Featured Post! 13,000 + Mamas Took The Quiz!

Let's Dish Series No. 1: Take Mama's Sex Quiz

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I'm Joanne Ilaqua.

a.k.a MamaSoup

I’ve spent about 20 years serving women as a nurse, doula and Lamaze educator. I also have 4 kids so I know first-hand how lonely and isolating it can be to be a mama. That’s why I created Mamasoup.

Most days you can find me working away in my home office (without a bra on), bopping out to Hip Hop (which I’m WAY to old to listen to, btw- but I just can’t quit it!) and searching my teenagers’ rooms for all the plates and bowls.

Featured Posts...

labour and delivery

Take Mama's Sex Quiz

As part of a new series, “Let’s Dish,” we’ll be sharing interactive quizzes related to a number of mom topics that will give you a bit of ‘virtual girl talk’ by revealing answers of other moms once you've completed the quiz yourself.

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labour and delivery

5 Commonly Missed Signs of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

Don't miss out on this incredible information on pelvic floor health from Jessica Dalliday of Pilates on Demand (POD), along with FREE video access, a printable to help fix the dysfunction and a fabulous deal to get you started on POD!

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labour and delivery

5 Things First Time Moms Wished They'd Known Before Giving Birth

If you’re pregnant with your first baby, this information is for you, Mama! This post is full of information and helpful (& FREE!) printables to help prepare you for the incredible birth of your baby!

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breastfeeding newborns

How to Succeed at Breastfeeding in the First 48 Hours

Breastfeeding is something every mom should have the best chance at - and the foundation of a great breastfeeding journey stars in the first 48 hours of baby's life. This post has incredibly detailed instructional printables that will help you succeed at breastfeeding!

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All of Mama's Posts:

5 Things First-Time Moms Need to Know About Giving Birth Naturally

Even though your body knows you're capable of giving birth naturally, your mind can get in the way of achieving an unmedicated birth. Read on for five ways your mindset may be working against you and suggestions and resources to work at it while you're still pregnant.

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How to Push Your Baby Out WITHOUT Tearing a Damn Thing.

Whether you decide to have a natural birth or an epidural, there are things you can do to protect your hoo-hah, Mama!

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Vaginal vs C-Section: How your Recovery is Different

The way you give birth affects the way you recover. And while the one thing having a baby does is unite us in the Mom Club, every person experiences their postpartum differently.

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The Best Free Customized Birth Plans

After years and years of working with women just like you, I innovated and came up with the perfect solution to your birth plan blues.

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The Difference Between a Doula and a Nurse at Your Birth

What you need to know before you hire a doula for your birth!

I'm a nurse. I'm also a doula. It’s a weird fence to straddle sometimes because both have their own culture. When wearing my nurse’s hat, I’ve heard the snide comments from other nurses about doulas. In my doula work, I’ve heard countless complaints about the “bitch nurses” at their local hospitals. 

 

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Epidural vs Natural Birth: 3 Ways Your Body Handles Them Differently

It's not a debate- it's just plain old science! Three ways your body handles birth when you don't have an epidural.

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Childbirth: the Stages of Labor and How to Push Without Tearing or Episiotomy

With our new virus-sticken world, a lot of women are planning to give birth outside of the hospital. Research shows us that a normal, low risk birth is safe outside of a medicalized environment. Women have been having normal births at home for years!

I've created this course from 20 years of experience as a Labour and Delivery/Postpartum nurse, a doula and a Lamaze childbirth educator just for you! I've guided many, many women down the path to motherhood, and I'm excited to do it with you online.

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5 Steps to Massaging Your Perineum While You're Pregnant So You Don't Tear During Childbirth

Pusing a baby out is one of the biggest fears that women have about childbirth. Well, that and pooping during the pushing stage but we’ll tackle that one another day, Mama. It’s no surprise either- it’s almost impossible to imagine your lady-bits stretching big enough to fit another human being through it, amiright?

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Pushing For Your Natural Childbirth: 6 Common Birth Interventions to Avoid

If you’ve been longing to have a drug-free birth, this information is for you, Mama. But fair warning: this isn’t about natural childbirth the Bradley way because I’m all about that Lamaze life. And contrary to what a lot of people think, Lamaze is about a lot more than just breathing!

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The 5 Best Positions to Get Into Active Labour

With so many women planning to have epidurals now, getting into positions that encourage the baby to move down the birth canal and progress labour may not be on everyone’s mind. But here’s the thing about epidurals: you have to be in active labour to have one. In order to get into active labour, you may need to use gravity to get the baby’s head pressing against the cervix.

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