The human placenta formed from a retrovirus 65 million years ago. That sounds crazy.  I thought so too, until I found this article. I did some research after listening to this video with Deepak Chopra and Sadghuru, where they were talking about climate change, and Covid 19. It is not a retrovirus, but all viruses do inform our DNA in some way. They are small bits of genetic information or coding. When I heard this I started to pay closer attention to the two wise men. After Deepak said that viruses were genetic information, Sadghuru then said that the human placenta originated from a vir ..read more

There are many questions regarding pregnancy and the Covd-19 vaccine.  First of all, nobody can tell someone else what they should or shouldn’t do. The better question would be, “Is the Covid-19 vaccine safe for pregnant women?” The answer is not clear because there hasn’t been any testing on pregnant women. This is where it gets tricky. They really can’t test the vaccine on pregnant women because they have no idea what the risks are, if any.   The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist came out with a Covid-19 Vaccine Advisory Statement. It’s an interesting ..read more

Oxytocin, the love hormone, could be the greatest defense we have against Covid-19.    There are several academic papers now proposing that Oxytocin is the antiviral to combat Covid-19. There is no definitive research, but it is promising. The hypothesis is that oxytocin is a natural DPP4 inhibitor, and the very same has been proposed as a treatment for Covid-19. Read the hypothesis here. I don’t want to get too bogged down in the scientific terminology, but I’d like to think that oxytocin, with all its benefits, is the one thing we can all give ourselves and each other. Huggi ..read more

I created a pregnancy game, Down the Canal – the Game of Birth for a fun way to learn about birth options. There are so many books to read and so many websites to visit, it can be overwhelming for expectant parents. How do they really know which sources are promoting the best available evidence? Down the Canal was created for easy access to the information, and to inspire further inquiry into the birth process. The goal is for people to play the pregnancy game and learn they have more questions. It challenges individual player to explore their own beliefs about birth. It is an inquiry into ..read more

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) defines a full term pregnancy as one that lasts between 39 weeks, 0 days and 40 weeks 6 days. After that time, a baby is considered post term.  Side note:  both of my babies were born around 42 weeks, perfectly healthy. Is there a point where a baby is past their “due date”, and a mother must be induced or have a caesarean section to get the baby out?  Many years ago Moms were given a window of time for when their baby could be born.  Moms today are fixated on the exact date they are given. Babies are born wh ..read more

“Why are my baby’s feet blue?” is a common question that new parents ask.  Being a new parent is like starting a whole new career, or living in another world. There are many questions and concerns that arise.  There is no cause for alarm if you see blue feet or hands. Most newborns have this feature after birth because they are getting used to the circulation outside the womb, and the extremities are the last part of the body to receive the blood flow. The technical or medical term for this is acrocyanosis. If you see this blue color on your baby’s body all over, particularly arou ..read more

What happened to common sense parenting? Sometimes I am amazed at what I read, see and hear about parenting. As a parent of two adult young men, I do know what it’s like to be a Mom with young children. There is much to do, and learn, and no shortage of people telling you how to parent your children. Fortunately, for me, my kids grew up before social media exploded into the go to source for every question imaginable. This was before Google was a verb. I learned to trust myself, or ask a friend or my Mom. There were times when I doubted that I knew what I was doing. Yet, no matter what, my h ..read more

Dieting when breastfeeding is not recommended, if it’s the kind of dieting where you give up lots of different food, and you’re hungry all the time. Dieting is really about lifestyle changes. If you are breastfeeding, you’ll want to eat a variety of healthy foods. Vegetables, whole grains, low fat proteins and fruit.  We all know what’s considered a healthy diet. If you’ve been a junk food junky your entire life, it will be challenging to suddenly stop eating all those foods you love.  Maybe you gave some of them up while you were pregnant. Dieting when breastfeeding might look li ..read more

There has been a definite rise in perinatal mood and anxiety disorders since Covid 19 struck our planet.  The headlines and front pages don’t always give you the news about important matters.  Mental health is still a taboo subject, and widely misunderstood. Pregnant women, and those that are brand new mothers can experience a perinatal mood or anxiety disorder, otherwise known as PMADs. This used to be called postpartum depression, before we knew that it could strike during pregnancy. Depression was only one of the mood disorders.  Pregnant women and women in the postpartum ..read more

Reiki is safe in pregnancy. Pregnancy can bring up a lot of emotion around body image, birth, and becoming responsible for a tiny human.  Being pregnant can stir up trauma that has long been buried.  Fear and anxiety is common during this time, and Reiki energy can ease the stress, and release blockages in the body. Everything an expectant mother feels, her baby feels. Stress in utero can have lifelong effects on an unborn baby. Reiki is universal life force energy. It is the energy all around us, and in us.  Matter is energy, and we are matter.    A Reiki practitio ..read more