Evidence Based Birth®

In this episode I am joined by Jen McLellan, author, speaker, and founder of the website Plus Size Birth and the Plus Mommy blog. She is also host of the popular podcast Plus Mommy, and is a certified childbirth educator, wife, and mother. With more than four million page views on her blog, Jen is passionate about helping others navigate the bumps along the road of motherhood. Jen notes that her doula’s recommendation to look into the midwife model of care changed the course of her first pregnancy. As she had first began care under an obstetrician and researched plus size pregnancy online, she had started to believe that she was at high risk due to her size. However, she had an empowering natural birth with no complications. As Jen developed her blog, she realized the great need for plus size pregnancy support. While she covers a variety of topics, one of her main areas of focus is helping women to connect with a care provider who will not make them feel ashamed. We discuss practical tips for finding a supportive and welcoming provider, as well as some of the biased messages women of size commonly hear during the course of their care and birth. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Follow Jen on Facebook,  Instagram, and Twitter.  Check out Plus Size Birth, the Plus Mommy blog and the Plus Mommy podcast. Use coupon code “EBB” to get 30% off Jen’s book, My Plus Size Pregnancy Guide. For a directory of plus-friendly providers and doulas, visit SizeFriendly.com.

In this episode, I am joined by Taiwo (Tia) Ajao and her husband Dr. Wale Ajao. Tia is an RN with a Master’s in Public Health, a Lamaze certified childbirth educator, and a DONA-trained birth doula. Wale is a medical doctor as well as a communication professional, specializing in film and video production. He is also a Lamaze certified childbirth educator, DONA-trained birth doula, and a certified professional photographer. Tia and Wale lead Hello Baby Baltimore, a health communications initiative serving families in Baltimore City and the DC/Maryland/Virginia area. Hello Baby Baltimore believes in educating a family’s entire support network, creating unique teaching moments at private baby showers and events. Tia and Wale draw on their background as multimedia creators, and as a doctor/nurse couple with both local and international experience. We talk about their truly unique approach to childbirth education and family support, including their focus on normalizing the role of men in childbirth. We also talk about the Evidence Based Birth Instructor program, and male doulas. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Learn more about Hello Baby Baltimore and Tia and Wale Ajao via their website, Facebook, and Instagram .

In this episode, I am joined by one of our Evidence Based Birth Childbirth Class parents, Bethany Clay. Bethany has an 11-month old son, and lives in South Carolina. She works part time as a music teacher, and is passionate about sustainability and gardening. She was one of the first people to take the EBB Childbirth Class in 2018, with Instructor Mary Kury. Bethany describes her birth experience as long, peaceful, and wonderful, all at the same time! Hear how her birth preparation helped her form realistic expectations, and how she felt empowered and amazed when her baby arrived. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Learn more about the Evidence Based Birth Childbirth Class here. To find an EBB Childbirth Class near you, click here.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Stephanie Edmonds and Dr. Nicole Loew, both PhDs in nursing. Stephanie (who also has a Masters in Public Health) specializes in pre-conception health, family planning, health services quality improvement, and veterans. Nicole has more than five years of sexual and reproductive health research experience, including the topics of responsible sexual behavior, risk communication and health communication. Together Stephanie and Nicole are hosts of The Woman Centered Health Podcast, advancing sexual and reproductive health communication between families and providers. They are particularly passionate about provider communication with clients. We discuss strategies to ramp up communications about women’s health across a variety of populations. We also talk about mindfulness when communicating about sex, non-judgmental language, and being a trusted resource. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Check out The Woman Centered Health Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher and other podcast platforms. Follow Stephanie and Nicole via their website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

In this episode, I am joined by bestselling author and award-winning blogger Leonie Dawson to discuss her experience with hyperemesis and postpartum depression and anxiety. Leonie is an artist and entrepreneur based in Australia with a huge following. I asked her to join me on the EBB podcast because she’s blogged extensively about her experiences with hyperemesis and her difficult postpartum journey. Leonie details her pregnancy and birth experiences, as well as what she learned about herself through some incredible challenges and early parenthood. She also addresses the pressures of perfectionism and idealism, and how to overcome them. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Follow Leonie on her website and Instagram. Download Leonie’s free illustrated zine on hyperemesis gravidarum here. Check out Leonie’s illustrated goals workbooks here.

In this episode, I am joined by Melissa Cassity to talk about her experience taking the Evidence Based Birth Childbirth Class, and how it came into play during her unexpected pre-term birth.  Melissa has a 13-month old son and lives in South Carolina with her husband, Kelby.  She works as an instructional designer for an educational technology company. She and Kelby were among the first students of the EBB Childbirth Class, which they took with EBB Instructor Mary Kury. Melissa has a longstanding passion for maternal health, and had wanted a natural birth for a long time. Her son Ezra arrived early - at the tail end of 34 weeks - so Melissa and Kelby actually had him with them at their final few childbirth classes, and were able to share their birth story with fellow students.  Listen today to hear how, even though almost all aspects of her birth were unexpected, Melissa and Kelby felt prepared, involved, and respected during a birth with many interventions. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Find more information on the Evidence Based Birth Childbirth Class! Click here for information from March of Dimes on preterm labor and premature birth. For the Evidence Based Birth Signature Article on Premature Rupture of Membranes, click here.

In this episode I am joined by Aza Nedhari, co-founder and executive director of Mamatoto Village, a non-profit training and deploying community health workers to support women through pregnancy, childbirth, and the first months of parenting. Nearly 90 percent of the organization’s clients are African American women who, as a group, suffer dramatically worse maternal health outcomes than other women. Aza pioneered the organization’s comprehensive perinatal health worker training, which uses the community health worker model as a blueprint for creating pathways for women of color in human services and maternal health professions. Aza is a midwife and family counselor, and is currently pursuing her doctorate in human services. With a concentration in organizational leadership and management, her goal is to cultivate innovative models of perinatal care. She is also currently working on legalizing certified professional midwives in the District of Colombia. We discuss systemic racism and barriers facing the midwifery profession in the U.S., as well as the benefits of the community birth worker model. We also talk about Aza’s extremely pivotal role in the development of my book, Babies are Not Pizzas. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Visit the Mamatoto Village website here, or connect on Facebook, on Twitter, or Instagram. Click here to see Advancing Birth Justice: Community-Based Doula Models as a Standard of Care for Ending Racial Disparities, from Black Mamas Matter Alliance. Get my book Babies are Not Pizzas: They’re Born, Not Delivered, on Amazon.

In this episode, I am joined by my midwife, Karen Brown. Karen is a certified professional midwife, located in Central Kentucky, who practicing in 2007. She is a mother of four children; her youngest was born at home. In 2011 and 2013 Karen attended the home births of two of my children, which are featured in my new book, Babies are Not Pizzas! I’m excited to talk to Karen about her career, as well as my own birth experiences. I wrote and published Babies are Not Pizzas to address the preventable trauma that is happening in childbirth facilities all around the world. My hope is that by sharing my own story, we can begin to create change together. Babies are Not Pizzas is written for parents, professionals, and anyone who is interested in babies or childbirth. It’s available as an e-book, audiobook, or in paperback and hardcover. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Get my book, Babies are Not Pizzas: They’re Born, Not Delivered, on Amazon! Please be sure to leave a review once you have read it! Click here for more information on Babies Are Not Pizzas, to submit your purchase receipt for the free Companion by September 20, 2019, and to download social media shareables!

My new book, Babies Are Not Pizzas, is slated for release next week! To get ready for this exciting event, I want to share with you the first chapter from the book. Listen as I read Chapter One: Naive, and get a first glimpse into my story. You'll hear the details of my first daughter's birth, how it sparked the passion for what I do, and how it started me on the road to founding Evidence Based Birth. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Get all the details on Babies Are Not Pizzas here - join the wait list to be among the first to know when copies are available!

In this episode, I am joined by Reid Johnson, a former student of mine! Reid graduated from university this past May with honors, majoring in biology. During his course of study he took my seminar on childbirth, called Babies Are Not Pizzas. I was honored to be asked to write his reference letter for medical school, and was so excited to hear that he was accepted. He starts his program this fall. I invited him to the EBB podcast to talk about what it's like to be a med student. ​ Reid shares his undergraduate and med school application journey, as well as his expectations for the future. We also get real on what life is like for doctors, and strategies to avoid professional burnout. For more information and news about Evidence Based Birth®, visit www.ebbirth.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Ready to get involved? Check out our Professional membership (including scholarship options) and our Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class. RESOURCES: Get the latest updates on my book, Babies are Not Pizzas! Join the waitlist here.