BDA Baby (Before, During and After Baby)

This week, I’m joined by Dr. Sarah Reardon—better known as The Vagina Whisperer—for an important and empowering conversation about pelvic floor health. Dr. Reardon breaks down why understanding and caring for your pelvic floor is crucial through every season of life—from menstruation and pregnancy to postpartum recovery and menopause.    We talk about her new book Floored, why pelvic floor issues like urinary leakage and painful sex are so common (but not normal), and why pelvic floor therapy shouldn’t be reserved just for after having a baby. Dr. Reardon also shares what a pelvic floor PT session really looks like, the surprising changes your body goes through during menopause, and how we can better advocate for ourselves in a healthcare system that often overlooks these issues.    Whether you’re years away from kids, deep in postpartum, or navigating perimenopause, this episode is packed with information every woman should know. Order her book here: https://amzn.to/4dTqC09 Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video! 

Lo Bosworth joins us today to chat all about gut health! After educating herself on the connection between gut health and all other facets of health, Lo was inspired to found Love Wellness. Love Wellness is a women’s wellness brand that focuses on vaginal, gut, and hormonal health. Lo tells us that one of the most overlooked parts of gut health is its connection to vaginal health. Believe it or not, the gut microbiome can impact vaginal wellness as well! Lo has so many great insights and encourages all women to get in touch with their microbiome health. Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video!

Many moms struggle with their mental health after giving birth. For some, this might be a sign of a more serious problem. In this episode, Sarah Wynter joined us to share her experience with post-partum psychosis. Sarah shares how her psychosis developed, and how some of her symptoms manifested. She also tells us the story of how she got help, and women who stood by her side to make sure she got the help she needed. Sarah hopes that by telling her story, other women who have had or are dealing with post-partum mental health struggles will feel less alone. If you or someone you know is struggle, help is available. Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video!

This week, I’m joined by Christina Perri — singer-songwriter, mom, and now children’s book author — for a truly special conversation.    We talk about how becoming a mother completely reshaped her life and career, the real work she’s done on her mental health, and what it’s been like turning her song “A Thousand Years” into a children’s book. Christina shares openly about the highs and lows of motherhood, the importance of therapy, and how she’s learned to stay grounded and present in the chaos of raising young kids.    She also shares her journey through loss and healing, how she’s teaching her daughters about emotions, and why putting her mental health first has made her a better mom, partner, and person.    This conversation is raw, emotional, and so full of heart — I hope it leaves you feeling seen, supported, and reminded that you’re not alone in whatever season you’re in. Order her book here: https://amzn.to/4kscuxy  Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video! 

Jamie Kern Lima joins us this week to share all about her experience with surrogacy, and how why she chose surrogacy on her path to motherhood. Jamie tells us how she founded and sold IT Cosmetics while at the same time struggling with such an emotional fertility journey. Eventually, Jamie and her husband decided to pursue surrogacy, and today we walk through to whole process from selecting a surrogate to welcoming her babies. At the time, Jamie’s book Believe It had just come out as well, which is so inspirational whether you are dealing with fertility struggles or not. Jamie has such great insight into the surrogacy process, and she hopes that sharing her journey will help other people feel empowered in their own journeys to parenthood.  Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video!

This week, I’m joined by Dr. Morgan Cutlip—psychologist, author, and someone I absolutely love learning from—to talk about one of the most common and complicated parts of relationships after kids: the mental load. You know, the endless invisible checklist running through your head, the nagging feeling that you're doing more, and the challenge of keeping your relationship strong through it all.   We talk about how hard it can be to explain the mental load to your partner without it turning into a fight, why resentment builds (and how to let go of it), and the real link between how supported you feel outside the bedroom… and how connected you feel inside it.   Dr. Morgan also shares what surprised her most while writing her new book, A Better Share, including the role communication plays in keeping couples close—not just as parents or roommates, but as partners who still want to have fun, laugh, and yes, have great sex.   This is one of those episodes that I think every couple can relate to. I hope it makes you feel seen and gives you some tools to take back into your own relationship. Order her book here: https://amzn.to/3ZFrpfd  Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video! 

Having kids can be expensive, and this week Rachel Cruze joins us to give us all the tips on how to budget for babies and beyond. She starts with how to budget before the baby is here, and how to prioritize what you really need to spend the most money on when prepping for baby. We also cover how to save for the medical expenses that come along with having a baby, and when it might be worth it to pay for extra medical insurance. Rachel also has some money saving tips for when our kids grow up into children and teens, like spending more up front on higher quality toys. She also tackles the issue of budgeting for IVF and fertility treatments for families that are considering those options. Rachel has so much great advice in this episode, and she hopes her work can help parents feel less intimidated by the financial side of raising a family!  Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video!

In this deeply honest episode, psychologist and author Dr. Jessica Zucker returns to BDA Baby to talk about her new book “Normalize It” and the personal experience that shaped her path. After experiencing a traumatic second-trimester miscarriage at home, Jessica made it her mission to break the silence around pregnancy loss and maternal mental health. We talk about how stigma, shame, and silence continue to affect women across all stages of life—from girlhood through motherhood—and how storytelling can be a powerful tool for healing. Jessica shares what it was like to grieve while working as a therapist, how her loss led to the viral I Had a Miscarriage movement, and why creating space for women to speak openly is critical. If you’ve ever struggled with how to support a friend through loss, felt isolated in your motherhood journey, or needed permission to speak the hard truth—this conversation is for you. Listen now on all podcast platforms and order her books below. Normalize It: https://amzn.to/44HUni2 I Had a Miscarriage: https://amzn.to/3H3Hp4q Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video

Pregnancy can be hard enough without having to deal with the complexities of grief. Today, Hunter McGrady sat down with us to share some of her experience with losing her brother when she was seven months pregnant. She explains the confusing feelings she felt while trying to process her grief while also being excited to welcome her baby boy. Hunter says her faith and her family got her through. We also touch on the nuances of plus size pregnancy, and Hunter’s experience with body image as a plus size person during and after pregnancy. Hunter hopes that by showing her own honesty and vulnerability, other women will know that they are not alone. Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video! 

In this episode, I’m joined by clinical psychologist and author Dr. Nikki Pensak to talk all about the postpartum brain—what’s really happening neurologically after birth, why it can feel so overwhelming, and how we can shift the narrative from “mom brain” to one of strength and growth. Dr. Nikki breaks down the science behind the brain’s transformation in motherhood, explains why this time can leave us feeling so emotionally rattled, and shares practical tools for calming new mom anxiety. We also talk about postpartum depression, anxiety, and OCD—how to know when something is more than just “baby blues,” and why early mental health support is so crucial.  Whether you're currently postpartum, supporting someone who is, or just curious about the incredible changes that come with matrescence, this episode offers powerful perspective and helpful takeaways. Listen now and check out Dr. Nikki’s book, Rattled: How to Calm New Mom Anxiety with the Power of the Postpartum Brain here: https://amzn.to/3ERPIzH Please join us on YouTube for our full conversation and many more on video!