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Jessica Simpson Just Gave Birth to Baby Number 3, and Her Name Is Truly Unique


Jessica Simpson and her husband, former NFL star Eric Johnson, have welcomed baby number three, People magazine confirmed on Tuesday, March 19.

The music and fashion mogul gave birth to a daughter, Birdie Mae Johnson, on March 19, weighing in at 10 pounds and 13 ounces. Simpson has two other children with Johnson: a five-year-old son, Ace Knute, and six-year-old daughter, Maxwell Drew. “We are so happy and proud to announce the birth of our perfect daughter, Birdie Mae Johnson,” she posted to Instagram.

Simpson revealed on Instagram back in September that she and Johnson were expecting. “SURPRISE,” Simpson wrote, alongside pics of her two children with pink balloons. “This little baby girl will make us a family of five. We couldn’t be happier to announce this precious blessing of life.”

Though Birdie’s name is unique, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Simpson’s baby shower had “Birdie’s Nest” written in neon lights, and she captioned several of her Instagram posts with it. Fans put two and two together.

Then on March 3, Simpson foreshadowed the name even more in an Instagram post about dealing with bronchitis while pregnant. “After a week in the hospital for bronchitis (my fourth time in 2 months), I’m finally home,” she posted. “Coughing with Birdie has been a crazy painful journey. I am slowly getting healthier every day. Baby girl was monitored and is doing amazing! ?? I am on my way to healthy and counting down the days to see her sweet smile. Sending love and prayers to all the mothers who are going or have gone through this. OUCH.”

Simpson actually posted several things like this throughout her pregnancy. She was quite transparent about the struggles she experienced—from breaking a toilet seat to feet swelling. “Any remedies?! Help!!!!” Simpson posted in January, talking about the latter issue.

Stay tuned for a photo of little Birdie Mae. Queen Jessica Simpson is quite open on Instagram, so it shouldn’t be long. Congrats to both her and Johnson!



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I Chose Unassisted Home Birth Because Pregnant Black Women Are Dying at Terrifying Rates


On all fours in an inflatable pool in my living room, I could feel my baby’s head crowning. I reached down to touch him, stunned at the quiet instinctiveness my body seemed to possess. Before I could even think about what to do next, my body summoned one last great push, safely delivering my son into my husband’s waiting hands. We sat there in awe, just the three of us—no doctor, no midwife, no doula—soaking in what suddenly felt like the perfect birth.

My husband and I always knew we wanted a home birth. Aromatherapy, candlelight, and the comfort and safety of my own home always sounded far superior to a sterile hospital delivery room filled with strangers in scrubs. But what we didn’t initially plan was that we’d have a completely unassisted home birth, without a trained birthing professional like a doctor or midwife present to help coach us through the delivery of our first child.

From almost the moment I found out I was pregnant, I worried. Every mom-to-be worries—Will I have pregnancy complications? Will my child be healthy? Will I poop during labor?—but with my being a black woman in America, the realization quickly set in: Being pregnant meant putting my well-being, even my life, on the line in a way that white moms, statistically, don’t have to.

Shockingly, the United States is the most dangerous developed country in the world to have a baby. Women in the U.S. are three times more likely to die during childbirth than women in Canada. To put it in perspective, that’s a higher maternal mortality rate than in Kuwait and Kazakhstan. Immediately after birth, complications like postpartum hemorrhage can threaten a new mother’s life, and after leaving the hospital, many more women face health complications that can be life-threatening, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some estimates say 60 percent of these deaths are preventable.

That’s enough to keep any pregnant woman up at night, but for black women, the stats are even more chilling. Black women in the United States are three to four times more likely to experience pregnancy-related death than white women. The prevailing theory as to why this gross inequity exists? Black women are often ignored and dismissed when it comes to health issues, including ones that can turn fatal.

Even Serena Williams isn’t immune to the deadly bias. The day after giving birth, she was having trouble breathing. With a history of pulmonary embolism, she notified her care team right away, telling them she needed a CT scan. But Williams’ request was initially downplayed; nurses thought her pain medication might be making her confused, she told Vogue. Her persistence is what ultimately saved her life. When she finally did get the scan, it revealed blood clots had indeed settled in her lungs.

Not all black women are as lucky. Kira Johnson, a 39-year-old woman in Los Angeles, died just hours after giving birth to her second child. After a routine C-section, Johnson began complaining of excruciating abdominal pain and started losing color, her husband told People. He noticed blood in her catheter, but it was hours before her health care professionals took any action, he said. Another surgery revealed Johnson had massive internal bleeding. She died from the complications.

This racial bias weighed heavily on my mind—with stories like Johnson’s and Williams’ happening more often than I could stomach, how could I feel safe having a hospital birth? My husband’s own grandmother died while pregnant in the hospital. She was just 35.



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How to Find the Best Birth Control for You


Side effects of the implant: The implant comes with the usual list of potential side effects: namely, breast tenderness and headaches related to the hormones. You may also notice mood swings and decreased sex drive, according to the Mayo Clinic. “The most common side effect is unpredictable bleeding,” says Dr. Bryant. “Most women will overall have lighter bleeding in a month, but more days of spotting.” Some women—about a 25 percent, she says—stop having a period altogether while around 20 percent actually experience more bleeding.

How to know if it’s right for you: “This is great for women who want to avoid a pelvic exam, don’t like the idea of something in their uterus, and would like a really simple, forgettable form of birth control,” says Dr. Bryant. “It’s reversible, so if it turns out it’s not right for you, you can always have it removed and try something else.” The implant is effective for three years.

The Ring

How the ring works: Like the pill and the patch, the ring—a rubbery circle that looks a bit like a hair-tie—works by blocking ovulation with estrogen and progesterone. “The patient puts the ring in her vagina once a month and the hormones get absorbed,” says Heather Beall, M.D., a board-certified OB-GYN in Illinois.

Effectiveness of the ring: The ring is 91 percent effective, according to the CDC.

Side effects of the ring: The ring has similar side effects to the pill and other hormonal birth control methods—a little spotting or breakthrough bleeding in the first few months is common.

How to know if the ring is right for you: The ring has a lower dose of estrogen (only 15 micrograms) than most versions of the pill, so if you’re worried about hormonal birth control, the ring might be a more attractive option. Plus, it’s effective immediately: “Once the ring is in, it is working,” says Dr. Beall.

Condoms

How to Find the Best Birth Control for You

How condoms work: “Condoms work by providing a barrier to prevent the sperm from entering the uterus, thus preventing pregnancy,” says Dr. Beall. “Some condoms also have a spermicide coating that kills the sperm and adds more pregnancy prevention.” Importantly, they’re also the only form of birth control that helps prevent STIs.

Effectiveness of condoms: Condoms leave a lot of room for user error—slippage, breakage, not using one every time. With that in mind, the CDC estimates they’re only 82 percent effective at preventing pregnancy.

Side effects of condoms: The upside? Condoms are relatively side effect-free. “They may decrease sexual pleasure for some, and can interfere with intercourse to put it on,” says Dr. Bryant. “Some people have allergies or irritation from the materials or lubricants on condoms.”

How to know when condoms are right for you: “For most young people who really don’t want to be pregnant, they should also use a second means of pregnancy prevention,” says Dr. Beall. In other words, unless you’re okay with an accident, don’t rely on condoms as your first line of defense against pregnancy.

You should always use them for protection from sexually transmitted infections, however.

The “Morning After Pill”

How to Find the Best Birth Control for You

How emergency contraception works: The “morning after pill,” which is available at most pharmacies, works by preventing or delaying ovulation. This is not an abortion pill. If an egg has already been fertilized, emergency contraception won’t do anything.

Effectiveness of emergency contraception: With that in mind, time is of the essence with emergency contraception; the sooner you use it, the more effective it, says Dr. Beall. “It can be used within 72 hours of unprotected sex or contraception failure (like a broken condom),” she says. In that window, it’s about 80 percent effective.



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The Inventor of the Birth Control Pill Designed It to Please the Pope—Not Women


Since the birth control pill was invented in the 1960s, doctors have known a dirty little secret: medically speaking, periods aren’t necessary. If you’re on the pill, you can safely skip your period—and the anxiety-ridden mood swings, acne and debilitating pain that can sometimes come with them—entirely. So, why have women been taking week after week of placebo pills to keep their period coming every month? You can blame the Pope.

Earlier this week, the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (the official organization setting reproductive health standards for the NHS in the U.K.) made a update to their guidelines, officially stating there’s no health benefit to taking those monthly seven-day breaks from the pill. This has been typical pill protocol for decades, so why the reversal? According to John Guillebaud, a professor of family planning and reproductive health, it all goes back to John Rock, one of the gynecologists who invented the pill. A devout Catholic, Dr. Rock built in the break in order to please the Catholic Church and, he hoped, earn the endorsement of the Pope, Guillebaud told The Telegraph.

“In the Catholic Church, the Rhythm Method is an accepted form of birth control, so his thought was that if he could make women’s periods rock solid and regular, it would make this method easier to practice [and more appealing to the Pope],” says Sophia Yen, M.D., a gynecologist in California and founder of Pandia Health. Dr. Rock’s plan didn’t work—the Pope didn’t go for it and ultimately decided the Church wouldn’t support Catholics using birth control—but nevertheless, the built-in breaks to allow for a monthly period stuck.

In other words, the reason women on the pill have been having regular periods month after month, for the past 60 years, is all because a man was trying to please another man. Seriously.

This is of course much to the annoyance of many women, who, stats show, would gladly skip over that week of placebo pills (and the period that comes with them) if they could. In a 2018 survey conducted by Pandia Health, 57 percent of women ages 18 to 30 said they would “turn off” their period if they knew it was safe. But despite this, nearly two thirds of women said their doctor had never talked about this as an option with birth control. Part of the reason may be that doctors have been afraid to rock the boat, says Dr. Yen. “Doctors have only recently been more accepting of this idea. Now that we have other methods of birth control that suppress menses like the IUD, implant, and depo provera shot,” she says, doctors are able to collect more data on safely skipping your period.

And having fewer periods may actually be better for your health. Taking the pill daily without breaking for a period every month can help reduce acne, headaches (which can be triggered by a drop in estrogen levels when you take the sugar pills), and fewer painful periods, Dr. Yen says. Even bigger deal: It could lower your risk of ovarian cancer—studies have shown that the more you ovulate (aka the more periods you have over a lifetime) the higher your risk of ovarian cancer.

Armed with more and more data to face the crumbling decades-old misconceptions, “doctors are finally getting on board,” Dr. Yen says. After 60 years of following a plan meant to please the Pope, it’s about time.



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Meghan Markle Is Being Mommy-Shamed and She Hasn't Even Given Birth Yet


Meghan Markle isn’t due until spring 2019, but she’s already catching heat from mommy-shamers. Her latest “offense”? Cradling her baby bump too much in public.

Yes, you read that correctly: People on the Internet can’t seem to deal with the fact Markle has been photographed lately with her hands placed over her stomach. Commenters came out in droves on Monday (December 10) during the Duchess of Sussex’s appearance at the Fashion Awards in London. She wore a stunning one-shoulder black gown and took several photographs with her hands touching the top and bottom of her baby bump.

“If I see one more photo of Meghan Markle cradling that bump I am going to vomit. I swear she and Beyoncé think they are the only women in the world to get pregnant. You are pregnant……WE KNOW,” wrote one person on Twitter. “She should learn from Kate on how to pose regally when pregnant. Both hands discretely under the bump. Not cradling like Demi Moore,” chimed in another. And the hits keep coming. Check out just a few of the unfair criticisms for yourself, below:

PHOTO: Twitter

PHOTO: Twitter

The fact thatpeople are policing Markle’s hand placement is ludicrous, to say the least. Plenty of mothers actually make a habit of cradling their baby bumps while pregnant. Some science even posits that this is a good thing for unborn children.

The Fashion Awards 2018 In Partnership With Swarovski - Show

PHOTO: Getty Images

The Fashion Awards 2018 In Partnership With Swarovski - Show

PHOTO: Getty Images

The Fashion Awards 2018 In Partnership With Swarovski - Show

PHOTO: Getty Images

Of course, other people jumped to Markle’s defense and essentially told her critics to back off. “What? Why do people (mostly women) get upset about this? Nearly every pregnant woman does it. It’s not harming anyone. She’s happy to be a mom. Cradle those bumps, mamas,” one user wrote on Twitter.

“So I see Meghan Markle is getting shit for cradling her baby bump, some people saying it’s too possessive….The fuck?!? That’s what all pregnant women do!!! Cradle that bump Meggie, cradle it,” tweeted someone else.

Whether the science behind this cradle-bumping has legs or not, I’m pretty sure Meghan Markle knows what’s best for her body and baby. Let her (and her hands) live.

Related Stories:

Prince Harry Is Reportedly “Going All Out” to Protect Meghan Markle for This Heartbreaking Reason

Meghan Markle Broke Royal Protocol With Her Nail Polish at the British Fashion Awards

Meghan Markle’s Best Fashion Moments of 2018





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Cardi B Says She's 'Very Depressed' That She Can't Stop Losing Weight Since Giving Birth


Cardi B recently opened up about some post-pregnancy body changes she’s struggling with. On Thursday, November 15, the Bronx-born rapper went on Instagram Live and shared that she’s been “very depressed” because she’s lost so much weight since the birth of her daughter, Kulture, this July.

“I’ve been very depressed because I cannot stop losing weight,” Cardi said in the video. “And it’s so crazy because when I first gave birth, I did everything to lose my baby weight. I was drinking Teami so it could curb my appetite and now that I lost all the baby weight in my stomach and in my arms and in my face, now I want to gain weight, but now I can’t gain weight because I have a terrible appetite. I can literally go 24 hours without eating.”

She went on to add that part of this discomfort with her weight loss has to do with her past. “I used to look too skinny as a teenager, and I used to hate it and I hate it now,” she said. “It’s been really depressing me, making me sad.”

It’s not the first time Cardi has spoken candidly about how she’s dealing with motherhood. Earlier this year, she dropped out of a high-profile tour alongside Bruno Mars, citing her new baby as the reason. “I also thought that I’d be able to bring [Kulture Kiari] with me on tour,” she explained. “But I think I underestimated this whole mommy thing.”

Still, learning to balance her baby and her career hasn’t stopped Cardi from continuing to dominate the music industry. Her first performance after giving birth stole the show at the 2018 AMAs, and she even dropped a few bars on an explosive new song that features Selena Gomez. She also just landed a role on Netflix’s upcoming hip hop competition series and launched a collection with Fashion Nova.

Cardi may be figuring some things out still, but she’s got her career on lock.

Related: Cardi B Released Her New Song Because ‘I Got a Baby, I Need Some Money’





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