91. How America is Failing Mothers: Part 1

Motherhood Meets Medicine

Lynzy Coughlin

Medicine, Kids & Family, Health & Fitness

5 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 30 November 2022

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

There is no way around it - America is failing mothers. We are in a crisis of burn out, physical and mental health challenges, financial obstacles, lack of support at work postpartum, and more. Today you’ll hear first hand stories from American women who have, or are currently facing, all too common issues that come with being a mother in this country. They share about the lack of maternity leave, lack of health insurance options, physical and financial burden after birth, extreme childcare costs, and the overall stress of maintaining a career with children. My hope for this episode is to bring light to these very real issues that mothers face in America today. Mothers should not have to face these challenges alone. I strongly believe that the more we talk about these issues. the more we are able to change them going forward and create a better life for the next generation. Be sure to tune in next week to part two of this series. In this episode we discuss: Lack of maternity leave in The United States, and how it negatively affects families (and companies) The significant expense of childcare The shame that often comes with postpartum depression and anxiety Why women should not go six weeks after birth before seeing their provider Possible solutions for the challenges that mothers are facing Discount code from my sponsors: Get your first month of KiwiCo for free at kiwoco.com/lynzy Connect with Lynzy: Join the Motherhood Meets Medicine community at patreon.com/motherhoodmeetsmedicine Instagram: @motherhoodmeetsmedicine Sign up for the weekly newsletter here lynzyandco.com Disclaimer: This podcast does not provide medical advice. The information on this podcast is for informational purposes only. No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Three weeks after my second child was born, I got an email from my boss asking if I could go to
0:08.8	New Jersey, and I live in the South. So it was not a close trip. So it's a plane ride away for a meeting.
0:19.3	And I didn't really know how to respond to that because no. Of course, I couldn't go to that.
0:25.8	I was still bleeding. I was nursing my child every hour. And so I told her that I wasn't comfortable.
0:34.8	Did she really feel like she needed me? And she said, yes, we really did you.
0:39.1	And at that point, I felt like my job was in jeopardy, and I felt a little threatened. And so I had to go.
0:45.7	Hello, everyone. Today's episode is a bit different than usual. I wanted to give women this space
0:58.8	to talk about how America is failing mothers. And I had an outpouring of mothers reaching out to
1:03.2	share their experience. When it comes to motherhood in America, it does seem that we are working
1:08.2	against the grain and not with it. Whether we talk about the lack of the turning to leave,
1:13.3	the lack of health insurance options and significant financial burden after birth,
1:18.4	the infant and maternal mortality rates, the disproportionate rates in which black women and
1:23.7	women of color suffer from complications when compared to white women, lack of childcare
1:28.5	options, and the significant cost of childcare, or just the overall stress of maintaining a
1:34.7	career with children or staying home full-time with children. It's all incredibly difficult.
1:40.7	In the next two episodes, several mothers from across the US will share their own personal journeys.
1:46.7	My goal is to bring light to these very real issues that face mothers in America today,
1:51.6	because the more we talk about the issues, the more we are able to change them going forward,
1:56.7	and create a better life for our own children. Never underestimate the power of women,
2:01.5	and especially women who team together for positive change. Let's get started.
2:06.0	Just a little disclaimer before we start this episode, this podcast does not provide medical advice.
2:11.7	The information on this podcast is for informational purposes only.
	...

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