Fruit of Labor Placenta Encapsulation

12/30/2025

Children often save their most intense emotions for their mothers because they see her as the ultimate “safe base” to release stress and be their unfiltered self, trusting her co-regulation (calming presence) to soothe their nervous system after holding it together elsewhere. Their nervous system literally attunes to the mother’s, and showing big emotions is a sign of deep trust, not defiance, indicating they feel secure enough to “fall apart”.

▶️Why this happens (The Science):
📑Safety & Trust: A child’s nervous system recognizes the mother (or primary caregiver) as the person they can fully trust to handle their big feelings without judgment or threat, allowing them to drop their guard.
📑Co-regulation: Mothers help calm a child’s distressed nervous system through mirroring (heartbeat, breath) and soothing. This teaches the child self-regulation.
📑Mirroring the Nervous System: A child’s internal state (heart rate, stress hormones) mirrors the parent’s. A mother’s calm presence is medicine; her anxiety can become the child’s “normal”.
📑The “Safe Field Effect”: When a child sees their mother, their brain gets a signal they’re safe to release pent-up emotions from school or other situations.

▶️What it looks like
📑“Saving the Worst for Last”: They might behave perfectly at school but have meltdowns at home because the tension has to go somewhere.
📑Not Misbehavior, but Release: The tantrum isn’t defiance; it’s the child letting go of stress in the one place they feel secure enough to do so.

▶️How to respond
📑Regulate Yourself First: Your calm is their medicine. Take deep breaths to signal safety.
📑Validate & Connect: Say, “You held a lot in today. It’s okay to let it out now”.
📑Offer Presence, Not Logic: Their logical brain is offline. Offer connection, gentle touch, and calm, not lectures.

Studies also show that when children don’t have this secure attachment to lean on, it negatively rewires the child’s brain.
Read more here: https://www.news-medical.net/news/20250612/Unpredictable-caregiving-rewires-the-braine28099s-threat-response.aspx

12/17/2025

The American Academy of Pediatrics now warns that sleep training before 12 months can disrupt attachment and nervous system regulation. The concern is not parenting style but biology. Babies’ brains are still wiring safety signals through proximity.

In the first year, infants cannot self-regulate. Their nervous system relies on co-regulation with caregivers. When stress rises, closeness to a parent helps settle the amygdala, lower cortisol, and signal safety. Room-sharing is a natural way to provide this support.

Sleep training too early teaches babies to manage stress alone before their brains are ready. Calm is not learned by isolation under stress. Instead, infants need repeated, responsive soothing so regulation becomes internalized over time.

Parents who previously sleep trained are not failing their children. They acted on the information available in a culture that often prioritizes independence over developmental readiness. Understanding the science changes how we view early sleep strategies.

This research emphasizes that proximity wires safety. Babies learn calm through closeness, not isolation. Early care that meets stress with support builds secure attachment, emotional regulation, and lifelong resilience.

12/04/2025

This is cool - watch this cranio sacral work on this infant
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8U48Smx/

11/24/2025

Who likes dates? 🤷🏼‍♀️🥰

An incredible study found that women who ate 6 dates a day in the last 4 weeks of pregnancy were...

• 74% more dilated when they arrived at the hospital
• Had a 77% shorter first stage of labor
• And were 42% less likely to need a C-section

So what makes dates so powerful?

Dates are packed with nutrients that actually prepare the cervix and uterus for labor.
They influence oxytocin receptors, which means the body responds more effectively to the natural hormones that trigger labor.

They also contain prostaglandins that help ripen (soften and thin) the cervix,
and tannins that encourage stronger, more efficient contractions.

On top of that, dates provide natural sugars and fats for energy during labor,
plus calcium and serotonin to support the body through the intensity of birth.

Some studies even suggest dates make the uterus more sensitive to oxytocin—
leading to smoother, more effective contractions and shorter labors.

This is also why women who eat dates late in pregnancy are far less likely to need a C-section.

The most common recommendation is to start eating 6 dates a day from 37 weeks until birth.

I’m a midwife and a home birthing mama,
and I was encouraged to eat dates in my own pregnancy and honestly, I think it helped me.

Share this with a pregnant mama, or save it for later 🖤

Did you eat dates in late pregnancy?
What was your experience?

11/19/2025

100%

This!

11/09/2025

Dear Dads,
If your baby mama is breastfeeding,
she’s using 25% of her body’s energy
every single day
to produce milk for your baby.

For comparison?
Her brain only uses 20%.

So if she’s tired, overwhelmed, touched out, or just quiet…
please know she’s not “doing nothing.”

Her body is literally working overtime
to keep your baby alive, nourished, and comforted.

Be gentle.
Be kind.
Ask what she needs.
And do it, without her having to ask.

Because when she’s holding everything together…
she shouldn’t have to hold herself up too.

Tag a dad who shows up ❤️

Or share this with someone who needs to read it…

11/02/2025

During birth, a woman’s body can experience pain up to 57 units that’s the same as breaking 20 bones at once. 😳

And she still apologizes for yelling, worries about how she looks, and thanks everyone afterward.

Women don’t “give birth.”

They survive it.
They conquer it.
They become someone else because of it. ❤️

10/19/2025

10/10/2025

Oh interesting! 🤔 who likes Dates?

An incredible new study found that pregnant women who consume just 6 dates a day in the 4 weeks leading up to their due date were 74% more dilated upon their arrival to the hospital, had a 77% shorter first stage of labor and a 42% lower rate of caesarean sections.

Eating dates in the late stages of pregnancy lead to higher cervical dilation upon hospital admission because the fruit contains nutrients that influence oxytocin receptors, preparing the cervix and uterus for labor by increasing muscle response to oxytocin and other labor-supporting hormones. Dates are a rich source of energy from natural sugars and fats and also contain prostaglandins, which contribute to cervical ripening. Additionally, they provide serotonin, calcium, and tannins, which contribute to powerful uterine contractions.

Eating dates in the late stages of pregnancy shortens the first stage of labor due to their ability to stimulate the production of prostaglandins, which promote cervical ripening (softening and thinning of the cervix) and increase uterine contractions. Dates also contain tannins, which have a similar effect, and provide a natural sugar source for energy during labor. Some studies even suggest that dates can increase uterine sensitivity to oxytocin, leading to more effective contractions and a quicker and smoother labor process.

These actions are also the exact reason why women who eat dates in the late stages of pregnancy and far less likely to need a c-section!

The most common recommendation is for women to begin eating 6 dates a day starting in their 37th week of pregnancy.
PMID: 40322306, 21280989

SEE ALSO: https://www.pelvicphysio.co.nz/the-sweet-secret-to-a-smoother-labour-dates

10/03/2025

While it doesn’t make me laugh as much as the minnow bucket 🐟 cooler I once received, I did get a little chuckle at tonight’s placenta pick up in the Buc-ee’s cooler 😆.

09/19/2025

🔥 😍 probably my most favorite print I’ve done