Hanging cacti lining the Lotusland property. The scientist in me thought they looked like chromosomes. Continuing from my last post, let’s talk about my blastocyst worries and congenital anomalies. Congenital anomaly is medical jargon for birth defects. I separate “birth defects” into 2 different categories: genetics and anatomy. For now, we’ll touch on the

Go Ovaries Go!!! How acupuncture may help. by Alyssa Wittenberg, MD Image by iheartguts.com (pick the organ of your choice!)

More than half of pregnant women (up to 90% in some studies!) get them and almost all women hate them. Have you seen this rolling around Pinterest? Yes, it’s true, we should accept our bodies, stretch marks, scars, and all …

Everyone knows pregnant women need to pee all the time. It has become a bad joke. I bet you didn’t know that urine smell and color can change during pregnancy though. This doesn’t really affect how much you urinate, but it’s just interesting.     The change in smell can be from different foods and changing […]

If I had to guess … this cat is having a boy. You know I discourage the questioning of if a woman is even pregnant at all. Strangers seem to love to comment on a protruding belly though. They also love doling out unsolicited comments and advice. Most of the time these comments are harmless, […]

You can’t beat a 98% accuracy rate!     When my sister was pregnant with her first baby, she and her husband didn’t want to know if it was a boy or girl. They wanted to wait until delivery. Along the way, though, she had several premonitions telling her it was a boy: * She […]

What is the proper etiquette when inquiring if a woman is with child? There is none. I googled “when is it ok to ask a woman if she is pregnant” and came up with thousands of responses. Here’s my favorite: (I would add another woman after delivery because it takes about 6 weeks for your […]

I stand by my Moxie Rx recipe from my last post. It is delicious, and I truly believe it helped me fight (and win) against my latest cold threat. If you missed it, check out my last post. For real. Read it! Just today, 3 different patients, not reading my blog or knowing about this […]

When I’m sick, the last thing I feel is beauty full or beautiful. This post is in honor of the cold I’ve been nursing for the last week, and for the multitude of patients with the same complaints:

May your holiday be filled with love and joy … just not in the form of eggnog. That mix of milk, sugar, raw eggs, spices, and alcohol does NOT mix well with pregnancy. Pregnant women should avoid eggnog for a few reasons: 1. Let’s not kid ourselves here: it’s usually gross. If you need a […]