Pregnancy and Weed - What Do We Know?

June 28, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

A new study published shows that more people are using marijuana during pregnancy. With marijuana's increase in accessibility (it is now fully legal in 10 U.S. states plus Washington DC, and medically legal and decriminalized in a large majority of the remaining states), along with a list of medical benefits, it's not surprising to see an increase in its use, even during pregnancy, both for medical and non-medical purposes.

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Prevent Mistreatment During Birth

June 26, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

A new study was released this month called, "Giving Voice to Mothers." This study sought to reveal people's experience of care during labor, birth, and postpartum. The study took in information from diverse populations, including many Black and indigenous people/persons of color (BIPOC).

Results showed that 1 in 6 people reported one or more types of mistreatment during birth, including loss of autonomy; being shouted at, scolded, or threatened; and being ignored, refused, or receiving no response to requests for help. The majority of these complaints were from people who gave birth in hospitals, and rates of mistreatment were consistently higher for people of color. 

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Get More Sleep, Even with a New Baby

June 24, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

TV and films have conditioned us to believe that once the pushing is over and the baby is born, most of the hard work is over. Clearly, those hot-shot execs have a lot to learn about parenting. Because after leaving the hospital, we then have to take care of our little bundles. (As if squeezing new life out of our bodies wasn't enough!)

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To Do List for Your Third Trimester

June 21, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

We're 3 for 3 this week with information to get you through your third trimester. They call the third trimester the home stretch, partly because you're almost "home" and partly because the third trimester stretches you in ways you probably never imagined.

In weeks 28-42 of your pregnancy, you're really feeling all the feels -- excitement, exhaustion, aches and pains, anxiousness... they're all part of your day-to-day during this last phase of pregnancy.

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Surviving Your Third Trimester... in the Summer

June 19, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

If you live in warmer climates, being pregnant and in your third trimester during the summer months can feel extra challenging . On the one hand, you're at the tail-end of pregnancy, which means you get to meet baby soon (yay!). On the other hand, the extra heat during a time that already feels like it will stretch on forever does not make for a pleasant time, unless your summer job involves floating in water most of your waking hours (in which case, lucky you!).  

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Reframing Your Thoughts About the Final Weeks of Pregnancy

June 17, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

The funny and frustrating thing about the last few weeks of pregnancy is that you never truly know you're at the end until after you give birth. Why does this (seemingly obvious) thing matter? Because the difference between one, two, or three weeks when you're oh-so-pregnant can be the difference between feeling mildly tortured and feeling like you're stranded on a deserted island infested with mosquitos in 100 degree weather with no rescue in sight. Truth. 

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11 Ways Dads Can Bond with Baby Right Away

June 14, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

With Father's Day right around the corner, now is a great time to think about all the different ways that fathers can connect and bond with their babies. In the early days and weeks after birth, mothers spend a lot of time with their newborns, getting breastfeeding well established and recovering from childbirth with their babies by their side. And this is as it should be. Fathers often can feel left out or excluded because of frequent nursing sessions and the comfort that babies get from being close to their mothers. The following tips provide many ways in which dads can also establish a bond with their babies.

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Dads Answer: What Do You Wish You Would Have Known About Pregnancy and Birth?

June 10, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

As a mom to 3 children, I look back on my pregnancies and the early days of parenting and think, "If I knew then what I know now..." I might have prepared for birth differently, enjoyed pregnancy more, worried less about babies "sleeping through the night," taken more pictures of breastfeeding (my favorite time), and relished more of the day-to-day instead of anxiously anticipating the next milestone.

In honor of Father's Day this month, we wanted to find out what dads wished they would have known about pregnancy and birth. Here's what they had to say:

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Summer Reading List: Pregnancy & Birth Edition

June 05, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

Summer is a great time to catch up on books from your must-read list. If you're pregnant this summer, your must-read list probably includes a collection of books about pregnancy, birth, parenting, and breastfeeding. Thankfully and unfortunately, there's no shortage of books in this reading genre, which means that choosing just a few good books can be overwhelming. 

Below is a compiled list of the best-of-the-best pregnancy and birth books -- what's hot, what's "classic" and the reviews that accompany them. 

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What Are You Wearing? Fabrics that Beat the Heat in Pregnancy

June 03, 2019 | by: Cara Terreri

I don't know where you live, but here in the Southeastern United States, it's H-O-T. Like, face-of-the-sun kind of hot. When you're pregnant during the summer months, you'll do almost anything to stay cool (as a three-time survivor of summer pregnancies, I know this firsthand). Blast the air conditioning? Yep. Cold showers? Yep. Sleep nude? Yep. Stand in front of the freezer/fridge? Yep and yep. One thing I didn't consider at the time was the kind of clothing fabrics I wore. It turns out, there is a difference in fabrics when it comes to keeping you cool and wicking away moisture. Let's take a look. 

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