There’s no such thing as a perfect parent, right?! Yet there is a myriad of conflicting parenting advice that puts pressure on parents to be perfect, particularly mothers, and it is hard to know if we are getting it right. Becoming a mother has a funny way of getting us to reflect on how we were parented and at times gives us a way of reparenting ourselves in the process of parenting our children. Rebecca Cefai, a psychologist who has a special interest in perinatal mental health and parenting t...
Nov 21, 2022•57 min•Ep. 31
An honest conversation about the realities of mothering within a culture that does not centre mothers. Emma Gray chats to me about her experience entering motherhood, everything she ever wanted and the first time around really was a dream, to then add another child and the transition be much more difficult. Emma talks candidly about her experience with a colicky baby, resentment in relationships, matrescence, mothering alone most of the time and juggling work, kids, life and a charity. We also c...
Nov 14, 2022•51 min•Ep. 30
Stephanie Thompson, author of The Day My Vagina Broke – What They Don’t Tell You About Childbirth, had already endured cancer prior to becoming a mum and so entering motherhood, she had very big hopes for her future family, however her birth was not what she expected and changed her life forever. Stephanie suffered a traumatic birth injury that rocked her to the core and she openly talks about her injuries and the impact these injuries have on her life. She also shares her experience having a va...
Jul 19, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 29
*Trigger warning for this episode* Nikki so beautifully and with so much vulnerability shares her experience of her premature twin birth and the loss of both of her baby girls, Nayara & Nabela. Her birth was quite traumatic and Nikki shares the confusion, the shock, the grief, the pain, the cost, and the emotions around premature birth, infant death, NICU stay, and the separation from her babies. Nikki also mentions the cultural expectations when losing a loved one and how difficult that was...
May 27, 2022•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 28
Ptyalism (Ty-a-lis-im) and Hyperemesis Gravidarum are brutal conditions in pregnancy that we don’t often hear about or understand. Chante Campbell-Morrison shares her experience with these relentless conditions, her mistreatment, what life looked like, what happens to your mind and your body, her diagnosis with PTSD and anxiety, bonding with her baby and the long term impact on her life. Chante also talks about her non-linear healing journey and her mission to raise awareness and supporting mums...
May 14, 2022•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 27
Birth plans tend to be controversial, insufficient and not respected, for the most part. So should we have one? What goes in it? Does your birth just all come down to luck? Well, let me introduce you to Catherine Bell who is an absolute go getter and completely hilarious! And she shares the revolution of birth mapping – not a birth plan but a map and it’s genius! The concepts are different and birth mapping helps you, the birther, understand the different pathways to birth including models of ca...
Apr 19, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 26
Does gestation matter when it comes to loss? Who gets to decide this? Early pregnancy loss is full of mixed emotions, often not spoken about and an experience most women don’t feel validated in because of how we, as society, think about early miscarriage. Sarah chats to me about the excitement of her first pregnancy and her devastating experience losing her baby “sprinkle” a few weeks later. Sarah gets really honest and vulnerable in sharing her story and shares some details not everyone talks a...
Mar 29, 2022•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 25
Have you ever felt like being a woman was a burden? Periods, pregnancy, birth, pelvic health, motherhood, menopause and so on, it’s not always pleasant. But maybe because the culture we live in doesn’t value the feminine, and so we internalise the messages our culture tells us, that being a woman is a burden, physically, mentally, socially, financially, in all aspects of life. Jane Hardwicke Collings, the wise woman herself, chats about the consequences of patriarchal culture, HERstory, rights o...
Mar 07, 2022•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 24
Milli Hill is an absolute powerhouse in the birth world and her books are a testament to that. We chat about encouraging women to think about their births and creating a birth plan, power imbalances, obstetric violence, #metoo in birth and bodily autonomy. We chat further about feminism and the messages we as women receive about our bodies and the shame around women’s bodies and how it starts right from menstruation. Milli opens up about her experience being “cancelled” after questioning arising...
Feb 26, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 23
You prepare for birth, you prepare your baby essentials, you have your baby and then you are sent on your way – for most people – and now what? We even saw during the covid pandemic that postpartum care was deemed “non essential”, which continued the narrative that postpartum, particularly the 4th trimester, wasn’t important and mothers were doing it on their own. In this episode, Leila Armour, a postpartum doula, shares her postpartum wisdom chatting all things tips, resting, depletion, setting...
Feb 03, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 22
Dr Rachel Reed is one of the leading researcher’s in childbirth who discusses physiological birth and how misunderstood women’s bodies are. She also talks about birth as a rite of passage, birth culture, interventions, herstory, policy vs evidence based practice, and midwifery practice, and the complications that arise juggling culture, policy, informed consent and evidenced based practice. Dr Reed talks about centering the woman in birth, individualising our births as there is no right way to b...
Jan 20, 2022•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 21
Only 2% of Aussie mums birth at home and even less have a free birth. Home births tend to have a “dangerous” stigma attached to it and it appears home births are very misunderstood, despite plenty of evidence to show they are safe. Natasha shares her experiences in this episode as a rural mum of 4, home schooling her children, all while helping her husband run their dairy farm. Natasha also shares her birth experiences and has a lot to offer in the conversation of home births and free births. Na...
Jan 06, 2022•59 min•Ep. 20
Samantha Keen chats to me about her birth experiences; induced vaginal birth that went relatively smoothly and then her planned caesarean and recovery. Samantha shares her reasons for opting for a caesarean after a positive vaginal birth experience due to lack of education and support for her pelvic floor and the trouble that followed. Samantha’s story is important because it shows not only a positive experience in both birth scenarios, but also the consequences for a woman in a culture that car...
Dec 13, 2021•59 min•Ep. 19
A humorous conversation with Micah from Waco, Texas USA, a birth doula for over 20 years, mum of 6 and author of The Humour in Birth. Micah currently trains upcoming doulas and has supported over 200 births in her phenomenal career. Micah shares her experiences home birthing and her preterm birth with baby number 6 and shares her wisdom with us for what it’s like being a doula, mentor, author and mum of 6, now raising adult children. This is a great conversation with so much goodness and you wil...
Nov 22, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 18
Sheree shares her experience navigating pelvic health conditions; endometriosis and later diagnosed Adenomyosis and how she copes with these conditions raising children, working and studying. Sheree also talks about the model of care she chose for birth and why she would choose differently next time. She also shares the impact covid had on her mental health, her postnatal anxiety and depression and how she was hesitant to go on medication but how medication has been the biggest help. Sheree’s mo...
Nov 14, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 17
Kate Smith from @yourmumfriend shares her experiences entering motherhood, her struggles, her third birth which was a CAT1 emergency caesarean section to save her baby’s life and how she processed and coped with her intense birth experience. Kate also shares her experience with undiagnosed postnatal depression which manifested as rage and how life is going now with her 3 boys aged 6, 4 & 2 and the beautiful gift of hindsight and loving our postpartum bodies. This conversation was just like c...
Nov 01, 2021•54 min•Ep. 16
Laura from @unwindpilates chats to me about the physical and mental benefits of pilates for pre and postnatal women and why its important to listen to your body, slow down and find the right kind of movement for you when carrying a baby or recovering from birth. We chat about pelvic floor and Women’s Health Physio’s and how local pilates instructors can work together with them to help women be educated, rehabilitate and restore their bodies. We also chat about when returning to exercise, conside...
Oct 10, 2021•45 min•Ep. 15
Once upon a time, women did not fear birth, and yet today, fear in birth is common and problematic. Rebecca Black, a psychologist, mother, hypnobirth practitioner and founder of The Mindful Birth Movement chats to me about the role of fear in birth, where it comes from, how to eliminate it and how hypnobirthing can help you unpack, process and release it. She talks about how important it is to work through past traumas, dive into your subconscious and prepare your mind to help you work through b...
Sep 22, 2021•47 min•Ep. 14
We chat to Imajyn Walker who was categorised as low risk in pregnancy to then deliver her baby who got ‘stuck’ for a significant amount of time resulting in baby Asher’s death in the NICU. Immi is very vocal about shoulder dystocia and how a woman’s intuition should always be considered in birth decisions and outcomes and knowing your rights as it has completely flipped her world upside down. How do you even begin to cope with such a traumatic birth and the loss of your baby?! Immi talks about h...
Sep 06, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 13
Birth doulas can be the difference in positive birth experiences and outcomes, yet, it is rare for birthing women to have a doula support her. We even have the research to back up the need for a doula in our current maternity system, so why aren’t we using them!? A lot of people still remain unaware of the role a doula has in birth and the benefits. So we chat to Amelia, a birth doula who breaks down the incredible birth support a doula can provide, advocating for yourself, the importance of you...
Aug 20, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 12
Nutrient depletion has a huge impact on our wellbeing throughout pregnancy and postpartum but it is something that often is overlooked in maternal health. We chat to Lucy Fitzgibbons a womens health naturopath about the impacts pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding can have on your body and ultimately your health and why its important to put more focus into our internal health over our external looks. She gives great insight into how we can best support ourselves in our most vulnerable state and ho...
Jun 11, 2021•53 min•Ep. 11
Alison Milner chats to us about her experience after a traumatic birth and navigating life with a prolapse and the complications she endured finding the right treatment and management and how that affected her mental health. Alison shares the early red flags of pelvic floor issues after her first baby and frustrations about why women are left in the dark about pelvic health, symptoms and risks. If you are interested in reading Alison's story you can read it on the following links: Instragram: ht...
Jun 11, 2021•43 min•Ep. 10
What is it about the breath? We chat to Nicola Laye about how breathwork can benefit us in our physiological functioning, birth and mental wellbeing. Nicola shares her secrets to living a fulfilled and happy life and using the breath to empower our body and mind, ultimately a skill that can change your life! We even finish off with a few minutes of breathing! Links: @nicolalaye Music is called "Flowers" by Limujii and can be found on YouTube, SoundCloud and Spotify...
Jun 10, 2021•49 min•Ep. 9
We chat to Caitlin Kay-Smith found of non for profit organization Hyperemesis Gravidarium Australia about all things HG and why ginger is not the answer. HG is not morning sickness but is often mistaken for it and should be treated seriously as the complications and consequences go well beyond pregnancy. We talk about why HG has taken so long to be recognized, trauma, malnutrition, treatment, support and what life looks like beyond. HG needs our attention so it does not continue to go undiagnose...
Jun 10, 2021•59 min•Ep. 8
We continue our chat about pelvic health but in this chat we talk specifically about postpartum changes in our bodies and what this means for a woman. We talk about all things diastasis recti, hemorrhoids, cesarean scar, prolapse, pessaries, postnatal checks with a women’s health physio, the language we use around our bodies and dysfunction, menopause, physios in maternity wards in our hospitals and hopes for the future of women’s health. Claire is based on the Gold Coast at The living Well Stud...
Jun 10, 2021•39 min•Ep. 7
Your pelvic floor is one of the most important muscles in your body that we really need to be talking about and its not just about doing pelvic floor exercises. When it comes to pelvic health generally women say “I wish someone told me” and this shows that knowledge is power - know the signs and symptoms, know the risks, know your body! The statistics for pelvic floor dysfunction are shocking and awareness of pelvic health demands your attention! We chat to a pelvic health physiotherapist about ...
Jun 10, 2021•38 min•Ep. 6
Trigger warning: miscarriage. Sarah Pratt bravely shares her story entering motherhood and the challenges after birth. She also talks about the confusing, emotional rollercoaster with unexplained infertility when trying for more children after her first born and her experiences with multiple miscarriages. Sarah shares about how she was met with a lack of support and left invalidated and dismissed because of how common first trimester miscarriage is, despite her having so many. Sarah is passionat...
Jun 10, 2021•55 min•Ep. 5
It can be hard to know what kind of exercise and movement that is right for you when you are pregnant and then again after you have a baby. If you feel good, is that enough to tell you its ok to return to play a team sport or go for a run or lift weights? Is 6 weeks really enough time for recovery and should this blanket statement apply to everyone? We chat to Sarah Male aka The Mummy Trainer about returning to exercise and how the fitness industry needs to start taking pre and postnatal women’s...
Jun 10, 2021•34 min•Ep. 4
We are joined by the lovely Kaitlyn Bywater who has just had her third baby boy via planned caesarean section. We chat to Kaitlyn about her motherhood journey, the struggles with HG, birth trauma, rage and living rurally without her support network. She also talks of her prolapse after her second born and her healing birth after trauma. Kaitlyn often shares her realities of motherhood online and continues to empower other mothers in their experiences and is well worth knowing! Links: Kaitlyn has...
Jun 10, 2021•50 min•Ep. 3
When you become a mother often the transition is difficult and full of confronting changes. We chat to Nikki McCahon about the transition a woman experiences after becoming a mother and how truly deep this transformation is. Struggles with identity, mourning your old life, grieving your experiences, feeling disorientated, reevaluating friendships and relationships and ultimately your personal growth. How do you have a baby and ever be the same?! There is so much confusion and challenges in mothe...
Jun 10, 2021•38 min•Ep. 2
