Welcome to season 5!! This episode we have the marvelous Dr Sara Wickham back in the cauldron with us talking all about what’s in her new book Plus Size Pregnancy. Sara talks to us about:·      How women and families want, need and deserve better answers to their many questions about higher BMI and birth, and that midwives and birth workers need to know what the evidence says. ·      Clarification of what is the BMI and as Sara says “it’s a racist, sexist, classist” index created for complete different reason than for health! ·      We look at why a higher BMI comes with so many tests and limitations for birth and Sara talks us through the existing evidence.·      Are women with a high BMI more at risk of caesarean section, and if so what are the real reasons behind this?·      Why the phrase morbid obesity is utter nonsense and rooted in a much darker context.·      Sara delves into diet culture, it’s myths and the marketing behind it. ·      Weight bias and fat shaming in healthcare.·      And why using BMI is problematic in maternity care.You’ll hear all this and much more in this fabulous episode. LINKS:Plus Size Pregnancy bookDr Sara Wickham websiteSara on Instagram  @drsarawickhamSara on Facebook sarawickham.com Get 10% off Katie's Breastfeeding & Lactation: the fundamentals online course today with code POD10 at checkout. Support the show Please support the show via Patreon or BuyMeACoffee MERCH here! Music Joseph McDade Like this podcast? Leave us a review here Want more from Katie and Rachel? Katie's website Rachel's website DisclaimerThe information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute medical or legal advice; instead, all information available on this site are for general informational purposes only. The Midwives' Cauldron podcast reserves the right to supplement, change or delete any information at any time.The information and materials on the podcast is provided "as is"; no representations are made that the content is error-free. Whilst we have tried to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information we do not warrant or guarantee the accurateness. The podcast accepts no liability for any loss or damage howsoever arising out of the use or reliance on the content.

In this episode Rachel takes us into the world of ‘early labour’. She’s been promising it for a long while, and here it is. Get your lug’ols around this one! In this episode we discuss:·      What’s going on physiologically during this phase of childbirth·      Beta endorphins and how they work for us during labour·      The neocortex and what is so important about this part of our brain as we birth·      Why women in early labour who attend the maternity unit are often sent back home·      Early labour and the maternity system ·      How early labour interventions can be prevented·      We discuss birthing babies into your tights!·      And whether we can ever fully prepare women with prenatal education Get 10% off Katie's Breastfeeding & Lactation: the fundamentals online course today with code POD10 at checkout. Support the show Please support the show via Patreon or BuyMeACoffee MERCH here! Music Joseph McDade Like this podcast? Leave us a review here Want more from Katie and Rachel? Katie's website Rachel's website DisclaimerThe information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute medical or legal advice; instead, all information available on this site are for general informational purposes only. The Midwives' Cauldron podcast reserves the right to supplement, change or delete any information at any time.The information and materials on the podcast is provided "as is"; no representations are made that the content is error-free. Whilst we have tried to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information we do not warrant or guarantee the accurateness. The podcast accepts no liability for any loss or damage howsoever arising out of the use or reliance on the content.

Welcome to the biggest episode yet! Well not really, but we have met a milestone I couldn’t have fathomed 3 years ago on 20th July 2020.  It has hit home what has happened over this time and how this 'little' podcast has grown into something really fantastic. And this is due to my dear friend Dr Rachel Reed, our amazing guests who have so kindly donated their time to come on, and to all of you who listen in each episode and make the effort to share it, talk about it, grab a bit of merch to promote it, those of you who have financially supported the show and also those of you who have written in with your stories which have often bought me to tears. I am humbled and really bloomin grateful. This is a bonus episode just for you. You will not hear anything about birth, midwifery, or breastfeeding! Be warned! This is a listener special where we asked you guys for your questions about us!So what will your lug’ols be filled with today? ·      Katie’s story of a bag of crisps called Keith·      Rachel dancing to Oliver Twist ·      How surprisingly we both chose very similar people to invite to our dinner party!·      But don’t talk to Rachel about bananas or pineapples·      We reminisce on going clubbing together from 11am on public holidays in Newcastle upon Tyne, in the UK. ·      We let you in on what we got up to at our midwifery university graduation·      And finally … how Katie got chased by a lion. Should make for good listening… not educational listening at all, but if you are up for being told a story or two then grab a cuppa and sit down with us in this special episode!Support the show Please support the show via Patreon or BuyMeACoffee MERCH here! Music Joseph McDade Like this podcast? Leave us a review here Want more from Katie and Rachel? Katie's website Rachel's website DisclaimerThe information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute medical or legal advice; instead, all information available on this site are for general informational purposes only. The Midwives' Cauldron podcast reserves the right to supplement, change or delete any information at any time.The information and materials on the podcast is provided "as is"; no representations are made that the content is error-free. Whilst we have tried to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information we do not warrant or guarantee the accurateness. The podcast accepts no liability for any loss or damage howsoever arising out of the use or reliance on the content.

In this episode Katie talks to Zainab Yate. Zainab is a Biomedical Ethicist, with a specialist interest in infant feeding. Zainab is Vice Chair and named qualitative lead on a paediatric flagged Research Ethics Committee Panel for the Health Research Authority (HRA) in the UK.  She's also been a volunteer breastfeeding peer supporter with the NHS for a number of years, is the owner-author of the resource site for mothers and healthcare practitioners on Breastfeeding / Nursing Aversion and Agitation and author of "When Breastfeeding Sucks".We discuss what is breastfeeding aversion & agitation, and what is D-MER (dysphoric milk ejection reflex)? We look at the differences between the two. And ask what do clinicians need to look for specifically?Why does D-MER and breastfeeding aversion occur, how long it normally lasts and what can be done to support women who experience this? We talked about what "being touched out" means and how to deal with it. And we take a dive into when the euphoria does not happen immediately after birth. This is such an incredible episode full of lots of really thoughtful insights, I know you will get a lot out of it. Enjoy. LINKSZainab Yate  Differential diagnosis article Zainab Yate Breastfeeeding aversion article Alia Heise – D-MER D-MER resourcesRecent research on D-MER https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36705232/ Get 10% off Katie's Breastfeeding & Lactation: the fundamentals online course today with code POD10 at checkout. Support the show Please support the show via Patreon or BuyMeACoffee MERCH here! Music Joseph McDade Like this podcast? Leave us a review here Want more from Katie and Rachel? Katie's website Rachel's website DisclaimerThe information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute medical or legal advice; instead, all information available on this site are for general informational purposes only. The Midwives' Cauldron podcast reserves the right to supplement, change or delete any information at any time.The information and materials on the podcast is provided "as is"; no representations are made that the content is error-free. Whilst we have tried to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information we do not warrant or guarantee the accurateness. The podcast accepts no liability for any loss or damage howsoever arising out of the use or reliance on the content.

In this episode I take Rachel and you into the world of underhand marketing tactics going on right under our noses from the commercial milk formula (CMF) industry. In Feburary 2023 the Lancet and WHO released a new 3 part series discussing the marketing of CMF. Rachel really did wonder if this would be of any interest to our listeners and I promised her that within a few minutes her knickers would be in a twist ... and they were!  This is not a discussion about whether formula milk should be used this is a look at the often horrifying goings-on that are, in a large part, leading to women all over the globe feeling robbed  of their breastfeeding wishes, hopes and experiences.  In this episode you will hear about: Who first patented infant formula and why.How we are all being subversively targeted with underhand tactics. How the CMF industry raises profits by casting doubt on mothers milk and pathologising normal baby behaviours: how often babies breastfeed or typical crying which is OK. How much the CMF industry is worth The impact the CMF industry marketing has on the health costs for individual countires. Political lobbyingTax evasionAnd we lay it out - is there any difference between a tin of formula  which costs 9 or 28 and where to get safe information about formula. We discuss whether there is a need for toddler and growing up milks.And we take a look at the estimated cost of unpaid work from breastfeeding. Don't fret, we leave you with some actionable places to go from here!LINKSThe Lancet series and webinarShort explanation video about The Lancet and WHO series First steps nutrition Breastfeeding and formula supplementation – the Get 10% off Katie's Breastfeeding & Lactation: the fundamentals online course today with code POD10 at checkout. Support the show Please support the show via Patreon or BuyMeACoffee MERCH here! Music Joseph McDade Like this podcast? Leave us a review here Want more from Katie and Rachel? Katie's website Rachel's website DisclaimerThe information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute medical or legal advice; instead, all information available on this site are for general informational purposes only. The Midwives' Cauldron podcast reserves the right to supplement, change or delete any information at any time.The information and materials on the podcast is provided "as is"; no representations are made that the content is error-free. Whilst we have tried to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information we do not warrant or guarantee the accurateness. The podcast accepts no liability for any loss or damage howsoever arising out of the use or reliance on the content.