Spoil Your Baby

Why is the way we connect with our babies at birth so vital for our long-term relationship?
Stefanie Antunes began her journey as a doula and educator over twenty years ago after the birth of her second son taught her the true value of preparation and support. She is now a visionary in the field, training thousands of doulas and helping families navigate the intense transition into parenthood. Stefanie believes that birth is an embodied experience that acts as a gateway to our emotional world. She has seen how modern hospital practices often disturb the natural hormonal flow that nature designed for safety and bonding.
A major challenge she addresses is the pressure for parents to follow "head-based" information instead of trusting their own inner landscape and instincts. She transformed her practice by focusing on helping people connect with their heart and gut before the "noise" of the world takes over. Stefanie advocates for a return to our mammalian roots, emphasizing that we aren't meant to parent in isolation. She encourages us to reject the myth that we should know everything automatically and instead surrender to the community support we deserve. By prioritizing skin-to-skin contact and planning for postpartum care, she helps families create a foundation of connection that lasts a lifetime. We believe this conversation is a beautiful reminder to look inward and trust the wisdom of our bodies.
Key Takeaways
Early connection at birth is deeply rooted in our mammalian biology and sets a vital foundation for the lifelong parent-baby relationship.
Learning to distinguish between anxiety in the head and instinct in the gut helps parents make better decisions for their families.
Modern hospital disturbances, like early inductions, can disrupt the essential hormones that nature provides for a safe and bonded birth experience.
The "nuclear family lie" makes us believe parenting should be easy, but we actually need a village to thrive in the postpartum period.
Planning for postpartum support through exercises like the "four circles" helps families navigate the intense changes in time and energy after birth.

Resources
Doula School Canada's Website: https://doulatraining.ca

Doula School International's Website: https://doulaschool.com

Stefanie Antunes's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefanieantunes

Guest Bio: Stefanie Antunes has been a Lamaze® Educator and doula since 2002, after the birth of her second son showed her just how valuable it is to be prepared for birth and to have good support around you. Stefanie is a visionary in the childbirth field. Her commitment to the profession has been exemplary. She founded Ontario’s first doula agency, helping to obtain insurance for the doula industry, creating the Birth Doula Program, Ontario’s first and only hospital doula program, and more! Stefanie is the director of public relations for the Association of Ontario Doulas, former Public Relations Director and Treasurer for DONA International and sits on many local boards and coalitions to improve our communities.
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FREE GUIDE, "Nurture Your Baby's Stress": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/nurture-your-babys-stress
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How can we use the challenges of motherhood as a powerful medicine for our own healing and growth?
Kim Marshall spent nearly 25 years working with children and families as a teacher before realizing the best way to support kids was to help the people raising them. Six years ago, she left her corporate teaching career to become an online parenting coach and reorganized her life to focus on her own motherhood journey. This shift allowed her to move away from a fast-paced "doing" mindset and embrace a slower, inward-looking way of "being".
Her biggest challenge was navigating the "noise" of a world designed to keep us busy and distracted. She realized that if we aren't intentional, we can lose our true selves in the expectations of others. Her transformation came through accepting "matrescence"—the threshold of becoming a mother—and viewing motherhood as a sacred "portal" for growth.
Kim's journey inspired her to curate an anthology called Motherhood Expanded, featuring 15 authentic stories of mothers and grandmothers. She believes that our children act as mirrors, holding up invitations for us to heal our deepest wounds and unlearn old patterns. By sharing these vulnerable stories, we find the strength to come home to our humanity and break generational cycles. We believe this episode offers a beautiful reminder that we are never alone in the messy, painful, and glorious process of raising children while raising ourselves.
Key Takeaways
Motherhood is a unique threshold where we are birthed and chosen to step into the primal and transformative force of love.
Our children act as mirrors that hold up invitations for us to address our deepest triggers and begin the work of healing.
We must intentionally slow down to avoid losing ourselves in a fast-paced world that prioritizes constant doing over the beauty of being.
Vulnerable storytelling helps us connect with a collective motherhood energy, reminding us that we are enough exactly as we are right now.
It is a privilege to confront generational wounds and transform them into blessings for the children who are born for these specific times.

Resources
Kim Marshall's Book: Motherhood Expanded https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GVJWZNFC

Kim Marshall's Website: https://www.rootsandwingsmethod.com

Kim Marshall's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rootsandwingschildhood

Kim Marshall's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rootsandwingschildhood

Guest Bio: Kim Marshall is a mother of 2 and founder of Roots and Wings Childhood. As a parenting coach, she works online to serve an international audience, helping mothers unlearn and relearn what it takes to mother themselves and their children with connection instead of control. Her holistic approach to understanding behavior and relationships guides families toward emotional safety. Kim provides personalized private and group coaching that integrates mindset, strategy, and somatic work to help parents break generational cycles.
Ready to Connect with Greer?
"Nurture Neuroscience" Website: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drgreerkirshenbaum/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greerkirshenbaum/
FREE GUIDE, "Nurture Your Baby's Stress": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/nurture-your-babys-stress
FREE GUIDE, "Manage the Stressors & Triggers of Parenting": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/manage-the-stressors-of-parenting

How can writing and community help us navigate the beautiful, scary, and opposing feelings of motherhood?
Hannah Rosenberg is a poet and mother who uses writing as a vital tool to process the intense emotions of parenthood. Her journey into public writing began as a way to capture the duality of grief and joy that often defines the mothering experience. During the episode, she reflects on the "overpowering and scary" realization of her own mortality that came with having children, leading her to write about generational love and the legacy of care we leave behind.
A major challenge Hannah addresses is the modern pressure to be independent and parent in seclusion. She admits to feeling guilty about needing help with her first child but underwent a transformation with her second, learning to surrender to the support of her village. She now advocates for rejecting the "modern lie" that we can handle everything on our own. By sharing her poems, Hannah helps us see that even our strangest fears are shared by others. She encourages us to prioritize deep friendships and community, reminding us that being a good mother includes taking care of our own well-being and staying connected to the world.

Key Takeaways
Motherhood is full of opposing feelings like grief and joy, and it is normal to experience both at the same time.

The idea that we should parent in total independence is a modern lie that often leads to burnout and unnecessary isolation.

Nurturing our children creates a beautiful cycle of generational love that changes their biology and stays with them for a lifetime.

Prioritizing friendships is not a luxury but a necessary part of modeling well-being and healthy social connections for our children.

We can build community by letting go of the need for a perfect house and inviting others into our real, messy lives.


Resources

Hannah Rosenberg's Website: https://www.hannahrowrites.com

Hannah Rosenberg's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hannahrowrites

Hannah Rosenberg's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-rosenberg-8103861a



Guest Bio: Hannah Rosenberg is a poet whose writing touches on womanhood, marriage, friendship, and motherhood. She started sharing her writing regularly online in 2020 and has since developed a special community of readers. Hannah is the author of the book of poems, Same.
Ready to Connect with Greer? "Nurture Neuroscience" Website: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drgreerkirshenbaum/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greerkirshenbaum/
FREE GUIDE, "Nurture Your Baby's Stress": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/nurture-your-babys-stress
FREE GUIDE, "Manage the Stressors & Triggers of Parenting": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/manage-the-stressors-of-parenting
Order "The Nurture Revolution" Book: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/the-nurture-revolution

How can we stay emotionally grounded and raise hopeful children when the world around us feels so heavy?
Ariella Cook-Shonkoff is a psychotherapist and writer who has spent her life finding healing and refuge through the creative process. Her journey toward writing her book, Raising Anti-Doomers, was sparked by her own "mother bear" worries about raising kids in a California region increasingly threatened by intense wildfires. In her therapy practice, she also noticed a deep need to resource parents and young people who were struggling with climate anxiety and a sense of hopelessness. She wanted to find a way to counter the "doomer" narrative that often dominates our news and social media feeds.
Her transformation involved developing the concept of the "anti-doomer"—a way to live a fulfilling life while acknowledging difficult realities. She encourages us to find a "sweet spot of engagement," where we keep one foot in the muck of reality and the other foot firmly in a place of grounding. Ariella emphasizes that we don't have to choose between denial and panic; instead, we can use social connection, creativity, and time in nature to stay resilient. By modeling curiosity about the natural world for our children, we can help them feel a sense of belonging and stewardship. She teaches us that parenting with hope is a form of activism that starts at home and ripples out to the rest of the world.

Key Takeaways
● Finding the "sweet spot of engagement" helps us balance an awareness of difficult truths with the grounding needed to stay calm.
● Building a "parent club" or women's group provides essential social connection and validation, helping us feel less isolated in our concerns.
● Spending time in nature allows us to experience "interbeing," where our personal problems feel smaller in connection to the vast natural world.
● Modeling curiosity about nature, like watching insects or sunsets, helps children develop a lifelong habit of gratitude and environmental stewardship.
● Small, daily acts of giving back to nature serve as a powerful form of family activism that seeds important values in younger generations.

Join The Nurture Neuroscience Practitioner Certification Join our February 2026 Program:
https://nurture-neuroscience.com/professional-certification-sales-page

Resources
● Ariella's Book Raising Anti-Doomers https://anti-doomer.com
● Ariella's Website: https://www.ariellacookshonkoff.com
● Ariella's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ariella-cook-shonkoff-09a7922a
● Ariella's Instagram: @ariellacookshonkoff https://www.instagram.com/ariellacookshonkoff
Guest Bio: Ariella Cook-Shonkoff is a psychotherapist, writer, and the author of Raising Anti-Doomers. She is affiliated with the Climate Psychology Alliance of North America and holds a deep belief that both art and therapy are transformative. She uses the creative process as a backbone for healing and invites her clients to express themselves authentically with self-compassion.

Ready to Connect with Greer? "Nurture Neuroscience" Website: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drgreerkirshenbaum/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greerkirshenbaum/
FREE GUIDE, "Nurture Your Baby's Stress": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/nurture-your-babys-stress
FREE GUIDE, "Manage the Stressors & Triggers of Parenting": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/manage-the-stressors-of-parenting
Order "The Nurture Revolution" Book: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/the-nurture-revolution

Why is "normal" infant sleep so often labeled as a problem needing medical intervention?

Gabrielle Ferrara began her professional life dedicated to mental health counseling and social work, holding a Master's in Social Work and licensure as a clinical social worker in both New Jersey and Florida. She initially planned to return to her full-time therapy job after having her son, never anticipating motherhood would completely uproot her career path. When her son's personal sleep journey began to get "a little hairy" at four months old, she discovered Greer's work. Listening to the resources gave her the language and the tools to quiet the intense pressure and noise she was receiving about sleep training, allowing her to trust her intuition about what her baby needed. This transformative personal experience motivated her to enroll in the first cohort of the Nurture Neuroscience practitioner program. She saw this as an opportunity for self-education and to be among other like-minded professionals and parents with similar values, with the hope of translating the knowledge into a professional career.
In her consults, she found her primary job was offering education and reassurance to parents who constantly ask, "Is what my baby doing normal?". Her own path has been challenging, as her son has nearly every medical red flag or sleep disruptor, including reflux, oral ties, low ferritin, and snoring. She has faced significant pushback from the medical system, which often promotes a medicalized behaviorist approach, prescribing "self soothing" even when physical symptoms are present. Gabrielle emphasizes that for families facing complex sleep issues, responsive co-sleeping or bedsharing is often the only way to get enough sleep to function. She uses her combined therapeutic and personal experience to help parents navigate these complexities and balance their child's medical needs with their nurturing needs.

Key Takeaways
● The majority of consult work involves reassuring parents that their baby's needs and behaviors are developmentally normal.
● We must reject the overwhelming mainstream messaging that sleep training is the only viable solution for infants.
● It is crucial to normalize the grief parents feel when the reality of infant sleep doesn't match cultural expectations.
● Some families rely on responsive co-sleeping or bedsharing as the only practical solution while addressing underlying health issues.
● Parents need support to stand confidently in their attachment-based choices against external pressure and medical pushback.

Join The Nurture Neuroscience Practitioner Certification Join our February 2026 Program:
https://nurture-neuroscience.com/professional-certification-sales-page

Resources
● Website: https://www.gabrielle-ferrara.com
● Instagram: @nurtured.mom.nurtured.baby https://www.instagram.com/nurtured.mom.nurtured.baby
Guest Bio: Gabrielle Ferrara is a Nurture Neuroscience Practitioner and Consultant. She holds a Master's in Social Work (MSW) and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in New Jersey and Florida.

Ready to Connect with Greer? "Nurture Neuroscience" Website: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drgreerkirshenbaum/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greerkirshenbaum/
FREE GUIDE, "Nurture Your Baby's Stress": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/nurture-your-babys-stress
FREE GUIDE, "Manage the Stressors & Triggers of Parenting": https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/manage-the-stressors-of-parenting
Order "The Nurture Revolution" Book: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com/the-nurture-revolution