EBB 355 - How Art Can Bring Joy, Peace, and Celebration to Birth and Parenting Experiences with Lauren J. Turner, Artist, Doula, and Founder of Birth Nerds

Evidence Based Birth®

Rebecca Dekker

Pregnancy, Health & Fitness, Childbirth, Parenting, Birth, Medicine, Kids & Family, Doula, Obstetrician, Midwife

4.6 • 978 Ratings

🗓️ 16 April 2025

⏱️ 44 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

How can art serve as a powerful way to honor pregnancy, birth, and parenting experiences—especially for families who are often underrepresented in birth spaces?

In this episode, Dr. Rebecca Dekker explores this question with Lauren J. Turner, a Baltimore-based artist, birth worker, and founder of Birth Nerds. Lauren shares how her own home birth experiences, her journey with postpartum and neurodivergence, and a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis shaped her path into birth work and fine art.

Together, Rebecca and Lauren explore how art can be a healing, meditative process for birthing families, and a meaningful tool for birth workers to honor their clients’ journeys. Lauren opens up about creating paintings that reflect diverse parenting experiences—from lactation to the NICU—and how she uses bold colors and imagery to bring visibility to Black and Brown families in maternal health.

(03:44) Lauren’s First Home Birth Experience and the Impact of Midwives

(06:28) A Challenging Second Birth and the Role of Trust and Teamwork

(11:19) Starting Over with Doula Training and the Importance of Comprehensive Education

(12:27) Living with Multiple Sclerosis and Being Dismissed by the Healthcare System

(19:29) Redefining Rest through Art and Creativity

(27:51) Exploring Themes in Maternal Health and Parenting Art

(28:34) How Parents and Birth Workers Can Use Art to Process Birth

(35:41) The Beauty of the Placenta in Art

(37:10) Fiber Arts in Birth Work and Creative Expression

(40:21) Uplifting Lactation Through Art and Community

Resources

Explore Lauren’s art: laurenjturnerfineart.com
Follow Lauren on Instagram: @birthnerds
Shop prints, shirts, and stickers: birthnerds.com
Learn more about Mamatoto Village: mamatotovillage.org
EBB 92 – Impacts of the Community Birth Worker Model with Aza Nedhari
Discover MamAmor Dolls: mamamordolls.com

For more information about Evidence Based Birth® and a crash course on evidence based care, visit www.ebbirth.com. Follow us on Instagram and YouTube! Ready to learn more? Grab an EBB Podcast Listening Guide or read Dr. Dekker's book, "Babies Are Not Pizzas: They're Born, Not Delivered!" If you want to get involved at EBB, join our Professional membership (scholarship options available) and get on the wait list for our EBB Instructor program. Find an EBB Instructor here, and click here to learn more about the EBB Childbirth Class.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, everyone. On today's podcast, we're going to talk with artist and birth worker Lauren J. Turner
0:06.0	about how art can honor and celebrate pregnancy and birth experiences.
0:14.7	Welcome to the evidence-based birth podcast. My name is Rebecca Decker, and I'm a nurse
0:19.4	with my PhD and the founder of evidence-based
0:22.3	birth.
0:23.5	Join me each week as we work together to get evidence-based information into the hands of
0:28.2	families and professionals around the world.
0:31.4	As a reminder, this information is not medical advice.
0:34.8	See eBbirth.com slash disclaimer for more details.
0:40.1	Hi everyone and welcome to the evidence-based birth podcast. For today's podcast, we have a very
0:45.1	special guest who's going to bring some joy and beauty into our lives. And before we get
0:50.2	started with her expert interview, I have a special announcement about something that's coming soon at EBB. You've probably heard the myths, and you've seen the keyboard warriors
1:00.2	having debates on social media. But have you ever stopped to ask, what does the evidence
1:05.3	really say when it comes to vitamin K? This is one of the most misunderstood and controversial topics in newborn
1:12.4	care. We're going to be breaking down the evidence, separating fact from fiction, and tackling
1:17.8	the misinformation head on. So next week on the EB-Birth Instagram page, we're going to be
1:23.5	unboxing some information about the boxed warning on vitamin K. The week after that, we're hosting
1:29.4	a free YouTube watch party as we unveil a brand new EBB video for the public all about
1:35.3	why vitamin K is routinely given to newborns. And then here's the best part. We're following all this
1:41.0	up with a 90-minute live signature training and Q on vitamin K for
1:45.9	our EBB Pro members on Tuesday, April 29.
1:49.6	Want to join me in this training and get all your questions answered?
	...

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