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Host Elsa welcomes doula and doula mentor Ann Morris, a mom of three based in Lawrenceville, Georgia, to discuss motherhood, birth, and postpartum. Ann shares how her first fast, intense hospital birth in New York City—ending with an ambulance ride and a late-pregnancy doula hire—sparked her passion for birth work. After becoming a doula, she planned and had a peaceful home birth for her second baby in Florida and emphasizes learning from positive birth stories and preparing for postpartum, especially breastfeeding support. She describes postpartum anxiety, exclusive pumping, and relationship strain after her first, then recounts her third birth in Georgia: challenges accessing home birth care, a hospital pivot after her water broke days early, and a last-minute chiropractic adjustment that helped trigger labor, culminating in a rapid surprise baby girl. Ann highlights grace, informed choice, and trusting God-given intuition.

00:00 Meet Ann Morris

00:29 Podcast Intro

00:58 Motherhood Origins

02:40 Becoming a Doula

04:36 First Birth Story

11:12 Labor Coping Tools

12:46 Choosing Home Birth

15:06 Prep for Postpartum

17:01 Breastfeeding Support Team

20:40 Postpartum Anxiety Reality

23:36 Relationship Expectations Shift

26:46 Marriage Comparison Trap

27:42 Keeping Main Thing

29:05 Planning Baby Three

30:28 Georgia Homebirth Limits

32:48 Water Breaks Early

33:51 Waiting Out Labor

37:22 Chiro Sparks Labor

39:16 Hospital Pivot Birth

42:54 Third Postpartum Chaos

45:07 Grace and Asking Help

47:47 Doula Grace Philosophy

50:55 Trust Your Intuition

52:56 Daily Centering Rituals

55:19 Work With Ann

56:37 Podcast Closing Message

Website

www.annmorris-doula.com

Socials

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annmorrisatldoula/

Business FB: https://www.facebook.com/annmorrisatldoula/

Thanks for listening to It’s a Circus Podcast — Unfiltered stories of motherhood, identity, and the art of Self care

These stories remind you that you’re not alone in the chaos. And if you’re ready to take the next step from conversation to transformation, explore Svea – The Beauty Edit. It’s my signature service that helps women edit the noise, simplify their routines, and reclaim confidence through radiant, effortless self-care.

🎙️ More stories: https://www.chernerbroscircus.com/podcast
💄 Your Edit awaits: https://www.chernerbroscircus.com/beauty-edit

Embrace the chaos. Reclaim yourself.

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Host Elsa returns with a mid-year update on her three words—relentless, unhinged, and ascending—originally shared in January. She explains how “relentless” has shown up through committing to a new studio, creating beauty edits, and working toward fully setting up an in-person podcast recording space with a planned roster of guests. “Unhinged” has meant taking bold leaps, including joining a cabaret program led by Priscilla, which became a healing, confidence-building experience rooted in women in community and learning to say no to misaligned opportunities. “Ascending” reflects continued growth without slipping into toxic self-comparison, as she focuses on building the studio, expanding media and beauty work, and staying open to new opportunities. She shares that the next three weeks are booked and invites listeners to follow her updates, including on Instagram for Svea the Beauty Edit.

00:00 Welcome to the Circus

00:26 Life Update and Rewind

00:49 Three Words for 2026

01:37 Relentless Without Burnout

02:45 Building the Studio Vision

03:52 Unhinged Energy and Bold Moves

04:22 Cabaret as Healing Self Care

05:22 Saying No and Finding Confidence

08:20 Ascending Into the Back Half

10:17 What’s Next and Closing Thoughts

11:28 Podcast Outro and Community Invite

Thanks for listening to It’s a Circus Podcast — Unfiltered stories of motherhood, identity, and the art of Self care

These stories remind you that you’re not alone in the chaos. And if you’re ready to take the next step from conversation to transformation, explore Svea – The Beauty Edit. It’s my signature service that helps women edit the noise, simplify their routines, and reclaim confidence through radiant, effortless self-care.

🎙️ More stories: https://www.chernerbroscircus.com/podcast
💄 Your Edit awaits: https://www.chernerbroscircus.com/beauty-edit

Embrace the chaos. Reclaim yourself.

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Host Elsa welcomes Dr. Rachel Smith, founder of Aspect Wellness, who shares her path from early motherhood to a career delivering over a thousand babies as a nurse midwife, then transitioning through burnout and perimenopause into obesity medicine and a cardiometabolic longevity-focused practice. They discuss the joy of parenting adult children, how midwifery differs philosophically from traditional OB care, and why perimenopause can bring “hormone chaos” with symptoms like mood changes, sleep disruption, anxiety, decreased libido, brain fog, joint issues, weight gain, and hot flashes. Dr. Smith explains the evolving landscape of hormone replacement therapy, including recent FDA label changes, and emphasizes individualized care. They also cover GLP-1 medications’ benefits and safety concerns, skepticism about “microdosing” as marketing, cautious use of peptides, and considerations around postpartum depression, including hormone-related treatment options.

00:00 Welcome to the Circus

00:24 Meet Dr Rachel Smith

01:14 Motherhood With Adult Kids

05:09 Early Parenting Wake Up Call

09:31 Tornado Meets Midwife

12:37 Fast Track Through Training

17:40 Building a Midwife Career

20:26 Midwife vs OB GYN

24:43 Perimenopause Career Pivot

29:57 Hormone Therapy Updates

33:04 Hormone Chaos Symptoms

34:02 From Weight Clinic to Coaching

36:14 Private Practice and Lifelong Learning

38:21 Data Driven Longevity vs Biohacking

40:03 HRT as the Original Biohack

42:38 GLP Ones Benefits and Risks

44:55 Microdosing Myth Busting

48:43 Peptides Hype and Safety

51:43 Who She Helps in Practice

56:43 Postpartum Hormones and Depression

01:01:47 Personalized HRT and the Magic Window

01:05:02 Wrap Up and Final Thoughts

IG: https://www.instagram.com/aspectwellness/

Website: https://aspect-wellness.com/

Rachel Smith, DNP, FNP-C, CNM is the founder of Aspect Wellness, a precision health and longevity practice focused on helping high-performing men and women optimize metabolism, hormones, recovery, and long-term vitality.

With 20 years of clinical experience spanning women’s health, family medicine, and obesity medicine, Rachel combines evidence-based medicine with performance-focused coaching to help clients maintain the energy, clarity, resilience, and physical capacity needed to lead ambitious lives.

Her work focuses on the intersection of longevity science, metabolic health, behavior change, strength, stress physiology, and hormone optimization—cutting through health industry noise to help people focus on what truly drives long-term outcomes.

Rachel is known for translating complex medical science into practical, actionable strategies that help busy professionals protect their health before decline becomes their new normal.

Through her clinical practice, speaking, and media appearances, she advocates for a modern approach to health optimization rooted in data, physiology, and sustainable performance—not trends, quick fixes, or fear-based wellness culture.

Thanks for listening to It’s a Circus Podcast — Unfiltered stories of motherhood, identity, and the art of Self care

These stories remind you that you’re not alone in the chaos. And if you’re ready to take the next step from conversation to transformation, explore Svea – The Beauty Edit. It’s my signature service that helps women edit the noise, simplify their routines, and reclaim confidence through radiant, effortless self-care.

🎙️ More stories: https://www.chernerbroscircus.com/podcast
💄 Your Edit awaits: https://www.chernerbroscircus.com/beauty-edit

Embrace the chaos. Reclaim yourself.