S3 E124: Kaitlin Marcellot | Reimagining Postpartum: Storytelling, Support & the Power of Shugie

Reimagining Postpartum: Kaitlin Marcellot’s Journey from Personal Healing to Collective Support

What happens when we prepare for postpartum before anything else?

For Kaitlin Marcellot, founder of Shugie, that intentional decision changed everything. In this heartfelt episode of The Mama Making Podcast, Jessica and Kaitlin dive into what it really takes to feel supported in the fourth trimester—and how personal storytelling can become collective healing.

Preparation Over Perfection

Kaitlin’s first baby was a COVID baby. While many people focus on pregnancy prep, Kaitlin went a different route: she invested all her energy into postpartum planning. With a history of depression and anxiety, she knew that her well-being in the fourth trimester would set the tone for her parenting journey. From pre-booked therapy appointments to a community of care providers, she created the kind of support system she wishes every mom could access.

She was proactive, intentional, and realistic. She didn’t expect everything to go smoothly—but she created scaffolding that would hold her up when it didn’t. This included securing mental health care, physical recovery plans, and relationship support well before the baby arrived.

She also did something few moms are told they’re allowed to do: she gave herself permission to ask for help—before she felt broken. By designing a postpartum care map with everything from lactation support to meal train links, Kaitlin essentially mothered herself first.

The Story Behind Shugie

Shugie didn’t start as a business idea—it started as a survival strategy. After her first birth, Kaitlin began compiling resources and recommendations into a simple Google Doc for friends who were pregnant. Word spread. More and more moms asked for the list.

That doc became a Substack newsletter. That newsletter evolved into a lovingly designed platform built for moms navigating postpartum without a manual.

Kaitlin poured her marketing background and deep wellness experience into what would become Shugie: a hybrid space for real stories, practical resources, and emotional support. Named after her daughter’s nickname, Shugie became a way to hold both softness and structure in a season that offers neither consistently.

From pelvic floor therapy and postpartum doulas to recovery guides and mom-friendly events, Shugie helps fill the gaps so many moms didn’t even know existed. It’s a space to be held, to find your next step, or simply to not feel so alone.

Births That Heal and Stories That Bridge

While her first birth was traumatic and medicalized, her second was redemptive—because she knew how to advocate for herself. Kaitlin chose induction the second time, requested specific medication doses, and denied cervical checks she didn’t want. She took up space. She used her voice. She healed.

But healing didn’t happen all at once. She used journaling as a daily check-in, recorded voice notes when words felt too heavy to write, and shared vulnerable moments in Shugie’s community spaces. Storytelling became her tool for integration—connecting mind, body, and spirit across the fragments left by trauma.

And Shugie became more than a platform. It became a collective journal, a mosaic of mom voices reminding each other: you’re not alone. The simple act of saying, "Me too," in a vulnerable space helped others feel held—sometimes for the first time.

Postpartum Isn't Just a Phase – It's a Foundation

From community advocacy to conversations about privilege to dreaming up political change, Kaitlin’s work reminds us: when the mother is healthy, the family thrives. When families thrive, communities flourish. And when moms share stories instead of stuffing them down, we all feel less alone.

She dreams of a world where postpartum care is as expected as prenatal care. Where insurance companies make space for doulas and therapists and meal deliveries. Where community isn’t a buzzword – it’s a built-in part of new motherhood.

Kaitlin also speaks to the broader systems that need change – from insurance coverage gaps to the lack of accessible postpartum mental health care. She hopes Shugie becomes a bridge between moms and providers, policy and reality.

Her mission? To normalize postpartum as a powerful, complex, worthy phase – not a footnote to pregnancy or a milestone to rush past. To remind us that healing doesn’t have a timeline – and that support isn’t just nice to have, it’s essential.

Connect with Kaitlin Marcellot

• Website: shugie.co

• Instagram, TikTok + Facebook: @hi.shugie

TL;DR

Kaitlin Marcellot, founder of Shugie, shares how preparing for postpartum first—and building a supportive, flexible, community-rooted care network—led to healing after birth. She dives into the power of storytelling, privilege, advocacy, and creating a platform to hold space for moms in every season.

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