Chatty Doulas

In this episode, Emily and Kristin—who is tuning in all the way from her travels in Chile!—sit down with Mitzi Kincade, a Denver-based postpartum doula, psychedelic breathwork facilitator, and practitioner of traditional Mexican postpartum healing.
Mitzi shares her raw, personal journey navigating severe postpartum depression, anxiety, and a multi-year loss of identity following a high-risk pregnancy and C-section. From hitting rock bottom to finding profound healing in community circles, Mitzi’s story is a beautiful testament to the fact that losing yourself once doesn't mean you're gone forever.
Quick Takeaways:
The Power of La Cuarentena & Warmth: Mitzi explains the traditional Mexican practice of the first 40 days of postpartum—focusing on absolute stillness, head-to-toe care, and reintroducing warmth to a healing body through herbs, teas, and ventosa (fire cupping).
The Closing of the Bones: Discover the profound, full-body wrapping ceremony used to symbolically close a major life chapter and step into a new version of yourself, even years after giving birth.
Intention over Expectation: Why shifting your mindset away from rigid expectations prevents disappointment and opens the door to true healing.
Cathartic Release Through Breath: How sober, diaphragmatic breathwork can unlock stored trauma in the body, break down boundaries, and give women literal permission to scream and take up space.
Connect with Mitzi:
Business: Connect with Mitzi locally in the South Denver metro area or virtually across the globe via her website at  https://www.soulfulnessbreath.com/ or instagram at soulfulness_breath
Don't forget to subscribe for more honest conversations on the reproductive journey!

Welcome back to Chatty Doulas for Season Two! While Soly is away soaking up newborn snuggles, Emily and Kristin are kicking off the season with Alexi Neal—a holistic postpartum doula and trauma-informed somatic healer.
In this episode, we dive into how birth fundamentally changes us and why learning to listen to our bodies is the ultimate nervous system care. Alexi breaks down how to move away from transactional relationships with our physical selves, navigate the survival biology behind intrusive thoughts, and reject the isolation of modern "bounce-back" culture.
Quick Takeaways:
Acceptance vs. Resistance: Why "radical acceptance" triggers the parasympathetic "rest and digest" state your body needs to heal.
The Myth of Isolation: Why our mammalian brains actually crave a safe, chosen community rather than an isolated "honeymoon bubble."
60-Second Micro-Tools: Practical somatic exercises (like horse-lip breaths and targeted self-touch) you can do in under a minute while holding a baby.
Connect with Alexi: Grab her free Somatic Reset Menu and Postpartum Planning Guide at soulfullsomatics.com, or find her on Facebook (Alexi Neal) for updates on her upcoming workshops for birth workers.
Subscribe now so you don't miss an episode this season!

In this episode, we’re talking about pushing. What this stage of labor looks like and what it can feel like. We unpack the myths, the pressure, the coaching, and how pushing can be powerful instead of rushed. If you’ve ever wondered whether you’ll know what to do in that moment, this conversation is for you.

Active labor can feel powerful and overwhelming all at once. In this episode, we talk about coping strategies, partner support, and how to trust your body when the waves get stronger.

The final weeks before birth can feel tender, intense, and uncertain. In this episode, we explore how to prepare your body, mind, and support system while making space for rest and trust.

Menstruation and fertility are often talked about in fragments or not at all. In this episode, we bring the conversation together, exploring how cycles work, how fertility shows up differently across seasons of life, and why body literacy matters.

In this episode, we explore cannabis use during pregnancy, lactation, and the postpartum period through a harm-reduction and evidence-informed lens. This conversation is not about judgment or fear, but about supporting informed decision-making, reducing stigma, and creating space for honest, nuanced conversations around cannabis and parenthood. We are all cannabis-informed doulas, and Kristin is a cannabis educator and the founder of the Mary Jane Doula Collective.
 
Mary Jane Doulas: https://www.maryjanedoulas.com
 
Cannabis and Lactation Blog: https://www.maryjanedoulas.com/blog/cannabis-and-lactation-separating-fact-from-fear 
 
State Laws: https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/maternity-drug-policies-by-state
https://legislativeanalysis.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Substance-Use-During-Pregnancy-and-Child-Abuse-50-State-Summary.pdf
 
 
 

n this episode, we explore prenatal bonding and the relationship that begins long before a baby is born. We talk about what bonding in pregnancy can look like, why it matters, and how connection doesn’t have to be perfect or constant to be meaningful. Whether bonding feels natural, complicated, or somewhere in between, this conversation offers reassurance, perspective, and gentle ways to build connection with your baby in utero.
 
https://birthpsychology.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Z3sC25KO-1.pdf

Think of this as your starter bookshelf for pregnancy, birth, loss, parenting, and taking care of yourself. Honest conversations about the books that matter and why they stuck with us.

We’re taking you inside our doula journeys with some of our favorite birth stories from both our careers and our own lives. The raw moments, the sweet ones, and everything in between.