Wellness Mama®
Simple Answers for Healthier Families
I’ve had several births that I had the honor of being a doula at in the last month and it made me think about my own birth experiences and the difference between them. For reference, I had (full saga here) : A typical intervention hospital birth that thankfully did not end in a c-section A …
Almost four years ago, one day changed my life drastically and in an instant… The events of that day pale in comparison to the challenges of many others, but it rocked my world in multiple ways. At that time, I was 35 weeks pregnant with our third child and planning a home birth. I’d had …
I recently posted on facebook a story from a brave mom who talked about her daughter’s hip dysplasia and difficult recovery. There was a tremendous response and I realized this was an area I needed to research more. I feel so blessed to have the wonderful community that has developed here at WellnessMama.com and I …
I’ve gotten several emails lately about resources and advice for natural labor and birth. Since I’ve been through that rodeo a few times now, I thought I’d share some of the best resources I’ve found and what goes with me during labor/delivery. Some books that I read that were influential in my decision to go …
A friend and I had a conversation the other day about how many things that we do that are against the norm (or “weird”). Most of these things I’ve been doing for so long, I don’t even remember that they aren’t normal, so I decided to compile a list. It’s a “How weird are you” quiz …
GBS, or Group Beta Streptococcus, is an colonization that affects many people and around 1/4 to 1/3 of women in the third trimester of pregnancy. Many people carry this bacteria in their digestive systems with no problem, but it can cause complications in a newborns of mothers who are colonized. Mothers are often tested for …
A reader recently emailed and asked: “Katie, I have loved your blog for months now! In a lot of your posts, you mention that you always keep something-or-other in your purse. Your purse is starting to remind me of Mary Poppins… And I would love to see a post: “what is in Katie’s purse?” Thanks …
It’s a fact … after giving birth we mommas can use all the help we can get! Similar to my regular bath fizzies, these after-birth bath fizzies use soothing salts and finely ground herbs for an extra boost of healing power. Herbal Bath Fizzies Make It Better The period of recovery after giving birth is full …
I’ve always thought that after labor, women should be able to look forward to a nice quiet vacation and recovery time. Since of course this doesn’t happen and instead we get a precious and wonderful (though not always wonderfully sleeping) baby, and the lack of sleep that often accompanies, this recipe is at least a …
As I sit here with a precious baby sleeping on my chest and smell that wonderful new baby smell, I am so grateful for her arrival and for the circumstances of her birth for so many reasons. I feel like I’ve been through the gamut of birth experiences (here are my past ones if you …
As my kids get older, I’ve wanted to find some creative ways to help teach them Christmas joy, rather than just the idea of receiving gifts on Christmas Day. In our family, we focus Christmas Day itself on the birth of Jesus and not the visit of St. Nick, but Advent offers such a wonderful time to …
As I prepare to assist at the births of several of my doula clients, I thought it was fitting to write a post about tips and strategies for a natural labor. (I already wrote about things I will and won’t consent to during pregnancy here). I’ve gotten several questions about this lately as well, so …
Natural birth is an amazing, life-changing experience that is hard to put into words, but it takes preparation and knowledge. From experience, I know that fear and tension can make natural birth a scary and painful experience, rather than a challenging but empowering accomplishment it is meant to be. The following are some (of the …
I’ve gotten several questions lately about the various tests and procedures that come with pregnancy and birth and what I choose. These are topics that I researched extensively when I was expecting my first and have continued to research throughout my pregnancies, so I have shared my opinions and research below. I’ve also written in …
This pregnancy (my fifth) has been my absolute easiest by far! My pregnancies had been getting easier as I’ve learned more about health and real food, but this one held a surprising difference! So much so, in fact, that I was really glad to hear a heart beat to make sure I was indeed pregnant. …
I love using natural products for all of my personal care, cleaning and household needs, but if you’re not ready to jump on the DIY deodorant and toothpaste bandwagon just yet, at least consider using all natural products on your kids! Most kids are exposed to a scary number of chemicals on a daily basis, …
I came up with the idea for this quilt when my husband decided he had too many shirts from college and was going to get rid of a bag of them. He would never be able to wear all these shirts, but they represented memories for him and I wanted to preserve them. I looked …
For all men who happen to read or anyone else not interested in hearing all the details of birth, here is the short version: Labor was long, I had a v-bac, mom is fine, baby is fine… the end. For anyone interested… here’s the full story. (You can also read my other birth stories starting here) …
Oh, pregnancy…. that wonderful time when everyone offers unwanted advice and your body changes in ways you didn’t know possible. Since I’m now in the third trimester of pregnancy myself, and starting to really “feel” pregnant, I thought I would offer my own completely unsolicited advice for a healthy pregnancy. (If you’re pregnant, you are …
When I first became a mom almost a decade ago, I started to question the ingredients in everything I put on my baby. Unfortunately, there were not good answers to most of my questions. One product I was surprised to find had problematic ingredients was baby powder. The Problem with Baby Powder… Innocent though it …
Keeping active during pregnancy is always a good idea. It is important to check with a doctor or midwife to make sure there aren’t any particular concerns for your pregnancy, but in most cases, a woman can continue normal exercise routines during pregnancy and even add exercises like walking or swimming to have a fit pregnancy. …
When I found out I was pregnant for the third time, I knew I wanted a natural birth like the one I’d had with our second baby, but I wondered if I needed a formal hospital setting to do so. With my last birth, I hadn’t even gotten an IV and the only thing the doctors …
After all of the unwanted interventions during my first hospital birth experience, I knew I wanted a different birth experience this time and a more supportive provider. I finally settled on a group of nurse midwives who practiced under a doctor and could deliver babies in the hospital. Since I didn’t know I could get …
When my husband and I were expecting our third baby, at my 32-week appointment, we found out that our little one was breech. We were planning a natural home birth, so it became a high priority to get baby to rotate (even though at 32 weeks we still had plenty of time). At the recommendation of my wonderful …
