In this special episode of Mama Outspoken, I take you with me to the Hope Is Here 5K, an event that supports the Postpartum Resource Center of New York and families across the state.

I spent the morning talking with parents, clinicians, students, and supporters about why they showed up and what hope looks like when things are hard. You’ll hear short, powerful answers to two questions:

• What brought you to the Hope Is Here 5K today?
• If you could leave listeners with one small message of hope today, what would it be?

Then Bobby joins me to reflect on what we heard, how it connects to our own postpartum story, and we wrap up with our usual Highs and Lows segment. If you’re in the thick of postpartum, grief, or just the daily weight of caregiving, this episode is meant to sit beside you and remind you that:

• You are not alone.
• You are enough.
• You don’t have to hold all the hope by yourself.
• You can keep moving forward, one small step at a time.

In this episode:
• Live clips from the Hope Is Here 5K
• Messages of hope from parents, professionals, and supporters
• A conversation with Bobby about what hope looks like in our own story
• Our Highs and Lows for the week

If you’re listening to this and feeling alone in your own postpartum or caregiving season, consider this your reminder that there are people and resources ready to walk alongside you.

Explore the Mama Outspoken Resources, and check out postpartumny.org for support and community.

If this conversation hit home and you want to stand with moms in a real, practical way, join me for the Hope Is Here 5k next year. You can walk or run with Team Mama Outspoken, or donate from wherever you are. It’s one simple way to tell moms, “You’re not alone in this.” All the details are at www.mamaoutspoken.com/teammamaoutspoken.

We hope you'll join us next time!
—Jill & Bobby

You are invited to find community with us, check out the Mama Outspoken Village here. To learn more or grab your copy of the book, head here. Remember, you’re not alone in this. One of our favorite resources is the Postpartum Resource Center of New York - you deserve support that sees you.

In this episode of the Mama Outspoken Podcast, Jill and Bobby look back at one specific decision from their first birth story: whether or not to hire a doula.

Jill shares a passage from the book about how, as first-time parents and grandparents, no one really knew if a doula would have helped. At the time, they didn’t fully understand what doulas do or how that kind of support might have changed their experience. Now, with more distance and more language for what happened, they revisit the question: “Would having a doula have made a difference?”

This isn’t a sales pitch for doulas or a shame session about past choices. It’s an honest reflection on how little you know the first time around, what kind of emotional and physical support Jill wishes she’d had, and how to hold the “what ifs” of your birth story with compassion instead of blame.

If you’ve ever replayed your birth and wondered whether different support would have changed things, you’re not alone.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why Jill and Bobby didn’t hire a doula the first time around and what they understood about doulas then
• How being first-time parents (and grandparents) shaped their decisions and assumptions
• The kind of emotional, physical, and advocacy support doulas can offer in birth
• Honest reflections on how that support might have changed Jill’s experience
• How to revisit your birth story without drowning in guilt or “should haves”
• What Jill and Bobby would want pregnant listeners to consider now about building a support team
• How they’re using what they know now to make different choices moving forward

You made the best decisions you could with what you knew at the time.

You’re allowed to grieve parts of your birth story and still show compassion to your past self.

If you’re replaying your own birth decisions and wondering what might have gone differently, you don’t have to keep having that conversation alone in your head.

Explore the Mama Outspoken Resources, and check out postpartumny.org for support and community.

If this conversation hit home and you want to stand with moms in a real, practical way, join me for the Hope Is Here 5k. You can walk or run with Team Mama Outspoken, or donate from wherever you are. It’s one simple way to tell moms, “You’re not alone in this.” All the details are at www.mamaoutspoken.com/teammamaoutspoken.

We hope you'll join us next time!
—Jill & Bobby

You are invited to find community with us, check out the Mama Outspoken Village here. To learn more or grab your copy of the book, head here. Remember, you’re not alone in this. One of our favorite resources is the Postpartum Resource Center of New York - you deserve support that sees you.

In this episode of the Mama Outspoken Podcast, Jill and Bobby zoom in on the partner’s side of the story and talk about all the unknowns of becoming parents. Bobby shares a passage from the book about what it was like to find out Jill was pregnant and realize how much was “up in the air.” Even with some understanding of the birth process, nothing could fully prepare him for what it would actually feel like to step into fatherhood. Together, they unpack why it so often feels like nobody is completely honest about what to expect and why every story you hear still can’t predict your own. They reflect on the swirl of advice from “50 different people,” the gap between head knowledge and lived experience, and the emotional and mental shifts that happen for both parents when a baby enters the picture. If you’ve ever felt unprepared, blindsided, or like you somehow missed a memo everyone else got, this conversation is for you.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Bobby’s perspective on finding out Jill was pregnant and realizing how much he didn’t know
• Why even good childbirth education and well-meant advice can’t fully prepare you for parenthood
• The unpredictability of pregnancy, birth, and parenting, even when you “know the process”
• How each person’s experience is unique, no matter how many stories they hear ahead of time
• The emotional and mental shifts that come with becoming a parent for both the birthing and non‑birthing partner

You’re not behind because you feel unprepared. You’re just human, stepping into something no one can fully map out for you. If this conversation sounds like your life right now, you don’t have to navigate it alone.

Explore the Mama Outspoken Resources, and check out postpartumny.org for support and community.

If this conversation hit home and you want to stand with moms in a real, practical way, join me for the Hope Is Here 5k. You can walk or run with Team Mama Outspoken, or donate from wherever you are. It’s one simple way to tell moms, “You’re not alone in this.” All the details are at www.mamaoutspoken.com/teammamaoutspoken.

We hope you'll join us next time!
—Jill & Bobby

You are invited to find community with us, check out the Mama Outspoken Village here. To learn more or grab your copy of the book, head here. Remember, you’re not alone in this. One of our favorite resources is the Postpartum Resource Center of New York - you deserve support that sees you.