Pregnancy & Food

While many pregnant women have countless food and smell dislikes during pregnancy, others can taste, smell, and eat anything and everything.  And then you find that during pregnancy you crave foods that you have never enjoyed eating.  Pregnancy will forever amaze me.

We want to hear from you! 
What were your food cravings?  Food aversions?  Nutrition during pregnancy is not to be taken lightly.  So, let's start this conversation and advocate for healthy and guilt-free eating while also allowing for indulgences!

Hip Strength & Balance

***We are NOT prescribing a workout.  Please consult with your healthcare provider before engaging in these exercises.

As our babies grow, so do our bellies and our center of gravity changes.  The workout offered above is low impact, low stress, but sure to make your hips and glutes burn!  We like to do this workout several times a week.

This workout take less than 10 minutes and is great for anyone and everyone!  Runners, I highly suggest to add this to your strength circuit.  Strong and stable core and booty promotes a healthy gait and less risk for injury!

So, go ahead, be booty-ful!

Important Work

We loved this photo and had to paste it here!  Giving credit where credit is due, here is the link for the article that hosted the photo (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dina-strada/what-raising-kids-alone-a_b_7418880.html).  However, that article has nothing to do with our post or its content.

I was perusing Facebook the other day, which I must admit is a rarity for me. I am not one of those FB addicts who checks incessantly, posts a status, or ‘checks in’.  I use it more to see the pictures of what all my friends near and far are up to.

Anyway, as I was looking at my friends’ posts seeing picture after picture, I came across a great quote.  One my friends, Tara, who’s a working mom of two girls, posted this. It said,  “Children are not a distraction from more important work.  They are THE MOST important work.” –C.S. Lewis

As a pregnant working mother I am so easily distracted by all the laundry, cleaning, cooking, etc. that I often feel Summer (my daughter) is interrupting me when she asks me to play store, or a game, or just wants me to hold her.  This quote suddenly struck me and made me realize that all those other tasks are just those--tasks to be done.  A checklist to be checked off.  None of it is very important at all.  But my child asking me to take time out to play with her or hold her, now THAT trumps it all.

I’m already 23 weeks pregnant.  Soon I’ll be the mom of two. It is all going VERY fast. And this quote reminded me that not only is it important work when they are OUT but it’s very important when they are inside, too.  I find it hard to take time to put my feet up and rest.  But rest and hydration are so important in pregnancy.  My body is doing some critical work right now growing another little life.  This is THE MOST important work too.  Yes, it changes your body, zaps your brain cells (placenta brain is NOT a myth), and can give you some real mood swings at times.  But these 40 weeks are going to go faster than you’ll ever realize.  So take time out to rest, treat your body well, and know that you are doing an amazing thing.  Don’t let there be any distractions and don’t underestimate the magnitude of it all. You are performing an everyday miracle.  So stick that belly out, be proud and remember, “You is Kind. You is Smart. You is important.” –Kathryn Stockett.

Be Well,
LEW

What no one will tell you...

You will pee your pants.
You will glow one day and break-out and swell up like a balloon the next day.
You will love your husband one minute and then find him an a$$hole one minute later.
You won't actually feel pregnant until about week 26.  Until then, you will feel as if you have a "food baby".
Labor is intense, but YOU CAN DO IT. 
Be flexible with your birth plan. 
Plan before anything, a safe and healthy birth.
You are not doomed to "suffer" post-partum depression despite being bombarded with questionnaires telling you that you probably will be.
If you do feel depressed, talk to someone.  Never be too proud to admit to post-partum depression.
If you happen to have an un-medicated birth, you will feel as if the baby is exiting your bum...not your vagina.
And to wrap it all up...bringing it back to the first statement...you will eventually, after birthing children, do think unthinkable in your shorts...#2. 

There you go.  I am giving it to you straight.  I have never been considered one to beat around the bush...and I will sacrifice my modesty and pride and throw it out there.  Because, well, when I was pregnant, I wanted honesty. 

This might all seem horrible...but it is glorious!  I'm grateful to be a mother and to have gone through it all.  I'm stronger.  I'm more patient.  And I feel and give more love than I could have ever imagined

Be Well!
MLC

Age is just a number...

Click here for an article posted in vogue regarding topic.  **I found the photo hilarious and relevant to the topic.

True but when it comes to pregnancy...women have an expiration date.  While pregnant last year I was listening to NPR while driving to the local YMCA for my daily workout and caught wind of an interesting topic: companies paying for women to freeze their eggs so that they could work in their twenties and thirties.  Basically, by freezing "young eggs" they have an opportunity to be pregnant at an older age and contribute to the workplace and develop their professional career while in their "prime".  We would love to hear your thoughts and comments on this topic!  So, please, don't hesitate to be polite.  This is something to discuss and debate!

Fit Pregnancy - WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

Photo by BeckyWilkinsonPhotography.com

It was a Monday morning after a 9-mile run and a weekend that consisted of riding my triathlon bike about 80 miles then lacing up my running shoes for a 3-mile brick run.  A pink plus sign popped up on a $10 stick I peed on.  I was pregnant.  Hurray!  But wait, I thought.  “I’m in really good shape.  Great news.  I’m going into pregnancy fit, strong and healthy but how do I stay that way without harming myself or my baby?”  And that is where my interest in women’s health and wellness emerged with a passion I could not contain.  

Fast forward to just two weeks ago, the three of us had a revolving discussion about pregnancy and exercise and restrictions and medical advice versus opinions versus following your gut and about how to approach the topic on this website without being sued.  So, here is the disclaimer:

DO NOT TAKE OUR ADVICE WITHOUT FIRST DISCUSSING YOUR HEALTH AND PREGNANCY STATUS WITH YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER.  WE ARE IN NO way RECOMMENDING OR PRESCRIBING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PROTOCOLS.

Now, onto the topic at hand.  We want to hear from you!  What has kept you going during your pregnancy?  What was your favorite workout?  How long were you able to exercise?  Could you exercise without peeing your pants?  Please comment in the section below! We’d love to hear from everyone out there!  And we value what you have to say!

Cheers to a healthy pregnancy and a happy Monday!

Be Well,
MLC

Midwifery and the "Normal" Birth Experience

Having worked as a midwife for seven years in Ireland, it was a pretty obvious choice for me when I was pregnant on my first child that I’d choose a midwife to deliver my baby. The only problem was, I wasn’t the only one who needed to be comfortable with that decision. John was going to be present with me through my labor and I wanted to be sure he was ok with that as well. When I went to him and asked him if he minded, he admitted that he really didn’t know the difference between using a midwife versus an obstetrician. Many people don’t. So I got him to watch Ricki Lake’s documentary “The Business of Being Born” to help him make his decision. That movie is very informative and gives you an accurate picture of birth both inside and outside a hospital.

Choosing a midwife does not mean you have to give birth at home. But unfortunately in North Carolina you don’t have many options of midwives who also work in hospitals. At New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington there are midwives who also work at the hospital. That’s who I attend and have had a wonderful experience with them. There are also birth centers in different parts of the state such as the one in Chapel Hill --Women’s Birth and Wellness Center and another one in Statesville --Natural Beginnings Birth and Wellness Center, where Marisa gave birth to her second child.   These birth centers are wonderful options to have natural labors in the company of a midwife.  However, birth centers are not for everyone.

Midwives are the guardians of ‘normal ’. That’s how I’ve always viewed it. They take on low risk women without major health problems who have uncomplicated pregnancies. If you are pregnant with twins or diabetic or have a significant health concern they often can’t take you on as a patient. But for the majority of women, midwives are a great choice. They are partners in your pregnancy and birth and want what YOU want. They give you, as the woman, a lot of control over your labor and birth. They want to hear your fears and concerns, wants and desires and are a great support in helping you have the best birth experience possible.

Midwives do not force medications and usually take a more holistic perspective. They believe in the power of the woman’s body to give birth and allow that to happen as naturally as possible. Midwives should have the credentials CNM, which means Certified Nurse Midwife. These midwives have gone to school to become nurses first and then went on to pursue a post graduate degree in Midwifery. There are also ‘lay midwives’ who work in many states in this country but do not have the background of formal education. I caution you to make an informed decision when choosing the midwife you wish to have providing care for you throughout your pregnancy and birth.
Doctors play a very significant role in pregnancy and I am not at all diminishing their importance, especially when unexpected events occur requiring emergency surgery. Whenever things veer outside the realm of normal, obstetricians are the people who take over to ensure a safe delivery. They are also extremely helpful sounding boards for midwives when they encounter things they haven’t experienced before. That is the benefit of seeing midwives who are also affiliated with a hospital. There are doctors present to take over in the event there are complications.

It’s a pleasure and privilege to work as a labor & delivery nurse and be present with women as they bring new life into the world. I love what I do and am amazed every day that the miracle never gets old. It is ever changing and always special and emotional. I hope to instill confidence in women who are nervous and fearful and give them the support and encouragement they need to labor and give birth to the best of their ability.

Birth is a beautiful and empowering experience. Whether you opt for a midwife or doctor, choose natural labor or have an epidural, the experience is life changing and one that will stay with you forever. I have yet to meet a woman who isn’t eager to share her birth story. They are often delighted to recount the experience and remember it all in great detail. So embrace your pregnancy and go with confidence into labor and realize that your story will live with you forever. Make it one to remember.

Be Well,
LEW