Stacie the Brainy Doula

03/31/2024

When your cat is restless and needy, but you have to get things done

06/08/2023

04/14/2023

I'm an almost 5-year-old's lab assistant -- I have been renamed "Celery." We often have another assistant, "Tomato" with us. "Carrot" takes extreme, close-up photos with my phone, and sometimes we send them to the boss at the main lab, AKA Mom. Carrot creates mobile labs for us in the high foxtail and mallow weeds under the blossoming cherry trees. We hear the bees buzzing above us. We lie back in the green and gaze above at the blue. We have snacks, sing-alongs, and we try to make Tomato laugh. What a gift to share a piece of childhood with these two sweeties!

02/09/2023

I remember that day, lol. It does surprise me, the things they stay in my mind.

02/07/2023

! A handful of years back I made these graphics for a bunch of local tongue tie groups in different states. I made this one first because I live in California. Looking at it like this, no wonder so many babies have issues -- we have a lot of babies!
Don't let the idea that it's "happening everywhere" take away from your unique experience of what is happening with you and your baby.
Seek help. Get an evaluation from someone experienced with ties who has resources for you. Learn your options for treating or ways you can try to work around things. You and your baby deserve support!

02/07/2023

Off to teach a class! It was so much fun, lol. Two couples -- did you know if you want a private class, and you have a pregnant friend or relative who'd like to attend, you both get discounts? Yep! And I travel to meet you! Tonight's class was in Hanford. Tomorrow night I'll be teaching at in Bakersfield. Have toys, will travel!

01/31/2023

There is no way to look at a baby's latch on the outside and know what's happening on the inside! We want to believe a provider can magically figure out our problem with a quick glance at a baby nursing. Unless your baby had their mouth fully examined and assessed, with fingers and perhaps a grooved director (tool), a simple peek doesn't tell the whole story.

01/30/2023

01/29/2023

This was the same birth where I ate my lasagna at the table right next to the placenta in a bowl 😆.

01/27/2023

I love asking people how they feel before we start a series! It's always fun to see how they answer. And this way of asking with faces is one of my favorites.

01/24/2023

Tongue-Tie Tuesday! It's true, babies with ties can take in air (aerophagia) as they compensate to swallow, leading to reflux-like symptoms. Often we turn to medications to help babies with reflux. But what if it's because of a tie and not because of underdeveloped muscles in the esophagus? If the tie is addressed, the reflux can stop. I personally talked to my baby's doctor about reflux meds, but I didn't like the idea of what they might do to his gut health. Luckily I figured out he had a tongue tie and lip tie. After releasing those, his "reflux" stopped overnight. He also used to do this funny thing where he would chew up my ni**le to latch (also called an "incremental latch"). He couldn't sense the ni**le in the right place, so instead of opening wide to it and closing it when he felt it against his palate, he had to slowly bring it in, unsure if it was what he wanted. His vaulted palate wasn't used to things touching it, so he didn't feel comfortable or safe until he had enough experience and desensitization to the roof of his mouth. Anyway, that incremental latch also stopped overnight, he never did it again.
~
Once his tongue could work in a more optimal fashion, things improved greatly for us both.
~

01/22/2023

We direct a lot of energy planning for our baby's birth. But what about feeding? I recommend a thorough breastfeeding class while you're pregnant. Learn the basics. And then know where to get support when you need it!