Join Kelly and Tiffany as they dive into tips for preventing common pregnancy discomforts.
In this informative episode they cover:
00:00 Introduction
00:22 Why Our Podcast has an Explicit Rating
02:11 Common Pregnancy Discomforts and Prevention
03:01 Listener Review Highlight
05:48 Preventing and Managing Pregnancy Discomforts
39:19 Things to Decline in Pregnancy Care
Links to all the extra good stuff:
Pranamat: Affiliate link with 10% discount: HERE
Things you can decline freebie: HERE
Join our email community + get instant access to our awesome Sleep Freebie: HERE
Browse all our favorite women’s supplement recommendations: HERE
Submit your answer-on-the-show questions: HERE
Join Kelly and Tiffany as they dive into tips for preventing common pregnancy discomforts.
In this informative episode they cover:
00:00 Introduction
00:22 Why Our Podcast has an Explicit Rating
02:11 Common Pregnancy Discomforts and Prevention
03:01 Listener Review Highlight
05:48 Preventing and Managing Pregnancy Discomforts
39:19 Things to Decline in Pregnancy Care
Links to all the extra good stuff:
Pranamat: Affiliate link with 10% discount: HERE
Things you can decline freebie: HERE
Join our email community + get instant access to our awesome Sleep Freebie: HERE
Browse all our favorite women’s supplement recommendations: HERE
Submit your answer-on-the-show questions: HERE
Welcome to At Home with Kelly and Tiffany, where naturally minded women gather together as we pursue simplicity and confidence in health alternatives, so we can show up better in our busy lives and feel more at home in our bodies. Join your favorite home birth midwife duo for conversation, candor, and community.
You are tuned into, at home with Kelly and Tiffany. You're so tuned in. You are tuned in and turned on. Hm. That's weird. You have the podcast turned on. Because you were tuned in. Yeah. You know, what's funny is this reminded me of the fact that our podcast next to it has the E for explicit. Simply because we talk about vaginas sometimes. And it just seems like, you know, I might make a joke in the introduction about being turned on. And that's not appropriate for all listeners. Yep. But it's not like, our explicit. Content is. Truly explicit. No, it's not like vulgar. No, we probably are. The only people who use explicit in a way that's just like a. Kind warming. Yeah. I felt like I needed to say that because I realized when I, you know, it was going through podcast stuff, I was like, oh yeah, that he is that's him. I think it's important for it to be there, but also. We knew say bad words. We don't have to sensor. Women's health topics. Kelly? No, the women, the woman's body, the biological woman's body is going to have to be censored. Vagina vagina, vagina. Wow. Just seems right. I don't know. I could say go, I could see it going both ways. Yeah. But I also don't want to, I don't want anyone to report our podcast because we're just talking about normal anatomy. Exactly. I'd rather put a little either and confused people all is fair in podcasting and. Love. Yup. I guess. So, Vagina. Not the last time. Today, we're talking about preventing common pregnancy discomforts. Literally things you can do ahead of even coming to the discomfort itself in pregnancy to make your pregnancy more enjoyable, more comfortable, but more importantly, empowering. Because sometimes just knowing the options and alternatives exist, changes everything about your approach to that particular challenge. Yeah. A hundred percent. I think most people are like pregnancy. This is just inevitable. Right? This particular discomfort. That's just part of being pregnant. Or even sometimes people will get that feedback from a provider or from friends when they ask, oh, there's nothing you can do about that. Cause that's just a part of being pregnant, but that is. Not true. It's not. And we're going to share some of that with you today. With the heart of just empowerment. Totally. But before we get started, we have a review. Hey, and I like this one. That's why I'm reading it on the show. Great. This is from may RSE. Z. Milagros. That's just the podcast I've been searching for. Let's go. And I just want to know Meg R Z. How, how were you searching for it specifically? What key words were you using? That would help us out quite a lot. Because you found it. Apparently that took you a while. I don't know. I'm just, I'm looking into it. Maybe too much, but this is what makes says, this is the only podcast I have listened to from episode one to present. Which is saying a lot because I have podcasts ADHD. Oh, yep. I understand that. Totally. There is not one podcast that ever listened to every single episode. And that's like, that is OJI status right there. May I love your review so far. She says Kelly and Tiffany are so smart and share their passion for women's health and midwifery in a way that is so relatable and entertaining. Hmm. I told you this is a good one. You gotta keep going. Most times I listen. I feel like I'm hanging out with girlfriends. Yes, Meg. You're our girl. I drink. I dream of the day I can move to the west coast so that they can be my midwives. My husband even agrees. We've got the husband on board. There is nothing left to even decide Nope. MIGS move into the west coast. Maybe you can move to the west coast. You, you can do whatever you want truly. But you're going to have to get to north county San Diego. The west coast is large. Yep. If you want us to be here. Just a hot tip for you. Yep. But we, we will be waiting for you. Thanks. Make a roux. We, I feel like we're friends now, too. Yeah, we are. And we were so friendly with you that you tell us, you heard us read this review and we will buy you a drink. And if you don't tell us that you heard us read this review, we're going to question if you actually listen to every episode. We might, if you take too long, Say that you heard our review. We might only buy like half a drink or something. We don't know. Prove your love to us. Prove your devotion make a roux. We just keep upping the ante. You need. You left a five-star review. Really wonderful words. Now keep proving your love. That's what it's like to be our friends. Kelly can probably attest to that. So we're really bringing you into the fold. It's hard work, but it's worth it. Okay. And what, as I was thinking about how to prevent, you know, common pregnancy discomforts, I actually linked, just made a long list of all the possible pregnancy discomforts that women could have. So, yeah, I mean, I was working on it for like 12 hours. Before I was like, we got to narrow this down because the list is long. And, and I want to get into that with you guys for sure. Cause that's why you're listening and I recognize but I want to share a cool product with you first. It's called the Pronto. Matt and it's an acupressure mat. And it makes me laugh to share this recommendation. And I will tell you why in a minute. I mean, cause it's just, it's a little bit silly. But what you can use an acupressure mat for, well, an acupressure mat is basically. Matt. With acupressure. Pokies on it. Ah, Ah, yes. And so there's all very pokey. All of these little round sets of pokies and they're all over the mat. And this particular map, the problem. Which is our favorite acupressure mat. Has like beads under it. So it's easy to shape to your body, but the part that's on top is just a lot, a little poke use. And the idea is that it. Pokes you and just stimulates a ton of extra circulation and blood flow and inevitably hits some of those acupressure points that just help your body to. You know, continue to balance and process and stuff, but there is some research backed by this particular mode of self care that it increases. Your ability to sleep better to handle stress better. It decreases pain and headaches. It can give you more energy, improve circulation and digestion and mood and blood pressure. And a lot of people use it for specific aches and pains, but it's been researched to help specifically with backache and you can apply it to any part of your body laying on it, you know, flat or on your side on your back is extremely easy and helpful and gives you probably the most surface area in order to treat yourself with this at home. And so I'm mentioning it on this podcast because I think. With my own. Opinion. That it is an awesome tool for pregnancy and even labor and postpartum. I think that it can be applied wonderfully to all those things. Prawna Matt asked us not to share that recommendation. It's a covered there, but whatever it has to be, because when I said, oh, please tell me more about that. The explanation for why pregnant women shouldn't use it is because. Because it increases circulation so much. It could, although it has never been reported or researched or documented, it could stimulate circulation so much. That it may potentially bring blood flow away from the placenta and baby. I'm really trying to hold it together. That is their assessment. Yeah. So I have to disclose that to you guys because we love this product, but I'm sure that they would want us to impart that information on to you. That they don't recommend it for a pregnancy, but we've had plenty of clients use them, especially that backaches that, right. Like putting it in their chair at work or, you know, for like lower back stuff, things like that. And. Have been very happy with their particular outcomes, but yeah. And if your circulatory system is so delicate, That it compromises your pregnancy by getting some pokies. On you then we're in. We're in a whole lot of trouble. Yeah. Your pregnancy is incredibly unstable. You've probably needed to be in the hospital being monitored constantly. One precaution. I will say if you use this while you're pregnant, which you know, would be. Perfectly fine. Decide to do that. Is you do want to watch your posture on it. If you're pregnant, maybe not lay straight on your back, but like elevate a hip or elevate your head or something like that because some women feel really uncomfortable on their backs in general. Some women have circulation issues. And just because of all the pressure of your growing baby that pushes on your spine, where your vena cava is and allows for a lot of blood flow to go through there. So we get the question all the time from pregnant women. Shit am I, I'm not supposed to lay on my back. Right. And we're like, whoa, well, I don't know. Technically laying on your back could compromise your circulation. However you are going to feel terrible if it's you. So if you're laying on your back, Back. And you are one of those people who should not lay on your back. You're going to be dizzy while you're laying down, you're going to feel clammy and like you're crawling out of your skin. You might even feel nauseous. So there's lots of signs. If you're getting some of that. Yeah. Circulation and PDM it happening on your back. Yeah, you'll you'll know, you will know, but if you're laying on your back and you're really comfortable and you don't have any of those issues, then you are, you are free to enjoy laying on your back as a pregnant woman. Yeah. And the mat itself before we move on, I, I. We both have this like three part. One of them is like a pillow that you put your head on. I used that recently. Well a few months now, but when I had an earache. And I swear, I just use the pillow and had it like under my. Like neck and lower part of my head. And I feel like it helped dream so much. Like I could actually feel the difference from when I put my head down to when I was done. It was crazy. I was like, I'm so glad I have. This tool here. Oh, I'm happy to hear that because I have like some, I don't know what it is. Reoccurring sinus pressure from the last cold that I had that while you were saying that it just cleared that it cleared your ear out. Made me think, oh, I should probably put that on the side of my face too. Yeah. It doesn't it, it as a PSA, it. Hertz when you first laid down or you're just like, woof. And then you take a few breaths and then you're like, oh, actually you can kind of like lean into the. Discomfort, and it's not as uncomfortable. Yeah. And there's lots of suggestions online about how to, you know, wean yourself into. Onto it. Maybe you start with clothes. Maybe only lay down for a couple minutes. Maybe you don't lay down. You just sit on it and lots of ways to utilize it, but you can get a 10% discount on a Pronto mat set with our code in the show notes. And so you can click there and. Maybe have one of those. One of those Tiffany moments where you, it gets on your list of something to consider in the future. As you continue to build out your natural health. Supply at home. Yeah, for sure. And I will say the, there are ones that are more that are cheaper, slash more affordable on places like Amazon. And I have seen, I've actually seen the difference between how the pokies hold up, how pokey they stay for, how long, how well the mat itself has made. So some people are like, I just don't know. Cause I'm looking on Amazon and finding these things and I'm like, yes, I totally understand. But it is worth it. To invest when you're looking for these types of health things. Yeah. The quality is unmatched. I have one from Amazon when, you know, a couple of years ago, I just wanted to try it out and see, and the difference is night and day. Yeah. Crazy. Well, sweet. Let's talk about some pregnancy discomforts. Don't mind if I do. So the problem here really that we want to address us, that women are usually solving for pregnancy discomforts as they are happening. And they're not usually aware that there are things that can be done ahead of time to help mitigate them. And often you bring these concerns to your care provider and you get some rote answer that you already read online, and you can just feel kind of stuck in thinking that. Well, this is just pregnancy. It's probably just supposed to suck a little bit. And then you carry on with the discomfort. And not that there are not things that you can do to treat it in that moment. And I'm sure if, sometime we'll do a episode on that too, but specifically today we're talking about just preventing because it is such a worthwhile thing to know ahead of time. Oh, there's things that I can do to prevent this, and it is going to blow your mind how much overlap there is. Yeah, for sure. And we always say that before you go into pregnancy. ANSI, right. Like going into it with as much health instability and vitality in your body as possible is always going to be worth it. Right. Focusing on that before you get pregnant is always going to be worth it, right? Things like your hormonal imbalance or your anemia or your thyroid issues, or just. Your your workout routine, or generally speaking, lack thereof, right? Or your nutrition or your sleep hygiene, all of those things. That follows you into pregnancy. And those things can definitely impact how comfortable, how challenging, how complicated pregnancy is. And so, I mean the midwifery model of care, just in general is all about support and prevention, right? From like, we don't want to be reactive, right? We want to be as proactive as possible. So this is absolutely worth the time and effort. Yeah, apps. I would agree with that. And in general, if you're going to put your, you know, eggs in any basket, good nutrition is going to take you the longest way on the road of preventing discomfort, but also preventing really big things in pregnancy like disease, processes, and complications and making you high risk, et cetera. And so there's so many things that can be prevented with really simple things like adequate protein. Getting enough minerals each day hydrating. Well, and it might disappoint you that it is that simple, but it should actually encourage you because there's so much that can be done. And so much that can be done. That is just plain good for you across the board. That no matter how you implement it, you can have benefits from it. And. I want you to walk away from this episode listener and feel like these are worthwhile things to be working on even before pregnancy or in the beginning of your pregnancy, or maybe you're at the end of your pregnancy. And you're like, I don't want to get these discomforts that I have at the end of my last pregnancy, et cetera. Yeah, it, it I think a lot of people, when we share things, whether it's this information or something about their hormones or something about, you know, whatever. We always want to go down to these foundational pieces and work right from the root up. And I think people are like, oh, That's not the answer I was anticipating. I thought I needed to do something to kind of like either cover it or a mask, a symptom, or, you know, something, but getting to that root part, right. Things like you just mentioned nutrition and. But even just moving your body and sleeping well. Right. All of those things, those really basic. How are you feeding your body? How are you moving your body? How are you resting your body? That's gonna absolutely. Change the way that you not only just live your life right. And feel in your body, but also how your body responds to the added stress of pregnancy, which pregnancy is a wonderful, natural, normal process, but it's a stressful one on your body. And so that's why we're like, Well, if we take the time to actually sow into this piece as much as possible, then we can prevent a lot of the things. Yeah. And I think what's really cool. I mean, one of the most inspiring things about the work that we get to do is that we're working with women who are in transformation. There's something that happens to us as a women and moms that like when we're pregnant, the. The perfect concoction of hormones. Stimulate something in us that makes us want to transform. We are so motivated to make changes, were so motivated to do the right and best thing for ourselves and our babies. And we are really invested in the experience. And so harnessing that is in this particular way is something that can carry women. Through pregnancy birth and beyond, and many, many women who have experienced midwifery care say that. That was very pivotal for them in their just general health was being encouraged to lean into some of these things. Yeah. Like what did, I mean, what did a great opportunity, right? That you have to be able to trust that and to learn more about that and just become more confident in your own ability to support your health. As well. Okay. So we are going to jump into common discomforts and how to prevent them before they even start. And I've got a list of, I don't even know, like, like 10 ish things here. Nine. I don't know. I tried to find the most common. Discomforts, and we're going to go through what they are and how to prevent them. And this just looks like in it at a particular point in your pregnancy, or even before you get pregnant? And having these rhythms in place already. And we're going to repeat ourselves many times throughout these particular discomforts. And again, you will not be discouraged by that. You will be encouraged that it really does all come down to a couple of simple tools and taking care of yourself that your body requires in order to keep things less complicated. Yeah. Health really can be. Simple. Even though it's. It's it's bigger than one answer. Right. But I mean, The answer to so many of these things kind of all is around a very similar crux of information that I think that's encouraging because you don't have to be like, Let me know these 500 things actually, let me just narrow my focus a little bit. Let me just like narrow. Let me get my protein right in my body movement. Right. And my sleep. Right. Great. How many things are now not on my list of symptoms of discomfort and whatever in pregnancy, because of that. Totally. Okay, so kicking us off is nausea. Specifically like morning sickness. That's something that I don't know, at least 50% of women experience in pregnancy to different degrees of severity. And the, the piece of nausea and vomiting in the first trimester is usually an abrupt change in hormones and a hormone. Just like dump in your body to transition from not sustaining life and then rapidly growing and sustaining a life inside of you. And that hormone fluctuation can cause a lot of blood sugar instability. So number one prevention for. Morning sickness is getting adequate protein in. And so when we say adequate protein in pregnancy, we're talking about like 80 to a hundred grams of protein a day, and it can be really difficult to implement this once you're already sick, because you do not feel like eating protein when you're feeling nauseated and pregnancy. Right? So the key here is really. Having a lifestyle of eating enough protein. There's also a big piece of vitamin B deficiency that correlates with morning sickness in pregnancy. And so being up. And consistent with like a B complex, especially B six for pregnancy. It's really important. And then mineral deficiency overall contributes to a lot of this type of a symptom picture, but magnesium specifically. It's something that you want to be taking every single day in order to kind of head this off because magnesium deficiency is related to tons of these pesky little symptoms in pregnancy. And it's something that almost all of us need to be supplementing with every single day. Yeah, absolutely. Man that pregnancy nausea is really just the worst, like the food aversion and whatever. It's such a hard cycle to get out of. But if you can stay on top of it. That's so good. Headaches, headaches are another one that we get asked about a lot. And so you are not going to be surprised again that the main culprit here or main support. Whatever protagonist is protein, right? Getting enough protein to support your system. So protein, certainly. And then we also have hydration. So it's something that's very easy to forget. Right? Hydrating yourself, especially if you're dealing with nausea and headaches. Right. But we see protein is going to help both of those things. And then being able to pull in hydration where you can. Adding in some trace minerals, a pinch of salt. I'm sitting in Epsom salt bath. So those kinds of things are all different ways that you can help encourage your body to not only be hydrated, but to soak some of that up as well. Dehydration is a very easy to kind of reach in pregnancy. And so just most likely or like most commonly just having to be on top of it and aware of it. And front-loading it. If you need to magnesium makes it a little way onto this one as well. Like TIF just said, honestly, magnesium deficiency in general. Is rampant and it can impact so many systems in our bodies. And so magnesium does a great job of calming inflammation, calming some of that tension stuff that's happening. And so a great one to have. On hand throughout pregnancy and throughout life in general for many different reasons. Considering your stress levels as well for this, like what is going on both physically and emotionally situationally, those kinds of things. And understanding how to manage that. Well, so tension headaches and just stress headaches. Are really common because there's just so much going on in your body and then in your heart and in your mind in this season of life. So. Utilizing all over your de stress. You know, all the tools in your toolbox that you can in hopes of just kind of calling that and then there's body work as well. Right? So like chiropractor, massage, things like that, chiropractic care in general can help a million different common discomforts and. In pregnancy. And so it would definitely recommend connecting with a prenatal chiropractor who is skilled in these kinds of things. Cause that we've seen make a huge difference for some of our clients. Absolutely. Next on the list is insomnia. Extremely common just in life, but especially in pregnancy, because there's just so much that is changing systemically and hormonally and all the things right. So again, we have protein as our number one tool for preventing sleep issues and pregnancy. Blood sugar. Instability is again a huge part of what can sometimes wake you up at night or make it difficult to fall asleep. And so getting enough protein, getting enough calories in general, a lot of pregnant women need to have a pretty hefty snack of protein and fat before they go to bed. And then sometimes depending on where you're at in your pregnancy, you need to have another good hefty snack. If you get up to pee in the middle of the night, Just to keep enough calories in just to keep your blood sugar stable. Movement is also a really important part of managing sleep cycles, especially if you can get outdoors in morning light, that is extremely helpful to your circadian rhythm, but just getting your blood flow going with like a nice brisk walk every single day. Is going to help you sleep better. And then of course, magnesium again. Magnesium is an important part of supporting melatonin, supporting your nervous system, supporting the way that your body kind of like winds down and repairs itself at night. And so. Using all of these tools can absolutely keep you from experiencing. More complicated sleep issues or potentially keep you from experiencing any sleep issues at all in pregnancy. That's good. We have been asked a handful of times about certain types of food cravings also. And there are lists everywhere that be like, if you're craving this, it means you're deficient in this thing. That's not always the case, but sometimes it is. And sometimes it's just an overwhelming desire, right? When you're pregnant to be like, what I need right now is that entire pint of ice cream or whatever. Like you just can't, it feels like you just can't live without it. And so usually that's your body just saying like, Hey one listened to me too. I need, I need some support here. Like my body. You know, it's just telling you, Hey, feed me, but feed me well and then decide what you want to do from there. Right? So protein obviously is making its way back onto this list as well. That is going to, if you, if you were having some kind of food craving, right. That just seems over the top or you're like, that's not necessarily quite what I should be eating right now. Always grab the protein first and then make decision after that. Right. Salt high quality salt. In your water, on your food, on your eggs on here. You know, wherever. It's going to help support your system as well. And that kind of ties in with the idea of minerals as well. So that could include magnesium, but we're talking about all different types of minerals. We're just a depleted deficient people when it comes to minerals because our soil is so depleted. So usually women do need. Kind of extra support there and then we'll go back as well to hydration. So being able to support your system holistically, giving it what it needs. At like the foundational piece and then you can work from there. Definitely not saying don't give into your food cravings, but provide your body what it needs first. Before moving from there. I mean, have you ever felt like really hungry and, but then you just drink some water and you're like, oh no, I was thirsty. I was confused over what my body was saying. Yep. I think that's really common in pregnancy is that we just aren't slightly dehydrated. Most of our lives. Most of our pregnancy, you have an increased need for hydration and pregnancy, and it's really easy. To get some intense cravings. Your body's just trying to tell you, you know, trying to tell you to get something and it just always feels like food. And then next we have swelling in pregnancy, which, I mean, I experienced this in both pregnancies and hot dang. I wish that I would have had the resources and information that I needed because it just felt like an uphill battle, especially that my last pregnancy I would have loved to go back to that Tiffany and just helped her along a little bit. Now, hold their hand a little bit. That's what you get to do now. Oh, the other Tiffany's out there. It's working so far. I feel like I'm making up for it. But you can prevent swelling, especially that, that norm, that somewhat normal end of pregnancy swelling that can happen in your legs and your feet, especially at the end of a long day. And what's really happening there is that your fluid is spilling out of your circulatory system. And so the plasma in your blood is, is being, is coming through a more permeable blood vessel and coming out into your tissue. And it's really difficult to get that fluid back. Into your tissue. And so the key to solving that and preventing it is again, eating more protein because protein helps your liver to produce albumin and albumin makes that blood vessel stronger so that your plasma can not come out of it. Also just general hydration so that you're so that you can stay hydrated and your circulation and fluids can keep moving freely throughout your body. And then along with that is movement movement helps too. Keep your circulation moving helps to keep your heart pumping helps to keep all of that fluid, just moving throughout your circulation versus getting stuck in certain areas. And so those are the three keys to preventing swelling. Yeah, it's really fascinating to me. There's a, you're like, oh, these are the keys for this thing. But also that is a similar key to this thing and similar, right. And so supporting our bodies in that way, then can decrease so many of these things. And that is the same thing for what we'll talk about now, which is moodiness. So those prenatal mood swings are no joke. And usually they do correspond with some kind of blood sugar instability. Certainly there's a hormonal aspect to. But when we support our systems holistically, we're looking at how much protein are you eating? We've already talked 80 to a hundred grams. So if you're feeling this moodiness, grab a protein snack, keep them around in different places. Right? Grab that real quick. Before you respond to anything. And see how you feel after that. Right? Movement moving your body is absolutely going to help. You just have a much more stable mood, much more stable, just outlook in general, when you are treating your body while you're feeling it well, and you're moving at well. And along with that rate, we're looking at protein, but we're also just looking at a generally balanced diet. We have seen some really incredible. Stability, like. Stabilization happen. When moms are like, oh, I'm realizing that I am feeling so off. And so like, At the whim of whatever my moods are because I've been fueling my body with just a bunch of carbs are just not what my body is actually needing. So eating a balanced diet in particular can really help this over the long haul, as well as trying to get your sleep hygiene in order, prioritizing, sleep and rest. And this. Is all true in pregnancy and beyond. Truly. Yeah. Next on the list is hemorrhoids. And this kind of goes along with like constipation in some ways too, because that's a really common. Issue. And so the idea is to just keep the bowels moving. The reason that hemorrhoids come up in pregnancy is because sometimes your digestive system is slower and it takes longer for you to get your bowel movements out. And sometimes your bowel movements are firmer because it's taking longer. And your hydration may not be quite so, T top and. Maybe you're not eating the same foods that you usually are. There's just lots of reasons that all of that can get a little bit off. But also pregnancy hormones just tend to like relax a lot of things in our bodies. And if you are depleted with certain vitamins and minerals, then you have a higher chance of having issues with hemorrhoids too. So keeping your bowel movements, moving with fiber, magnesium, lots of hydration, but then also adding in vitamin E is going to help to hold that structure of that blood vessel, whether it's in your legs or in. Here bottom, or really your volva, you can get, you know, varicose veins there to vitamin E is such a key to keeping that, that structure as strong as possible. Joy, joy, joy. Next their leg cramps also enjoy right. And so that's like, right. You're asleep and you're waking up and you're like, oh my gosh, this Charlie horse, or you're walking around all of a sudden, you're like having to grab and try to massage your legs because that muscle tension that is happening. So that is a very clear sign on our end. Certainly hydration is going to play a part in that, but mineral deficiency. We've seen women's experience with these leg cramps really change when they start supporting their bodies with minerals. And so don't sleep on the fact that you, your body may just simply be telling you, Hey I'm having this experience and it's because I need something here. And so minerals would definitely be the first kind of go-to moving your body, right. Even if it is quotes, just walking. Right. But having some movement physically throughout the day is going to be important even stretching and stuff before you go to sleep as well. And then one of our favorite T's kind of an herbal support piece is Nora tea. So nettles, oat straw, red raspberry leaf, and alfalfa. That mixed together, Nora, N O R a. Incredibly supportive of the entire system, really nourishing T kind of the catchall for a ton of these things in pregnancy. If you have never tried it. Hundred out of hundred recommend putting that on your list of something to support your body in pregnancy, but also into your postpartum as well. Yay. Okay. And then very last is back ache. And I feel like this is, this is just one of the top complaints for pregnant women, but it has a root cause there. And it's not just because. Your gravity is off center and your belly is growing and you're about your body is taxed. And those are all true things, but that is true for every woman. And when we look at what research shows us about women who experienced backache and pregnancy and women who do not, there is some common threads there including adequate care for your pelvic floor, your pelvic floor, and your core are very closely tied together and lower back instability is a part of that. Your back. Muscles and your core stability are a really important part. So get your pelvic floor evaluated in order to prevent EMM slash treat potential backache issues. And then you're going to continue moving throughout your entire pregnancy. It is really easy to become stationary at some point in your pregnancy and have a hard time getting back on the movement train. And so you can take small breaks for whatever is needed. What's happening in your body or what's happening hormonally or. Just feeling very fatigued in that first part of pregnancy, but then make a plan for getting movement back because women who move and use their muscles and have more improved circulation, have a less backache. And then we're going to make a plug for colleges because it supports connective tissue. It supports muscles, it supports joints and bones and tendons and helps to keep all of that soft tissue. As healthy as possible. And so that's a way to prevent backache. And then of course, hydration, it makes another appearance here. For something that we recommend to keep everything as lubricated as possible. So basically the, I know we spoke about the idea of between preventing and treating, right? We want to help you prevent these things from coming up. But if you're listening to this and you're like, oh man, I have the moodiness or the hemorrhoids or the leg cramps or whatever. You absolutely can treat these things with a lot of the same tools, right? And that's like the sweet part of holistic health. It's pretty awesome to be able to be like, I can do something beforehand, stay a step ahead. But also if you find yourself in a place where you're struggling with one of these things, start implementing these things and then you get to enjoy how your body responds to them. Right. And so it's empowering. Yeah, maybe a part of preventing for you is just not allowing it to. Go further. You know, maybe you're experiencing a little bit of this and you're like, I want to nip this in the bud right now. Nothing that'd be said here today is a hundred percent cure, right? Like you are not guaranteed that if you're eating enough protein and moving your body and having enough hydration and doing mineral. Supplementation that you're going to avoid all complications. However, if you take some of this advice, you are surely going to increase your chances of avoiding some of these discomforts and just having a generally better experience. With your pregnancy and your birth and your postpartum and just forever and ever. I think it just goes on and on when we implement some of these things as women. And sometimes we just need a little reminder. Yeah, for sure. And so we know some things that, you know, that you can do to prevent along those lines. Right. You may not know that there are things that right. You can do to prevent, and there are some things that you can do to actually like say no to. Right? So in, in your care, as you're moving along, you may be realizing like, Hey, this thing that I'm being offered is not really offering. Right. It's not really offered as an option, but here's what we're going to do next. Right. Oh, you have this particular issue. You are going to take your baby aspirin and that's just what you're going to do. Right. And you're like, wait a sec, I guess. I'm I supposed to just say yes to this? How are we not having this conversation? Right? So you may decide to say yes to whatever that offering is. And you may choose that kind of standard of care, but being an informed consumer and knowing the pros and cons of some of these things is actually the most empowering, coolest thing that we can do as women. Especially during this really transformative time to really step in and own our health, because it's not even just about us. It's now about our families. Right. So, it's pretty incredible to be able to be like, I can. I can piece this piece, this out right of you're offering me something, what do I want to do with that offer? So we created a free list of things that you can decline or refuse in pregnancy. So you'll see tests and procedures, all of the many ultrasounds and screening tools that can be offered to you in pregnancy. And so, yes, these are offerings and you will see here things that you actually can make decisions on. So then you can go research And the idea is that it's just a jumping off place for you to start doing research for you to really lean into that idea of informed consent and alternatives, just like we did today. Right. Just leaning into this idea of how can I. How can I support my body in a way that I personally want to, so we hope it just all around empowers you. There is a link in the show notes to go straight for that freebie of the things that you can decline. Or a few issues in pregnancy. Yay. All right, ladies. That was a lot of information in one episode. I just want to remind you, you can come back and listen to this again at any time. Hopefully it remains a great tool of resource and education to you, and hopefully you go download the things you can decline in maternity care. And start to see what some of those options are in your general span of pregnancy and birth stuff. Yeah, we hope you are leaving, feeling empowered and excited about some of this stuff. And we will see you next week. Bye.