This episode has been sponsored by Beautycounter, whose mission (and mine too!) is to get safer beauty and personal care products into the hands of everyone. I know many pregnant women will be tuning into this episode as it is birth-related, and I also know that choosing safer products is something we tend to think about during pregnancy. Lucky for you, I've taken all the guesswork out of choosing better personal care products! For better safety and performance, I recommend choosing Beautycounter.
I am a total sucker for a good birth story. I used to read birth stories like crazy, yet ironically, I didn't during my pregnancy! Today I get to share with you the audio version of Ottava's birth story - my (our) breech, gentle, family-centered cesarean (c-section). Do you think I could have made that title any longer?!
It's our homebirth turned cesarean story, and it's one of beauty, because her birth was just that...beautiful. Through all of the changes to our desired birth, encouraging her (like a crazy person!) to flip from breech, we still made it a beautiful birth and fought for the best and healthiest birth possible for our little girl.
You may be wondering why I waited until her first birthday to get this podcast taped. The short version is, I just wasn't ready. I know I typed up her birth story a month after she was born. At that point I felt called to write it out, and typing it flowed out of me with ease. But saying it out loud and actually taping it was a big step for me.
Plus, this podcast didn't actually re-launch until January, so that's another reason. I didn't have to tape it until now ;)
In this episode you'll hear Ottava's full birth story. As I got done with it I remembered missing a few points or a few of my thoughts. I trust it is taped and presented the way God wanted it to be said. And I have to say, although I'm a little nervous to push publish, I really hope our story will bless you!
Decades of studies indicate that serious health issues (including but not limited to asthma, cancer, and infertility) are on the rise and are due in some part to our ongoing exposure to toxic chemicals—whether it’s in the shower, on our commute, while we eat lunch at a local restaurant, or when we clean our kitchens at home.
Over the past two decades, the European Union has banned more than 1,300 chemicals in the product formulas of personal care products and restricted the levels of over 250 more in such products. The United States has only partially banned 11 to date.
What’s worse is that the Food and Drug Administration (the agency that regulates cosmetics in the United States) allows companies to use chemicals known to be extremely harmful in the products we put on our bodies and on our kids’ bodies every single day, day after day, and to make their own judgments about safety.
IT'S TIME FOR A CHANGE.
At Beautycounter, we’re committed to a health and safety standard that goes well beyond what’s required by U.S. law: We’ve banned the use of more than 1,500 questionable or harmful chemicals through our "Never List”—all while ensuring our products perform and that they’re as indulgent as any other luxe shampoo, lipstick, or oil in the market.
IT’S NOT EASY WORK, BUT IT’S WELL WORTH IT.
This is about progress—not perfection. Because every little bit counts.
Thank you for listening to the Just Enjoy Health Podcast. I hope you are learning a lot and filling your toolbox full of healthy tools. You can help other women find the podcast and never miss an episode by subscribing to the podcast on iTunes and leaving a review or rating the podcast.
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