​This episode was recorded in April 2021 but is being released now in November 2021. There are two reasons I am sharing this...even though it was recorded months ago.  This was recorded when I was having an anxiety attack. My chest was tight, I was worried and overwhelmed. It's important to share the reality of what an anxiety attack can "look and feel" like. Not everyone experiences anxiety the same way and one individuals anxiety attacks are not all the same.
This is also relevant because it was recorded at the time that many adults were able to be vaccinated in the US and, for many, the world was opening up again, but I was still feeling trapped and nervous since both my children are under 12.
Now that kids 5-11 are able to be vaccinated, this is still relevant for many, like me, who have kids under 5.  My oldest is immunocompromised but was able to get his first shot yesterday, but my youngest is 2...so we are still in this in-between more comfortable but not 100% comfortable stage.
I found this new re-entry and re-opening anxiety in April 2021 and what is sure to come in the next few months again to be very similar to the momxiety of having a newborn at home and leaving the house for the first several months postpartum.

​I always say little things make a big difference.  Today I'm sharing how two little emails on a Saturday night sent my mind down an all too familiar panicky spiral and how I was able to use the old adage, "Prepare for the worst, hope for the best" to bring my mind back from the downward spiral.

​As if finding childcare wasn’t hard enough, finding childcare while having two kids who can’t get vaccinated and one who has a compromised immune system, during a pandemic is insanely hard…AND anxiety-producing! Listen in on my thought process during this challenging time.

​Marlene Spence and I chat about how you can use routines and structure to reduce tantrums, managing our own overwhelm, and so much more.
Marlene Spence is a Mom, Wife, Child Behaviour Specialist, Parenting Coach, Founder of Cornerstone Family Services and the Creator of Reward’um™, the first re-stickable routine chart for families. She has over 21 years of experience supporting children and their families who have experienced challenges related to autism, ADHD, anxiety, developmental delays and executive functioning. Overwhelmed parents and educators go to Marlene when they want practical, step-by-step strategies to manage challenging child behavior. 
Her mission is to shift parents and educators from feeling frustrated and hopeless to feeling relieved and hopeful. She empowers parents to raise what she calls R.I.C.H kids™, which stands for Responsible, Independent, Confident and Happy Kids despite their current challenges.

Connect with Marlene Spence:
www.marlenespence.com
www.rewardum.com
IG: @cornerstonefs
IG: @rewardums
Parenting Scripts Free Download

On this episode of the Momxiety Club Podcast you'll learn about the COVID-19 Vaccine and how it can help your breastfed baby from Bridget E. Young, PhD.
​Dr. Young is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. She leads a human milk research lab that studies how bioactive components of breast milk impact infant growth and development. Dr. Young is part of a national team that has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic to study the SARS-CoV-2 virus and antibodies against the virus in breastmilk from COVID-19-infected mothers. Her group is also studying how the COVID-19 vaccine impacts breast milk composition.

​​When you receive any news that is not what you expected it can be hard. You never know how long it will take to set in or when it will hit you. When my oldest was diagnosed with a chronic illness the big 'hit me' moment was three years later!
In this episode, I talk about how having a stuffed animal ripped apart by our puppy brought it all together.

Last week was Random Acts of Kindness Week. I asked some moms to share about random acts of kindness they have received or done to help new moms. Listen in and hear their great responses.
An update: There are lots of great things and guests on the horizon. Momxiety Club Podcast will be taking a little hiatus in order to prep, plan, and record these future episodes. 

Meet Carly Sachs, a mom of two lovely ladies who is passionate about talking about the reality of motherhood. She blogs about making the transition to motherhood, parenting, awesome products, and staying sane at The Mamma's List. Carly shares about her postpartum and breastfeeding experiences, why she started the Mamma’s List Blog, and how her youngest was diagnosed with FPIES (Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome).
As a way of paying it forward, when you join the Momxiety Club, your first month’s fee is donated to a charity that benefits families and children who are handling a chronic illness or disability. 

After having my second child  I didn’t recognize my postpartum anxiety because it was completely different than the worries I had with my first. I even remember telling my general practitioner that my anxiety was way less than the first time (boy was I wrong)!
I didn’t realize or acknowledge that postpartum anxiety could be manifesting itself in feelings of failure, lack of feeling connected to the baby, feelings of anger and rage, and feeling like my family would be better off without me because I was just adding to the people my husband had to take care of.

Despite what I had been told during previous calls and visits to his pediatricians' office, blood and clots in a 2-year-old’s stool is not just toddler constipation and NOT normal. Listen as I share the story of how my then-two-year-old was diagnosed with Very Early Onset Inflammatory Bowel Disease. I’ll share how helpful trusting your mother’s intuition or ‘gut’ can be, how isolated and jealous I felt of moms with “normal” healthy kids, and how chatting with a mom in the gymnastics waiting room lifted a huge weight off my back.
You’ll hear more about:

•  Timeline for the beginning of the diagnosis process for Very Early Onset Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• CT Scan, Labs, and Stool Samples, and EGDs
• Could it be Celiac’s Disease, Meckel’s Diverticulitis, or something else?
• Similarities between new motherhood and my experience mothering a child with a chronic illness
• Feelings of Gratitude, Fear, Guilt, Anger, Jealousy, Questioning, Sadness, Grief, Anxiety
• Why movement is so central to the Momxiety Club no matter if your baby is brand new or was brand new a decade ago.