In this heartfelt continuation of Abby’s story, Jordan and Sophie sit down with Abby to explore her second pregnancy and birth experience. Abby opens up about navigating a series of unexpected challenges, including a velamentous cord insertion, a bilobed placenta, and a breech baby, which ultimately led to a planned cesarean birth. With vulnerability and humor, she reflects on her hopes for another vaginal birth, the emotional complexity of a C-section, and the invaluable support she received fr...
Apr 16, 2025•53 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Join us in Part 1 of our conversation with Abby, where she candidly shares her whirlwind of a birth story for her first birth. Abby walks us through the highs and lows of her labor and beyond. With humor and vulnerability, she reflects on the chaotic beauty of birth and the unexpected journey of reclaiming her identity as a new mom. Stay tuned for Part 2 on April 16th, where we hear Abby’s second birth story and more reflections on what it’s like to be a parent of two kiddos. Thanks for listenin...
Apr 02, 2025•45 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Picking up where the previous episode left off, Samantha shares the outcome of her high-risk fetal surgery. While the medical intervention was necessary, the results were devastating—one of her twins sadly did not survive. She opens up about the emotional complexity of grieving one baby while still carrying the other, the medicalized journey that followed, and the struggles of balancing loss with hope as she continued her pregnancy. The episode also explores the birth of her surviving daughter, ...
Mar 19, 2025•58 min•Season 3Ep. 4
In this episode, Samantha Leusink shares her first pregnancy and birth story, describing a smooth and empowering experience at a local Portland birth center. She reflects on postpartum struggles, breastfeeding challenges, and the transition into motherhood. As Sam and her husband decide to expand their family, they receive an unexpected surprise: twins. Initially overwhelmed yet excited, their joy is quickly overshadowed by a shocking diagnosis of Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS)—a rare ...
Mar 05, 2025•49 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In this heartwarming episode, Sophie's Grandma, Maxine, shares her birth stories spanning from the 1960s to the 1970s. She reflects on her experiences with minimal pain management, evolving gender roles in parenting, and the emotional complexities of breastfeeding without modern support systems. The conversation touches on the profound joys of motherhood, intergenerational wisdom, and the transformation of birth culture over five decades. Listeners will hear tender reflections on family, humor-f...
Feb 05, 2025•37 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Britnee Spring returns to recount the dramatic, vivid, and often hilarious story of her labor and birth experience—including extreme back labor and unique birthing positions. She also reflects on postpartum recovery, hormone shifts, and the joy of early motherhood. From placenta smoothies to bedsharing with her son, this episode offers an honest, heartwarming look at transformation through birth and the lessons of motherhood. Content warnings: homebirth, tearing, blood loss, prodromal labor, pai...
Jan 22, 2025•44 min•Season 3Ep. 2
In this episode, Britnee Spring shares her pregnancy journey, from her unexpected conception to managing relentless nausea and navigating workplace accommodation challenges. She reveals her thoughtful decision to have a home birth with a male midwife and her mother as her doula as well as how she set up a peaceful birthing space. Tune in for an inspiring conversation on pregnancy preparation, mindset, and trusting your instincts! Website: bearingbirthpodcast.com Instagram: @BearingBirthPodcast E...
Jan 08, 2025•29 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In today’s episode, your hosts Jordan and Sophie reflect on one year of their birth story podcast being live! They ask each other questions including what the podcast has meant to them and how they have grown as birth story listeners and podcast hosts. To celebrate one year and to thank our incredible guests, you get to hear a little snippet from each of them! At the end of every episode we ask our guest: what advice do you have for someone about to give birth or become a parent? This episode in...
Dec 04, 2024•37 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Join us for Part 2 with our very own Sophie! If you missed the first half of Sophie’s birth story on November 6th, make sure to go back and listen there first. In this episode, Sophie walks us through the rest of her challenging birth experience where she reaches the pushing stage but ultimately ends up needing an emergency c-section. Sophie finally gets to meet her daughter and then navigates early c-section recovery in the hospital. She details her experience dealing with processing a complica...
Nov 20, 2024•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 8
Join us for a very special episode today…our very own Sophie gets vulnerable and shares her birth story! In part 1, Sophie talks with Jordan about her experience with pregnancy and what it was like navigating scary and abrupt changes to her birth plan. Sophie describes what informed her beliefs surrounding birth and how learning “too much” about birth in a doula training created the perfect conditions for trauma exposure. Sophie walks us through her fears around giving birth, especially in a hos...
Nov 06, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 2Ep. 7
In this episode of Bearing Birth, we continue our conversation with Rashida Quinn, the Program Director of the Alliance of Black Nurses Association of Oregon and host of two powerful podcasts, Black Care Matters and Dark Matters. Rashida, a former doula, poet, and advocate for restorative justice, joins us to discuss her postpartum journey as part of an interracial couple navigating complex decisions to protect the wellbeing of her young family. In part two of this conversation, Rashida offers a...
Oct 16, 2024•34 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Join us in Part 1 of our conversation with Rashida Quinn, where we dive into her two pregnancies and birth stories of her daughters. Rashida is the program director of the Alliance of Black Nurses Association of Oregon, also known as ABNAO. Rashida is also the host of two podcasts: the most recent being Black Care Matters and another podcast called Dark Matters, which are both linked below. Rashida touches on the delicate balance of the challenges and joys of pregnancy and birth, her successful ...
Oct 02, 2024•47 min•Season 2Ep. 5
We are back with Part 2 of a conversation we had with Ryan; a first-time dad to a one-year old daughter. Ryan is also the husband of our previous guest Cailley (Season 1, Episodes 5 & 6). In this episode, we talk with Ryan about his perspective of his daughter’s birth as the non-birthing partner. Ryan walks us through the surprising turn of events of his wife’s labor and homebirth and how he processed difficult emotions. We have a candid conversation about identity shifts and some of the cha...
Sep 18, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Join us in a conversation with Ryan, the husband of our previous guest, Cailley (Season 1, Episodes 5 & 6). This is our first episode with a non-birthing partner sharing their experience and perspective on birth, and we absolutely loved hearing Ryan’s take! This episode is just Part 1 of Ryan’s story, so come back on September 18th for Part 2! In Part 1, Ryan walks us through what it was like to experience a miscarriage and then his wife getting pregnant again right away. He talks about what...
Sep 04, 2024•27 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Join us in a conversation with Janelle Grizzard, a mother and the new owner of Luna Wellness, a Portland based clinic focused on women’s perinatal physical health and wellness. If you missed part 1, make sure you go back and listen to that episode first! In part 2 we hear more of Janelle’s story and what happens after the birth of her son. After a traumatic situation involving learning how to feed her baby, Janelle talks about what it was like to process something so scary and how she's learning...
Aug 21, 2024•36 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Join us in a conversation with Janelle Grizzard, mother and the new owner of Luna Wellness, a Portland based clinic focused on women’s perinatal physical health and wellness. Janelle shares how a passion for helping mothers as a massage therapist as well as her own journey navigating motherhood led to her taking over a well-established, holistic clinic. In part 1, Janelle walks us through what it was like being pregnant and shares her labor and birth experience. Luna Wellness offers massage, chi...
Aug 07, 2024•59 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Join us as we chat with BreaRose Smith, friend of Jordan and Sasha. Brea is a yoga instructor and energy healer based in San Diego. Brea reflects on giving birth one year ago and how rapid everything changes and transitions both for her and her son. She describes how there is both grief and joy intertwined in the experience of parenthood. We also dive deep into Brea’s experience with guilt and pressures to be productive and how she struggles to allow herself to rest. Let’s be real - we all three...
Jul 03, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Season 1Ep. 14
In this episode we chat with Anna, a breast cancer survivor and new mother. Anna walks us through the challenges of breast cancer treatment, being told she couldn’t have children because of her cancer, and the chapter of her story that started with an unexpected pregnancy. Anna’s resilience is highlighted through her journey as she learns to trust her body and feel empowered in bringing a child into the world despite her challenging medical advice. The universe placed Anna in the same room as a ...
Jun 05, 2024•1 hr 40 min•Season 1Ep. 13
In this episode, we chat with Dr. Emily Knell Spaeth, founder of Be Well Baby PDX, a Portland-based practice providing holistic prenatal and infant care services. Emily is a neonatal and perinatal physical therapist, yoga instructor, massage therapist, and lactation consultant with years of experience supporting families with newborns. Emily is an expert in her field, incredibly passionate and fulfilled by her work, and a pillar of support to families and other birth workers alike. More impressi...
May 01, 2024•1 hr 26 min•Season 1Ep. 12
In this episode, we chat with Sophie’s next door neighbor‘s, Garrett and Jules, in part 2 of a 2-part series called Before and After Birth. This is our second Before/After series, and our first episodes with a couple on the podcast! In this episode, we talk to Garrett and Jules about 3 months after Jules gave birth. It was so special to hear from both of our guests about their perspectives on what happened during the labor and birth of their daughter. Garret describes his experience watching his...
Apr 05, 2024•1 hr 23 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Join us as we chat with Sophie’s next door neighbor’s, Garrett and Jules, in part 1 of a 2-part series called Before and After Birth. This is our second Before/After series, and our first episodes with a couple on the podcast! In this episode, we talk to Garrett and Jules before their birth and they discuss their experiences around pregnancy including getting pregnant by accident, navigating tough choices, and dealing with some possible pregnancy complications. We also dig deeper into how much s...
Apr 03, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Season 1Ep. 10
In this episode, we talk with Sophie’s former colleague and dear friend Edith, who shares her three birth experiences (two living, and one miscarriage). She also goes into detail about what it’s like to be a parent and how that compares to how she was parented. Edith is mother to a 16 year old and an 8 year old, and recounts her birth stories as if they happened yesterday. Edith faced some challenges during her pregnancies, including managing gestational diabetes, morning sickness, and recommend...
Mar 06, 2024•1 hr 46 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Step into the transformative world of birth story processing with Libby Mukhi, PMH-C, who returns as our esteemed guest for the second episode in a row. Libby shares her insights into the profound impact of birth story processing and the art of holding space for folks navigating strong narratives centering around childbirth and the perinatal experience. Libby reflects on her own challenging birth experiences, taking an inspiring class created by Pam England (author of Birthing from Within), and ...
Feb 09, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 8
In this compelling and insightful episode, we chat with Libby Mukhi, PMH-C, a postpartum doula, birth story listener, and mother of two. Libby reflects on her challenging experiences with pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum. Living abroad in Australia, Libby expressed her desire to absorb as much knowledge as possible to prepare for her first birth. Despite a smooth pregnancy and high hopes for a vaginal birth, high blood pressure ultimately led to an unplanned induction and c-section birth. Th...
Feb 07, 2024•1 hr 32 min•Season 1Ep. 7
This episode is part 2 of a two part series called before/after birth. We invite Cailley Roe back on, friend and neighbor of Sophie’s, who shares the birth story of her daughter in May ‘23. Join us as Cailley, a first-time mother, shares her gripping experience going past 40 weeks, navigating a backup induction plan, and enduring a 48-hour labor with a water-breaking story contrary to cinematic depictions. From unconventional castor oil inductions to doubts about her body, Cailley takes us throu...
Jan 05, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 1Ep. 6
This episode is part 1 of a two part series called before/after birth. We are excited to welcome Sophie’s neighbor and friend Cailley, who bravely shares her experiences from the difficulty of her first pregnancy loss ending at 11 weeks to the joys of her current pregnancy at 37 weeks. At the time of recording, Cailley finds herself in the nesting stage bursting with energy, while also learning the importance of taking time to rest as physical discomfort increases. We also discuss deciding on an...
Jan 03, 2024•43 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Sophie and Jordan welcome Dr. Courtney Livaudais, a Portland-based Occupational Therapist and Lactation Consultant as well as owner of Triple Moon Therapy . In this episode, Courtney shares the birth story of her daughter, including her experience with IVF conception, the physical discomforts and unexpected joys of her pregnancy, and surprisingly speedy labor. She shares on the profound connection she felt with her child and discusses what she plans to do differently in preparing for her second ...
Dec 06, 2023•1 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Sophie and Jordan welcome Io, who shares the story of their birth in November 2016. In this conversation we explore how Io navigated changes to their birth plan that they were not expecting, challenges of labor monitoring, and what it’s like being a non-binary person giving birth in a hospital setting. We discuss how having the support of people you trust can be a key factor in having a positive birth experience when facing the unexpected. This episode contains a birth story that includes an une...
Nov 15, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Jordan and Sophie welcome their very first guest, Rachel Arias, who shares the story of the birth of her daughter in February 2022. Rachel made for a wonderful and thoughtful first guest as she is a perinatal mental health therapist and reflected on her own struggle with anxiety during pregnancy and postpartum. This episode contains a birth story which includes the vaginal birth of a single baby in a hospital setting, use of medical induction techniques, as well as sensitive themes including mot...
Nov 15, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Welcome to Bearing Birth, a podcast all about birth stories! In this first episode, your hosts Jordan and Sophie introduce themselves and discuss their “why” for starting a storytelling podcast together about birth. They discuss reasons for sharing one’s birth story and how it can be healing, community building, and in many ways, beneficial. They describe how they came up with their podcast name and what folks can expect from future episodes. On our podcast, we intend to honor and intentionally ...
Nov 15, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 1
