Posts tagged: Giving Birth

Mama to be, Polly, chose our Navy Elephant Hospital Cuddle Box to bring her first baby home. She was kind enough to share the gorgeous photography from her hospital shoot by Heather Hackney, and they were so cute, we needed to get all the deets of what her first ever delivery was like... Q: What was the best baby-related advice you received before your baby was born?A: In the beginning to expect the routine to be messed up, sleep deprivation is a real thing! But eventually things will slowly go...

Chicago-based pediatrician and mom Dr. Payal Adhikari (@mommypmd) addresses more of your coronavirus (COVID-19) questions and concerns. Below she addresses questions on multiple topics, from pregnancy and deliveries to ordering takeout.As things continue to evolve daily, Dr. Payal’s favorite websites for accurate information are the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Read on to discover her helpful tips and be sure to tune into Monica + Andy’s Instagram live story every Monday and Thursday at 12on...

The epidural’s more popular than ever for pain relief during delivery (71 percent of all expecting mamas get one!) but what should you know before opting in—or out—of that go-to numbing med? Read on. It’s Ok (And Even Advised) to Get It Early To administer an epidural, doctors insert a tiny tube into your lower back, and you’ve got to sit super still for it. (Yep—hard to do when contractions are coming in fast.) So while you may have planned to tough out contractions for as long as possible before...

Welcome to The Delivery Room Dish—a place for new moms to spill on the highs, lows, and nitty gritty of giving birth. What you'll learn: there's no one 'right' way to have a baby, the delivery room is full of choices (even when labor doesn't go as planned), and every mom's got a birth story worth sharing. Up next: The Everygirl and The Everymom co-founder Danielle Moss, who gave birth to her daughter Margot in July.I realized labor was starting when: I was actually induced on my due date, so...

Until you’ve gone through it once, the bodily sensations of labor and delivery remain a mystery—all we’ve got to go off are the purple-faced women pushing out babies in movies, your mom’s ‘eh it wasn’t that bad’ brush off decades after the fact, and mom friends who, kindly, may spare you the hardcore details to ease your jitters. The pain of contractions (aka: the tightening of your uterine muscles, which helps dilate the cervix and shimmy baby down the birth canal) depends on a number of things—the positioning of your...

The coziest button-up pajamas, the softest baby coming home outfit, nursing mama must-haves, and superhero baby care essentials—our hospital bag essentials checklist has everything you need for a smooth hospital stay! Every new mom needs more than just a nursing pillow and a swaddle blanket in her hospital bag. You need to add in a body wash, pads, and some comfy clothes too. Take a peek at the video below for our ultimate hospital bag checklist (modeled by a M+A twin mama), and don't forget to share with any expecting friends.  ...

There’s really only one thing you can bet on when it comes to delivering a baby—unpredictability! Babies tend to arrive on their own schedule, in their own way. But there are lots of choices to be made in the delivery room, and before the action starts, it’s helpful to write down your preferences and hopes in a “birth plan.” (Because hey—even if that all natural water birth doesn’t go as planned, you’ve still got control over the music.) To get started, create a bulleted list answering these questions: Who should...

Welcome to The Delivery Room Dish—a place for new moms to spill on the highs, lows, and nitty gritty of giving birth. What you'll learn: there's no one 'right' way to have a baby, the delivery room is full of choices (even when labor doesn't go as planned), and every mom's got a birth story worth sharing. Up next: Monica + Andy's Director of Brand Strategy and Digital Content Jessie Mash, who gave birth to her daughter Maxine in November.The first sign of labor was: contractions I thought were Braxton...

Being told you’re having a caesarean section (whether it’s in advance of labor or smack dab in the middle of it) can feel a little unnerving, despite the fact that it’s pretty common. (32 percent of all deliveries are by C-section!) And while you can't always choose whether or not to have one, you can arm yourself with the facts well before your delivery date, says Jennifer Hollings, MD, an ob-gyn with the Richmond Community Hospital in Richmond, VA. (She’s had three C-sections of her own.) Here’s what to expect...

You've probably heard friends or fellow pregnant women talking about hiring a doula to help them through labor, delivery and early motherhood. But if you're new to all this, you may be asking yourself: What exactly does a doula do? Doulas offer physical, emotional and informational support to couples as they prepare to enter parenthood, says Lindsey Tjernlund of Minnesota-based Hummingbird Doula. Doulas — who are trained and certified through organizations like DONA — are most commonly known for helping out during labor and delivery, but a doula's services aren't...