Lo & Behold | Pregnancy, Birth, Motherhood

This is part two of our Pitocin deep dive (if you haven't listened to episode 68 yet, hit pause and go do that first - it lays the foundation for everything we talk about here). In this episode we're tackling the question I get asked about more than almost anything else on social media: are Pitocin contractions more painful than spontaneous ones? I walk you through the real differences between Pitocin and oxytocin - how they act on your uterus in similar ways but flow through your body completely differently, why Pitocin tends to be more rhythmic and relentless compared to the natural ebb and flow of spontaneous labor, and why the fact that Pitocin doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier (so you miss out on some of that natural endorphin flood) matters so much for how contractions feel.
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But here's the thing - I'm not going to give you a flat yes or no on this one, and I explain exactly why. I share two totally opposite experiences with Pitocin to show you just how much nuance is actually at play here, and then I walk you through the questions I think you should actually be asking yourself before you're ever in an induction situation - things like your environment, your care team, your relationship with your nurse, and your own mindset going in. My hope is that you leave this episode not with a scary verdict about Pitocin, but with a roadmap: real understanding, real questions to ask, and genuine empowerment for whatever your induction story ends up looking like.
More from this episode:
Listen to episode 68: Yes or No to Pitocin? 8 Things You Need to Know Before Your Birth
Listen to episode 60: Induction Part 2: Induction Methods - Foley Bulbs, Pitocin, AROM, & More
Listen to episode 59: Induction Part 1: What You Need to Know Before We Talk About How it's Done
Helpful Timestamps:
00:00 Pitocin Changes Things
01:41 The Big Question
03:16 Pitocin vs Oxytocin
05:41 How Labor Flows
10:55 Real Stories and Nuance
12:54 Questions to Ask
15:24 Hopeful Takeaways

About your host:
Lo Mansfield, MSN, RNC-OB, CLC is a registered nurse, mama of 4, and a birth, baby, and motherhood enthusiast. She is both the host of the Lo & Behold podcast and the founder of The Labor Mama.
For more education, support and “me too” from Lo, please visit her website and check out her online courses and digital guides for birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum/newborns. You can also follow @thelabormama and @loandbehold_thepodcast on Instagram and join her email list here.
For more pregnancy, birth, postpartum and motherhood conversation each week, be sure to subscribe to The Lo & Behold podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to listen!
A request: If this episode meant something to you, would you consider a 5 star rating and leaving us a review? Yes, we read them, and yes, they help keep L & B going! ♥️
Connect with Lo more on: INSTAGRAM | TIK TOK | PINTEREST | FACEBOOK
Disclaimer
Opinions shared by guests of this show are their own, and do not always reflect those of The Labor Mama platform. Additionally, the information you hear on this podcast or that you receive via any linked resources should not be considered medical advice. Please see our full disclaimer here.
Additionally, we may make a small commission from some of the links shared with you. Please know, this comes at no additional cost to you, supports our small biz, and is a way for us to share brands and products with you that we genuinely love.
Produced and Edited by Vaden Podcast Services
Mentioned in this episode:
YBYB 20% off ad link

Pitocin is one of those topics that comes up in almost every birth conversation, and it can feel so spicy - like you have to pick a side before you even understand what it is. So in this episode, I'm pulling the spice out of it and just giving you the practical, foundational stuff: what Pitocin actually is (hint: it's synthetic oxytocin, not the real thing, even though the bag says otherwise), how it's different from the oxytocin your body naturally makes, and why the fact that it doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier actually matters for how your labor might feel. I'm walking you through eight things I think every person giving birth should know - from how it's dosed and titrated, to what your nurse is actually watching for on that monitor, to the difference between Pitocin during labor versus that standard dose you get afterward to help prevent hemorrhage.
Join YBYB: www.thelabormama.com/birth & use the code PODCAST to save 20%
My goal here was never to tell you whether to say yes or no to Pitocin - that's not my job, and it never will be. What I want is for you to walk away understanding it well enough that when it comes up in your own labor, you feel educated instead of overwhelmed, and you know exactly what questions to ask. Because at the end of the day, you don't have to be pro-Pitocin or anti-Pitocin. You just deserve to understand what it is so you can be part of that conversation when the time comes.
Mentioned in this episode:
Listen to episode 60: Induction Part 2: Induction Methods - Foley Bulbs, Pitocin, AROM, & More
Listen to episode 59: Induction Part 1: What You Need to Know Before We Talk About How it's Done
Listen to episode 20: Active Management or Hands Off? Your Third Stage of Labor Options with Miri Halliday, BS, CPM, LM
Helpful Timestamps:
00:00 Pitocin
04:05 What Pitocin Is
06:15 Risks And Tradeoffs
09:08 Pitocin Vs Oxytocin
11:24 Blood Brain Barrier
13:18 Dosing And Bishop Score
18:25 Nurse Monitoring And Titration
22:12 Contraction Goals And IUPC
23:49 Third Stage Pitocin Choice

About your host:
Lo Mansfield, MSN, RNC-OB, CLC is a registered nurse, mama of 4, and a birth, baby, and motherhood enthusiast. She is both the host of the Lo & Behold podcast and the founder of The Labor Mama.
For more education, support and “me too” from Lo, please visit her website and check out her online courses and digital guides for birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum/newborns. You can also follow @thelabormama and @loandbehold_thepodcast on Instagram and join her email list here.
For more pregnancy, birth, postpartum and motherhood conversation each week, be sure to subscribe to The Lo & Behold podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to listen!
A request: If this episode meant something to you, would you consider a 5 star rating and leaving us a review? Yes, we read them, and yes, they help keep L & B going! ♥️
Connect with Lo more on: INSTAGRAM | TIK TOK | PINTEREST | FACEBOOK
Disclaimer
Opinions shared by guests of this show are their own, and do not always reflect those of The Labor Mama platform. Additionally, the information you hear on this podcast or that you receive via any linked resources should not be considered medical advice. Please see our full disclaimer here.
Additionally, we may make a small commission from some of the links shared with you. Please know, this comes at no additional cost to you, supports our small biz, and is a way for us to share brands and products with you that we genuinely love.
Produced and Edited by Vaden Podcast Services
Mentioned in this episode:
YBYB 20% off ad link

There's something so special about hearing a labor nurse tell her own birth story, and today's guest, Lauren, delivers exactly that. Lauren's been a labor and delivery nurse for over 10 years, mom to a three year old, is an IBCLC, and runs Labor Lauren - a faith-based birth education platform. She brings us into her journey from years of trying to conceive, through a peaceful unmedicated labor at home with her midwife, all the way to a hospital birth that went about as smoothly as she could have hoped. But what happened after birth is the part of this story that changes everything - a rare, fast-escalating complication that neither Lauren nor her coworkers saw coming, even with all of her clinical experience in the room.
I loved getting to sit with Lauren in this one, not just because her story is wild (it truly is), but because of how honestly she talks about being both the nurse and the patient - and what it taught her about advocacy, humility, and trusting her care team even when things don't go according to plan. We talk about hypnobirthing, placenta painting, the messy reality of "the plan" versus what labor actually gives you, and how her faith carried her through the scariest hours of her postpartum recovery.
More from Labor Lauren:
Follow her on Instagram @labor.lauren
Grab her Free Third Trimester Prayer Journal
Helpful Timestamps:
00:00 Labor Lauren's Birth Story
07:24 Infertility and Miscarriage
11:49 Post-Due Date Spiral
14:03 Balloon Catheter & Early Labor
21:54 Nurse Mode at the Hospital
26:51 Epidural
28:28 Water Break To Pushing
30:08 Birth Moment And Joy
31:13 Placenta Painting
33:38 Hematoma Emergency
37:42 Breast Pumping While Unconscious
43:07 Humility For Care Teams

About your host:
Lo Mansfield, MSN, RNC-OB, CLC is a registered nurse, mama of 4, and a birth, baby, and motherhood enthusiast. She is both the host of the Lo & Behold podcast and the founder of The Labor Mama.
For more education, support and “me too” from Lo, please visit her website and check out her online courses and digital guides for birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum/newborns. You can also follow @thelabormama and @loandbehold_thepodcast on Instagram and join her email list here.
For more pregnancy, birth, postpartum and motherhood conversation each week, be sure to subscribe to The Lo & Behold podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to listen!
A request: If this episode meant something to you, would you consider a 5 star rating and leaving us a review? Yes, we read them, and yes, they help keep L & B going! ♥️
Connect with Lo more on: INSTAGRAM | TIK TOK | PINTEREST | FACEBOOK
Disclaimer
Opinions shared by guests of this show are their own, and do not always reflect those of The Labor Mama platform. Additionally, the information you hear on this podcast or that you receive via any linked resources should not be considered medical advice. Please see our full disclaimer here.
Additionally, we may make a small commission from some of the links shared with you. Please know, this comes at no additional cost to you, supports our small biz, and is a way for us to share brands and products with you that we genuinely love.
Produced and Edited by Vaden Podcast Services
Mentioned in this episode:
YBYB 20% off ad link

Today I’m welcoming Nina Spears - founder and CEO of Baby Chick, author of The Baby Chick Guide to Positive Pregnancy, and honestly, a bit of a unicorn in this space. She's a certified baby planner, birth and postpartum doula, childbirth educator, newborn care educator, infant massage instructor, and perinatal nutrition expert. Over the past 15 years she's supported more than 800 families in person and thousands more online. We get into it all - the mental load that sneaks up on you the second you see that positive test, why bringing your partner into the decision-making early (not after you're both exhausted) changes everything, and the very practical ways partners can actually show up during pregnancy instead of just feeling helpless on the sidelines.
Join YBYB: www.thelabormama.com/birth & use the code PODCAST to save 20%
We also talked about something I think about constantly: how to take in information without drowning in it, and why finding a few trusted voices matters so much more than trying to listen to everyone. Nina got real about the stuff nobody prepares you for - how birth is so much more mental than physical, how much you lean on your people (yes, even your nurse) more than you expect, and how lonely postpartum can feel even when you're surrounded by support. If you've ever felt like you're supposed to have it all figured out before baby even arrives, this episode is your permission slip to slow down, ask for help, and trust your own intuition along the way.
More from Nina Spears:
Baby-Chick.com
The Baby Chick Guide to Positive Pregnancy
Checkout her podcast: Chick Chat
Follow her on Instagram @thebabychick
Helpful Timestamps:
00:00 Simple Birth Prep with Nina Spears
07:05 The Pregnancy Mental Load
12:47 Partner Tips That Help
23:49 Avoiding Information Overload
29:53 Mental Side of Labor
33:43 How to Prep Mentally
45:43 Postpartum Support Plan

About your host:
Lo Mansfield, MSN, RNC-OB, CLC is a registered nurse, mama of 4, and a birth, baby, and motherhood enthusiast. She is both the host of the Lo & Behold podcast and the founder of The Labor Mama.
For more education, support and “me too” from Lo, please visit her website and check out her online courses and digital guides for birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum/newborns. You can also follow @thelabormama and @loandbehold_thepodcast on Instagram and join her email list here.
For more pregnancy, birth, postpartum and motherhood conversation each week, be sure to subscribe to The Lo & Behold podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to listen!
A request: If this episode meant something to you, would you consider a 5 star rating and leaving us a review? Yes, we read them, and yes, they help keep L & B going! ♥️
Connect with Lo more on: INSTAGRAM | TIK TOK | PINTEREST | FACEBOOK
Disclaimer
Opinions shared by guests of this show are their own, and do not always reflect those of The Labor Mama platform. Additionally, the information you hear on this podcast or that you receive via any linked resources should not be considered medical advice. Please see our full disclaimer here.
Additionally, we may make a small commission from some of the links shared with you. Please know, this comes at no additional cost to you, supports our small biz, and is a way for us to share brands and products with you that we genuinely love.
Produced and Edited by Vaden Podcast Services
Mentioned in this episode:
YBYB 20% off ad link

Hey friends! Today I wanted to sit down and talk about something I know so many of you are wrestling with - the connection between fear and your labor. If you've ever seen those posts online that say things like "labor isn't painful, you're just scared," I want to meet you in that confusion, because I've felt it too, even with everything I know. I'm breaking down the actual physiology behind the fear-tension-pain cycle - what's really happening in your body when anxiety creeps in before or during labor, and why it's not as simple as those posts make it sound.
Join YBYB: www.thelabormama.com/birth & use the code PODCAST to save 20%
But this isn't just the science - I wanted this episode to feel really practical. I'm walking you through exactly what to do with the fears you already have: how to turn them into a plan instead of letting them grow in the dark, why separating "possible" from "probable" is such a game-changer for your mindset, and how trusting your body's design (and your own breath!) can completely shift how you move through birth. My hope is you walk away from this one not trying to eliminate every fear before labor starts, but knowing exactly what to do with the ones you've got.
More from this episode:
Listen to episode 07: Is Pain Free Birth Real, Should You Want it, and Can You Do It?
Helpful Timestamps:
00:00 Understanding Birth Fears
05:25 Fear Tension Pain Cycle
08:41 How Fear Affects Labor
10:30 Turn Fears Into Plans
13:49 Possible Versus Probable
16:52 Your Body Can Do This
18:32 Practical Tools
20:30 Reframes And Breathing

About your host:
Lo Mansfield, MSN, RNC-OB, CLC is a registered nurse, mama of 4, and a birth, baby, and motherhood enthusiast. She is both the host of the Lo & Behold podcast and the founder of The Labor Mama.
For more education, support and “me too” from Lo, please visit her website and check out her online courses and digital guides for birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum/newborns. You can also follow @thelabormama and @loandbehold_thepodcast on Instagram and join her email list here.
For more pregnancy, birth, postpartum and motherhood conversation each week, be sure to subscribe to The Lo & Behold podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you prefer to listen!
A request: If this episode meant something to you, would you consider a 5 star rating and leaving us a review? Yes, we read them, and yes, they help keep L & B going! ♥️
Connect with Lo more on: INSTAGRAM | TIK TOK | PINTEREST | FACEBOOK
Disclaimer
Opinions shared by guests of this show are their own, and do not always reflect those of The Labor Mama platform. Additionally, the information you hear on this podcast or that you receive via any linked resources should not be considered medical advice. Please see our full disclaimer here.
Additionally, we may make a small commission from some of the links shared with you. Please know, this comes at no additional cost to you, supports our small biz, and is a way for us to share brands and products with you that we genuinely love.
Produced and Edited by Vaden Podcast Services
Mentioned in this episode:
YBYB 20% off ad link