Tiny Little Hearts Podcast
This podcast is about Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), complex medical journeys, parenting through uncertainty and the deep resilience of walking through big life changes.
Hosted by Katelyn McMahan, a mom to three girls whose life was changed in an instant when she found out her youngest daughter had complex cardiac abnormalities. She went searching to hear about kids with a similar diagnosis and wanted to see the life they were living. She didn’t want the curated, polished stories so she could prepare her heart for the good, bad and ugly.
This podcast does just that and highlights conversations from individuals, parents, medical providers, and others navigating the very real and overwhelming world of congenital heart defects and other medical complexities. You’ll hear honest conversations, practical advice and space to feel seen and understood.
Tiny Little Hearts Podcast
13. When “Fed is Best”- Our Feeding Journey From Tube to Table
In this personal episode, host Katelyn shares details about the feeding journey- from challenges to small wins with her daughter Goldie, who was born with congenital heart defects (CHDs). From navigating tube dependence to completing an intensive feeding therapy program, Katelyn opens up about one of the most isolating aspects of caring for a medically complex child. If you're a heart parent or anyone dealing with pediatric feeding challenges, this episode offers hope, practical insights, and the reminder that you're not alone through any of these isolating tasks you now assume as a medical parent. Katelyn discusses how the prenatal diagnosis shaped the feeding plans, especially having struggled through the societal demands of “breast is best” with her oldest daughter and talks through the evolution of Goldie’s feeding and nutrition journey– from tube to completing an intensive feeding therapy program that kick started the tube weaning process. She talks about setting appropriate expectations for yourself and your child, what false hopes she experienced throughout the beginning stages of a feeding tube, and how she shaped her perspectives and managed expectations along the way.
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This episode was brought to you by the Pivot Ball Change Network.