The stunning Jenna Fuchs with her mother Susan Fuchs-Hoeschen and baby Camille (6 months). Jenna had a very healthy pregnancy and knew that she wanted a natural hospital birth. Just before her due date, Camille turned breech. Jenna tried everything possible to get her to flip - acupuncture, yoga, headstands in the pool and thankfully she did. When Jenna's water broke and labor didn't start within 24 hours, she had to be induced and was worried that would jeopardize her ability to have a delivery without pain medication, but she was able to stay the course and push through. Her first few months after giving birth were very rough and she wasn't feeling like she was connecting or doing good enough for her daughter. Her mother was able to help her realize that she was suffering from postpartum depression, and she was able to get help. Once she returned to work, things normalized very quickly. Jenna is in recovery from bulimia and has struggled with body issues her whole adult life. She' d lost a significant amount of weight before getting pregnant which made the stress of gaining for pregnancy a bit more dramatic. She was able to counter it and stay healthy through exercising and practicing yoga throughout her pregnancy. She and Camille have a wonderful breastfeeding relationship today.
Susan has two daughters herself and Camille is her first grandchild. She was a single mother when Jenna was born and was able to find support through a maternity home for women. While she already considered herself a feminist, it was through this experience that she solidified her beliefs in the importance of women's issues. Her labor and delivery were without issue, and she was able to breastfeed without issue. Susan is a sexual abuse survivor and experienced some postpartum depression after Jenna's birth. When Jenna was a few years old, Susan met her now husband and having a partner made her second pregnancy and birth much different than the first. The following years were a bit of a struggle with familial issues and Susan's struggle with her weight. Her husband was abusive and caused a rift amongst family, but they have all since healed and reconciled. Susan was obese, her physical self very much reflecting the emotional issues she had dealt with. She decided to do whatever it took to get healthy and was able to lose 50lbs herself before deciding to undergo bariatric surgery and lost another 50lbs after. She now feels that she looks on the outside how she feels on the inside.