Sonia is a former educator turned health coach. She developed preeclampsia suddenly at 34 weeks pregnant with her second child. This was during covid quarantine, and she was teaching from home while caring full-time for her toddler daughter. Sonia didn't have much time or energy to care for herself.

She also didn't have many in-person visits with her OB. Most of her appointments were virtual and she was responsible for taking her own blood pressure.

During one of her virtual appointments, Sonia's OB reminded her to take a blood pressure reading. It was high, and she was advised to go to the hospital, where she was told her blood pressure was dangerously high and she would have to stay and deliver her baby.

Extremely upset by this news, Sonia worried about leaving her daughter suddenly, as she thought she had a few more weeks to spend one-on-one with her. She was also upset as this was something that came out of nowhere. She didn't have a history of high blood pressure or preeclampsia.

Sonia attributes the sudden onset of preeclampsia to her lifestyle at that time: she was mostly sedentary, teaching from home. She didn't have the time, energy, or resources to make herself a priority during covid quarantine.

After this scare, Sonia made some big changes in her life. She currently runs her own business helping other teacher moms make themselves a priority and meet their health goals. Listen in as she describes what it was like to develop preeclampsia unexpectedly, give birth during a pandemic, and take charge of her health in a way she hadn't before.

Weight Loss for Teacher Moms Podcast

Preeclampsia Foundation
Institute for Integrative Nutrition

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Natalie is a second-time mom and co-host of The Golden Hour podcast. Last year, I spoke with Liz, the other co-host of The Golden Hour podcast, about her postpartum anxiety. In this episode, Natalie shares her battles with prenatal and postpartum mood disorders.

After Natalie's son was born, she had postpartum anxiety. That anxiety was never fully resolved before she got pregnant with her daughter, and it carried over into her pregnancy. Natalie struggled with prenatal anxiety and depression, calling her doctor's office often, asking them to check her daughter's heartbeat. She found herself crying often and overthinking everything. For someone who is usually very optimistic, this was out of character for her.

After her daughter was born, Natalie began to have bouts of rage. It started with her daughter waking up in the middle of the night and not going back to sleep. The struggle continued when her daughter got frequent ear infections, and couldn't tolerate breastfeeding due to a dairy allergy. Natalie would find herself yelling and punching pillows, and needing to walk away from the situation to calm down. She describes it as an "out of body" experience.

Listen as Natalie shares about her struggles with prenatal and postpartum mood disorders, what has worked for her, and the advice she would give to anyone dealing with the same thing.

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Allison is an intuitive medium and owner of Souls of a Feather where she offers readings online. In this episode, she shares her experience with both prenatal and postpartum mood disorders.

Allison suffered from PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), and tried for two years to get pregnant. She finally decided to take a break from trying to focus on her health. She asked her doctor for birth control and in the time it took to fill the prescription, she got pregnant.

Allison suffered from severe hyperemesis gravidarum which landed her in the hospital for a week. She had gestational diabetes which turned into hypoglycemia. Instead of being excited about her pregnancy, she felt anxious and paranoid.

Postpartum only seemed to be worse for Allison. After a traumatic birth, she felt anxious and couldn't sleep. She was in the hospital multiple times for severely high blood pressure, and it was brushed off as anxiety. She still couldn't sleep. She was shuffled back and forth between her OB and her primary care physician, even though she was asking for help. Allison finally ended up in the hospital and spent several weeks recovering at her mother's house, away from her baby.

Allison's story is a reminder of just how important it is to support mothers while pregnant and after giving birth. She says there aren't enough resources or education on mental health issues. How can we take care of the babies if we can't take care of the mothers?

Postpartum Support International- 1-800-944-4773

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