The Science of Motherhood

Today Dr. Steph and I talk about How and What to Eat during Pregnancy to make sure mamas set them up for a positive postpartum. How to pair foods to get more bang for your buck and maximising the nutrition content. Dr. Stephanie Pirotta is a registered dietitian, nutritionist and research academic specialising in evidence-based nutrition for improved fertility, PCOS and endometriosis.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr Renee White and Dr Micka Bertucci are the postpartum doulas and co-Directors of 'Fill Your Cup' Doula Village in Melbourne and Hobart. On today's episode they will walk you through the importance, value and how to create your own Village. Whether it be before you've had you baby or you've just moved to a new state! Renee and Micka give insights, tips and practical approaches to building your village right now, because we weren't meant to do it alone mamas!Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr Natasha Vavrek was born and raised in Launceston and is the clinical director at The Bubble and a consulting GP at The Bubble and Windmill Hill Medical.Today we spoke about women's health, fertility, pregnancy, postpartum and beyond. Natasha spoke candidly about supporting mothers through contraception, conception and birth trauma. I especially love Natasha's practice because she integrates her general practice with a POSSUMS accreditation in Neuroprotective developmental Care and collaborates with other likeminded health care professionals like social workers and pelvic floor therapists, providing holistic care to Tasmanian mothers. . Along with her Bachelor of Medical Science and Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (Honours) she was also awarded the RACGP Tasmanian Examination medal in 2013.Natasha is a mother of two young girls, a fierce feminist and current President of Soroptimist International Launceston.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

On today's show Dr Nikki Mills and I explore the world of tongue ties. One of the most hotly debated topics in the newborn babies arena, Dr Mills is an ENT and specialist in the area having recently published several seminal papers discovering the true anatomical structure of the frenulum.Nikki discusses the complexity of the tongue tie and why we have seen an increased rate of over 400% of frenotomies occur here in Australia alone. Dr Nikki Mills is a Paediatric ENT Consultant, who worked at Starship Children’s Hospital (New Zealand’s national children’s hospital) for 11 years, specialising in paediatric airway and swallowing disorders. She is now working in Nelson in the South Island of N. Nikki has a particular clinical interest in supporting mothers and infants having difficulty breastfeeding and is an IBCLC. Nikki recently completed a PhD on “The Functional Anatomy of Sucking and Swallowing in Breastfeeding Infants” that included research on ankyloglossia and she has numerous publications relation to this topic. Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr Susic, is a clinical research fellow in the field of obstetrics and a PhD candidate at the Microbiome Research Centre (UNSW). She also has a daughter Abigail who is 3 years old and has sever allergies, eczema, and Asthma.Dani has undertaken speciality training through the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG). Under the supervision of Dr Amanda Henry and Prof Emad El-Omar, she is working on the Microbiome Understanding in Maternity Study (MUMS) trying to establish if there are causal links or associations between the action and composition of microbiome during pregnancy and adverse pregnancy outcomes.Dani will study each woman and her baby for a year following birth. She is an enthusiastic team member and very passionate about the potential impact that this important scientific research will have on the clinical practice of obstetrics. MUMS will help inform the MothersBabies study, particularly in relation to the collection of samples from pre-pregnant, pregnant and post pregnant women and their babies.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Greetings from Tasmania! Today I chat with Tasmania's one and only CalmBirth educator, Cherie Chugg. Cherie began as a doula but quickly identified that supporting women as a doula was not enough. She wanted to reach a wider group of people and wanted to teach more couples about how to be prepared for childbirth. Cherie knew from her own personal experience that having an understanding of what was going to be happening in her own body helped eliminate any fears around childbirth. She was fortunate enough to have an amazing midwife that spent time with her every month explaining and teaching the things Cherie needed to know to prepare for birth. Cherie also had people beside her that understood what was going on and they could support, encourage and believe in her through the process. Calmbirth teaches this, it gives the women & her partner the knowledge they need to feel calm during the preparation time and the tools for when the time comes.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

My Own Birth is an Australia business run by two women, Sarah and Tess. They both are practicing, registered midwives and nurses. These beautiful ladies are on the frontline, seeing first hand what mamas are experiencing and the gaps in birth education. One of the things I really love about their biz, all the birth classes are private and tailored specifically for each mama. They provide evidence based and unbiased information to prepare mamas for a positive birth experience - whatever that may be. Each women will have a completely individual and unique journey to motherhood, so why should you all receive the same birth class?Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Jan has been advocating for women and birth in Australia for decades. She shares the reforms the Australian birth industry has undergone and the steps we need to take to move closer to the better birthing practices.Travelling around Europe in a Combi van with her husband in the early 70’s, Jan was one of the original flower children when she fell pregnant with my first child, Emma. The disempowering childbirth that delivered Emma spurred her on to midwifery training, which Jan completed at the Queen Victoria Hospital in 1975, going on to work at Monash Medical Centre for many years. Jan has been in private practice as a midwife for 25 years now and remains committed to avoiding disempowerment of the family during pregnancy, birth and beyond.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Elise & Katie are Melbourne based osteopaths who have been actively treating breastfeeding women for the past 6 years. During 2020 lockdown they launched their company 'Your Two Jugs' to educate more women about breastfeeding conditions. Their online video based course, Boobology, is available now with heaps of education and hands on techniques to teach women the do’s & dont’s for mastitis, blocked ducts & engorgement, including preventative strategies for long-term breastfeeding bliss!Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

In this episode we discuss the longitudinal data Professor Hannah Dahlen and colleagues from South Australia, UK and Netherlands elucidated when researching the long term effects of induction of labour of low risk mothers. The study included over 470,000 participants and collated data from over 16 years post-birth, which is the first of its kind. Hear how Prof. Dahlen developed the study, critically analysed the results and what is next to come from her research team. Hannah Dahlen is Professor of Midwifery, Associate Dean Research and HDR and Midwifery Discipline Lead in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Western Sydney University. Hannah is a leading midwifery researcher in Australia, with an international reputation as an outstanding midwifery scholar. This is demonstrated through publication of over 200 papers and book chapters, despite only being an active researcher for the past 10 years and maintaining clinical practice. Hannah has given papers at over 100 conferences and seminars since in the past 5 years with half of these being invited national and international keynote addresses.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Despite all her education and experience in the field of psychology, Stefanie Poole was not immune to the mental strain of motherhood. Stef talks candidly about her birth trauma and her experience with postnatal depression. What she did to recognise it and her everyday tools she uses to manage her diagnosis. Stefanie is a Mental Health Doula,™ counsellor, educator and mental wellness advocate who supports families to create and maintain a healthy heart and mind. She is the founder of Mumma Bees ™, (Peer Support and Training for Birthing Families), Birth Education For A Healthy Heart & Mind, ™ and Kindred Clubhouse.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr. Stephanie Pirotta is a registered dietitian, nutritionist and research academic specialising in evidence-based nutrition for improved fertility, PCOS and endometriosis.With a passion for women’s health and a dedication to quality dietetic research, Dr Pirotta's intention is to help women take better control of their health and bodies through evidence-based methods. Following the completion of her Masters in Dietetics and while working as a Dietitian, she felt compelled towards the specific area of women’s nutrition. Embarking on a PhD in PCOS, Steph set out to better understand the needs of women with this complex condition through research, and develop a co-designed, evidence-based, multidisciplinary lifestyle program that creates conditions for optimal personal health through nutrition.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr Pamela Douglas is the founder of the non-profit Possums for Mothers and Babies and authour of the internationally renowned book, The Little Discontented Baby Book in which she beautifully illustrates through evidenced based research how and why it is normal for babies to cry/fuss in the first 16 weeks of life.Pam has worked as an Australian general practitioner since 1987, with particular interests in sexual health, women’s health, and mental health. She is an Associate Professor (adjunct) with the Centre for Maternity Newborn and Families Research Centre MHIQ, Griffith University, a Senior Lecturer in the Discipline of General Practice at The University of Queensland. Over the past 15 years Pam has, with various teams, developed and published the pioneering evidence-base for Neuroprotective Developmental Care, or 'the Possums programs'. Her PhD employs both narrative and analytic approaches to examine women’s experiences of pregnancy, birth, and the early years of parenting.Pam is blessed with six adult children and stepchildren, and many very precious grandchildren.Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up of famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further. Oh and our Creamy Coconut dahl mix is to die for, just sayin'.Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Meg is a Physio, Mum to 3-month-old Akira, and the face behind Hey Mama Physio, a practice and movement studio dedicated to pre and postnatal Mamas. She has keen thirst for knowledge, is a nerd for scientific evidence, and has a passion for integrating that information into choices and lifestyle in simple and realistic ways. This is not only how she works clinically as a Physio, but is the basis of how she approached decision making during her own pregnancy, birth and postpartum, and now motherhood.Meg also has a big passion for helping women approach pregnancy and postpartum holistically and openly, encouraging conversations about all things including mental health, family dynamics, and pelvic floor issues including incontinence, pain and return to sex. Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr. Stephanie Pirotta is a registered dietitian, nutritionist and research academic specialising in evidence-based nutrition for improved fertility, PCOS and endometriosis.With a passion for women’s health and a dedication to quality dietetic research, Dr Pirotta's intention is to help women take better control of their health and bodies through evidence-based methods. Following the completion of her Masters in Dietetics and while working as a Dietitian, she felt compelled towards the specific area of women’s nutrition. Embarking on a PhD in PCOS, Steph set out to better understand the needs of women with this complex condition through research, and develop a co-designed, evidence-based, multidisciplinary lifestyle program that creates conditions for optimal personal health through nutrition.Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Anna Cusack is a Motherhood Revolutionist. As an author, podcaster, blogger and speaker, Anna reaches thousands of women every year with evidence-based information and inspirational, actionable content. Anna combines her knowledge in areas such as traditional postpartum care, breastfeeding support and exercise physiology to guide women through their transition to parenthood and early years of mothering. Her services include postbirth planning, in-home and online postbirth support, and mentoring for mothers and the professionals who work with them. Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Siobhan is mother, a scientist and an advocate for parents and families. She helps Science Minded parents, become more informed, giving you the confidence to make choices that feel right for you and your family.Siobhan holds a PhD in Child Developmental Psychology and has spent the last 10 years working closely with infants and families to understand all she can about children's social and cognitive development. After having a child of her own and engaging with mother's groups and online forums she noticed there was a lack of evidence-based information readily available for the Science Minded parent.She started Science Minded to bridge this gap and connect parents who are open to learning about their child and themselves. Knowledge is power, and being informed allows us to be confident in our decisions, parent without reservation and better connect with our families.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Dr Zali Yager is a body image and maternal mental health expert and researcher who is passionate about bringing all of the good stuff from universities to the real world. Zali provides an abundance of content around overcoming overwhelm, parenting stress and burnout, perfectionism in Mums. Learn more about Zali's new membership for mums in the messy middle of motherhood where you get all of the evidence-based, bite-sized, actionable information and resources you need to feel better, and be a more present parentFind out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Lily Nichols is a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist, Certified Diabetes Educator, researcher, and author with a passion for evidence-based prenatal nutrition. Her work is known for being research-focused, thorough, and unapologetically critical of outdated dietary guidelines. She is the author of two bestselling books, Real Food for Pregnancy and Real Food for Gestational Diabetes.Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up of famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further. Oh and our Creamy Coconut dahl mix is to die for, just sayin'.Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dr Nicole Highet, who is the Founder and Executive Director of the Centre of Perinatal Excellence (COPE). We spoke about the amazing resources COPE has to assist new parents during pregnancy, birth and beyond. But the most interesting and valuable takeaways were our discussions are risk factors of perinatal mental health disorders, birth trauma and the effects of COVID. Nicole has a background in clinical psychology, marketing, campaign development, and advocacy. Following over thirteen years at Beyond Blue as Deputy CEO, Nicole founded COPE in 2013 in response to the growth and success of Australian’s National Perinatal Depression Initiative (NPDI).Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

My goodness, this interview was an absolute HOOT! Meghan Telpner is a Toronto-based author, speaker, nutritionist, and founder of the Academy of Culinary Nutrition. She's written two bestselling books: UnDiet: Eat Your Way to Vibrant Health and The UnDiet Cookbook. Meghan's success in cultivating a global community of UnDiet enthusiasts and Culinary Nutrition Experts has garnered her a feature in Forbes, and ranked her as one of the top 100 female entrepreneurs in Canada. Alongside all her professional accomplishments, Meghan is a hilariously empowering woman. I found her discussion on letting go and not buying into mum guilt so refreshing. I hope you enjoy this interview as much as we did!Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

As a sociologist, Dr Sophie Brock's expertise is in observing human behaviour, in particular mothers. She works with professionals and mothers to understand the sociological construction of Motherhood and how this shapes individual mothers’ lives. Sophie advocates for a reimagined version of Motherhood that sees mothers supported, valued, and empowered. Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

Now it's Dr Renee White's turn in the hot seat. As a Type-A personality we explore the challenges of pregnancy and postpartum life, taking a 'break' in your career, sleep deprivation and ultimately learning to let go. Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.

There is one thing we know, and that is women don’t need MORE information, they just need the RIGHT information. Welcome to The Science of Motherhood, today we discuss who we are, how we got here and most importantly, why we started this podcast.Find out more about Fill Your Cup: World's First Biochemist Led Doula Villagewww.ifillyourcup.comInstagram @FillYourCup_Learn more about Dr Renee White and Fill Your Cup Postpartum Doulas:Want to be nurtured and nourished after the birth of your baby, have a peek at our doula offerings.If you want to gobble up our famous Chocolate + Goji lactation cookies, look no further.