Podcasts about Group B

The USMNT closes out the Gold Cup group stage with a 2-1 win over Haiti, securing all nine points and the top spot in Group D. Alexi Lalas, David Mosse, and special guest Maurice Edu break down the win — including Malik Tillman's standout performance, Patrick Agyemang's hard-earned game-winner, and key lineup decisions. The crew also discusses Matt Freese's costly giveaway, whether Tillman is locking in a long-term role, and what to expect in the quarterfinal matchup vs. Costa Rica.Plus, a full recap of the day's Gold Cup action. Saudi Arabia and Trinidad & Tobago share points, Mexico and Costa Rica play to a scoreless draw, and Tuesday's Group B & C showdowns decide the remaining quarterfinal spots. To wrap things up, Alexi reflects on the USMNT's legendary 1994 World Cup win over Colombia—31 years ago today.Presented by Yerba Madre #CometoLifeIntro (0:00)USMNT Clashes with Haiti in Group D (4:02)Is Malik Tillman a Potential World Cup Starter? (12:11)Matt Turner vs Matt Freese (17:51)Dante Sealy's Goal of the Tournament (21:43)Group A Recap (23:03)Club World Cup Action (29:24) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Curaçao delivered the shock of Matchday 2 with a dramatic stoppage-time equalizer against Canada, keeping Group B wide open. Alexi Lalas and David Mosse break down what went wrong for Jesse Marsch's side and how changes to the starting XI may have backfired.The guys look ahead to the USMNT's final group stage clash against Haiti, with updates on injuries, potential lineup changes, and what success looks like for the United States this summer. Will Tyler Adams return to the starting lineup? And who needs to step up with Diego Luna and Sebastian Berhalter sitting on yellows?They wrap the show by previewing Group A's matchups and discussing Gio Reyna and the Dortmund bench watching from the locker room during Club World Cup action.Presented by Yerba Madre #CometoLifeIntro (0:00)Canada Drops Points in Group B (3:30)Jeremy Antonisse's Late Equalizer (7:43)Honduras Bounces Back (13:48)USMNT Eyes Top of Group D (16:10)What does success look like for USMNT this summer? (20:52)Group A Preview (25:46)Gio Reyna Watches Club World Cup from Locker Room (28:07) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Group B: Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal About this series: This is a special five-episode series that will preview & break down all four groups in the UEFA European Women's Championship plus an episode just for tournament predictions. Each group gets one dedicated episode in which we discuss all four teams and our thoughts on which teams will advance out of that group. The fifth episode will combine all groups and see Sara & Allie make their predictions for the entire Follow us on socials: @thewososhow

After their hard-fought 2-1 L to open Group B play vs. Botafogo, the Seattle Sounders set their sights on an even loftier foe when they take on Spanish powerhouse Atlético Madrid at Lumen Field. Can the Rave Green pull off a result that would shock the pundits globally, or will the La Liga giant be out for blood after their lopsided defeat against PSG? We're joined by Jeremy Beren of Into the Calderón and That Atleti Podcast to preview the match.SPONSORSHaxan Ferments - Specializing in unique, small-batch fermented hot sauces and vinegars, Haxan Ferments is handcrafted in Georgetown and made with the best local ingredients from across the Pacific Northwest. Use Code LS for a FREE Hot Sauce w/ purchase!Sounder at Heart - Our network host and biggest supporter, Sounder at Heart covers the Seattle Sounders, Seattle Reign, and MUCH MORE! Subscribe and Support to the BEST independent Seattle Soccer coverage.Podium Edmonds - Located at 114 4th Ave N, just off Main Street in the heart of Downtown Edmonds, come shop and explore the best menswear in the Pacific Northwest. Tell them Lobbing Scorchers sent you!Full Pull Wines - Founded in 2009, they the best boutique wines of the world to members, with special focus on our home, the Pacific Northwest.My Data Removal - Data brokers are selling your personal information! Fight back with My Data Removal. Hunt down and scrub your sensitive information from the internet. Use code "LS" for $10 off your annual plan.Seattle Sounders Tickets - Get tickets to an upcoming match straight from the club and help support the show at the same time.MLS Season Pass - MLS Season Pass is back on Apple TV with access to every single MLS match—including Leagues Cup and the entire Audi MLS Cup Playoffs—with no blackouts! Subscribe today to support the show.MLS Store - New year, new gear! The 2025 MLS jerseys are here, and MLSStore is the ultimate destination for every fan. Every purchase helps support our show!Follow Lobbing Scorchers: YouTube Instagram Bluesky TikTok Ari Liljenwall Noah RiffeLobbing Scorchers is a production of Just Once Media.Lobbing Scorchers is a Seattle Sounders and MLS focused show brought to you by Sounder at Heart. Hosted by Major League Soccer's Ari Liljenwall and Producer Noah Riffe. Join us as we lob our scorching takes on the American soccer landscape, Seattle Sounders, Major League Soccer, USMNT and more.

Guatemala stuns Jamaica and Panama puts on a show on Day 3 of the Gold Cup! Alexi Lalas and David Mosse highlight standout performances across Group C, including Ismael Díaz's brace against Guadeloupe and Oscar Santis' screamer to upset Jamaica.They also discuss Michail Antonio's inspiring return just 196 days after a tragic car accident, the ongoing debate over the USMNT's best center-back pairing, and whether Tyler Adams will suit up against Saudi Arabia on Thursday.Plus, the guys preview tomorrow's Group B action and debate whether Canada—and Jesse Marsch—deserve the title of CONCACAF's best. Intro (0:00)Panama Dominates Guadaloupe (3:20)Oscar Santis Stuns Reggae Boys (6:57)Boost of the Game: Michail Antonio Inspiring Return (12:35)Tyler Adams Gold Cup Status (14:45)Is Jesse Marsch the Best Coach in CONCACAF? (26:45) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Billi (@SGPSoccer) breaks down all of the FIFA Club World Cup matches happening on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The opening game of the FIFA Club World Cup takes place this evening, as Egyptian champions Al Ahly take on Leo Messi's Inter Miami.Sunday will see Paris St-Germain partake in their first match since inflicting a 5-0 hiding on Inter Milan in the Champions League final. They'll be hoping that their Club World Cup campaign can get off to a flyer with victory over chief Group B rivals Atletico Madrid— in what many feel is the biggest game of the group stage phase. The Parisians impressed with their energy and intensity throughout their Champions League campaign, which also featured knockout stage victories over Premier League outfits Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal. Many fancy them to add this FIFA Club World Cup to their trophy cabinet. Exclusive SGPN Bonuses And Linkshttp://linktr.ee/sportsgamblingpodcastFollow The Sports Gambling Podcast X/Twitter - https://x.com/GamblingPodcastInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/sportsgamblingpodcastTikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@gamblingpodcastFacebook - http://www.facebook.com/sportsgamblingpodcastFollow The Sports Gambling Podcast HostsSean Green - http://www.twitter.com/seantgreenRyan Kramer - http://www.twitter.com/kramercentricGambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER CO, DC, IL, IN, LA, MD, MS, NJ, OH, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY Call 877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY) Call 1-800-327-5050 (MA)21+ to wager. Please Gamble Responsibly. Call 1-800-NEXT-STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (KS, NV), 1-800 BETS-OFF (IA), 1-800-270-7117 for confidential help (MI)

It's time for the FIFA Club World Cup as the Seattle Sounders get set to take on storied Brazilian outfit Botafogo in Sunday's Group B opener at Lumen Field. Can the Rave Green procure the shock result, or will the recent off-field drama and struggles in league play carry over into the international competition? We're joined by Pedro Soares of the YouTube channel "Glorious Botafogo" to get some intel on Seattle's upcoming opposition.SPONSORSHaxan Ferments - Specializing in unique, small-batch fermented hot sauces and vinegars, Haxan Ferments is handcrafted in Georgetown and made with the best local ingredients from across the Pacific Northwest. Use Code LS for a FREE Hot Sauce w/ purchase!Sounder at Heart - Our network host and biggest supporter, Sounder at Heart covers the Seattle Sounders, Seattle Reign, and MUCH MORE! Subscribe and Support to the BEST independent Seattle Soccer coverage.Podium Edmonds - Located at 114 4th Ave N, just off Main Street in the heart of Downtown Edmonds, come shop and explore the best menswear in the Pacific Northwest. Tell them Lobbing Scorchers sent you!Full Pull Wines - Founded in 2009, they the best boutique wines of the world to members, with special focus on our home, the Pacific Northwest.My Data Removal - Data brokers are selling your personal information! Fight back with My Data Removal. Hunt down and scrub your sensitive information from the internet. Use code "LS" for $10 off your annual plan.Seattle Sounders Tickets - Get tickets to an upcoming match straight from the club and help support the show at the same time.MLS Season Pass - MLS Season Pass is back on Apple TV with access to every single MLS match—including Leagues Cup and the entire Audi MLS Cup Playoffs—with no blackouts! Subscribe today to support the show.MLS Store - New year, new gear! The 2025 MLS jerseys are here, and MLSStore is the ultimate destination for every fan. Every purchase helps support our show!Follow Lobbing Scorchers: YouTube Instagram Bluesky TikTok Ari Liljenwall Noah RiffeLobbing Scorchers is a production of Just Once Media.Lobbing Scorchers is a Seattle Sounders and MLS focused show brought to you by Sounder at Heart. Hosted by Major League Soccer's Ari Liljenwall and Producer Noah Riffe. Join us as we lob our scorching takes on the American soccer landscape, Seattle Sounders, Major League Soccer, USMNT and more.

Send us a textJordan Make History, Oman's (Clutch?) Penalty, South Korea Go Undefeated | AFC Group B June RecapSupport DeadBall TV on Patreon!https://www.patreon.com/deadballtvFOR ANY INQUIRIES, please email thedeadballtv@gmail.comJoin The DeadBall TV Discord:https://discord.gg/kJCuCesEmHFollow Our TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@deadballtvFollow DeadBall TV on IG:https://www.instagram.com/deadballtv/Follow DeadBall TV on Twitter:https://twitter.com/deadballtvofcl

Billi (@SGPSoccer) breaks down all of the FIFA Club World Cup matches happening on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The opening game of the FIFA Club World Cup takes place this evening, as Egyptian champions Al Ahly take on Leo Messi's Inter Miami.Sunday will see Paris St-Germain partake in their first match since inflicting a 5-0 hiding on Inter Milan in the Champions League final. They'll be hoping that their Club World Cup campaign can get off to a flyer with victory over chief Group B rivals Atletico Madrid— in what many feel is the biggest game of the group stage phase. The Parisians impressed with their energy and intensity throughout their Champions League campaign, which also featured knockout stage victories over Premier League outfits Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal. Many fancy them to add this FIFA Club World Cup to their trophy cabinet. Exclusive SGPN Bonuses And Linkshttp://linktr.ee/sportsgamblingpodcast

It's finally here — the Seattle Sounders are kicking off their Club World Cup campaign against Botafogo in Group B at Lumen Field. But it's not all sunshine and trophies. Amid a growing dispute between MLS players and league owners over Club World Cup prize money, the vibes around the Rave Green have taken a hit. Will this tournament be the reset Seattle needs?SPONSORSHaxan Ferments - Specializing in unique, small-batch fermented hot sauces and vinegars, Haxan Ferments is handcrafted in Georgetown and made with the best local ingredients from across the Pacific Northwest. Use Code LS for a FREE Hot Sauce w/ purchase!Sounder at Heart - Our network host and biggest supporter, Sounder at Heart covers the Seattle Sounders, Seattle Reign, and MUCH MORE! Subscribe and Support to the BEST independent Seattle Soccer coverage.Podium Edmonds - Located at 114 4th Ave N, just off Main Street in the heart of Downtown Edmonds, come shop and explore the best menswear in the Pacific Northwest. Tell them Lobbing Scorchers sent you!Full Pull Wines - Founded in 2009, they the best boutique wines of the world to members, with special focus on our home, the Pacific Northwest.My Data Removal - Data brokers are selling your personal information! Fight back with My Data Removal. Hunt down and scrub your sensitive information from the internet. Use code "LS" for $10 off your annual plan.Seattle Sounders Tickets - Get tickets to an upcoming match straight from the club and help support the show at the same time.MLS Season Pass - MLS Season Pass is back on Apple TV with access to every single MLS match—including Leagues Cup and the entire Audi MLS Cup Playoffs—with no blackouts! Subscribe today to support the show.MLS Store - New year, new gear! The 2025 MLS jerseys are here, and MLSStore is the ultimate destination for every fan. Every purchase helps support our show!Follow Lobbing Scorchers: YouTube Instagram Bluesky TikTok Ari Liljenwall Noah RiffeLobbing Scorchers is a production of Just Once Media.Lobbing Scorchers is a Seattle Sounders and MLS focused show brought to you by Sounder at Heart. Hosted by Major League Soccer's Ari Liljenwall and Producer Noah Riffe. Join us as we lob our scorching takes on the American soccer landscape, Seattle Sounders, Major League Soccer, USMNT and more.

高薪工程師容易成為詐騙目標，為了全面守護市民財產安全，新竹市府與金融機溝建立合作，強化社區聯防，還推出多元防詐策略！更多精彩內容，請收聽《逍遙看世界》6/3特輯節目！（新竹市政府廣告） https://fstry.pse.is/7p4el8 —— 以上為 Firstory Podcast 廣告 —— 經過這一週，TPBL的季後賽第一輪總算落幕，有人歡喜有人愁，有人雖敗猶榮有人夢一場。但為了給PLG一點點版面，本週我們邀請來台鋼獵鷹的技術發展教練，Damian 徐子軒來跟我們分享，究竟駐紮在球團的訓練師工作是長怎樣？如何看待台鋼球員本季的表現1和進步？當然還有大家都敲碗的谷毛投籃調整，讓Damian親自揭曉！ 除了訪問台鋼訓練師的部分，當然！TPBL首輪的戰況分析也絕不能少！在A組這邊，戰神雖然最後是被國王以4-0橫掃，但第三戰和第四戰的內容其實可圈可點，甚至一度有贏球的機會，到底他們做對了什麼？明年的他們還值得期待嗎？ 而火藥味甚濃的B組，最後夢想家連續4年在首輪止步，關於海神做對了什麼上一集已經仔細詳述，而賽前大家普遍看好的夢想家為什麼會跌破大家眼鏡？從第三戰開始使用的三大洋到底是何用意？蔣淯安的爆發有沒有影響到阿吉的發揮呢？所有的細節，節目一次拆解。

The Chairperson of the Clare Ladies Football Association says the strength of the senior championship draw bodes well for an exciting season. The draw for every grade took place last night, with reigning champs Kilmurry Ibrickane pitted against promoted Intermediate champions Éire Óg, Burren Gaels and Fergus Rovers. While in Group B, finalists Doora Barefield have been drawn against beaten semi finalists The Banner and Kilmihil along with 2024 quarter finalists Miltown. Clare LGFA Chair Teresa Rosengrave says the best sides facing off early in the year will be a treat for supporters.

NavigationHere is a link to the full versionhttps://youtu.be/ZcEyEQJODoAhttps://player.captivate.fm/episode/c797e0e7-9307-423d-ba9f-b9064a7cc78c/Use the link below for a short mediacast covering our past, present and future series. https://youtu.be/KWNKPsXLV5EOur Youtube challenge has organized each of the series into its own playlist. Find it here:https://www.youtube.com/@soccerphiles/playlistsOur Podcast host has all the episodes in reverse chronological order. Find it here:https://soccerphiles.captivate.fm/SummaryThis is the short version of series 30: A preview of each group and each team in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup. This episode covers Group A: Mexico, Costa Rica, Suriname, and Dominican Republic. The series also includes a deep dive into and short versions on the players of each team. It is currently being released. Links and times for teams discussed in this podcast:Musical Introduction – 0:00Spoken Introduction – 0:29Part 3 – Comparison and DiscussionPots and rankings – 00:34Head-to-head records and Odds – 2:52Discussion of prospects – 6:28Outro - 20:40

NavigationUse the link below for a short mediacast covering our past, present and future series. https://youtu.be/KWNKPsXLV5EOur Youtube channel has organized each of the series into its own playlist. Find it here:https://www.youtube.com/@soccerphiles/playlistsOur podcast host has all the episodes in reverse chronological order. Find it here:https://soccerphiles.captivate.fm/SummaryThis is series 30: A preview of each group and each team in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup. This episode looks at group B: Canada, Honduras, El Salvador and Curacao. This mediacast is divided into 3 parts:Part 1 – An introduction of each country giving the location, population, soccer age and nickname of each. Part 2 – An overview of each team's history and a deep dive into their recent performances.Part 3 - A comparison of the teams in ranking, head-to-head records, and a discussion of their prospects and our predictions.Shortly after the full versions come out, we will publish short version which will also be considered part of series 30. This will just be part 3 of the full version. We are also publishing a deep dive into the players of each team. This is done in two parts. Part 1 is a look at the candidates: their likelihood of selection and the reasons why. We also give a career biography of the main candidates. Part 2 is published when the final rosters are released and covers who made the final squad and our predictions as to starts. Links and times for the sections of this mediacast:Musical Introduction – 0:00Spoken Introduction – 0:29Part 1 – Introducing the countries – 3:08Part 2 – History- Overview of World and Regional Cups histories- Deep dive into recent performancesCanada - 6:32Honduras - 20:22El Salvador - 32:03Curacao - 42:31Part 3 – Comparison and DiscussionPots and rankings –53:56Head-to-head records and Odds – 56:18Discussion of prospects – 1:00:00Outro – 1:14:08

當金曲歌后徐佳瑩發現在 Uber Eats 上（應該）都點得到，居然狂點一波！雖然點不到白馬和失落沙洲，但香水、辣椒或其他吃的用的都點得到～快上 Uber Eats 想要的都點點看 ⮕ https://fstry.pse.is/7nlf7v —— 以上為 KKBOX 與 Firstory Podcast 廣告 —— TPBL季後賽熱戰中，Group A、B戰況發展都出乎意料，三位主持人覺得常識已經無法理解怎麼變成這樣... 所以特別邀請新來賓－攻城獅數據影像分析師衍恩，一起來用數據看比賽、用數據聊比賽。（怎麼很眼熟的一句話？XD） 衍恩怎麼踏進數據分析領域，當然是開頭先聊的內容，加上從林冠綸、米蘭、威森三位總教練對數據影像分析的不同需求，到本季攻城獅如何在掙扎中摸索打法，以及衍恩印象深刻的比賽，一不小心就聊了30分鐘！ 等等，攻城獅有關的內容還沒結束，節目後段討論TPBL陸續公布的年度獎項時，咦，OOO怎麼有你？啊獅紫軍XXX怎麼不在裡面?! 關心攻城獅的小人物們千萬不要錯過來自衍恩的insight分享。 當然節目主菜還是聚焦回Group A、B都打成大比分2:0的戰況。面對國王拆成半隊還是游刃有餘，戰神的問題只有進攻與防守，聊開來還是有方方面面要檢視的地方。小枚建議全隊去看不可能的任務8放鬆心情只是開玩笑，衍恩與Kong建議戰神們可以怎麼做？另一邊逼得Roy激動大喊「原來費雪把龍貓這張牌藏了一整季啊！」、還直接大改預測的的夢想家vs海神戰況又是如何？兩組賽事從本周三重啟戰火又有哪些看點？ 這集是連關公都點頭的有料分析，歡迎小人物聽眾們一邊聽節目，一起追蹤這個台籃球季的最後季後賽大戰！

Sometimes Satanists get accused of being Nazi fascists. Other times, we're getting accused of being Jewish Zionists. These accusations can't both be right, but they can both be wrong. Hear part 1 of a multi-part episode on The Fascism Question and related topics. Support Satansplain: https://satansplain.locals.com/support 00:00 - Intro, Summary 03:52 - Disclaimer: Some won't listen to reason (but debate can still be worth it) 11:03 - Ironic commonalities 13:59 - Definitions: group A and group B 21:16 - Group A: What plan? 25:32 - Group B's lack of a plan 29:15 - Sometimes group A. And even some "Satanists"! 33:35 - No, we don't do the same with Christianity. Nice try. 35:33 - "Zionist Jews"? How about some definitions? 40:55 - "Zionism" meaning: religious and secular 43:46 - No, not everything you hate is "Satanism" 46:03 - No, dumbass, we don't follow the Talmud

Chalked Cast and chill with the Chalked Squad - Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/chalked-cast/support0:00 - Intro3:56 - RLCS NA Open 4 Vibe check7:40 - RLCS NA Open 4 Group A predictions29:25 - RLCS NA Open 4 Group B predictions48:40 - RLCS NA Open 4 Playoff predictions1:28:23 - MENA Top 8 overview/predictions1:30:59 - OCE Open 4 overview1:33:54 - Overview, general chat and Patreon Questions

Japan became the first team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after beating Bahrain 2-0 at Saitama Stadium on March 20. Second-half goals from Daichi Kamada and Takefusa Kubo ensured the Samurai Blue secured a spot in Asia Group C's top two automatic qualification places. At its eighth straight World Cup, Japan joins co-hosts the United States, Canada and Mexico in the expanded 48-team tournament. "Thanks to the players for their efforts and the fans for their support," Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu said. "We knew that if we persevered that the goals would come. We will try and win our three remaining games and grow as a team." Earlier, second-place Australia took a big step toward a seventh appearance by defeating Indonesia 5-1 in Sydney in the visitors' first game under new coach Patrick Kluivert. Indonesia's Kevin Diks missed a penalty in the eighth minute, and 10 minutes later, Martin Boyle converted his spot kick to put the Socceroos ahead. Nishan Velupillay and Jackson Irvine scored before the break and Lewis Miller made it 4-0 on the hour. Ole Romeny scored for Indonesia before Irvine grabbed his second and the hosts' fifth. The top two from each of the three six-team groups in the third round of Asian qualifying advance to the World Cup, while the third- and fourth-place teams advance to another stage to compete for two more places. South Korea stayed on top of Group B and on course for an 11th straight World Cup appearance despite drawing with Oman 1-1 in Goyang, just north of Seoul. "People may think this qualification round is easy, but we have to work so hard for every match," South Korea captain Son Heung-min said. "A match like this can teach us a lesson. We have to take whatever positive we can from this." This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Japan Beats Norway in Women's Ice Hockey World Championship Group B Game

Men's Soccer: Japan Draws 1-1 with Vietnam in U-17 Asian Cup Group B Game

Send us a textAFC Group B Is Absolutely Insane (Feat. Albert Kim) Follow us on social mediaJack - https://x.com/thejacksvn The Lads on Patreon!https://www.patreon.com/deadballtvTo listen to DeadBall TV Podcast on streaming platforms, click here:Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deadball-tv/id1594503202Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1JrHVIuTOe298wKvaRGsgW?si=1f497c14b9b344a2FOR ANY INQUIRIES, please email thedeadballtv@gmail.comJoin The DeadBall TV Discord:https://discord.gg/kJCuCesEmHFollow Our TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@deadballtvFollow The Lads on IG:https://www.instagram.com/deadballtv/Follow The Lads on Twitter:https://twitter.com/deadballtvofcl

Molly joined us for Episode 84 talking about her unexpected breech Cesarean and first VBAC story. Today, she returns sharing her second VBAC story!Molly shares her powerful journey through loss, IVF, selecting her powerhouse birth team, preparing for different outcomes, post-dates, a multiple-day induction, a beautiful delivery (where her husband caught their sweet baby!), and navigating a placental lobe.Allison, one of our VBAC-certified doulas, joins Meagan as a co-host talking about her work as a virtual doula and the importance of how women are treated during their births. Coterie Diapers - Use code VBAC20 for 20% offHow to VBAC: The Ultimate Prep Course for ParentsFull Transcript under Episode Details Meagan: Hello, Women of Strength. I hope you guys are having a fantastic day or evening and are excited for another episode of The VBAC Link. We have our friend, Molly, today, and she is from central Alabama, and then we also have a co-host today. She's one of our doulas. Her name is Allison. Hello, Allison.Allison: Hi, Meagan. Hi, Molly.Molly: Hi.Meagan: I was going to say, and hello, Molly. Molly: Hi.Meagan: Welcome to the show you guys, and thank you for joining us. Allison is actually one of our doulas. I don't know if you've noticed along the way here and there, we have one of our doulas on as a co-host. I think it's so fun to hear an educational topic from them and then, of course, share where they are at because I truly believe hiring a doula is so impactful. In fact, on Molly's form, that is one of the tips that she gave. Right, Molly? You're like, hire a doula.Molly: Yes, absolutely. It made all the difference this birth.Meagan: Yes. Doulas are incredible. So if you can, hire a doula. Before we get into Molly's story, Allison, I wanted to just turn the time over to you really quick and have you share a little bit more of where you are at. So for the listeners, maybe in your area, they can find you.Allison: Absolutely. Well, listeners, you have a treat because I serve everyone all over the world, globally. All of my work is online. My business name is The Cesarean Doula because I actually support women and birthing people emotionally after having emotionally difficult or traumatic Cesarean births. I do all of my work primarily over the Internet over Zoom. My focus is actually not on birth but on postpartum and on recovering from the feelings of grief, sadness, loss, overwhelm, and confusion that we often have after a Cesarean that's undesired or that goes in a difficult direction. I had one of those. That's what brings me to this work.Meagan: Yes. I love that you mentioned that you're like, this is what brings me here. I think in a lot of ways for doulas, that's what brings us to doing this work is our own experience and wanting to set a different pace and make change. So I love what you're doing. We're recording in 2024, everybody, but hopefully now, it's 2025, and you can go to our website because we're hoping to have a different option for searching doulas where you can actually go and search for online only because we do have a big chunk of doulas that do virtual support. So let's hope that that is the thing. If not, email me and say, "Meagan, get on it. Do this, because I want this option." Okay. Well, Ms. Molly, welcome to the show. You guys, Molly is a full-time mama, a part-time vet technician, and a soccer coach. That is a lot of things all at the same time. Yes. My husband is a soccer coach and just that alone is a lot. Like I said, she lives in Alabama with her husband and her two sons, her mom, and lots of dogs, cats and horses. She said that she also has two daughters in heaven. I'm sure you're maybe going to talk about that a little bit today, Molly.Molly: Yes, it is part of our story.Meagan: Yes. Okay. Well, thank you guys again for being here. In just one moment, we're going to dive in. All right, Ms. Molly. I don't know why I keep calling you that Ms. Molly, like you're a teacher.Molly: It's the song. It'll get you.Meagan: It comes together. Yeah, seriously. Okay, thank you so much for being here and yeah, I would love to turn the time over to you to share all of these stories.Molly: Thank you very much. So if you guys, if you listen to The VBAC Link, I was on a couple years ago talking about my first C-section and then the subsequent VBAC with my first daughter. Unfortunately, a couple years after that, my daughter passed away. And shortly after that, the desire to have another baby was laid on our hearts, and so we decided to try that.For various reasons, that meant we had to go through IVF. We were very lucky in that our IVF journey was short. That's a whole other podcast on its own, the IVF process. We ended up with three embryos, and then in December of '23, we did our first transfer. That one unfortunately failed. And so that's my second daughter in heaven. We did another test after that to see why the transfer had failed and determined that we needed another day of shots. Well, I say we-- me. I needed another day of shots to do the transfer. So in March, we did another transfer with the extra day of shots, and that one was successful. I had the teeniest bit of spotting the next day and just woke up knowing I was pregnant. It was pretty magical, actually. The at-home pregnancy test, seven days after that, was positive. Then the blood tests after that were positive. I did have a little bit of spotting after that which was a little scary. I talked to my doctor, and she upped the progesterone in oil shots I was taking. The amount of those seemed to clear out the spotting. And then we went in for our first ultrasound. I was diagnosed with a subchorionic hematoma, I think is what it's called, which is essentially like a bruise between the placenta and the uterine lining. That cleared up on its own. Fortunately, after that, I was a "normal" pregnancy. We weaned off the IVF shots. My last one was actually on Mother's Day which was a magical little sign. And that's when we dove right into labor prep. We did the Spinning Babies and bouncing on the birth ball. I walked every day. We went back through our birth plan. We tried to cover every single contingency from a repeat Cesarean which wasn't the goal, but we wanted to be prepared just in case. We prepared to labor at home as long as humanly possible. We even prepared to have a car baby. We had a bag with a bowl to catch the placenta and towels and puppy pads just in case we labored at home so long that we had a car baby.We hired a doula this time around. We had originally played around with the idea of doing a home birth, but in Alabama for VBACs, midwives still cannot attend VBACs at home in Alabama. We did find a midwife who was willing to do that for us but because of the restrictions, it wasn't covered by insurance, and that priced it out. So the compromise was that we would do a hospital birth, but I could have a doula this time. We interviewed doulas and found one who's actually certified by The VBAC Link. She's taken y'all's class and she was wonderful. Her name is Jolonda, and she was fantastic. And actually, in the end, my husband said, "I'm so glad we had a doula for me." Not necessarily for me, but for him. He needed her more than I did, and that was pretty cool. We also, this time, instead of going with an OB, went with midwives. They were associated with an OB practice, but we went just to the midwives. That was an interesting and much different experience. It was more like a conversation and less like an exam. We go in, and they would take my blood pressure, and then we would just talk. It was wonderful. She went through my birth plan point-by-point, and then signed it and scanned it into my chart. Anything that wasn't possible, she'd say, "Well, we can't do this because of the hospital we were at, but we can do this or we can try and do this and make that work." She was completely accepting of anything that I wanted to do differently. We decided not to do the erythromycin eye ointment. She said, "Yes." She was fine with that. We delayed, I think, the Vitamin K shot then and the delayed cord clamping. She was all 100% supportive of everything that we wanted to do. I did have to see the OB once just so they could sign off on me being a, quote, healthy pregnancy, and that was a quick in and out. There was a doctor visit, and they said, "Okay, we'll see you back in a couple of weeks." I said, "No, I'm going to go back across the street to midwives. I'll see them in a couple weeks." So that was all. My pregnancy really in itself was pretty normal. And then we got closer and closer to my due date. Now, I was due on November 18, and we got closer. I stopped working as a veterinary technician on the end of October right before Halloween. We had our baby shower. We were getting close to all the guess dates. Everybody had guessed when your baby's going to come. I would text them, "Nope, you missed it. It wasn't today." And so we slowly passed all those days, and then we passed my due date. We were doing everything-- the tea and bouncing on the birth ball and the dates and the pineapple, walking, The Miles Circuit, curb-walked. I knew the closer we got to 41 weeks and 42 weeks even, the more that there was going to be pressure for a repeat Cesarean. Now, to my midwife's credit, she never mentioned a repeat Cesarean. That was the very last thing that she ever talked to us about. We had talked about it in our birth plan, of course, but as we passed the due date, she didn't mention that as a course of action. As a joke, we asked our son, "When do you think Mama will have the baby? Now that we're past our due date, when do you think Mom will have the baby?" And he said, "I think she's going to wait until December." I said, "Buddy, please don't put that on me." So we'll let you know how that goes towards the end.Meagan: Yeah, I mean that would be what, two and a half more weeks? Three? Yeah, two and a half more weeks.Molly: Yeah, it was a long time. And I said, "Bud, please don't put that on me. That's a long more time." So then we made it through Thanksgiving. I consented to a cervical check at 39 weeks and there was no action the cervix, but you and I know that that can change in an instant, and it's not an indicator of anything. Meagan: Nope.Molly: At 40 weeks, I consented to another check and to a sweep of the cervical membranes. That made me feel crampy but really didn't do anything. We started talking about induction at that appointment. We talked about starting with the Foley bulb over breaking the waters or maybe Pitocin. We talked about those options and which ones I was most comfortable with. And so then after the 40-week appointment, they sent me in for a biophysical and non-stress test, and we passed those with flying colors. No problem. Baby was fine, I was fine. She just was very, very comfortable. Then at the 41-week appointment, we did another sweep and this time I was dilated to a really tight 1. But again, that didn't really do anything. We made our next appointment for 41 weeks and 3 days. And the ladies in the front office said, "We hope we don't see for that appointment." And I said, "I hope you don't either," but we did see them for that appointment. So at 41 weeks and 3 days, we talked about the induction again. They did another sweep just in the hope that maybe it would start things. It didn't. So we talked about and scheduled the induction. We'd agreed to start with the Foley and see how that went, and then maybe talk about breaking waters and maybe, maybe Pitocin being our last resort. We stopped for dinner. That was Wednesday evening. We stopped for dinner on the way in because I was like, "We're going to have a baby, and I need my strength. I've got to eat before we go in." So we stopped for dinner, and we got checked in. They got me strapped in with a wireless monitor, which was new this time and was so much better than the wired monitor because I could move. It was much better. And this is the start of what we like to jokingly call birthatory, because it's birth purgatory. I was stuck there in the room. I couldn't leave. My husband left just to get us food, but it just felt like we were there forever with nothing to do. And time moved strangely as well. I watched Friends at night to help me sleep, and I watched Parks and Rec during the day to keep me entertained. We did a lot of walking up and down the room as much as we could. And that Wednesday evening was just to start us monitoring. Jolanda came in, and she was in and out and checking with us that night. They also started me on the Group B strep meds. I think I forgot to mention I was positive this pregnancy. I had a weird reaction to whatever med they put me on first, like my scalp was on fire. It was a really bad reaction. Meagan: Interesting. Is that a common reaction?Molly: I believe they said it could happen, but it's not super common. I wish I could remember which medicine it was they gave me. But, I mean, it felt like my scalp was on fire. I was itching. It was horrible. So they gave me some Benadryl which fortunately helped me nap, so I got some rest. But we didn't want to do too much of that, so they switched me to a different medication. And again, I wish I could remember the name of it, but I can't. And that, I did not react to, so we stayed with that one for the rounds of the Group B Strep meds. So that was Wednesday night, and they were really just monitoring me. Thursday morning, the OB and the midwife on call came in to discuss my case. They discussed options. Pitocin. I consented to a check because we were going to start with the Foley, but I was at a 3 already. So that put the Foley out of commission because the Foley will only work up to 3. We talked about Pitocin versus artificial breaking of the membranes. The OB did do a little bit of pressuring, but we were all prepared for it. He said, "Well, at this point, this many post dates, you're probably definitely going to have meconium." And behind his back, my doula, my sweet doula rolled her eyes. It was what I needed, that support in that moment for the doctor to say, "Oh, well, there's definitely meconium." And my doula would be like, "No, there's probably not." So we asked for time to discuss between us and what to do. And Yolanda had these little informational cards with different affirmations. There was affirmation cards, but different, like facts about, induction from-- oh, I'm blanking.I can't remember. But they were little printed out laminated cards with different facts about different types of induction, and they were really helpful.It's Evidence Based Birth. That's what it was. It was all evidence-based and backed up by studies and stuff. So we discussed what we wanted to do, and we agreed to breaking the waters on Thursday morning. So the midwives came in and broke my waters, and there was no meconium. So that doctor can just go sit somewhere else. My waters are broken. I walked up and down the room, but nothing really happened. That night, there were some surges that we did time, but they petered out, and nothing really happened. So we woke up Friday morning, and that was December 1st. I, with despair in my voice, looked over at my husband and I said, "It's December. We've made it to December." I felt like a balloon that was beyond needing to pop and was just discouraged and tired. I was at the end of my rope, really, honestly. They came in, and I agreed to another check. This was the first check that they'd done since they broke my waters. And so if you're keeping count at home, my water's now been broken for about 26 hours. We happen to be watching an episode of Friends where the character, Rachel, is in labor, and she's having trouble dilating as well. And Ross makes a joke about, "I'm dilated 3." Well, they did the cervical check and checked, and I was still dilated 3. And Michael goes, "I'm dilated 3," and everybody laughed. It was a good break in the tension. After that, they left to go discuss my case. Michael went to go get me some hot water so I could make tea. But he came back in and he said, guess who's here and looking at your chart?" And I had no idea. He said, "It's Vicky," who's the midwife who helped deliver my first VBAC baby. She had retired, but come out of retirement and was only working on the weekends in the hospital. And I looked at him. I said, "We're having a baby today." Just something told me that with Ms. Vicky there with us, we were in good hands, and we were going to be okay. So she came in and talked to me about starting Pitocin. She also told me, because at this point, I was worried about a repeat Cesarean. And she told me, she said, "I'm no longer looking at you as a VBAC patient. You've had a successful vaginal birth. I'm treating you just like any other birth now." And it was such a healing statement for me. It wiped the worry about a repeat C-section out of my mind. It was just the perfect thing to say.Meagan: Yes. I don't want to interrupt you too much, but I love that you pointed that out, because most providers, they're actually looking at no matter if you've had a VBAC or not, you're always a VBAC. But what you just said to me really is gonna connect with so many others. It connected with me because we just want to be viewed as someone going in and having a baby. We don't want labels and these things that loom over our head even if we've had a VBAC before or if we haven't had a VBAC before. We just want to be looked at and treated as someone coming in and having a vaginal birth just like anybody else coming in and having a vaginal birth. So I love that you pointed that out, and I'm sure that that really did just connect and feel so good.Molly: It was a huge release of stress knowing that I didn't have to worry about the repeat C-section, the VBAC anymore, and I could just focus on having the baby and what I was doing and just doing what we needed to do that day to have the baby.Meagan: Yeah.Molly: So we did agree to the Pitocin she suggested. And we got very into the details, and we're almost a year out. I should have written them down sooner. I can't remember the numbers we started at, but she wanted to start at a certain amount over a certain time, and I disagreed. I said, "Let's start lower and slower." And she said, "That's fine. I'll do whatever you want to do." So we started really low and really slow, and I was starting to feel some things, but still not very much. It wasn't anything I had to stop to get through. It was really more just like a tightening. Jolanda came to hang out with us, brought us more food and water, and she brought a puzzle to help distract us. We were going crazy being stuck in that room. Vicky came in later that afternoon, and because still no progress was really being made. They didn't check me, but they could just tell from the contractions on the monitor. She talked about wanting to up the Pitocin a little bit faster and more frequently. I told her that I was worried about the difference in the Pitocin contractions versus natural contractions because I had heard and read so much that the Pitocin contractions are much more intense. And she told me that she'd given birth with and without Pitocin, and the only difference for her was that Pitocin births were faster. I agreed for her to bump it up a little bit, a little bit faster, that. After a little bit of time to talk about it, we agreed to do that. They did check me at that point, and I had worked my way up to a 5, and baby had moved from a -1 to, I believe, a +1. We dilated some, and baby had descended a little bit. At that point, the contractions did start to pick up, and I lost interest in the puzzle. We turned a movie on for me to watch. They were a little bit more intense, but still easy, and I could still talk through them and walk through them. Jolanda did an excellent job. She reminded me to go to the bathroom. And so I went to the bathroom, and when I walked out, I felt the baby drop. I don't know any other way to explain it, but I felt her drop in the birth canal. It was like she was sitting high, and then suddenly she dropped. I said that. I said, "Oh, I felt the baby drop." My sweet doula said, "You felt the baby drop?" I couldn't respond to her because then a contraction hit so hard that I could not talk through it. So, at that point, I told them, I said, "Please turn the movie off," because I couldn't handle the sound of movie. My husband turned on music in the background real low of our birth playlist. I needed to get down on all fours, so I got down on my knees, and I was bent over a birth ball swaying back and forth and moving forward and backwards, swaying my hips and vocalizing through them. Keep your mouth loose and low, moaning through them. At some point I didn't need the ball anymore and Jolanda brought in this inflatable thing. It was U-shaped and it was inflatable, but you could be in it and lean over it. And again, I wish I remember the name of it, but it wonderful because you could inflate and then deflate it to move it and get it out of there. But it was just perfectly shaped for me to be able to lean over it and even sit on it if I needed to, but I just was leaning over it. The contractions were getting more difficult, and she reminded me to relax my hands because my hands had gotten really tight. She was reminding me to breathe and relax my hands. She also suggested counter-pressure on my tailbone. I did not want it on my hips, but she tried it on my tailbone, and that felt incredible. Suddenly, the contractions were so much easier to bear, and they just felt more productive. It was fantastic. So she and my husband, Michael, took turns wearing their arms out, pushing my tailbone through the surges. At, that point, then the wireless monitor got weird because it had been on me for so long. The stickers, I guess, had just given out. So a poor nurse was on her knees underneath me holding the monitor on my belly, and there was either Jolanda or Michael behind me pushing on my tailbone through the contractions. And then I started grunting and felt pushy. Juolanda recognized my grunting because we talked about during my consult during my first VBAC. I get grunty when I'm pushing. She recognized the sound and she said, "Are you pushing?" But I didn't want to answer her because I didn't want to stop pushing because it felt so good to push. I hadn't been checked. So I didn't want them to know that I was pushing and check me and tell me that I couldn't push. And also, at this point, I was practically sitting back against the counter-pressure. The surge would hit, and I would sit back into whoever is doing counter-pressure and practically put my full weight back on my tailbone on their hand and the counter-pressure. Then, my knees got tired being on the floor. So I asked to move to the bed and they asked to check me. The midwife, Ms. Vicky, said, "I would love to check you right now." I said, "As long as I can be on my hands and knees, you can check me however you want."So I got up on my hands and knees on the bed, leaned over, and they checked me, and I was good to push. So at that point, we started actively pushing. Not just me pushing because it felt good, but pushing because we knew we were pushing a baby out. And pushing, it felt so good to push. I needed to push. It felt so good. I could feel her moving through the birth canal. I could feel her head coming down, and it was amazing. And just like with my first birth, it's frustrating to feel the baby move and then go back and then move forward and then go back, but you can tell you're making progress. I don't know how long I pushed for because I was way off in who knows where. Nobody else looked at the clock. Michael would have, but he was getting ready to catch. He had prepped to catch this baby. So I pushed her out into her papa's hands. He had prepped. He watched all kinds of videos meant for midwives, and he was so ready. He did such a great job. Baby Nora was there, and she was perfectly healthy. She was 7 pounds and 2 ounces, and 19 inches. For being 41 weeks and 5 days, she was still just perfectly cooked. I passed the placenta at some point after that. We did the golden hour, and we snuggled in. He cut the cord after it stopped pulsing. That was all very much a blur to me, just a golden, snuggly haze of love. So we passed the placenta, and it was declared complete. We looked at it, and we put in our little cooler to take home and freeze to plant her little birth tree. I did tear a little bit, so they stitched me up and we took some pictures. And then Ms. Vicky went home. She'd stayed 45 minutes late for us. She went home at that point, and I started nursing Nora. At that point, however, I was still in pain. So they said, "Would you like something for pain?" I asked for just Tylenol. I didn't want anything heavier than that, but I was still pushing. I was still feeling the urge to push, and it was getting worse. So the nurses applied some pressure to my uterus, external pressure. It hurt so bad I could barely stand it. Michael took the baby at that point, and Jolanda suggested me trying to avoid my bladder, and maybe that would help. But I couldn't. I couldn't get those muscles to work, so they put a catheter in. That didn't really help. The surges were still coming and I couldn't stop pushing. They put more pressure on my uterus, external pressure, and I passed a huge blood clot. It was like a softball-sized blood clot. That felt a little better, but I was still pushing and I could not stop the pushing. So they gave me some stronger pain meds and talked to the OB who was on call and all agreed that I needed to go the OR and see if something had been left. So we agreed to that and went under sedation into the OR, and they removed a golf ball-sized portion of the placenta. Meagan: Whoa.Molly: Yeah. It was confusing because they had declared my placenta complete and after talking about it, and they looked at all the pieces, and it turns out that I had a lobular lobe.Meagan: I was going to say you probably had a lobe.Molly: Yes. And so after I mentioned "Oh well, I had some spotting early in pregnancy," they figured that the spotting had contributed to that, and that's why the placenta looked complete and there was a lobe and the hematomas all contributed to the early bleeding and the lobe in the placenta. I came out of the OR fine. I got two bags of blood but felt fine. When I woke up, I got to hold Nora in the OR. Well, not in the OR, but in the recovery and nurse her again. And everything was really fine after that. Jolanda checked on us a couple of hours after that. She brought us food. We had talked about what I wanted to eat post-birth. I wanted to eat a cheeseburger with bacon from a specific place near the hospital with fries. She brought it all, and we ate it at like 11:00 PM. It was wonderful. And Michael, like I said before, said later that having a doula this time around was 100% worth it mostly for him because she was suggesting things that he wouldn't have known to offer like the counter-pressure and, "Hey, maybe she needs to pee," and things like that. It saved him and helped him know what to do while I was off in labor land. For that, our sweet doula was so worth it. And after that, recovery was great, and we were fine.Meagan: That is awesome. So still had a little bit of a hiccup there in the end, but overall a really great experience.Molly: It was awesome. And I said before, with the birth plan, we tried to plan for all contingencies, but the one thing we did not plan for was three days trying to be induced naturally. Meagan: Yeah.Molly: I mean, they say time isn't linear, and I have never felt that more true than we were stuck in that room for three days. It was very weird just not being able to get out. It's not something I would do again, the induction part, but we made it through thanks to great support from midwives and doula and my wonderful husband. I would do the birth part, and maybe not the hemorrhaging at the end, but the birth part I would do again.Meagan: Yeah, yeah, for sure. I mean, that's just less ideal. I don't know. Did they ever talk to you? Because I know that IVF parents do have a slightly increased chance of hemorrhaging. Did they ever relate it to IVF, or was it mainly just, "Hey, you had a subchorionic hematoma earlier, then you have this lobe." Maybe it was just that they.Molly: The doctors didn't. No, we were very aware that she was an IVF baby, and we had done a lot of research before that IVF babies have a very "sticky" placenta.Meagan: Yeah.Molly: That was one of the factors why we didn't do a home birth was because if the placenta sticks, and then you're at home, it can be a rush to the hospital. But the doctors at the hospital didn't mention the IVF possibility as the reason I hemorrhaged. Maybe it played a part. I don't know. They seemed to put it on the sub-chorionic hematoma. But it could have been both. I don't know.Meagan: Yeah. Yeah. All of the little factors could have been. The best thing is that it seemed pretty minor and a quick fix. A quick fix. I just wanted to remind everybody, so I'm pretty sure this is your episode. It's Episode 84. So if you want to go hear the breech Cesarean and the first VBAC, definitely go back and listen to those on Episode 84. Thank you so much for sharing your story, and I'm so glad that it was so great and that your husband got to catch a baby. That's like my favorite, you guys.Just to let you know, that's happening more and more. At least it has been here in Utah as we're attending births. Sometimes, all you've got to do is ask. So if you have a partner who is interested in that, I think asking is not harmful. Just ask. It can seem intimidating, but it's not too bad. It's not too bad. They really help these partners catch these babies. Allison, I would love to have you share your two cents and your educational topic on healing after Cesarean. We're doing these topics instead of reviews sometimes when we have guests. I love what you do because just like Molly and myself, we've been there having an unexpected-- well, maybe with the breech it was kind of planned. I'm trying to remember back in your story.Molly: So with the breech, with the Cesarean, we had planned a C-section, but then he broke my water early, so it was not necessarily an emergency Cesarean, but we had to go in before we were "scheduled" to for the C-section.It was planned, but unexpected at the time. The wrong timing. Yes. Okay. Well, tell us more, Allison.Allison: Yeah, and I want to say thank you so much, Molly, for sharing your story. I actually want to point out a few things that I think are really important here. I work with so many people who have had a birth that feels difficult or traumatic. And oftentimes, there are women who come to me who say, "I don't understand why I feel upset about my birth even though I have this baby who's healthy and alive, if we're lucky enough to have a living baby or a healthy baby or both." And one of the things I talk a lot about is that oftentimes it's not the events themselves in the birth that create a difficult or traumatic birth, but it's how we feel, right? And so, what makes a birth feel good or bad? Like, I listen to you talk about this experience where you had some challenges leading up to it, right? Especially preconception, and then during conception. I felt your joy. I felt your connectedness, and I felt your power throughout your story even as you talked about the really difficult part at the end with the placenta needing to be retrieved. I want to just point out that that's what I heard, and you've got to tell me if this feels right for you, Molly. But what I heard was many moments where you talked about feeling connected. You talked about your sweet doula. You talked about that surprise midwife coming in to support you. You felt connected. You felt seen like that moment where you said, "Oh, well, the monitor wasn't working, but then the nurse got underneath me," so instead of actually you accommodating the hospital's protocol and policy, I love this idea. I'm imagining a nurse laying on her back under you while you're on all fours. You're empowered. That's truly centering you. Right? You're in control in a lot of these moments. You said you wanted the Pitocin lower. The doctor or the midwife honored that. It sounds like you were informed. You used some examples of the cards from Evidence Based Birth, and a lot of the information you engaged with prior to birthing. One of the things I talk about with my clients is maybe you even feel sexy during birth. You didn't mention that at all, but that might have been. There might have been moments, maybe not. Are there any other emotions that come up for you? Did I leave anything out hat you're like, oh, I really felt another positive emotion?Molly: No, you've nailed it 100%. I felt very supported this birth from the midwife listening to me and, like you said, honoring my requests and my husband being there and the doula. I felt very supported. So even the end and the hemorrhaging which should have been scary, I don't look back on as scary. I don't want to repeat it, but I wasn't scared in that moment because I felt taken care of and supported.Meagan: Mhmm. Allison: Right. That is so textbook. I love this story because that's a really, really scary thing. And if you hadn't had that support, that attunement, that communication and that safety, it could have felt different. It could have made your story feel like there was this turning point into a dive. I love that your advice was getting a doula, because in your story, I really feel how your relationship and respect for her are a big component of your support and empowerment. So I just want to end by saying that birth is really about those emotions, not the modality or even the environment where we birth. If we can create those experiences for ourselves as much as possible, we don't always have the ability to do that. Lots of things have to come together, but if we can focus on, how do I make myself feel empowered, connected, sexy, seen, in control, informed during my birth, however I birth, then the likelihood of having a positive outcome emotionally is so much higher. And when we have a better emotional experience, we're more likely to be able to have a supported breastfeeding experience and also go into motherhood feeling centered, feeling capable of taking on this new role or another baby when we already have littles at home. So thank you so much for sharing your story. I feel really touched, and I can imagine that others are too.Molly: Thank you.Meagan: I do love that you pointed that out, Allison. The way we feel during our labor, the way we're treated, the way we're communicated to, it really impacts that next step going into that motherhood era. I think back on your story. I remove your doula from your story, and I remove your supportive provider. That birth very much could have unfolded very differently especially because it was a longer induction. Right? And so when you put that powerhouse team with that true love and support back into the story, it's like, well, I don't understand why it wouldn't unfold that way anyway.But really, if you look back without that, it's questionable sometimes. And so we talk about it, you guys. I think I will probably talk about it until I die. I mean, truly, I will probably not even be in this work when I'm 80 years old, but I will still be educating people on hiring a supportive team and provider because it really does impact. I had an interview the other day with a first-time mom and she was telling me who her provider was, and I very much remember this provider as a resident. And she was fine, but not great, right? She wasn't my favorite. I very much knew, oh, in the future I would not suggest her as a provider. And so as I was talking, and I didn't want to project my opinion on her, and I was talking to her, she said that her and her husband had actually been feeling a lot of pressure and that when she goes into her visit that she normally has a voice, but when she's there, her voice is muted. She feels like she can't say these questions and can't communicate. I think right there is that big red flag that if you cannot communicate with your provider in a prenatal appointment, then that is a big sign that you will not be able to communicate with your provider efficiently during labor, and they're not going to respect you. I love that your midwife came out of retirement and started working on the weekends because she probably loves this so much and that you got her. It worked out so, so well. But guys, again, find a good, supportive provider. If you're feeling like my interview did the other day, don't hesitate. Move, change, find that support because you want to be like Molly where you're in the situation and you feel that love and empowerment. And even though there was something that ,went awry and not according to plan, Molly felt that support. And so like Allison said, that could have been a very traumatic point in your labor where it wasn't ideal. You wouldn't do it again. You wouldn't choose it. You wouldn't suggest it. But even though it happened, and I don't want to downplay it like oh, least everyone's happy and healthy. I don't want to do that. But it happened, and because you had that support, your overall view is different. So great tips, Allison. Beautiful story, Molly. Again, go back and listen to Episode 84 for the rest of her stories. And once again, thank you for being with us.Molly: Thank you so much for having me.ClosingWould you like to be a guest on the podcast? Tell us about your experience at thevbaclink.com/share. For more information on all things VBAC including online and in-person VBAC classes, The VBAC Link blog, and Meagan's bio, head over to thevbaclink.com. Congratulations on starting your journey of learning and discovery with The VBAC Link.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vbac-link/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

In a special 'LIVE' edition of the podcast, Scott McIntyre is in South Korea at the Suwon World Cup Stadium as Korea look to cement their spot atop Group B in qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 2026. But a 1-1 draw last week with Oman has only intensified the spotlight on the team and coach Hong Myung-bo. Follow Scott's journey through the game, as we get reaction after last week's 1-1 draw with Oman from star midfielder Hwang In-beom and Oman coach Rashid Jaber. Korean journalist Seo Bowon explains the state of the game in Korea. As Korea were held to another frustrating 1-1 draw - their third in a row - we hear from two of Asia's biggest stars, Son Heung-min and Mousa Al-Tamari. PLUS... we get reaction from the surprise loss of Urawa Reds in the AFC Women's Champions League from our women's football expert, Alex Bishop.

The Machineseeker EHF Champions League goes into the final stage of the tournament. Zagreb, Kielce and Kolstad are fighting for the last available spot in Group B, while Barca seems secured in the semi final. We invited Croatian shooting star Filip Glavaš to talk about the current situation of his team HC Zagreb, as well as about his silver medal with the Croatian national team. Furtherout our hosts Víctor Tomàs, Martin Vilstrup and Bengt Kunkel have a look at the current developments in the EHF Champions League women, where Katrine Lunde found a new club and Henny Reistad ist chasing records. Enjoy the episode! 00:00 Intro 04:00 Filip Glavaš 30:30 Machineseeker EHF Champions League 51:15 EHF Champions League Women

The Champions Trophy returns to the cricket calendar after eight years, marking a significant moment for Pakistan, which hosts a major ICC event for the first time in 29 years. Eight teams will compete for the prestigious title, once famously dubbed the mini-World Cup. India enters as the outright favorite, but in a high-stakes tournament like the Champions Trophy, where margins for error are minimal, every team has a chance. While India's bowling unit appears slightly vulnerable without Jasprit Bumrah, their overall strength makes them strong contenders for the title. Can Pakistan defend their crown at home? Though their approach to modern-day ODIs has been questioned, home advantage could work in their favor. While Australia and England seem out of form, Afghanistan could emerge as the dark horse from Group B. In the latest episode of the Sledging Room Podcast, Akshay Ramesh, Alan John, and Sabyasachi Choudhury analyse the strengths and weaknesses of all eight teams and rank them accordingly. Tune in! Produced by Garvit Srivastava Sound mixed by Rohan Bharti

The play-offs have begun! In the first of the first round contests, we pit Eleanor of Aquitaine, Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and Eadgifu of Kent against each other. All of them have the Rex Factor, but only three can make it through to the Semi-Finals, so who will it be? In this episode, we consider all five consorts in each factor, then at the end of the episode, Ali and Graham rank the consorts (secretly), and that is what you need to do as well. Follow the link below to cast your vote and rank the consorts in this group in order (Google sign-in required). You have until Friday 07 March 23:59 GMT before the poll closes. https://forms.gle/yR6LX1K9ZTRYrqZ77 Links to all the other forms and more information about the play-offs is available on our website: https://www.rexfactorpodcast.com/consort-vote Sign up for lots of bonus content, including play-off extras such as a prize draw for a Zoom chat with Ali and Graham, a mini-play-off for the consorts who nearly got the Rex Factor, and to vote for what we do in series 4. All that and more here: https://www.patreon.com/rexfactor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Group B strep (GBS), short for group B streptococcus, is a type of bacterium that naturally resides in the gastrointestinal tract, vagina, and rectum of many pregnant women. GBS is typically harmless and causes no symptoms. During pregnancy, it can pose serious risks if passed to a newborn during birth, potentially leading to life-threatening infections. Due to these risks, routine GBS testing is recommended for all pregnant women. If you test positive, there are established guidelines to protect your baby. Learn what to expect during GBS testing, how a positive result will impact your labor and birth, and explore the latest research on a simple supplement that could potentially reduce the chances of having GBS.     Thank you to our sponsors   The VTech V-Hush Pro Baby Sleep Soother has every feature you could possibly want to transform any room into a sleep sanctuary. Create ideal sleep patterns and environments for your baby so your whole family gets better and longer sleep. The V-Hush Pro has built-in sleep programs and sleep tips from WeeSleep experts, over 200 pre-programmed stories, classical music, lullabies, and natural sounds. You can even record and upload your own voice, songs, or stories using the subscription-free app. The VTech V-Hush Pro Baby Sleep Soother is available at Walmart and Amazon.   AG1 is offering new subscribers a FREE $76 gift when you sign up. You'll get a Welcome Kit, a bottle of D3K2 AND 5 free travel packs in your first box. Even with the best diet, some nutrients can be hard to get. AG1 delivers optimal amounts of nutrients in forms that help your body thrive. Just one scoop contains essential vitamins and nutrients, supports gut health, helps you feel sharp and focused, and supports a healthy immune system. Check out DrinkAG1.com/pregnancypodcast to get a free welcome Kit, a bottle of D3K2, and 5 free travel packs in your first box.  (As a friendly reminder, pregnant or nursing women should seek professional medical advice before taking this or any other dietary supplement.)     Read the full article and resources that accompany this episode.     Join Pregnancy Podcast Premium to access the entire back catalog, listen to all episodes ad-free, get a copy of the Your Birth Plan Book, and more.     Check out the 40 Weeks podcast to learn how your baby grows each week and what is happening in your body. Plus, get a heads up on what to expect at your prenatal appointments and a tip for dads and partners.     For more evidence-based information, visit the Pregnancy Podcast website.

K. 369 “Misera dove son” (Edith Mathis—1961) K. 374 “Ah questo seno deh vieni” (Ann Murray—1982) K. 418 “Vorrei spiegarvi oh dio” (Louise Lebrun—1979) K. 419 “No, no, che non sei capace” (Jodie Devos—2018) K. 420 “Per pieta, non ricercate' (Leopold Simoneau—1956) K. 431 “Misero, o sogno” (Cesare Valetti—1959) K. 490 “Venga la morte” (Margaret Marshall—1983)

Welcome To The Apex Podcast! Where we keep you in the loop of everything Competitve Apex Legends. If you would like to join our discord and follow our socials here: https://linktr.ee/theapexthepodPlease review and rate the Apex Podcast, as it is one of the best things to support us as a podcast! Thank you so much for listening, we appreciate you.For business inquiries: theapexthepodcast@gmail.com What are you doing down here? Go subscribe!

Jon Summers is the Motoring Historian. He was a company car thrashing technology sales rep that turned into a fairly inept sports bike rider. On his show he gets together with various co-hosts to talk about new and old cars, driving, motorbikes, motor racing, motoring travel. Sometimes we can go a bit off the rails in an episode, here's some additional content from the Group B Rally discussion that didn't quite fit in the main episode. Enjoy this Pit Stop minisode. ===== (Oo---x---oO) ===== 00:00 Introduction and Behind the Scenes 00:24 Technical Challenges and Overcoming Them 00:50 Origins and Evolution of Rallying 02:25 Favorite Rally Events and Stages 05:39 Classic Car Stories and Group B 08:45 Audi's Legacy in Motorsports 10:15 Building the Ultimate Rally Team 10:55 The Risk of Rally Drivers 11:16 Consistency vs. Speed 11:49 Choosing the Best Drivers 12:11 The Versatility of Rally Drivers 13:28 The Legacy of Group B 16:15 Modern Rally Legends 19:04 The Complexity of Rally Scoring 19:35 Best of the Bay Event 20:33 Conclusion and Call to Action ==================== The Motoring Podcast Network : Years of racing, wrenching and Motorsports experience brings together a top notch collection of knowledge, stories and information. #everyonehasastory #gtmbreakfix - motoringpodcast.net More Information: https://www.motoringpodcast.net/ Become a VIP at: https://www.patreon.com/ Online Magazine: https://www.gtmotorsports.org/ Copyright Jon Summers, The Motoring Historian. This episode is part of our Motoring Podcast Network and has been republished with permission.

Jon Summers is the Motoring Historian. He was a company car thrashing technology sales rep that turned into a fairly inept sports bike rider. On his show he gets together with various co-hosts to talk about new and old cars, driving, motorbikes, motor racing, motoring travel. On this episode Jon Summers invites Crew Chief Eric from Break/Fix Podcast to debate "Who Was Best" in the 1980s Group B Rally. Was it: Audi, Lancia or Peugeot? ===== (Oo---x---oO) ===== 00:00:00 Introduction to John Summers and His Show 00:00:47 Group B Rallying: A Technological Revolution 00:02:07 The Golden Era of Rally: Group B 00:03:01 The Role of Producers in Reality TV and Motorsport 00:03:56 Setting the Scene: Group B Rally Cars 00:06:19 The Evolution of Group B Rally Cars 00:11:06 The Impact of Group B on Motorsport 00:35:04 The Rise of Lancia and the Delta S4 00:43:29 Ford's Struggle and the RS200 00:47:21 The Legacy of Group B and Its Cars 00:49:33 Group B Disbandment and Nostalgia 00:50:15 The Influence of Virtual World on Group B 00:50:47 Personal Connection to Rallying 00:51:36 The Evolution of Rally Cars in Games 00:52:35 Analyzing Group B Cars' Performance 00:54:20 Best Car of the Group B Era 00:56:30 Legendary Drivers of Group B 00:57:13 Hannu Mikkola: The Comeback King 01:05:33 Michele Mouton: Breaking Barriers 01:12:33 Ari Vatanen: The Artistry of Drift 01:19:42 The Tragic End of Group B 01:32:22 Legacy and Modern Rallying 01:36:30 Conclusion and Final Thoughts ==================== The Motoring Podcast Network : Years of racing, wrenching and Motorsports experience brings together a top notch collection of knowledge, stories and information. #everyonehasastory #gtmbreakfix - motoringpodcast.net More Information: https://www.motoringpodcast.net/ Become a VIP at: https://www.patreon.com/ Online Magazine: https://www.gtmotorsports.org/ Copyright Jon Summers, The Motoring Historian. This episode is part of our Motoring Podcast Network and has been republished with permission.

Jon Summers is the Motoring Historian. He was a company car thrashing technology sales rep that turned into a fairly inept sports bike rider. On his show he gets together with various co-hosts to talk about new and old cars, driving, motorbikes, motor racing, motoring travel. On this episode Jon Summers invites Crew Chief Eric from Break/Fix Podcast to debate "Who Was Best" in the 1980s Group B Rally. Was it: Audi, Lancia or Peugeot? ===== (Oo---x---oO) ===== 00:00:00 Introduction to John Summers and His Show 00:00:47 Group B Rallying: A Technological Revolution 00:02:07 The Golden Era of Rally: Group B 00:03:01 The Role of Producers in Reality TV and Motorsport 00:03:56 Setting the Scene: Group B Rally Cars 00:06:19 The Evolution of Group B Rally Cars 00:11:06 The Impact of Group B on Motorsport 00:35:04 The Rise of Lancia and the Delta S4 00:43:29 Ford's Struggle and the RS200 00:47:21 The Legacy of Group B and Its Cars 00:49:33 Group B Disbandment and Nostalgia 00:50:15 The Influence of Virtual World on Group B 00:50:47 Personal Connection to Rallying 00:51:36 The Evolution of Rally Cars in Games 00:52:35 Analyzing Group B Cars' Performance 00:54:20 Best Car of the Group B Era 00:56:30 Legendary Drivers of Group B 00:57:13 Hannu Mikkola: The Comeback King 01:05:33 Michel Mouton: Breaking Barriers 01:12:33 Ari Vatanen: The Artistry of Drift 01:19:42 The Tragic End of Group B 01:32:22 Legacy and Modern Rallying 01:36:30 Conclusion and Final Thoughts ==================== The Motoring Podcast Network : Years of racing, wrenching and Motorsports experience brings together a top notch collection of knowledge, stories and information. #everyonehasastory #gtmbreakfix - motoringpodcast.net More Information: https://www.motoringpodcast.net/ Become a VIP at: https://www.patreon.com/ Online Magazine: https://www.gtmotorsports.org/ Copyright Jon Summers, The Motoring Historian. This episode is part of our Motoring Podcast Network and has been republished with permission.

32 teams learned their fate in the 2025 Club World Cup draw yesterday. Hosts Inter Miami drew Palmeiras, Porto, and Al-Ahli in Group A. The Seattle Sounders will face European giants PSG and Atlético Madrid along with Botafogo in Group B. In other top matchups includes 2023 Champions Man City facing Juventus and Real Madrid facing Neymar's Al Hilal. The group discuss the differences between the group Inter Miami wound up in and the group Seattle wound up in. There's also a chat about schedule congestion and whether or not competitions like this will even last. Morning Footy is available for free on the Audacy app as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify and wherever else you listen to podcasts.  Follow the Morning Footy podcast on Twitter: @CBSSportsGolazo, @susannahcollins, @nicocantor1, @NotAlexis, @CharlieDavies9 Visit the betting arena on CBSSports.com for all the latest in sportsbook reviews and sportsbook promos for betting on soccer For more soccer coverage from CBS Sports, visit https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/ To hear more from the CBS Sports Podcast Network, visit https://www.cbssports.com/podcasts/ Watch UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League, Serie A, Coppa Italia, EFL, NWSL, Scottish Premiership, Argentine Primera División by subscribing Paramount Plus: https://www.paramountplus.com/home/ To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We recap the Bucks recent run of wins and preview their jampacked week.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

0:00 ... Ross hello, welcome, and introduces the panel. 0:37 ... Ross dedicates episode #133 to Toumani Camara of the Portland Trailblazers, who happens to wear jersey #33. 1:04  ... Bet Online Live Commercial Read 1:41 ... The show begins with a recap of the strong week by the up and coming Atlanta Hawks.  Head coach Quin Snyder is in his second full season and really seems to be getting his program established with a young team. 6:29 ... The Cavaliers beat the Celtics on Sunday to remain on top of the eastern conference with a 17-3 record.  It appeared to be a "statement win," but was it really?  Bruce has his doubts. Ross expressed concern over the recent struggles of Jrue Holiday. 12:50 ... Boston may have lost to the Cavs on Sunday but they've been bolstered by the return of Kristaps Porzingis, who missed the first 17 games of the season after having off-season surgery.  The guys discuss what his presence means for the Celtics.  Bruce feels Neemias Queta did a great job while Porzingis was out and his presence should help Al Horford stay fresh for the playoffs.  Ross loves KP as a "first basket" betting option for those who like to wager. 15:46 ... Sunday night's battle between the OKC Thunder and Houston Rockets featured a gritty win by the Rockets, who are playing tremendous defense under coach Ime Udoka.  OKC misses Chet Holmgren and even with the return of Isaiah Hartenstein, the Thunder are struggling to rebound effectively.  World B reminds everyone that Jalen Green of the Rockets needs to shoot a higher percentage from the floor if the Rockets are to make noise in the playoffs. 23:01 ... Our NBA Cup breakdown begins with Group A in the East ... Will the Knicks get past Orlando on Tuesday night and clinch a spot in the knockout round?  The crew is split on who will emerge.  World B concludes with a very bold prediction about the Magic. 28:49 ... Group B in the east comes down to the winner of Detroit vs. Milwaukee on Tuesday night.  Our crew likes the Bucks but the Pistons can clinch the wild card even if they lose ... as long as they don't lose by more than 5 points. 32:48 ... Group C in the east has already been clinched by the Hawks.  The Celtics could emerge from the bracket as the wild card team, but they'll need help from Orlando and a large margin of victory (7 points or more) between the Pistons and Bucks regardless of which team wins. 33:55 ... Group A in the west has already been clinched by the Rockets so the Blazers and Clippers have a shot at the wild card, but both teams will need help from elsewhere in order to advance.  The Clippers have a slightly better chance than Portland. 38:03 ... Group B in the west has the most intrigue on Tuesday.  The Thunder clinch at least a wild card if they beat Utah on Tuesday.  The Spurs clinch the group with a win over Phoenix but if San Antonio loses, there's no path to the wild card and it opens the door for Phoenix to possibly grab the wild card if Dallas lays an egg against Memphis. 40:42 ... Group C in the west has been clinched by Golden State.  Dallas grabs the wild card with a win over Memphis.  If the Grizz beat the Mavs and the Nuggets beat the Warriors, both Memphis and Denver could theoretically advance to the wild card, but there are many scenarios that would have to take place for that to happen. 43:22 ... Final Thoughts: Bruce feels there could be a new "Batman" in Memphis with Jaren Jackson Jr emerging as Ja Morant's virtual equal. 45:08 ... World B's final thought is on the Magic and how they'll become a real threat to do damage in the playoffs if they regain their health.  They may even be Boston's toughest matchup in the playoffs. 46:18 .... In Ross's final thought, he surprisingly sees a good future for the Toronto Raptors if Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley get themselves rolling to go along with RJ Barrett, who has played well. 47:23 ... Ross says goodbye TRT 47:40        

David is joined by Drake aka SnellSZN to talk about the 2024 Bucks to date, the backstory behind becoming Tony Snell's biggest Stan and preview the huge early season battle for the Emirates NBA Cup Eastern Conference Group B matchup between the host Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks and finally Where Are They Now? Milwaukee Bucks draft picks since Giannis edition. You can follow David and Drake on BlueSky at @dbinkowsi.bsky.social and @snellszn.bsky.social. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/david-binkowski/support

Did you know there are well over 100 strains of strep? This often-misunderstood bacteria reaches far beyond strep throat, with complex impacts on our health - and even deeper connections to conditions like PANS/ PANDAS and GBS in pregnancy. In this episode, we are diving deep into all things strep: how it affects the body, why traditional treatments often fall short, and how rebalancing the gut provides a powerful, holistic alternative that empowers true healing. You'll learn actionable steps for strep throat, Group B strep in pregnancy, and healing PANS/PANDAS, two conditions where strep can drive sudden, life-altering neurological changes. Packed with insights on the gut-brain connection and immune support, this episode offers an effective approach to healing that works with your body. If you're ready to gain the knowledge to feel prepared and empowered, you won't want to miss this one. Links from the episode:Explore The Children's Gut Rebalance KitExplore The Women's Gut Rebalance KitThanks for listening! I would love to connect with you ♡ Subscribe to the Nourished Newsletter Send me a DM on Instagram Take the free Gut Health Quiz Email me at customercare@onleorganics.com Sending love and wellness from my family yours,xx - Juniper BennettFounder of ōNLē ORGANICS

The All Whites secured top spot in Group B in the Oceania football World Cup qualifiers with an 8-nil win over Samoa last night in Auckland.

TIMESTAMPS:03:15 - Group A preview11:18 - Group B preview13:49 - Group C preview16:41 - Group D preview19:22 - Group E and F preview20:43 - Group G preview22:29 - Group H preview24:22 - Group I preview25:41 - Group J preview26:58 - Group K preview27:56 - Group L previewIn this episode of the African football round-up, we preview the final two matchdays of 2025 Afcon qualifying. Some teams have qualified, some are eliminated, and some have all to play for! Everything is on the line for world football's greatest tournament.-----------------------This podcast is brought to you by: www.africasacountry.comFollow us on social media:https://twitter.com/AfricanFiveSidehttps://www.tiktok.com/@african.fiveaside

For Topic Tuesday, the guys are asked if a fun-to-drive car can make a non-enthusiast enjoy driving? Rocco B. wonders if most people are hard-wired to consider cars as practical tools and nothing else? Then, the guys debate what's next for Corey D., who wants a hand-built feeling from his next car. Social media questions ask what modern cars should be given the ‘Group B' treatment, what are top three qualities in a car for a teen driver, and would a manual transmission or less weight make for a better C8? Please rate + review us on iTunes, and subscribe to our two YouTube channels. Write us with your Car Debates, Car Conclusions, and Topic Tuesdays at everydaydrivertv@gmail.com or everydaydriver.com. Don't forget to share the podcast with your car enthusiast friends! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Women's T20 World Cup, Day 8 - West Indies/Bangladesh: We're at an interesting point in the group stage where each game changes the vibe. With that in mind, it was so important the Windies came to play against Bangladesh and play they did, banking a healthy Net Run Rate boost at Sharjah. As ever, join Daniel Norcross and Cam Ponsonby for their nightly wrap. Go Ambassador cruising with Goochy, Aggers, Blowers and Alex Tudor from December 12-19! Pick up 10% off with finalword10 at checkout here - www.ambassadorcruiseline.com Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Find all our links at linktr.ee/thefinalword - including our Australia Live Show tickets! Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr. Denise DeRosa is a Pediatric Physical Therapist from New York City. She had two Cesareans and was confident that those would be her only birth stories. But when she unexpectedly became pregnant with her third, Denise started looking into her options. She researched VBAC, found The VBAC Link, and felt that she could have a VBA2C. Having worked in the hospital where she planned to give birth, Denise knew she would face pushback. She knew they were skeptical and she knew they would try to meddle. She worked hard with her doula to get her mind solid, her body strong, and to prepare for any situation or anything that would be thrown at her. Ultimately, she believed in herself. So with an unsupportive provider in an unsupportive hospital with an apprehensive family, Denise's preparation paid off! She labored hard, advocated for herself, and vaginally birthed a 9-pound, 5-ounce baby. Gina, one of our VBAC-certified doulas from California, co-hosts today's episode and shares information about how C-sections affect an infant's gut microbiome. She also mentions things we can do to help mimic the benefits of birthing vaginally if a Cesarean is necessary. Dr. Denise DeRosa's WebsiteHow to VBAC: The Ultimate Prep Course for ParentsFull Transcript under Episode Details Meagan: Hello, everybody. Welcome to the show. We have our friend, Denise, from New York City with us today. Hello, Denise. Denise: Hi. Meagan: I'm so excited for you to be sharing your stories. You are a VBA2C mama just like myself. Denise: Yes, I am. That's right. Meagan: Yes and when we were talking about the C-section aspect of things, it reminded me a little bit of myself. Didn't dilate, baby didn't come down. What do we know? We know that this is a very common, common thing. In addition to Denise, we have a very special co-host today and her name is Gina Benson. Hello, Gina. Gina: Hi. Meagan: She is one of our VBAC doulas. Tell us where you're at, Gina. Gina: I am in the Sacramento area of California based in Roseville. Meagan: Okay, all right. Then we‘re going to make sure that she has her website and everything so if you guys are in her area looking for a doula, go check her out for sure. She is going to do a Review of the Week for us today. So I'll turn the time over to you. Gina: All right. “I've waited and prayed about this moment to be able to write the words, ‘I got my VBAC' feels surreal. Two years ago, I gave birth to my daughter via Cesarean and since the OR, I've been dreaming of a VBAC. It felt like a primal right I was robbed of. Yesterday, I gave birth at home with gestational diabetes to a 9-pound, 2-ounce baby. I pushed him out of my vagina, pulled him out of the water, and sobbed in joy relishing in my redemption and power. This would not have been possible without The VBAC Link. I listened every day postpartum, sobbed and cheered with the Women of Strength. I cannot recommend this podcast enough to all expectant parents. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” Oh my gosh, do you guys have the chills? Because I literally have the chills. You know how when as a woman you shave your legs and you're like, Oh, I just felt my leg hairs grow? Yep, that just happened. Oh my gosh, thank you for such an amazing review and huge congratulations. I'm so glad that you've been able to walk the walk with us here at The VBAC Link. This is why we're here. We want to inspire, encourage, empower, and help you know for yourself what is best for you. We don't judge here at The VBAC Link, but we really, really do love your reviews. So thank you so much. Okay, so that review also talked a little bit about a big baby. Denise also had a larger baby with her VBA2C baby. I feel like there are so many things that are going to come together within this review and within everything. So, Denise, I want to turn the time over to you to share your C-sections to start and then your VBAC. Denise: Perfect, thank you. Hi everybody. I'm Dr. Denise DeRosa. I'm a pediatric physical therapist. I feel like I have to lead with that because who I am is what I do. That with motherhood is all merged together and really helped me in my journey for a successful VBAC. We'll start at the beginning with my first baby. I was pregnant. Everything was going great. Everything was wonderful. I was still working. I had an uncomplicated pregnancy. The only thing that was a little off was that the baby was measuring big. I was like, okay. Whatever. It should be fine. Those machines are way off anyway. I go to 40 weeks, 40 and 1, 40 and 2, 40 and 3. I'm 40 and 5 days and my doctor is like, “All right. I want to induce you tomorrow.” I'm like, “Okay, sounds good.” I didn't know anything. I worked at the hospital as well so I'm just trusting that we've got this and we were good. I loved my doctor. Everything was going great. That night before I went in to get induced, I actually did start feeling something. I was like, What is that? It feels like cramps or something. I don't know. At 3:00 AM, I think I'm in labor. “Hon, get up. We've got to get to the hospital. Let's go. Let's go.” We get to the hospital. It's 3:00 AM and I'm 3 centimeters dilated. I'm like, “Oh, okay. I guess that's good. I don't know.” We get all the things– the epidural, the Pitocin, and I pretty much just lay in the bed, sleep, do a puzzle game on my iPad, and relax because that's what they tell me to do. It is very easy for me to relax now. It gets to be 11:00 AM the next day. I'm like, “I feel a little bit different. Can I be checked?” I get checked. 10 centimeters, wonderful, beautiful. They turn off everything. You know when they turn off that epidural, it's like, bam. This is intense. Meagan: Especially when you were not feeling anything before. Denise: Exactly. Meagan: It can definitely pick up and be a little bit more than maybe you were expecting. Denise: Yes. I am in a Semi-Fowler position which is the one where you're essentially leaned back but not all the way back. You're inclined at a 45-degree angle. My hips and knees were at 90/90. It was essentially like I was sitting on the toilet but I was leaning back. I'm sure everybody knows the position that I'm talking about. That's the position to push. My husband is holding one leg. The nurse is holding the other leg. My doctor is telling me to push. It's just a disaster. I have to be honest with you. It was crazy because I didn't know how to push so he was telling me to push like I'm pooping and I'm pushing like I'm holding it in. Everything was spasming and everything was just a disaster. I remember saying, “Let me get up. Let me move my body. I'm a physical therapist. Let me move my body. I just need to move around a little bit and I'll be good. Just let me get up.” “No, you can't get up. You have the catheter in.”Meagan: Intuition. Your intuition was kicking in to move. Denise: Yeah, exactly. My pelvis was stuck in the position. I was just lying there. The only thing they did was flex my knees up and down. I think I got the peanut ball at one point but it's not like it was side-lying. There was no internal/external rotation. It was just one plain movement. Anyway, I pushed for 2 hours and nothing happened. My doctor was like, “All right. Why don't we give you a break? We'll turn on the meds. Relax for an hour and then I'll come back and we'll push again for an hour.” I'm like, “Okay, sounds good. I need a break. Wonderful.” A rest. He's like, “But you know, if nothing happens, we're going to have to get the C-section.” I'm like, “Okay, well let me try again.” No food. No water. Only Jello and ice chips. I hadn't eaten since the day before. I was just so out of it between the drugs and the not eating. I did sleep a little bit when I was relaxing there but I was shot. My doctor came back after an hour and he goes, “Denise, I just went across the hall and the girl across the hall, I turned off her meds and she pushed 3 times and the baby came out.” I was like– let's just say my hand went up in the air with one specific finger up. I essentially flipped off my– it wasn't even the doctor. It was just the situation. I was like, “Forget this. This is ridiculous.” Okay? Now that's the kind of relationship my doctor and I have that we can joke around and all of that stuff and after, I apologized. He was like, “Don't worry. I deliver people in handcuffs. That was not the worst thing.” Meagan: What? Denise: Yeah, you know if you are stationed at the hospital, you deliver everybody. You know?Meagan: Yeah. Denise: What do you think happened? I stayed in the bed. I pushed. Inefficient pushing. Baby never dropped. I was dilated to 10 centimeters but nothing happened. Okay, by the end of it, I was like, “Please give me a C-section. This is the worst day of my life.” She came out. They lifted her up and everybody in there was like, “Oh my god. Look at this big baby.” I was like, “What is she, 100 pounds?” I was so delirious. You know, at that point you are so delirious. Anyway, it was a girl. She was 9 pounds, 10 ounces. It was a big baby. She never dropped down. I didn't move my body and had a healthy baby, a healthy mom. Everybody was happy and I was just like, oh gosh. This is the best and the worst day of my life. When you become a mom, it's just the best but maybe not the best experience. Meagan: Yeah. Denise: That was my first birth. At the time, I was like, okay. It is what it is. I'll try harder for the second one. Now that I know what my body does, I'll VBAC. My doc was like, “That's fine. You can VBAC for the second, no problem.” Okay, great. In between my first and my second, I actually was pregnant and I was 8 weeks. I went to the doctor. I had a heartbeat but my doctor was like, “Come back in 2 weeks. Something is not right on here.” I'm like, “Okay.” I was going down the shore, the Jersey shore with my family. All 20 or us, a big Greek family vacation and I remember I was there and my doctor was like, “Okay, I want you to come back after that because the baby is measuring a little small.” I'm like, “Okay, no problem.” I'm down there and of course, that baby didn't make it. I wound up miscarrying while I was on vacation with my family. I called my doctor and he was there for me. He would call me every day and be checking in, “How are you doing?” I thought that was something doctors don't really do. He's a special guy. I could really tell. I felt like he really cared about me and cared for what was happening. In between my first and second, that happened and then I wound up getting pregnant with my second and I was like, oh I'm going to VBAC. Everything's going to be good. I took a labor and delivery course. I read my whole textbooks because sometimes physical therapists will be part of labor. So I'm like, I'm going to read up on this a little bit more. I take the course. Fast forward to 40 weeks and I started. I woke up in the morning. It was 6:00 in the morning and I was like, Oh, I feel something. This is great but let me not call my doctor right now. Let me stay home. Let me do the movements. I'm bouncing on the physioball. Of course, I have one of those. I'm walking around, doing the stairs, doing lunges, doing different positions. I'm like, “Let me just see where this goes,” and waiting as long as I can. I'm in touch with my doctor the whole day. 7:00 comes around. My husband comes home from work. I call my doctor. He's like, “Okay, well why don't you just come to the hospital and I'll check you? You've been in labor the whole day.” I'm like, “Okay, that sounds good.” I go to the hospital. He checks me. I'm 0 centimeters dilated. Zero. I'm like, “Come on.” He says to me, “Well, you've tried. You did.” He's like, “But what do you want to do? You want to keep contracting on an old uterus scar and something bad happens?” Meagan: Oh dear. Oh dear, oh dear. Denise: I was like, “No, I don't want to do that.” At the time, I didn't educate myself enough on risks. I just thought it was me. I was like, I'm a physical therapist. I've got this. I exercise every day. I'm good. I'm going to do it. When he said that to me, I was like, “No, I don't want something bad to happen.”Essentially, I had a repeat C-section because I wasn't really in labor is what I tell people. Yeah, that was my second and he was fine. This baby was 9 pounds, 4 ounces. Meagan: Staying in the 9's. Denise: Another large baby. Yeah, it was fine. I felt like at the time, I was like, I did everything I could. Obviously, now I know I could have done more but at the time, I was like, I did my best. This is just my story and I'm fine with it. It is what it is. I have been growing my business for a few years at that point. My pediatric physical therapist business here on Statton Island and I felt like that was my third baby. You know, when you are a businesswoman, your business is like your child. Meagan: Yeah. Uh-huh. 100%. This business is one of my children. Yes. Denise: Yeah, exactly. I was like, I have my boy and my girl. I have three bedrooms in the house. I have a healthy boy and a girl. That's another thing too. As a physical therapist, I see a lot of different things and all babies are miracles. That's how I feel. All babies are amazing and I'm like, You know what? I'm good. I'm going to work on the business. I'm going to go back to work. We have healthy babies. We're good. You know that expression? You make plans and God laughs. Right? You know? I was like, you know what? I wound up getting pregnant when I wasn't trying to get pregnant. I had been trying for the other two and I was nursing and that's the other thing. You can't get pregnant, right?Meagan: A lot of people think. Denise: But you know, it's funny. I got pregnant the month after my ya-ya passed away. Ya-ya is Greek for grandma. I was like, You know, this biotch just had to reincarnate herself and she hit me. I'm like, Why couldn't she get my cousins? They don't have any kids. They could have kids. I'm like, Ah man. She reincarnated herself. She cursed me. I don't think babies are a curse. It's just at the time that I was feeling all the feels. Meagan: You weren't in that space. Denise: I was like, you know? I was done having kids. I was like, oh my god. I can't get pregnant. I'll have another major abdominal surgery. Here we go. Also, Meagan, I know you know. No one wants to watch more than one kid so it was– I was shocked. Yeah. I was shocked. Denise: I was like, you know what? I did have two miscarriages. One before my first and one between the first and second. Let's just see what happens. I'm not going to tell anybody. Let's just see where it goes. I'm not going to decide what to do now. I'll just wait a little while and see what happens. You know, when you have two kids and you're pregnant with a third, that pregnancy flies. Meagan: So fast. Denise: Very fast. I was like, oh my gosh. I'm almost in the third trimester. What am I going to do? At every appointment, my doc's like, “Denise, when are we going to schedule your section?” I don't like to pick baby's birthdays. For me, I would rather they come when the baby is ready and I wanted to go into labor at least and then get the C-section. Then I was like, I got to this point where I was like, I have to make a decision here. What am I doing? Am I going to just schedule a Cesarean or am I going to actually try to do this? So I'm like, let me look things up. I found you guys. I found out that women actually have vaginal birth after two Cesareans. This does happen. I'm thinking with my own individualized plan here, I had no complications with either one. I didn't have high blood pressure. I didn't have anything go badly so I really felt like I was a great candidate. Then there's there my doctor who was like, “No, you're not a good candidate. Your baby never dropped. Your babies were big and you didn't dilate on your own.” I'm like, “I know, but I just feel like I can do it.” So this is something that I tell my patients all the time that you need to listen to your mom intuition. There's nothing that can steer you wrong. If you feel like something's wrong with your baby or yourself, you need to get it checked out. It's probably nothing and everything is going to be fine, but at the same time, the way that mom feels directly impacts baby and I just felt like, you know what? I feel like I can do this. I feel drawn to this and I'm going to go for it. Then the things that really drove me over the edge was that my cousin had a successful VBAC at the beginning of my third trimester so I was like, oh. If she can do it, I can do it. Then I also got in touch with a doula who I had been talking with professionally and we met. She said something to me that I will never forget which is, “I have total and complete trust in your body's ability to birth.” I'm like, “No one has ever said that to me. I've only been told I don't dilate and my pelvis is too small and I grow too-big babies,” not “You grow really healthy babies, really chunky ones with lots of rolls and that's the best.” I was never told that. I'm like, you know what? If anyone can do this, it's me. I trust in myself. I've got to go for it. This is my last chance because if I got another section, then it would be my tubes tied and that would be the end of the road. That would be fine with me too because I don't really want more than three abdominal surgeries anyway. I made that decision to go forth with trying to achieve my VBAC. I have to tell you, I left all my cards on the table. There was no stone left unturned. I went in. I stopped working in September and I used all of October to prepare myself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually because I would be reading even on The VBAC Link, the Facebook group all of the things people did. I didn't do everything. Listen, you only have so much time in the day when you have two kids already. But at least I was doing things that felt right for me and my body. Meagan: I love that you pointed that out because there are so many things, right? We even suggest it here at The VBAC Link. We're like, here's a whole list of things you can do to improve. Gina, I'm sure as a doula you have things that you suggest to your VBAC clients and I know I do too but it one, can get a little overwhelming honestly and two, like you said, time is a thing but three, here's a list. Pick what is appropriate for you. If every single one of those things is achievable, great. If not, pick some. Go with it. Right?Denise: Yeah. There are a thousand, bajillion things you can do. Meagan: There really are. Denise: Like I said, I picked what was right for me. I met with my doula. We did a pre-labor class specific for my body and how I would plan to move my body based on my anatomy. I know I'm a little asymmetrical from holding baby on one hip. I'm like, oh I've got to get that checked out. I prepared a lot and it was actually fun now that I'm looking back. I listened to you guys. I listened to other podcasts. I listened. I watched documentaries. I read books. I tried to do what felt right for me and then also educating myself on papers and even looking at my own research about different things that they tell you to watch out for when you're trying to achieve something that I achieved. Meagan: Out of the list– sorry to interrupt you– what were maybe your top three things that you were like, these were the best things? Obviously, you hired a doula and you got some education. What are, in addition to those, the top three things you did that really, really impacted the situation?Denise: The top three things were that I got my mind solid. I literally was like, Denise, you can do this. There was no– I had an intention. I think I listened to that– Henci Goer. Meagan: Henci Goer? Uh-huh, so good. Denise: I listened to that podcast maybe the week before and she said something like, “Have an intention, but not a goal because when you don't get it and it's a goal, then you feel all the feels. You feel like you failed.” I had an intention but I also had a feeling of, I'm going to do this. I'm not going to try. I'm just going to do. I'm an athlete as well so if you're an athlete or you're someone who pushes yourself physically, you can labor naturally like I did. I'm telling you, you can. You know like when you're on the treadmill and you're running and you just keep going and going? It's the same thing in labor. If you mentally train yourself with the physical, you're going to be successful. My top three tips would be get your mind solid and really find your why. Why do I want this VBAC? How is it going to feel? What is it going to be like? Imagine it. Then two, get your body right and then three, prepare for any situation that they're going to throw at you because they are going to throw things at you to make you sway the other way. They're going to tell you that you can't do it. They're going to tell you, as I get into my story, when you get to the hospital, they're going to throw things at you. I'm not even mad at the doctors in the hospital and the nurses because honestly, I really feel like doctors are really great people. They're not bad people at all. They are good people and the nurses are part of birth. This is the most sacred part of healthcare in my head– also palliative care and hospice care is important too but birth is really so important. Unfortunately though, there are policies in place and there are rules and regulations. I think everybody is just doing their best with that but my top tips would be mind solid, body solid, and prepare for anything they are going to say and throw at you because it's going to come. Meagan: Yeah, it's probably going to come. I love that. In our VBAC course, we focus so much on the mental prep too. I think a lot of times, we are more focused on that physical prep and what we can do with our body, but I think the mental part connects so deeply to the physical part that we cannot skip it. Denise: No, you cannot. Meagan: I skipped it with my second and look at what happened, I had a repeat section. Denise: So yeah, that's that. I guess I'll get into my third birth now yeah? Meagan: Yeah. Denise: Okay. Another healthy pregnancy, uncomplicated, everything was fine. I get to my third trimester and that's when I decided to go for the VBAC. I'm doing all the things like I said and I get to 40 weeks. I get to 40+1, 40+2. I go to the doctor and I'm like, “I'm not going to get checked today. I'm just going to talk to him.” He comes in the room, arms folded, you know? He's like, “What's going on? You don't want to schedule?” I'm like, “Doc, I want you to know that I have so much respect for what you do.” I essentially did a fear release which you talk about in the course as well. It's so important and holding things back and preventing it from labor. I essentially did a fear release with my doctor where I told him that I loved him and I respected him and I didn't think I know more than him because I definitely don't. I don't know how to cut through and do all of the surgeries and everything. I'm a conservative health profession, okay? We don't do any surgeries. No blood, no thanks. I just said that to him. “I don't think I know more than you. I just feel like I can't schedule it and I feel like there are things that I can do.” We talked about successful VBACs after two Cesareans at the hospital and it was essentially, “You have to get there when you're pretty much ready to push. They're going to try and give you a section and they're going to try and give the epidural and they're going to try and do the things and they're going to try and meddle. You come to the hospital in pain, you're going to get pain medicine because it's part of hospital regulations and all of that stuff.” I was like, “Okay.” He gave me my answer. It was too late to switch at that point. I thought about switching to a midwife and having my baby at home, but that was just something I really knew my husband would never go for. He was already scared that something bad was going to happen to me and the baby because that's what he was told at the appointments.We did essentially fear release on the 7th and on the 8th of November, I woke up with the same cramping I had with my second. I was like, oh, this is something. I think the fear release must have worked. Awesome. All right. Let's just see how this goes today because I have to keep my mind right. I have to go about my day. That's what everybody in every single VBAC Link story said they did. I walked my daughter to school. I take my son for a walk around the block. I did the curb walking. I did the Miles Circuit. I ate my dates and my tea. It was a normal day. I just ignored it and the contractions would get closer together and they would get farther apart and then change in intensity so I thought this was prodromal labor. I think I said that right. Meagan: Prodromal. Denise: Prodromal. Okay, sorry. I'm like, okay. This is what this is. I'm just going to rest and that evening, I put the kids to sleep and I was like, let me try to rest because I don't know what tomorrow is going to bring if I'm going to be fine or if I'm actually going to do this. So I go to sleep. I wake up 2 hours later at 12:00 and between 12:00 and 4:00 AM, I was laboring by myself. I didn't want to wake up my husband because I didn't want to go to the hospital too soon. I didn't want to wake up my kids obviously because no one wants to be around them when you're in labor, right? Or maybe you do. I don't know.I went in the bath. I'm trying to manage my contractions. I'm in the shower for an hour. I'm in the bath for an hour. I'm trying to sit. I'm trying to stand. Everything was worse sitting. 4:00 AM comes and I'm like, I think these are getting closer together. I download the contraction timer on my phone. I'm like, let me actually time these. They were 5 minutes apart. I'm like, okay. Let me text my doula. I text her but you know when you are past 40 weeks and everybody is texting you, “How are you doing? Did you go into labor yet?” All of the questions. I turned my phone on the Do Not Disturb thing a day before because I couldn't take anymore of these questions. I already had my own anxiety and stress about this. I turned my phone on Do Not Disturb. I called and texted her and then she texted and called me back and I wasn't getting any messages because I turned my phone on Do Not Disturb. I was like, oh goodness. 6:00 AM rolls around. I finally get in touch with her. I text my mom, “Can you please come here?” My doula gets there and at this point, I'm trying to just focus on my breath like we've practiced.I'm like, okay. Breathe in. Breathe out. I was trying to do whatever I can to manage this pain. I didn't want to go to the hospital at all at that point but I didn't want to go too early. When my doula got there, it was a complete 180. Oh my gosh. She came. She did the pain pressure points. She massaged. She got the essential oils. She did the rebozo think. I put on my Folklore and Evermore soundtracks for my Swifties in here and I was just jamming. It was like I was on the treadmill running like I used to do back when I was young and had better knees. It was great. I could have stayed there forever. I probably did it for an hour because I remember I listened to both albums and I was just fine. I was kneeling on the physio ball and everythings was good. I thought, man. I should have tried for a home birth. Oh well. I'm not going for a fourth so no home birth for me. My doula was like, “All right, Denise. Do you want to try to bring baby down and try some different positions?” I'm like, “Yes, let's do it,” because I knew that would be one of the things. I go to my stairs with one leg up and one leg down. I go to down on the floor into a half-kneeling position and I'm like, “Okay, let's do this contraction. Breathe in. The contraction comes.” My water breaks. I'm  like, “Oh my gosh.” Water is just dripping down my leg. That never happened before. My water just broke. Wow, this is amazing. I'm like, “Okay, let's go get changed.” My doula was like, “Okay, this is time to go to the hospital.” I'm like, “Oh my god. This is great. I'm getting on way.” I go upstairs and change. She's like, “Okay, we've got to move,” and my mom is like, “Come on, Denise. We've got to go to the hospital now. Come on!”My mom was very anxious and I said to her, “Mom, I know it's your birthday and I'm trying to be nice to you but please don't push me. If I'm not ready to go to the hospital, I'm not going to go.” I love my mom. She's my best friend and she really just cares for me.Meagan: Yeah, and a lot of the time, they're like, if you're in this much labor, you go to the hospital. That's how they were raised too. Denise: Right, exactly and that's fine. It's just that I knew I didn't want to go and also, I think the day before I listened to your podcast with Julie about going to the hospital and how everything shifts from when you're at home and you're so calm, cool, and collected and everything is good but when you get to the hospital, it's like, bam. Interventions, stress, people talking at you. Meagan: Touching, talking, questions, lights, new voices, new space, new smells. You have to re-acclimate. Denise: Meddling. Right. That was fresh in my brain too. I'm like, “I'm going to go when I'm ready.” Anyway, we're ready. We're ready to go. Let's go. I get in my husband's car. My mom is in the back seat. My doula drove herself because she was going to leave from the hospital when it was done. I live in New York City. There's traffic everywhere. It's Thursday at 10:00 AM and there really shouldn't be traffic then but of course, there was. I couldn't sit, right, because everything was getting worse. I'm leaning on my husband's truck with my arms in the middle and my butt at the window. God help whoever was next to us in the car like, “What is happening over there?” Meanwhile, my mom is in the backseat crying in between. I lost control of my breath so I was literally screaming during contractions. It was like I was at a concert except it wasn't fun. I said to my mom while she's in the back, “Mom, I'm okay. The baby is getting ready to come out. It's going to be fine. I'm going to be fine. The baby's fine. I'm fine. See? I can talk in between contractions just when it comes, it's very strong.” She was like, “I know. It's okay. It's all right.” My poor mom on her birthday. She thought I was going to have the baby in the car. That's what she thought. Meagan: I'm sure she did. Denise: Yeah, she was like, “Oh my god. There's a police cop over there. Flag him down. Flag him down.” She opened the window but then we already passed. It was quite a scene actually now that I think about it. Anyway, we get to the hospital and of course, there's construction at the hospital so it takes me 10 minutes to walk up to L&D.” Now this is the hospital that I used to work at so I'm like, oh god. Please don't let anybody see me like this, not my old co-workers or my boss. Please let me get to L&D. Please, please. All right, I make it up. It took me 10 minutes but I make it up. It was 10:45 AM. I get there and the nurse was like, “Come on, hon. Let's get in the room.” I have a contraction, I'm like, “Please wait.” She's pushing me, “Come on, come on.” I'm like, “Please don't push me. I'm in the active stages of labor.” Who do I think I am? I think I know stuff. Meagan: You do know stuff. You do know stuff. Denise: Thank you. I get into the room and girls, I'm not joking. There are 12-15 people in that room with me. They're all talking at me, talking at me, “Do you want the epidural? Do you want the C-section? We need to give you an IV. We need your insurance card.” Where am I going? You're going to get my insurance card. Relax everybody. Chill. Because you can't get a bracelet on me? Everybody knows who I am. The doctor has probably been talking about me for days. It's fine. You're going to get the insurance card. Meanwhile, I'm in such late stages of labor at that point. I'm contracting every 30-45-1 minute. I forget. I was like, “Please. I prepared for this.” I knew they were going to come at me like this. Not me, specifically. It's not a personal thing. It's just what I was. Meagan: It's just what they do. It's just what they do. You're a label. Denise: And I'm not offended. I didn't take it personally. I was ready though. I knew they were going to come at me and I had a plan which was, don't say no and don't shut down. I also heard along my journey, “Don't say no. Don't have negative energy.” You're not able to control other people's feelings, but you are able to control yourself. When they came at me like that, I was like, “Please just give me a second. Can you wait a minute? Please let me get through this contraction. I just want a second. Not right now.” I had all of the things listed of what I was going to say when they came at me. Came is a bad word. When they said things, I just knew how they were going to say things. Meagan: When they were approaching you, you knew your response wasn't going to be no. It's, “I prefer. Not right now. In just one moment,” and stuff like that versus, “No, no. Get away.” Denise: Right, exactly. Exactly. I could have been like that but I wanted to bring my baby into the world in the most positive way that I could and that's just how I approached it. I'm like, “Just check me. Just check me before you do all of these interventions.” They checked me and I was 9 centimeters. I'm like, “What's that? I dilated by myself.” My doula was like, “That's amazing.” My OB was like, “Yeah, but the baby is really high.” I didn't even hear him say that. She told me he said that after. I think I was blocking out a lot of negative things on purpose. That was one of the things I prepared for. He's like, “Oh, but the baby is really high.” I'm like, “Okay, just give me a second.” The anesthesiologist was like, “Let's give you the epidural just for insurance.” I'm like, “Not right now, just give me a second.” They're like, “The baby's heart rate is dropping.” I knew they were going to say that too. I said, “Okay, well what's it dropping to and what's it coming back to?” When they said it something that was essentially normal, I said, “It's a 9-pound baby in there. Of course its heart rate is dropping. It's being contracted by a strong uterus to get it out. Give it second.” I don't remember saying this but my doula said that I said this which is, “I'm okay. My baby is okay. I know no one in this room thinks that I can do it, but I can. Okay?” I was like, “That's what I verbalized.” I don't really remember saying that but I was outside of my body I guess. She was like, “I got the chills when you said that because everybody was so anxious in that room and only you held it together.” I was like, “Well, yeah. I knew what was going to happen.” I worked in the hospital for 7 years. I get it. There is litigation. There are policies in place and people are scared for their jobs. I get it. It's fine. So anyway, that went on for about a half hour and then the nurse who pushed me in the hallway that I wasn't so nice to was like, “All right, Denise. Can we try a position?” I was like, “Yes, please. Let's do it. Let's try to switch positions please.” She gets the peanut ball and I got onto my side into internal rotation where you put your knees together and you have your feet on the physio ball. That opens the outlet of the pelvis to get the baby to drop down. I already know all of these things but no one had offered it and I wasn't thinking straight to even bring it up. I flipped into the position and the anesthesiologist was like, “Can I give you the epidural while you are on your side?”I'm like, “No.” Meagan: Oh my gosh, he's still pushing this epidural. Get out of my room, sir or ma'am. Denise: I know. I didn't push anybody out because I didn't have time for that. I was focused on what I had to focus on and what I came here to do. So I go on my side. One contraction and I'm like, “Um, I think I have to poop.” I was saying it but I had that feeling that baby dropped but I really thought that it was number two. They flipped me on my back and they were like, “All right, hold your knees up to your chest.” I'm like, “I don't like this position.” Remember, this is the position that they put me in with my first to push baby and it didn't work? I had PTSD from it. I was like, “I don't like this position.” They were like, “Just try it. Just try it.” I hear my doula say to me, “Denise, J breathe.” I'm like, “Oh my god. That's the cue. That's the cue that I need to push. The breath that I need to push this baby out. That's the cue we talked about. Oh my god. It's almost over. It's almost here.” Then I hear the whole room shift and my OB says, “All right, well if she wants to have a vaginal birth, let's do it.”I hear my husband say– my husband was very nervous about this whole situation and he wasn't really talking. He was there but he wasn't really saying anything. I hear him say– everyone was saying, “Push, push.” But I hear him specifically say, “Push, push. Breathe in. Breathe out. Push the right way.” This 9-pound, 5-ounce baby shot right out of me. The doctors didnt even catch him. He landed on the table. I didn't know that but I heard that later. That was it. I said, “Baby, baby.” They let me hold my baby right away. We did skin-to-skin. My husband got to cut the cord. I got to call out the gender and you feel the room anxiety shift. The anesthesiologist leaves of course. Meagan: He's done. Denise: The whole energy of the room just shifts into, “Oh, okay. She did it. All right.” Meagan: It's actually possible. Maybe we shouldn't doubt her. Denise: Yeah. I don't mean that in a negative way, but there is so much anxiety and nervousness about birth whether if you don't educate yourself enough like I did or didn't do with my second and even in the L&D, room, things can go wrong. He could have gotten stuck. I don't know. So many things could have happened. When the air in the room changed, everything was great. Everybody laughed. The doc stitched me up. I got to nurse the baby right away and the nurse said something to me. She was like, “Wow. You are such a strong woman.” I was like, “Oh yeah, I'm a Woman of Strength now. I can say that.” She was like, “Wow, you are a really strong woman. I'm surprised the doctor let you have a TOLAC.” I said, “Oh, no honey. This was not his choice. This was my choice.” My choice was not the same choice I recommend for everybody. I put in a lot of work for this obviously as I've said and it's not really for everybody and that's okay. It's okay to have the birth that you feel the safest and the most comfortable with because this is your start into motherhood. But if anyone feels inspired today, I'm glad that I was able to help with that. Obviously, I joke around and my OB, I still love him. He came into my room the next day and said, “Ah, here's the champion.” Yeah. You know and he said, “Listen, you were the right person to do it. You put in the work and you knew what to do.” Yeah. Meagan: You put in the work and knew what to do. Denise: Yeah, so that's my story. It's a doozy. Meagan: Oh my gosh, I love it. Gina: It's perfect. Meagan: Yeah, right? I mean, Gina, tell me about your area. Do you have a lot of unsupportive hospitals and providers in this way where they come in and you would expect a scenario like Denise's? Gina: Probably not quite. They actually have gotten a lot better. Meagan: That's good. Gina: They are pretty supportive even after two C-sections. We do have supportive providers for that and hospitals for that. It's not unheard of. It's not like, oh. You can't do this. Meagan: Right. Right. Gina: Yeah. Meagan: That is the case in so many places. Gina: Yes. Meagan: Like in Denise's situation. Denise: Yes, New York City and New Jersey as well. In New Jersey, if you have two Cesareans, you cannot be with a midwife. It's not allowed. Meagan: Yeah. Even here in Utah, which is a supportive VBA2C state, but some of those hospitals also do that. They are like, “Oh no, if you're a VBAC in general, you can't be with a midwife.” It's a little frustrating. We have a lot of work to do but Denise, I bet you probably didn't change your provider's perspective completely on VBAC. I bet the next VBAC after two Cesarean mama that came in, he likely may have said, “No. Not going to happen.” But you never know. He might have been like, “Okay. We can try it.” It takes us to show the world that it's possible, that it can be safe, that it's reasonable, our bodies are amazing, and so many of the things you could have had with the heart rate or the baby wasn't coming down or a bigger baby or whatever. All of these things could have stalled you up and you were like, “No. I can do this.” You put the power in your pocket and took the lead. Denise: Yeah. Yeah. And you know, I also read this along the way too. I had three births. My doctor has been to 20,000 births. Does he remember my birth? Probably because it was so dramatic. Meagan: Monumental for him, yeah. Denise: I'm his special patient as he calls me. But it's not the top of his list. He's on to the next thing and that's okay. This is his job. This is what he does. Like I said, he's not a bad person. He just wants to control the situation so he can make it the most safe in his opinion. But for me, I felt like by the end of it, my grandmother didn't curse me. She blessed me with an opportunity. My son is of course named after her and a lot of other amazing people like my dad and I just feel like you have to make your own story your own and you have to be comfortable with what you feel comfortable doing. I was more comfortable staying with a provider and a hospital I knew wasn't going to be like, “Oh yeah, Denise, you can do it,” but I knew in myself that if I believed in myself and I did the work and put in the work, I could do it. And it worked out for me. I wish I had that for three births but at least I had it for one and I get to come on here and share it with everybody that they can have the same experience I did. Meagan: That's really how I feel. Yeah, I didn't have the experience that I wanted for birth number one and birth number two but it brought me here today and that's okay. That's okay. So you have said that you have even more detail of your story on your website. Can you tell everybody, and we'll have it in the show notes, but can you tell everybody if they want to read more details on your story where they can find that?Denise: Absolutely. My business is milestonesinmotionptw.com and on there I have blogs about lots of different things but I decided to write my birth story which took me the entire fourth trimester because I had three kids by then. I wasn't sleeping. You know all the things. But yeah, it's a completely unedited version with a few more details. If anyone ever wants to reach out to me, I do have resources and I'm working on some virtual stuff with the business so if you have any issues post-birth with the baby with tummy time and crawling and stuff, I have some resources up there for you guys if anyone wants to check it out. And just reading the story– reading and listening to stories like on this podcast really made the difference for me too so thank you for doing it. Meagan: Oh my gosh. Thank you and like I said before, we'll have her link in the show notes so you can go and check it out. I love that you were pointing out tummy time and all of those things that you can help with. Then cute Gina actually is going to be talking about the gut biome and the effects of it and what birth can do and all of these things. Gina, I'd love to turn the time over to you to add this extra topic. Gina: Thank you. One of the reasons that we want to try to avoid unnecessary Cesarean births is because of the type of impact that that type of delivery can have on a newborn's long-term health. Some of the outcomes that we know can be associated with C-section births are increased risk of diabetes, obesity, and asthma. There is some research that indicates that those increased risks are because of the way the newborn's gut microbiome develops after a C-section versus after a vaginal birth. The microbiome is basically an ecosystem of bacteria and there are microorganisms that live in a digestive tract. For a C-section birth where the amniotic sac hasn't even been broken before you get to surgery, the baby basically has no exposure to any of the flora that are in the vagina which they would get in contact with if they were coming through the vaginal canal. That's part of what helps to populate that healthy gut biome. It gets the healthy gut bacteria in there for the newborn. The other part we know that helps build that healthy biome is actually the contact the newborn has with the perineum. If you think about where the perineum is in relation to your anus which is the exit of your digestive tract, that's where those bacteria are going to be. The baby also gets that exposure so it's a combination of all of it. In a C-section birth, sometimes they get none of it or only part of it. That's what seems to be a trigger for some of those outcomes that we see long-term for people if they have had a C-section birth. With all that said, is there anything we can do about it? Actually, yes. There is. There are a few things. One of the things that I do with my doula clients is I discuss the choices that they have for their birth and we use that to draft birth plans. I make sure we cover options for spontaneous vaginal births as well as induction and also C-sections because reality is that some babies are going to be born via C-section and I don't want anybody unprepared for it or not knowing what their options are to make it a better birth experience than just a sterile, surgical procedure. We have documented preferences for each of those outcomes. There are a few things that I make sure we include in a family-centered C-section birth plan that help support that healthy newborn microbiome. I learned about that somewhat from The VBAC Link doula training and I also attended a conference earlier this year called Micro Birth that was basically two days worth of people talking about newborn microbiome and how breastfeeding helps with it and everything. It was fascinating. The first option that I make sure we include in the C-section birth plan is to delay the use of the prophylactic antibiotics. That's what they give you ahead of time to try and prevent an infection from coming on during surgery. That's not a bad idea, but when we do it right away before the baby is born and before the cord has been cut, they can also get some of those antibiotics and that will interfere with their ability to build that bacteria in their gut. One of the ways that we can easily manage that is just delay it. Make sure they don't give us antibiotics until after the baby is out and cord has been clamped so we know that they have gotten all of their blood and they aren't getting anything else from the surgery or anything else from the IV. In most non-emergency C-sections, that should be an absolutely reasonable request because there's just a matter of timing. You're not trying to tell them, “Don't give it to me,” it's just a matter of when and all they do is just push it through your IV. It's also possible for some emergency ones depending on how much time they have. That's one of the really important ones that helps all of the other suggestions. Meagan: Fascinating. Gina: Yeah, the other one that we include in the birth plan is vaginal seeding. I know that's part of the VBAC Link course. Vaginal seeding is using gauze or a swab in the vagina to collect the fluids that are there prior to surgery and then you use that and you wipe it on the newborn's face. You make sure you get it in around their mouth and nose the same way they would be exposed to it if they came through the vagina during birth. That helps to transfer that to the baby. You can also make it even more effective if you make sure you include the perineum so maybe after you do the vagina one, make sure you include the perineum swab as well so you get all of it at one time and transfer it to the baby. There are a couple of times where some things that you don't want to use this for if the birthing parents has Group B strep or genital herpes, especially if they have an active outbreak, some of those conditions we know pose a risk to newborns and this wouldn't be a good idea. You don't want to try to introduce that just to get the flora there. It can be difficult to get the hospital to participate in this directly. I believe that ACOG has said it's still under research so unless you are being supervised, you shouldn't be doing this, but if you include it in your birth plan and you actually want to do it yourself, you can get the gauze. You can get the swabs. You can do it and either you or your partner can do it for the newborn. They can't stop you from doing it yourself but they may not want to particpate. Meagan: Yeah, they usually don't. We have clients who have ordered the gauze and everything online and then in Denise's situation where she was like, “I want to labor at home as long as possible,” and all of this stuff, they did it right before. They washed hands really, really well, got gloves even and did it, put it in a bag, and put it in their hospital bag because in case it does go a Cesarean route or whatever, they had it and then they don't even have to deal with the staff. Gina: Exactly. There are always those types of things where you can take it upon yourself and do it yourself. Yeah. Like you mentioned, doing it at home would be a great idea because you want to make sure that you've done it and the swab and everything is out before they start prepping you for surgery because they will use the sterile cleansing options and that will destroy some of it. Always make sure you do it beforehand if you can. Then the last thing that I talk about which isn't necessarily part of the birth plan, but it's a really effective way to help restore and build the healthy microbiome for the baby is probiotics. You can start them yourself prenatally and have a prenatal probiotic that you take. You can continue using it while you are lactating because it will transfer to the baby as well. There is one I know Needed offers.Meagan: There's a pre and probiotic. I really love it. I take it myself. Gina: Yeah. That one's on my list of options that I give to people. I have a few different ones I've looked into that have the right mix of bacteria that they're looking for so that's a great one to use. The other one is that you can actually have probiotics for a newborn. That's proven to be pretty effective if you have a C-section baby. That's one of the most well-researched ways of helping rebuild that microbiome for them especially if you are using it in combination with breastfeeding because human milk has the perfect sugars to feed those bacteria that we are looking for so it's a really great combination. There are a lot of different infant probiotic options out there and not all of them have the right mix of bacteria or the right type of bacteria that we know research shows comes through a vaginal birth and is also associated with good long-term health outcomes. There's one that they have studied the most to be effective. It's in Australia and it's called Imploran. You can buy it online and I'll provide the links as well but I also have a couple of others that have similar makeups that you can use. That's what I have to say about that but it's a very fascinating topic. I love to see even some of the negative outcomes with C-sections be improved by things we have learned along the way. Meagan: I love that. Thank you so, so, so much for sharing that with us. Denise, thank you for sharing your stories and your VBAC and your journey and all of your tips are so incredible. I'm so grateful for you. Denise: Thank you. Thanks for having us. Gina: Yes, thank you. ClosingWould you like to be a guest on the podcast? Tell us about your experience at thevbaclink.com/share. For more information on all things VBAC including online and in-person VBAC classes, The VBAC Link blog, and Meagan's bio, head over to thevbaclink.com. Congratulations on starting your journey of learning and discovery with The VBAC Link.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vbac-link/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

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Lisa Carlin, Sandra Herrera, and Darian Jenkins analyze the US women's 2-1 win over Australia to cap off a near perfect group stage for the program. It wasn't all good news, though, as Sam Coffee will miss the quarterfinals after picking up a yellow card against the Matildas. The crew discuss how Emma Hayes' players have become more adept at playing against a low block and how the USWNT's second half subs impacted the game. Then, a roundup of the action elsewhere in the as Germany, Spain and Japan also marched onto the knockout rounds, a tearful Marta might have made her Brazil bow, and Nigeria and Zambia crashed out. Finally, the gang look ahead to Saturday's big test against Japan.     Watch USWNT, NWSL and WSL games on P+" with a link to https://www.paramountplus.com/home/ Attacking Third is available for free on the Audacy app as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and wherever else you listen to podcasts.  Follow the Attacking Third team on Twitter: @AttackingThird, @LisaCarlin32, @SandHerrera_, @Darian_Jenks, and @CCupo. Visit the Attacking Third YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/attackingthird You can listen to Attacking Third on your smart speakers! Simply say "Alexa, play the latest episode of the Attacking Third podcast" or "Hey Google, play the latest episode of the Attacking Third podcast." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Caylee joins us from Canada sharing her experience with two VBACs after a twin Cesarean birth. She also shares what it was like having cholestasis in all three pregnancies. Cholestasis is a liver condition that slows or stalls the flow of bile. Meagan and Caylee discuss in greater detail what cholestasis means during pregnancy, what symptoms can look like, and how it is diagnosed. One of Caylee's most intense symptoms was incessant itching. She talks about how it affected her not only physically but mentally as well. While all three of her pregnancies were preterm births and her two VBACs were medically necessary inductions, Caylee advocated throughout her entire labors and was able to stay the course to achieve the vaginal births she knew she was capable of. Cleveland Clinic Article: Cholestasis of PregnancyAmerican Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology Article: Risk of Stillbirth in U.S. Patients with CholestasisHow to VBAC: The Ultimate Prep Course for ParentsFull Transcript under Episode Details Meagan: Hello, everybody. Welcome to the show. We have our friend, Caylee, with us and her little wee, tiny little newborn. Caylee: Hi everyone. Meagan: Oh my gosh. Welcome to the show. How old is your baby? Caylee: He just turned 3 months. He was born a month early though. Meagan: Okay, 3 months and a month early. We are going to talk about why he was born a month early. You guys, today we are going to be sharing some stores and talking a little bit about cholestasis. This is something that we actually don't have a lot about on the show. When you were listening, Caylee, did you? Caylee: I don't think I've heard a single episode, yeah. Meagan: Did you hear about it in general on other platforms? Was it talked about?Caylee: Not really, no. I found it online on Facebook. I'm in the ICP Care Facebook group and that's super helpful. They are amazing in there and super knowledgeable, but yeah. It's not very common. It's quite rare. I think it's 1 in 1000 women who end up getting it. Meagan: Yeah. Caylee: So yeah. It's not very well known about and even with providers, providers don't know about it very well either. Meagan: Yeah. I think that can be part of the problem, right? Because we've got providers who don't know a lot about it and then it can cause a little bit of a panic and then a lot of the times, it can cause Cesareans or lead, I should say, to Cesarean. We're going to be talking about that today and sharing her stories. Review of the WeekMeagan: But I do have a Review of the Week so I'm going to get into that and then turn the time over to cute Caylee. This is from Cori and it doesn't say where it's from. Somewhere in the universe, it is from. It says, “The VBAC Link is gold.” It says, “Of all of the things I did to prepare in pursuing for a VBAC after two C-sections, I think is one of the most important is that I was listening to this podcast. Hearing these stories and information from Meagan and Julie made the dive into learning about VBAC and birth in general so much easier. I was blessed with my VBA2C” so VBAC after two C-sections “with my sweet Brynne Lynn and I sincerely believe I wouldn't have gotten to that point without this resource and the community. Thank you guys for all that you do.” Oh, that just makes me smile so much because this community– oh my gosh. I mean, Caylee and I were kind of just talking about this. Yes, Julie and I are here, but there is this community, this absolutely incredible community and all of the people coming forth to share their stories. And Caylee, you just said it yourself when you were like,  it's like all of these people who came and shared these stories impacted you. Caylee: Yeah, totally. Meagan: Yeah, they are the reason. You are the reason right here. Caylee, you are the reason why what Cori said in this review is possible by sharing your stories, by coming in the community on Facebook and on Instagram and having these conversations and learning and also being vulnerable. There are so many times where I see posts where it's the most vulnerable, genuine post and I can't explain to you the outpouring of love that I see come in for this person from this community. The VBAC Link Community, just the VBAC community in general, oh my gosh. You are all amazing. Thank you so much and yes, if you want to join that community, check us out on Facebook at The VBAC Link Community. It is a private group. You do have to answer the questions to get in so just keep that in mind. If you are not answering questions, you might not be allowed in. And on Instagram, and of course, if you want to have a review that I could share for the Review of the Week, please do so. We would love that.  Symptoms of Cholestasis Meagan: Okay, Caylee. Are you ready? I'm so ready. Caylee: I am ready, yes. Meagan: Awesome, I would love to turn over the time. Caylee: I don't know where to start. Should we start by talking a little bit about cholestasis so that they understand the risks? Meagan: Yeah, I think that– well yeah, the risks, the symptoms, and then also how it can be missed and then how it can sometimes– well it kind of goes with the risk, but there are other things that can come in I should say from cholestasis and I actually even had a client myself, a VBAC client after two C-sections. She had cholestasis, preeclampsia, VBAC after two Cesareans, and was induced. Caylee: Wow, good for her. Meagan: Yeah, but preeclampsia, right? Okay, let's talk about the things. So what are the symptoms that you one, may be experiencing, and two, that there may be that someone might not experience? Caylee: Yeah, so for me, it was intense itching mainly on the bottom of my feet and on the palm of my hands but I had it everywhere. I have scars on my ankles, up my arms, on my belly just from scratching. Meagan: From scratching? Caylee: Yes, incessantly. It's an itch that you can't really scratch. It's in your blood that is making you so itchy so you can scratch all you want and it's temporary relief but as soon as you stop, it's like, oh. I broke down in tears so many times and had ice packs on my feet and on my hands while I was trying to sleep. Another symptom is darker urine output and some upper right quadrant pain. Meagan: Yes. Yeah. Caylee: Those are very common and some people also experience jaundice. Meagan: I was going to say yellowing, jaundice. Decreased appetite. Caylee: Yeah. You're more likely to get preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. Yeah. Meagan: Mhmm, yeah. So nausea, feeling unwell, dark urine, lack of urine output which a lot of the time, dark urine is the beginning of that. Your kidneys are warning you and then you stop. Yeah. I had a client, not the one I was telling you about, but another client. She said that her bowels like her poop smelled really weird, like abnormal. Caylee: Yeah, I've heard that before too. Meagan: Yeah. That's the first time when she was like– that was actually one of her first symptoms that she noticed. Thinking back, she was like, “Yeah, I guess I was kind of itchy, but I wasn't itchy-itchy until later.” But that was one of the things where she was like, “I just thought I ate something weird.” Caylee: Yeah. Meagan: A decreased appetite. Pain in your belly and your quadrants, jaundice, and of course, itching. Those are the main signs. Caylee: Itching. And the severity of the itching can vary greatly between cases so the first time, it was quite mild and then it progressively got worse throughout my pregnancies. That's different for everyone who experiences that so if you have any itching, you should ask for LST's and bile acid tests from your provider. Itching can also precede the bile acids rising and the elevated bile acids is what's dangerous for the baby. It increases the risks in the baby where they might pass meconium before birth and also stillbirth risk goes up a lot if the bile acids are above 40. Meagan: Too high, yeah. So when you are pregnant, if you are having symptoms, definitely go in and get checked like she said. Get these tests. Then if you have cholestasis, if you test positive and things are looking like you have it, it is something that may increase extra testing and extra visits because you do want to keep a close eye on this. Again, like she said in the beginning, it's really rare. Even right here, it shows on this link that I'm going to put in the show notes, it's from the Cleveland Clinic, but it shows 1-2 in 1000 people during pregnancy will experience this. It's pretty low, but it can be a serious thing. Also, I was going to ask you because I know my clients have in the past. They've been given some things to try and control, to minimize, to control, to lower things to try and continue pregnancy to a good, safe term stage. Were you given anything like that? Caylee: Yeah. I was put on a medication called Ursodiol. It helps lower bile acids to make it a little bit safer for the baby so you can continue. With my last pregnancy, they were very severe levels. They were over 100 so it was kind of touch and go there whether we could get him to 36 weeks or not. They were talking about inducing me at 34 weeks. We ended up opting for non-stress tests and biophysical profile ultrasounds just to keep an eye on him. Meagan: And he did well? Caylee: He was doing well. He had already passed meconium sometime before I was induced though at 36 weeks. It was time for him to come out. He was already in distress so it was good that we did end up taking him out at 36 weeks, but he did great. Really great. Meagan: Good. Good. That's another thing I would like to drop in and note that if you do have cholestasis, it may be something that brings you to something like an induction that is earlier than expected. Obviously here, we're going to share this story in just a second about VBAC and induction. It's possible and totally doable, but that is a thing. Cause of CholestasisMeagan: She's mentioning bile. It is in the liver, right? Am I correct? It's in the liver. Caylee: Yeah. Meagan: We don't really know why. I don't know why. Do we know exactly why it happens?Caylee: They don't. They think it's something to do with pregnancy hormones and the placenta, but they don't know for sure. It's some sort of genetic factor as well, but no woman in my family who I know has had it. So I think it's just something that can happen sometimes. Meagan: Yeah. I have heard the hormones like estrogen and progesterone can be too much in the body. So just to circle back around again, if you have had any of these symptoms or if you are having any of these symptoms, it's okay. Don't hesitate and go in and get checked out. Caylee: And if you go in and get a negative result and still have symptoms, ask your provider to keep testing you. Meagan: Yes. Go back and check again. Okay, so baby number one? First pregnancy: TwinsCaylee: Twins. Meagan: Twins! Caylee: Baby one and two, my first pregnancy. Meagan: So twins. You had symptoms? Caylee: I did, yes. I got it pretty early on and they tested me and it was negative. They just put me on Ursodiol before anything came back positive. They didn't do anymore testing or anything. I didn't have any itching. The medication must have made it go away somewhat. Yeah. I was only 21 when I was pregnant with the twins so I was pretty young. I didn't know much of anything. I knew I wanted a vaginal birth. I had actually switched providers in my third trimester to somebody who was comfortable with vaginal birth with twins and they ended up being breech when they decided they needed to take them out. Preterm Cesarean at 36 weeks due to breech presentation and IUGRIt wasn't due to cholestasis, but I did have them at 36 weeks because one of the twins had stopped growing so they took them out. Meagan: IUGR? Caylee: Yeah. Yeah. He was quite significantly smaller than his brother. Meagan: Okay. That can happen with twins too, I know. Caylee: Yeah, totally. Yeah. My twin A was 6 pounds, 7 ounces, and twin B was 4 pounds, 4 so it was quite a big difference. Meagan: Mhmm. Caylee: Yeah, so it was a C-section with them. We were in the NICU for two weeks. Second pregnancyCaylee: I ended up getting pregnant again when the twins were 16 or 17 months old. I knew I did not want to do that again, having a C-section so I found supportive midwives and got on with them. Unfortunately, I don't know if it's in Canada, but they don't allow home birth for your first VBAC for some reason. Maybe it was just those midwives, I don't know, but I really wanted a home birth and they were like, “No, let's do hospital. It's safer.” I was like, “Okay, as long as I can still have my VBAC. I'll just do that.” The pregnancy went well. I thought I wasn't going to get it again. No itching, then I hit 34 weeks and the dreaded itching started again. I kind of had a feeling that I had it during my first pregnancy too from my own research. I had mentioned it to my midwives beforehand so we were looking for it seeing if it would happen. They sent me for testing right away at 34 weeks. It came back negative so they ended up testing me again weekly and then at 36 weeks, they tested me and my liver function tests were very high. My liver was basically failing and they didn't even wait for the bile acids to come back. They just brought me in for an induction. Meagan: What week again? Caylee: I was 36 weeks and 2 days when they started my induction.Meagan: Okay, so technically preterm. Caylee: Yes, yes. InductionCaylee: When I went in, they started with a Foley balloon to help dilate my cervix and that was awful. It's like a torture device, I swear. But it was effective I guess. It dilated me and then it fell out and I don't know if they didn't have a nurse for me or something, but I was waiting 8 hours for them to continue my induction. The OB came in and he wanted to break my water. I said, “No. Let's start low Pitocin.” He was like, “Well, it's not really going to do anything if you're not going to break your water too.” I said, “Okay, let's see how it goes.” Meagan: Yes. Caylee: We did that. Labor was going smoothly. I loved being in the shower. It was amazing. Then they made me get out because his heart rate was dipping really high so they wanted to get me out and be able to monitor him a little bit better. That's when things got really intense and I felt like I wasn't able to cope as well after I got out of the shower. I think in the back of my mind, I was still pretty young with him too for my first VBAC. I was only 24 and I know that uterine rupture risk is very low, but for some reason, I just couldn't get that out of my mind and every contraction I'd have, I'd just feel like I was being ripped open and was so scared that I was having a uterine rupture. I ended up– it was 32 hours into my induction and I still was at 4 centimeters just because I wasn't letting my body relax and do the work. I was tensing and fighting every contractions because I was terrified. I ended up getting an epidural at 1:00 AM and 5 hours later, I woke up and was fully dilated and pushed for 15 minutes and he came out. Meagan: 15?! 1-5? Caylee: Yeah, 1-5. Meagan: Oh my goodness. Caylee: As he was coming out, I pulled him up to my chest and it was just this amazing feeling like, Oh my god, I did it. The high that comes with that is unbelievable. Meagan: Yeah. Caylee: I just kept looking at everyone saying, “I did it. I did it.” Meagan: Absolutely. Caylee: It's an amazing feeling. Meagan: It really is. Caylee: I fought with the OB who was on call a little bit, the one who wanted to break my water. He kept saying, “Does she want to do this? Let's just go for a C-section.” I'm like, “Yeah, I can do this all night long and he can stay out of my room until I'm pushing. My midwives have got this, thanks.”Unfortunately, because I had to be induced, I had to be overseen by an OB so my midwife ran the show and was able to be with me and do everything, but he had to be there in case anything went wrong I guess. Meagan: That's kind of normal. A lot of the times, when there is a hospital midwife, there are OBs who oversee them. Caylee: Yeah. Yeah. So yeah, that was my first VBAC, first induced VBAC. Second Induced VBACCaylee: I just recently had another induced VBAC. With this one, my levels went up high. I think it was 28 weeks that I tested positive so it was sooner. Meagan: Significantly sooner. Caylee: Yeah. They went from 0 to 100 within a matter of days. They put me on Ursodiol immediately as soon as it came back positive. I was being monitored weekly with NSTs, non-stress tests, and they were sending me for biophysical profiles as well weekly which is an ultrasound to check on the baby's well-being. He was doing well so they just were keeping going with that and unfortunately, the Ursodiol did not help my itching this time around. It was so severe. I was in tears pretty much daily from the severity of the itching. Yeah. It was really bad this time. The mental health aspect of having that incessant itching I don't think is talked about a lot either. It really gets to you. It's depressing. Meagan: Oh, I would not do well with that. I would find myself getting very anxious probably and out of control. Caylee: Even now, if I get an itch, I get PTSD. It's like, Oh my god. It's not going to stop. I freak myself out and work myself up. I remember that after my second pregnancy as well. It was like I'd get a bug bite and I'd just have to itch and itch and itch until it was bleeding. Oh, it was just bad. I don't know how to leave itching alone now. His levels were very severe, or my levels I guess. My liver function tests were some of the worst that my OB had ever seen. Meagan: Interesting. Caylee: So yeah, it was just really bad. Caylee: I had actually applied for midwives. We had just moved from Alberta for BC pretty much as soon as we found out we were pregnant with Henley here. I applied pretty much as soon as I found out I was pregnant for the midwives here. I ended up hearing back from the midwives in Edmonton which is an hour and a half away that they could see me up there but once I got the itching and cholestasis, I was like, “Just transfer me to an OB where I live. It's just easier for me then all of my appointments will be out here and I don't have to drive 1.5-2 hours to appointments in the middle of winter.” Yeah, so they scheduled my induction for exactly 36 weeks because of the high levels. They didn't want me going past that because with levels over 100 bile acids, the stillbirth risk goes up very high after 37 weeks. Meagan: Did they give you a percentage or anything like that? Caylee: Yeah, I think it's upwards of 15% with very severe levels. Meagan: Oh wow. Caylee: If levels stay under 40, your risk of stillbirth is around the same as anyone else's. They go up 3% over 40 and over 100, it's even more. So it was a bit touch and go there. They were talking about inducing at 34 weeks and we were able to get to 36. Still preterm, but a higher likelihood that he wouldn't need additional support. InductionCaylee: I was induced at exactly 36 weeks. I actually had influenza B when I had to be induced. Meagan: That's miserable. Caylee: As if labor isn't hard enough alone, I had to have influenza B. It was great. Meagan: Miserable. Yes. Caylee: Yeah, one perk though was that we got a private room right away. I didn't have to labor in triage until I was far enough along to get my delivery room or whatever. They put me right in there. I was able to get set up and feel like it was my space and get more comfortable. So yeah, they started with the Foley balloon again to open the cervix. They can't do Cervadil or a few of the other cervical ripening– Meagan: Cytotec. Caylee: Yeah, because it really does increase the risk of uterine rupture with induction, but the Foley balloon is a safer option and it works. Within an hour and a half this time, my cervix was 4 centimeters. Meagan: Wow. Caylee: From barely a 1. It was kind of funny. I was standing there talking to my husband and I took a step toward the bathroom and it just flopped out and there was this line of blood up and down the floor. It was like a total bloody show. Meagan: Mucus. Caylee: In a perfect line. Meagan: Oh my gosh. Caylee: Because they attach the tube to your leg. They tape it to your leg so when it falls out, it makes a long, smooth line. My husband pulled the nurse call button and she's laughing. She ended up cleaning me up. Things picked up pretty quickly from there this time. I felt it was much more manageable though. I don't know if the nurses were nicer this time and they were doing the Pitocin a bit slower because I remember with my first VBAC, the contractions just felt back to back like I wasn't getting a break at all and it was really mentally wearing me out after 32 hours. I hadn't slept. I ended up getting the epidural but this time, it felt like more of a natural progression. I don't know. I've never had natural labor, but for me, I was able to handle it a lot better. Maybe that's because I knew what to expect this time so it wasn't as scary. Meagan: It could be. Caylee: Yeah, I don't know. Or I've heard too that with cholestasis that the bile acids or something make Pitocin more effective so maybe I didn't need as much of it this time because my levels were higher. I don't know but it was much more peaceful this time and I knew what to expect even though I was sick. I labored in the shower for a little bit with the mobile monitor because with inductions, they want to be able to monitor the baby constantly which I know is talked about a lot on here as something that is not ideal. Meagan: Yeah. Even if no induction with VBAC, it's really, really common if not 100% that your hospital is going to want that monitoring. Caylee: Yeah. And having that mobile monitor though is so helpful if your hospital has one of those. Definitely ask because oh my gosh, it's so nice to be able to get up and walk around and move and shower. Unfortunately, because of the flu, we were battling a fever. I had a fever so as soon as my Tylenol would wear off, my fever would spike and then his heart rate would go up. I had an anterior placenta so it was kind of in the way of the monitoring and it was hard to get him constantly so they ended up wanting to do the electrode. Meagan: The IUPC and the FSC? Caylee: Yeah, I think so. It's the one that they put on the scalp. Meagan: Okay, that's an FSC, fetal scalp electrode. Caylee: Yeah, that unfortunately didn't work very well. I was bed-bound but I was so sick that I didn't even really care. I was just switching sides laboring through, using the gas. I loved the gas this time.Yeah. I ended up getting to an 8, 8 centimeters and the OB unfortunately was not the OB who I had through my pregnancy. She had gone on vacation for my induction, unfortunately. I was really sad about that, but the OB on call came in and he was like, “You know, this is taking pretty long. I think it's time that we start thinking about a C-section. I'm getting worried about your scar.” I'm like, “I've done this before and it took longer last time. I am not having a C-section.” Meagan: Good for you. Caylee: I don't think he really liked that though because he was like, “Well, then you're getting an epidural because at least if you have the epidural and something happens, we can rush you in and open you up faster,” and blah, blah, blah. I'm like, “It has to be at least 24 hours and it's only been maybe 12 hours of hard, active labor here. My C-section scar is strong. It's been over 7 years since my first C-section. We are both doing well. Yes, I'm sick. Yes, his heart rate keeps going up when we have a fever but when the Tylenol kicks in, his heart is going back down and his tracing is normal. Why would I have a C-section?” Meagan: The fact that you're having a fever is more likely to the fact that you are sick versus that you have an infection.Caylee: Yeah, exactly. They tested me when I got there and they knew that I had influenza B and I tested for Group B strep so I was just having to fight with another OB again which is really frustrating, but yeah. He ended up leaving the room and my doula and my nurse were both like, “Wow, you're amazing. I'm actually so impressed with you saying no to him.” I guess a lot of people just go with what the doctor says. Meagan: Well, I guess. Caylee: That is why there are so many unneeded C-sections. Meagan: Well, we've talked about it on the show where it's like, I didn't go to years and years of medical school, so okay, I guess. Same thing with me, I was like, Okay, and went down and had a C-section when I completely did not need a C-section. Caylee: You hope that doctors are saying that when it is actually medically necessary and not when it's convenient for them. I think he was getting like, It's been 24 hours. I'm almost off-shift. I don't know, but I was not having it. It was actually funny. When he texted me, he was like, Oh, you're 8 centimeters, but he's -2 position and not coming down. He was like, It's probably time to do a C-section. I was like, “No, it's not actually.” Meagan: Oh my gosh. He really wanted to do a C-section. Caylee: Yeah, so I was like, “No, I'm not having a C-section.” He ended up leaving the room and pretty much immediately, I had a super strong contraction. I jumped off the bed trying to get away from it because apparently, that can help. I kind of grabbed my nurse's shoulders, the poor thing. She is this tiny, little 20-something nurse. I grabbed her shoulders and my body was pushing. I was farting and things were moving down there. Meagan: I bet that baby was coming down quickly too. Caylee: Yeah, that quick movement. Popping up just brought him down and she was like, “Are you pushing?” My doula was like, “Well, that's a good sign.” I was like, “I don't think so.” But my body was just doing it and then I barely made it back on the bed before his head was out. Meagan: Oh my gosh. So was the provider even in there? Caylee: No. Nope, he was just leaving the room telling me that I needed a C-section because I wasn't progressing. Meagan: I know that he had left but I didn't know if she was beeping him back in like, “Come back in!”Caylee: I guess he was down the hallway at that point and his head was out. I made it back onto the bed thankfully. My nurse was down there taking the fetal electrode out of his scalp panicking a little bit being a nurse. She was like, “You need to keep pushing.” I'm like thinking in my mind, No, I need to rest for a second. His head's out. He's fine. I knew in my soul that he was okay. I took half of a second to rest and then my body was pushing again and he was out. Meagan: Oh my gosh. Caylee: He had the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck and his armpit. I thought that maybe was why he wasn't coming down. Meagan: It could be. Caylee: Maybe he was tangled up in there a little bit and couldn't come down fully but maybe that quick movement that I did to pop out of bed was just enough to let him come down. It was so quick. I was looking around. My doula ended up riding out into the hallway to call my OB back and my nurse was frantic. She was like, “This was my first baby I caught!”Meagan: Aw, and it was a VBAC. Caylee: Yeah, yeah. I'm looking around the room like, “Whoa. What just happened?” I went from 5 minutes ago being told it was time for a C-section to my baby on my chest. Meagan: Yes. Oh, that is amazing. You know, maybe that person needed to leave to also relieve some stress so baby could come down. That's another thought I had. Caylee: Yeah, I think that was it and maybe my baby was like, Yeah, we're not going for surgery, mom. Let's show this OB what's up. Meagan: Yeah, seriously. It reminds me– is it the tiger or the lion? I can't remember the thing, but when you are being chased or when you are in a hostile environment, you either tense up or you run or whatever. We've got all of these senses and you could have been like, Nope. I am not having this baby with you in this room. I've had enough of your C-section talk. So cool. So after, with all of the babies, but especially with this one because your levels were so bad, were there any complications? Caylee: I guess I did touch on this a little bit before. I forgot though during my birth story there, when they broke my water, because I did allow it earlier this time because I felt with my first VBAC that that actually helped speed things up a little bit. I did allow them to break my water and start Pitocin at the same time this time. When they broke my water, it was full of meconium. They weren't too worried about it. Thankfully, that OB seemed pretty C-section happy and he was still like, “Oh, no big deal. We'll just monitor him. It's okay. There is a risk there for aspiration, but it's not a total risk that that will happen.” So they were just monitoring that. When he came out, he was fine for being 36 weeks. He was breathing good. They wiped his face because there was the meconium on his face, but no. He was great. It was more me that I was worried. I was like, “Is he okay?” They were like, “He's fine.” Meagan: Good. That's so good to know. I was just curious because he was early, high levels, induction, fevers, all the things so that's so good to hear that he was really great. Caylee: Mhmm, yeah. Even my twins were 36 weeks, 2 days when I had my C-section. They were in the NICU for 2 weeks and that was just for feeding and growing. They didn't know how to suck and then with my now 5-year-old, he was totally healthy when he came out too. He was 36+4 at the time he was born because my induction took so long with him, but yeah. He was healthy. He did have jaundice quite badly though so he needed the bilirubin lights and then with my baby now, he also had jaundice but he was able to stay off of the lights. He was just under that level for needing phototherapy. That's pretty common with early babies anyway. I don't know if that had anything to do with cholestasis in general or if that was just them being early that it was more likely to happen.Meagan: Yeah, that makes sense. Oh, well thank you so much for sharing your story and talking more about cholestasis with us. Like you said, there is not a lot out there. It is not very common so it makes sense that it is not talked about that often. However, uterine rupture isn't very common but it is talked about all the time. Caylee: Yeah. Meagan: So you know, but it's good. It's good to be aware. It's good to understand the symptoms and what's going on and why so I'm so grateful that you shared your stories. I'm so grateful that everyone is healthy and happy and wonderful and you are smiling and have some good birth experiences and maybe some healing birth experiences. Caylee: Yeah, totally. Meagan: You showed yourself that you could stand up to pressuring doctors. Caylee: Yes. I honestly thank my doula for being there for my last birth because I don't know if I would have had the confidence to be that firm with such a pushy, “this is what's going to happen” doctor. We had talked about it previously that she can't say anything for me but that she will be there to support and give me the power to advocate for myself. I totally felt that power from her. She was amazing. I'd like to shout her out to Little Loves Doula in Red Deer. She was amazing. Stephanie, she's great. If anyone is in Red Deer, Alberta, definitely contact Stephanie from Little Loves. Meagan: Well, you know that we love doulas here and always encourage checking out a doula. We do have VBAC Link-certified doulas. She's got her doula. Yeah. Caylee: I think she was also VBAC Link certified. Meagan: Was she or is she? Caylee: Yeah. Meagan: That's so awesome. You can check out The VBAC Link doulas at vbaclink.com/findadoula. Let me tell you, it's so fun to see all of the doulas in all of the different states. We are growing within the States. And if you have a doula in mind who is not on the VBAC list, send them the link. We would love to have them and have them support our VBAC clients and our VBAC community. Thank you so much again. Caylee: Thank you. ClosingWould you like to be a guest on the podcast? Tell us about your experience at thevbaclink.com/share. For more information on all things VBAC including online and in-person VBAC classes, The VBAC Link blog, and Meagan's bio, head over to thevbaclink.com. Congratulations on starting your journey of learning and discovery with The VBAC Link.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-vbac-link/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

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