Embracing Birth Kitsap Doula

08/08/2021

Girls deserve better.
(www.twitter.com/ida_skibenes)

07/02/2021

06/17/2021

I woke up one morning and decided my implants had to go.

06/15/2021

I wish I had a sure cure for morning sickness; I know just how awful it can be. While there’s no magic pill, here are some things that can:
1. Keep your blood sugar steady and don’t let your tummy get empty. Carbs (crackers, rice pasta, toast) can help and adding protein can keep your blood sugar steady
2. Know your triggers: car rides, specific foods, and smells, etc. Figure out what makes you nauseated and do your best to avoid those things, and ask your partner not to either because those things can linger in the kitchen, in the house, and in the air.
3. Ginger root has solid studies behind it showing that it can help prevent and offset prenatal nausea when it starts. The standard dose is powdered ginger in capsules - up to 2 gm/day, but I preferred homemade ginger ale, or when desperate and out and about , even a Reed’s ginger beer will do the trick! Sip slowly.
4. Vitamin B6 is one of the best supplements for prenatal nausea, and it's an amazing supplement for women in general. For prenatal nausea, start at 25 milligrams and you can work your way all the way up to a total of 100 milligrams a day.
5. Mint aromatherapy works wonders. I recommend putting a few drops of peppermint oil on a cotton ball, and putting that in a tiny glass bottle, like a small tincture bottle. Close and keep on hand, so that whenever you get nauseous or if you are about to do something that might trigger your nausea, smell the oil.
6. Eat or sip on sour things - grapefruit juice, lemon water, ‘kraut or pickles,umeboshi plum candies - whatever works for you.
7. Rotate through the options because what works one day may not the next.
8. Try SeaBands - they can really help!
And last but not least - be gentle with yourself. Take it day by day. Rest. Breathe. Go for short, slow, barefoot walks and feel the breeze on your face. And, remember, that this too shall pass.
(Note: These tips can also help a bit with hyperemesis - but more help is often needed, so if vomiting is severe or persistent, please see your midwife or MD for extra help).

06/03/2021

Did you know that we experience about 400 menstrual cycles in our lifetime?! That’s about 2000 days of our lives - and IMO a good reason alone to know more about how your menstrual cycle works. But even more so, knowing your menstrual cycles is key to understanding your body, hormones, and wellness at the deepest levels. ⁠
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Unfortunately most of us are taught so little about how this amazing process works that we grow up pretty much in the dark about how to pay attention to and interpret them to find out what’s going on (I started tracking my cycle when I was 15 who’d a known this would become cool someday!). Now, with 40 years, of paying attention to my cycle as part of my deep body knowing, I can say it’s truly been one of the deepest roots of my hormone wisdom and empowerment, helped me not get pregnant, helped me plan my fertility, and now in menopause, has helped me respect my body and all of her evolution over these decades so profoundly.⁠
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My newest blog and podcast at the link below is a menstrual cycle 411, a look at very important foundational basics of how your cycle works (it’s more than just your period, in fact ovulation is the queen of the show!) and goes into:⁠
❣️ What a healthy menstrual cycle is⁠
❣️ The 4 phases of your cycle⁠
❣️ Glands + hormones involved in creating your cycle⁠
❣️ Cycle changes from puberty thru menopause⁠
❣️ How to get to know your cycle⁠
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The more you know about your own hormones and cycles, the more you can live in harmony with - and even influence what’s happening below the surface, and the more you understand how to tap into this powerful vital sign we have that we can use month after month as a ‘scorecard’ of our total health.⁠
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This stuff is so important that I dedicated two chapters of my new book, Hormone Intelligence, to helping you gain a deeper understanding of the language of our cycles and hormones, what’s normal, and what’s not (hint: common and normal aren’t the same thing). And know that it’s powerful and valuable at any age, even if you’re not cycling anymore, because the health of our cycles at any age sets the stage for our health at the next stage.

https://avivaromm.com/how-your-menstrual-cycle-works/

05/26/2021

05/23/2021

05/22/2021

This is giving us all of that “end period stigma” energy! 👏💖