If you place a newborn on mama’s belly or chest immediately after birth, they’ll instinctively pull themselves to the nipple. This is called the nipple or breast crawl. Baby mainly uses smell and what little eyesight they have to navigate—which is part of the reason that your nipple color darkens during pregnancy! It’s a bullseye for a hungry baby ✨
Dramatic, but we’ve all been there 😩 Toxic shock syndrome, or TSS, is a severe complication of certain bacterial infections; it's often associated with tampons because the blood that accumulates in a tampon can serve as a culture medium for the bacteria. Initial cases of TSS in the 80s were linked to to the synthetic materials that were used in super absorbent tampons at the time. Basically the material in the tampon and string acted as a ladder and Petri dish for dangerous bacteria.
Today, it's incredibly rare, affecting less than one out of every 100,000 people in the U.S. The earliest warning signs of the condition are flulike symptoms - vomiting, high fever, diarrhea, and muscle weakness - paired with a flat, red, sunburn like rash that can appear on the palms of the hands or soles of the feet.
Rare or not, here are some reminders for living your best tampon life:
• Avoid super-high-absorbency tampons if possible, and use the lowest absorbency that meets your needs.
• Make sure you change your tampon every four to eight hours at a minimum, and try to give your body a break. (The same goes for any item that remains in the vagina for a significant period of time, including menstrual cups.)
• Consider using a pad or nothing (free flowing) when sleeping to give vaginal tissues time to breathe.
• Choose tampons and pads that are organic and chemical free! I personally love @lovebeginswithl products ✨
One of the most common questions that I get is “can I have sex while I’m pregnant?”. The answer is YES—have all the consensual sex your heart desires! (UNLESS you have been diagnosed as a high risk pregnancy and your physician has instructed you to refrain. In which case, explore other safer methods of pleasure!) .
Sex during pregnancy is great for a number of reasons:
it’s a great bonding tool for you + partner
it’s a great way to feel sexy and grow confidence in your changing body
nipple stimulation encourages labor and strengthens contractions
orgasms release adrenaline which can reduce stress during pregnancy and labor
the hormone that starts contractions is oxytocin, which is the hormone that is released during orgasms
if partner is male, semen contains natural prostaglandins that help to soften the cervix, causing it to open
Positions can be tricky as baby + belly grows so be sure to get creative with which ones make you the most comfortable. Laying on your side or on all fours tends to be preferable—use lots of pillows! And don’t trip, your growing baby is protected in the womb and surrounded by shock absorbing amniotic fluid 😉
Growing up in Georgia, comprehensive sex education was virtually nonexistent in schools, but surprisingly, we did have a couple days of science-based sex education (with some conservative, Bible belt undertones, of course) when I was in middle school. We took a field trip to the Fernbank Science Center (I still love that place!), separated by sex, and learned about puberty, fallopian tubes, zygotes, and periods.
I’ll be honest though, the bulk of what I learned about sex came from sneaking and watching porn during my adolescent years. It wasn’t until fairly recently that I realized just how much those white male dominated narratives presented themselves in my own perceptions of what it meant to give, receive, and experience pleasure. Not to mention the lessons that I accepted around “ideal” body shape, size, and even body hair! The lies of capitalism and patriarchy can be pervasive AF, y’all.
I digress.
I’m grateful for spaces (and partners!) that have allowed me to explore, learn, challenge, and re-write narratives about sex, bodies, and pleasure. Please allow this to be that space for you.
Where did you first learn about sex? Did you have sex education in school? Did you learn about pleasure from that same source? I’d love to hear your experiences below!
📷: @theklabel + model: @alxgaliero
The phrase rainbow baby often describes a child born shortly after pregnancy loss of due to miscarriage, stillbirth or death in infancy. 🌈
Rainbows typically follow a storm, giving us hope of what’s to come. Having a baby soon after losing one may bring a slew of emotions, and many rainbow parents will tell you not all are positive emotions. Many who’ve weathered the loss and gone on to have another baby feel a tremendous sense of self-doubt and guilt at times. They may fear having a rainbow baby after loss in some way dishonors their baby who has passed, and that the joy of the next baby will prevent them from properly grieving.
But a rainbow baby doesn’t mean your loss should be forgotten. Rather, your rainbow baby will carry the torch of the love you will always have for the child you lost, and when you hold that precious baby in your arms, I pray that you’ll fully understand the meaning of the term. After the rain, LIGHT, HEALING, JOY, LOVE will come.
📸: @alexelle, one of our favorite rainbow mamas + writers
Your areola is the colored area around each nipple. Like breasts (and people!), areolas come in all shapes, sizes, and colors.
Areolas aren't just accessories for your nipples; they actually serve a function. Areolas have tissue and fiber that contracts so that nipples can get erect when you're chilly, aroused, or breastfeeding. When estrogen levels are elevated (during the follicular phase of you menstrual cycle or during pregnancy/breastfeeding), your areola can darken or grow.
For new mamas, the areolas act as a "bullseye" for a baby to find your breast and get milk (because babies have horrible eyesight), so the stark contrast between the areola and the color of the breast helps focus the baby's eyes on where to look.
(👆🏾That is def one of my Top 3 favorite facts about the female body! ) The body is incredible!
I’ll be doing #HumpDayAnatomy weekly to explore the reproductive and sexual body, so let me know if you have any body part questions!
