postpartum anxiety 
Feeding two babies at the same time 
Taking shifts between parents, and additionally with the help of a doula or someone else and how that can benefit everyone 
Preparing for the specific differences between preparing for having multiple babies compared to a single baby

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)

Communication

Encourage Infant Speech Learning, Security & Confidence Through Communication and Play

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

It makes intuitive sense that communication and play during the first 0-12 months of a baby’s life help set the tone for the child’s relationship with the world around them. But how do we proactively and thoughtfully communicate with a baby in a way that encourages learning, emotional security and confidence? 
Here’s what you’ll learn on episode 51 of Fourth Trimester Podcast:
+ How to support early communication – from birth and beyond!
+ How to be musical with your baby (even if you don’t consider yourself “musical”)
+ Tips for raising a bilingual/multilingual baby
+ Why the tools to support your baby’s development are already in your home
 

Postpartum Support

What Postpartum Doulas Do

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

If you are even remotely considering hiring a doula to help you out after you’ve had a baby, we highly recommend listening to Monique Cowan (a.k.a. Monique The Doula) share her first-hand experiences in a typical day in her job. She talks through the practical offerings of helping families prepare for a birth and thrive after baby has arrived. 
Monique was inspired to become a postpartum doula after her own birth experience. She saw the potential to help women in her Southern California locale, particularly women of color and inner city areas.  She works with all people who need postpartum doula services and her website is https://moniquethedoula.wordpress.com/

Childcare

One Simple Move Parents Can Make To Save Money, Time & The Planet

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

One of the major contributors to that feeling of overwhelm for expecting parents is the notion of having to hurry up and prepare for their little one’s arrival.
A major tickbox for that preparedness is BUYING TONS OF STUFF. That can be a fun part, and also a hugely EXPENSIVE and EXHAUSTING experience.
So here’s the simple thing you can do: buy a charming, high-quality (new or pre-loved) clothing set that you can sell-back to a community of like-minded parents. 

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!

Body , Mental Health

‘Pregnant With the Stars’ Writer Renée Cramer on How Celebrity Image Plays Into the Psyche of Modern Parents

by: Sarah TrottPosted on:

Renée Ann Cramer is our guest on episode 45 of the Fourth Trimester Podcast. She wrote “Pregnant With The Stars: Watching And Wanting The Celebrity Baby Bump” as part of her research into the culture around pregnancy and celebrity. She shares personal stories about her experience as a mother, as well as her fascinating perspective on how celebrity image plays into the psyche of modern parents.